Your advice

D40I’m planning on buying a D-SLR and I must say I’m stuck at choosing the brand (Nikon, Canon, Sony … any other brand?), let aside a model. I intend on buying a Nikon as my dad owns a D-40 and I know how that (type of) cam works; Yet that sole reason should not decide which one to buy (imo)… That given, which one would you suggest, and most of all: why do you suggest it? D40? D40X? D80? EOS40D? EOS400D? A700? … or any of the other camera’s over at dpreview?

Update 2007.11.13I’ve bought one!

Published by Bramus!

Bramus is a frontend web developer from Belgium, working as a Chrome Developer Relations Engineer at Google. From the moment he discovered view-source at the age of 14 (way back in 1997), he fell in love with the web and has been tinkering with it ever since (more …)

Join the Conversation

12 Comments

  1. It’s like asking whether PC or Mac is better 🙂

    Many pro’s in Belgium have Nikons. But some pro’s have told me they would switch to Canon if they didn’t already own so many Nikon stuff. Why? No discussion, there is less noise in Canon pictures whatever model you use. But if you don’t really go into the details, the noise of Nikon won’t bother you.

    The user interface is another thing. I personally prefer Nikon over Canon in terms of user interface. The Nikon interface is a little more straight-forward. But once you get used to either interface…

    Sony has a lot of potential but is still young in the market with its DSL cameras. Price versus features it’s the best buy at this moment (in my opinion). But they’ve few models so maybe you won’t find one that fits your needs or budget?

    I own a Canon 5D and I’m very happy with it. But don’t spend all your money on a body, the lenses are as important as your body!

  2. Hi Bart, thanks for your extensive reply, it’s that kind of reply I was looking for 🙂

    1. I first started with thinking of buying a small (non D-SLR) cam, but I want/need loads of (manual) features so ended up looking for a D-SLR. So detail isn’t that important to me (don’t think I’ll ever shoot macros). Other than that, my dad owns 3 Nikon lenses; quite sure I can borrow one … 2 plusses for Nikon.
    2. I already “know” the interface, so that’s another plus for Nikon.
    3. Yeah I know, that’s why I mentioned the Sony Model as the last one in line.
    4. Kudos on the nice cam!

  3. I own a Nikon D80 and an extensive collection of lenses, however if I was starting from scratch now with your budget I would skip Nikon and Canon and go for the Pentax K10D, which is still the best value DSLR out ATM.

    It has features from Nikons D200 and Canons 40D for half the price, and on top of that it has in-body image stabilisation which is worth far more than you’d think.

    The best thing to do is to go to a camera shop and handle all the cameras. Don’t discount Olympus either, they have good little bodies and great lenses.

  4. As a response to Weiran’s comment. Sony has in-body stabilisation as well. Sony Alpha 700 (their latest model) even has live preview and dust removal vibration. Live preview is only available with the Nikon 3D (Nikon’s top model) and some of the Canon 1Ds (Canon’s top models). Dust removal vibration is not even available with the Canon 5D. These are some of the features Sony offers for less money.

  5. My best friend, who is a photographer, just bought the d40 as well and is absolutly pleased, eventhough he is a super-old-school slides kinda guy.

    But that’s all i got, don’t know whats better. I just heard that Canons “Digital Rebel” delivers almost pro-level, eventhough it’s in a lower price range.

    I would go for the one (if the specs and price suits you) that feels best in your hand and feels most naturally when using the menu.

  6. Bart: The A700 does look like a nice camera, however it carries a 2x price premium over the K10D currently, and I don’t think its twice the camera.

    Bramus: if you’re having problems with Twitterlicious you could send me the error log file and I could see whats going wrong for you :).

  7. I have the Nikon D70. It´s a very good camera, but there is one point I will care about next time. A dslr camera needs a supersonic cleaner for the sensor. Otherwise you will always have probems with little spots in the picture from dust on the sensor. I will buy in two or three years a new Nikon, when they are affordable, with that feature.

  8. Since this weekend I’m the proud owner of a D40 + 18-55 + 55-200. Could have gone for the D80 (the budget allowed it), but found that a bit of overkill for me. Thanks for the advice you guys!

  9. Hi i need an advice
    Now i have alpha 100, and am not professional photographer but i like to move it up to alpha 700 so what is your recommendations.
    Thanks

Leave a comment

Leave a Reply to Manuel Martensen Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.