Jeffro600
May 21st, 2008, 07:34 PM
Not that i didnt love my Nikon or anything but i longed for something that would shoot faster. 3FPS is a good base for an all around camera but if your shooting alot of action shots, sports or other fast moving subjects like i do, you need something faster. I was thinking about a D300 but they were on average 500-700 more than the 40D for nearly the exact same camera. Soo, i traded up and bought the 40D. I was looking at the 5D very seriously but for what i want it for, it wont fit my needs very well. The full frame sensor would have been nice but the 3FPS is its downfall. D3, sure...but im not about to drop several thousand dollars JUST for a camera body! At least, not quite yet.
Ive wanted a 40D BAD ever since it came out last year and always had to tell myself no whenever i strolled through a camera store or one of the big chain places because i had so much invested into my Nikon gear already. Got it for 1099 at Best Buy(1299 but i know somoene that works there and he got me a deal on it) with the 28-135 IS lens. Fit and finish are TOP NOTCH and typical Canon. All the buttons are well placed and fit my hands perfectly. The grip is very nice and has a rubber texture to it to keep from slipping. The camera is heavy...at least more so than my D80 was but not in a bad way. It balances nicely, especially with the 28-135 lens and feels good in your hands. The viewfinder is bright and clear and makes Canons lower line stuff(XT, XTi, etc) look like a point and shoot. Overall, im happy with the fit, finish, looks and handling of it.
Now the performance was where i was blown away! My D80 had a useable ISO that topped out around 400...much after that, artafacts, loss of detail and lots of noise took over. I shot a little bit with the 40D last night in the 800-1600 range and was blown away! The detail is still there, everything is still sharp and the noise is very tame and looks like a pleasing film grain more than digital camera noise. VERY happy with the low light performance of this camera and totally does not make me regret not buying the 5D now!
ISO 1600
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0118.jpg
This shot with my D80 would have looked terrible! I know...i tried it several times!
ISO 800
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0119.jpg
Again, very usable image, low noise and still quite sharp!
The 28-135 lens is pretty damn nice for a kit lens. Its not quite as wide as i would like but the zoom range is decent. The lens IS works GREAT...i was shooting some shots as slow as 1/2 a second and they were still pretty sharp handheld. Macro on it is decent as well...not as good as a dedicated macro lens but good nonetheless....
Zoomed out all the way
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0096.jpg
Closest focusing as possible
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0097.jpg
Couple shots of the dogs too...
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0068.jpg
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0089.jpg
Very impressive camera though! Ive got a 70-200 2.8 on order for it and will probably pick of a 2X TC for it to have a 400 4.0 lens. Gonna take a while to get back into the Canon swing of things as they do somethings differently than Nikon but so far, im really liking it!
Ive wanted a 40D BAD ever since it came out last year and always had to tell myself no whenever i strolled through a camera store or one of the big chain places because i had so much invested into my Nikon gear already. Got it for 1099 at Best Buy(1299 but i know somoene that works there and he got me a deal on it) with the 28-135 IS lens. Fit and finish are TOP NOTCH and typical Canon. All the buttons are well placed and fit my hands perfectly. The grip is very nice and has a rubber texture to it to keep from slipping. The camera is heavy...at least more so than my D80 was but not in a bad way. It balances nicely, especially with the 28-135 lens and feels good in your hands. The viewfinder is bright and clear and makes Canons lower line stuff(XT, XTi, etc) look like a point and shoot. Overall, im happy with the fit, finish, looks and handling of it.
Now the performance was where i was blown away! My D80 had a useable ISO that topped out around 400...much after that, artafacts, loss of detail and lots of noise took over. I shot a little bit with the 40D last night in the 800-1600 range and was blown away! The detail is still there, everything is still sharp and the noise is very tame and looks like a pleasing film grain more than digital camera noise. VERY happy with the low light performance of this camera and totally does not make me regret not buying the 5D now!
ISO 1600
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0118.jpg
This shot with my D80 would have looked terrible! I know...i tried it several times!
ISO 800
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0119.jpg
Again, very usable image, low noise and still quite sharp!
The 28-135 lens is pretty damn nice for a kit lens. Its not quite as wide as i would like but the zoom range is decent. The lens IS works GREAT...i was shooting some shots as slow as 1/2 a second and they were still pretty sharp handheld. Macro on it is decent as well...not as good as a dedicated macro lens but good nonetheless....
Zoomed out all the way
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0096.jpg
Closest focusing as possible
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0097.jpg
Couple shots of the dogs too...
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0068.jpg
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e40/Jeffro600/IMG_0089.jpg
Very impressive camera though! Ive got a 70-200 2.8 on order for it and will probably pick of a 2X TC for it to have a 400 4.0 lens. Gonna take a while to get back into the Canon swing of things as they do somethings differently than Nikon but so far, im really liking it!