Canon EOS 40D 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only)From Canon : Canon Eos Digital Slr

Customer Reviews

A work horse
What can I say about the Canon 40D that hasnt already been written in dozens of photography magazines and web forums? Probably not a whole lot LOL If you are seriously considering this camera chances are you are already familiar with the brand if not the model by now so I will just highlight the things Ive found useful and the things I have found annoying about this camera and YES there are some things Ive found annoying. First let me say that for a "mid level" DSLR the piece of equipment is as my review title states a serious work horse. Having stepped up from a Canon Rebel XT which was a great DSLR in its own right I was quite impressed with the quality both of the camera itself and the images it creates right out of the box. My first gripe however is that after using my XT for a while I found the 40D to be rather bulky and cumbersome. If you are just stepping up to a "pro" level camera from something like a regular point & shoot or if you are like me and simply have small hands or as in my case both this is something to be aware of. The best analogy I can give is to be used to driving a small compact car like an old Chevy Chevette and suddenly finding yourself behind the wheel of a 56 Buick Roadmaster Its large its heavy and it feels rather awkward. Personally I also find having the info LCD on the top of the camera instead of the back of the camera to be...well...stupid. I really dont like having to stop and "tilt" the camera upwards just to read my settings. There is a button on the back to use the rear screen for this but its an extra step to have to do it...I thought the lay out of the Rebel XT was much nicer in this regard. Now as I said the image quality this camera produces makes the annoyance of the cameras size and poorly placed info LCD well worth dealing with. Even with my "cheap" third party lenses the images that have come off this camera have been superb. Ive cropped images at close to 100% that have still been very printable. Also I shoot in mostly Aperture Priority mode and Ive found the camera to be pretty much right on the nose most of the time. Speaking of crops another thing to be aware of is that this camera does have an APS-C sized sensor NOT full frame so there is aprox a 1.6x crop factor involved with the lenses. Not a complaint mind you but something to be aware of. Please note however this IS just a crop and not an actual zoom factor...and there IS a difference. And speaking of "IS"...this leads me to my second gripe. If you are already familiar with Canon then you should know by now that they have not yet started to incorporate IS or "Image Stabilization" into their DSLRs the way many of the other camera makers have. As such you usually have to pay a great deal extra for this feature as most Canon IS lenses are rather expensive. In fact with the exception of a couple of recently introduced EF-S models Canon IS lenses start around $600 and the sky is the virtual limit compared with many other brands with many of their lenses costing several thousands of dollars. All and all this is a great camera but its not "perfect" in the way some Canon aficionados would have you believe. Another minor gripe was that moving up from my XT I had to purchase new spare batteries all over again as the "Rebels" and their higher end counter parts use different batteries...even though both are Li-ion. The same is true of many of the accessories as well...I had to get a new remote the vertical grips arent compatible etc. etc.. If you already own a Rebel this is something to be aware of as youll have to replace all of these accessories that youve already shelled out cash for Now after reading this Im sure youre asking "With all these issues is it worth it?" and the answer is yes. Ive gotten shots with this camera that simply would not have been possible with anything else Ive ever owned digital or film. The focus is fast and accurate Ive had no compatibility problems with any of my lenses although I do have one fussy flash unit from ProMaster that still wont work with it and once you get used to it this camera has a lot of very useful features such as Highlight Priority etc.. If you already own Canon EOS gear remember this bugger wont work with FD equipment then its a very worth while upgrade considering the price drop. If you dont need the high ISOs of the new 50D or the full frame wonders of the 5D Mark II then the 40D is a wonderful investment and should serve you well for many years.

A great all around camera/lens combination
Im not going into all the lurid details but this is a GREAT camera and the 28-135 IS is the lens I use day to day with it. It gives a very good range of focal lengths and the IS feature helps with the camera shake at slow shutter speeds that all zoom lens suffer from. My only caveat is that theyre a bit heavy together. Not nearly as bad as some though If you cant afford the 50D this is an amazing value and the images are superb. Ive printed up to 12x18 with this 10 Mpixel camera and had good results. Depth of colour and sharpness are first rate. I recommend it highly.

Just get it
I shoot professionally full time specializing in advertising and weddings. When I got into advertising I was unsure if this 40d would produce a big enough file to accommodate billboards. Ive been proven wrong. 10.1 megapixels is sufficient for full sized billboards. For weddings in my experience anything larger than this file size would be overkill for the type of prints wedding couples want produced. The color accuracy has amazed me as well as the endless list of custom functions. You can truly trick this camera out to suit your individual shooting style. The body is rugged... I dont make a habit of dropping my gear like a schmuck but if that is your disposition then you will appreciate the magnesium alloy body. The size fits nicely in big hands and the weight is ideal over larger cameras such as the Mark II series which I have had the pleasure of shooting with. I will not be upgrading to the new 50d. I will instead be upgrading to the new 5d mark II once that comes out. Only for my own gluttonous reasons though. Take my word. This beast will serve you well

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #82 in Camera & Photo
Brand: Canon
Model: 40D Body
Released on: 2007-08-30
Dimensions: 4.20" h x 5.70" w x 2.90" l 4.00 pounds
Display size: 3
Included Software: Yes

Features

10.1-megapixel CMOS sensor captures enough detail for photo-quality poster-size prints
Large 3.0-inch LCD display with enhanced Live View and broadened color gamut
6.5 frame-per-second continuous shooting capability for bursts of up to 75 Large/Fine JPEGs or 17 RAW images
sRAW mode 35-zone metering system integrated Self-Cleaning Sensor Unit
Powered by BP-511A BP-511 or BP-512 lithium-ion battery pack stores images on CF cards

Canon EF 75 300mm f 4 5.6 III USM Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon ...

Oxford Digital or 35mm Film SLR Holster Camera Case for Nikon ...

Opteka Remote Control Cord for Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT XTi XSi ...

Fujica 35 mm SLR Camera - 75

Pentax DA 18 55mm f 3.5 5.6 AL Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital ...

Canon EW83F Lens Hood for 24 70mm f 2.8L Canon SLR Lens Prices ...

Canon EF S 17 85mm f 4 5.6 Image Stabilized USM SLR Lens for EOS ...

K20D and oldies

Nikon Compact Digital SLR Camera System Case Gadget Bag for Nikon ...

Nikon D80 10.2MP SLR Digital camera Body

Canon Eos Digital Slr