[ItaliStang]

Ok, so I got some money for my birthday to put towards a camera, and need help finding a good one...

looking to spend in the $500 range... (and no, I didn't get 500 as the gift, haha, most of this is coming from my pocket)

I was recommended the Nikon D40... What do you all think of that one?

or what would you suggest?

[TheUNZippee!]

Do you want SLR or point and shoot?>

[ItaliStang]

SLR

my phone is all the point and shoot I need, haha

I'm still not sure if I want to buy this new camera because my cell phone is a 3 MP flipshot... and takes some nice shots...

here's some from the cell phone...








I usually use lightroom to make them look a little better, but these are the original ones here

don't know if it will be worth it to get a $500 camera when this one does pretty good...

I have that and an old Canon A1 from 1979... which takes nice shots, but 35mm is so expensive anymore

[TheUNZippee!]

Dude those are excellent pictures from a cell phone.

But. If your heart is set on an SLR, try to grab one that allows you to compose the image in the lcd display instead of just the viewfinder. Both Canon & Nikon have new models out that allow you to do so.

[STREET6]

I have a 10d canon that I got used. Yes, it is a bit "dated" now but takes excelent photos. I don't know how many slr's you'll find in that price range, let alone with live veiw capability. Though there are a few decent ones. I like my canon a lot. But would consider a nikon in the future. When you step up to the slrs, they are all pretty nice nomatter what brand. I like nikon and conon for avalability and the large number of lenses available. The Nikon you mentioned would make a very nice camera for you. Kind of wish I had one of those models because it's a bit smaller and lighter than my 10d. I love my camera, but sometimes it's just nice to throw my old paint and shoot digital in my pocket when I got out and about. Just the size and weight are a pain. The SLR is mainly for time when I am going out to shoot pics.
Also, because of the 1.5:1 aspect ratio a lense at 35mm will actualy work for you like a 52mm.
I love photography, and an SLR is a great tool and fun when you get into manualy setting apeture and shutter speed.

Tell us what you get and post some pics taken with it.

[AndrewA.]

Try and wait a mnth. Usally best buy has some great deals for holidays. might be able to get a sweet deal on the 4th.

[JohnC]

Nikon D40 would be my choice.

Read KR's review here: Nikon D40

Nikon D40 with new 18-55mm lens. enlarge I got my D40 at Ritz. I'd have gotten it at Adorama or Amazon, too. Sometimes you can get them factory refurbished for $399.95, a great deal if you can find it, as well as brand-new as a do-everything kit with 18-55 and 55-200 VR lenses for under $600 at Adorama. It helps me keep adding to this site when you get yours through these direct links, too. Thanks! More Nikon Reviews NEW: DSLR High ISO Shoot-Out 03 October 2007 NEW: Nikon D40 vs. D200, D80, D70, D50 and Canon 5D and XTi NEW: My Nikon D40 User's Guide. Plain-English guide to how I use my Nikon D40. INTRODUCTION Top Introduction Specifications Performance & Examples Recommendations Lens Recommendations Comparisons NEW: Nikon D60 and Nikon D40x, slightly downgraded versions of the D40, but with more pixels and a higher price. I prefer my D40 over the D40x and D60, even for the same price, and since the D40 costs less, the D40 is the deal of the past two years! February 2008: D40 metering hack with manual focus lenses: Yes, a crafty reader sent me one he tweaked to do this and it works, but no, he doesn't have any plans (yet) to sell the thing. The D40 does not meter with manual lenses, but you always can guess and look at the playback on the LCD. September 2007: The price drops to just under $500, with the excellent 18-55mm lens. My D40 is too much fun. I own all sorts of serious cameras like the Canon 5D, Nikon D200, D80 and D70, but my D40, with its weightless 18-55mm lens and SB-400 flash, is what I grab most of the time as of May 2007 when I just want to make good photos easily. It works great with my other lenses like my Nikon 18-200mm VR. As of May 2007, I've made over 10,000 shots on my D40 and it still runs and works like new. I prefer my D40 to my heavier cameras because I prefer the rear-LCD only display over my older cameras' film-era split displays on the top and back of the camera. Why should I move my head to look two places when I can have it all right in front of me on my D40? My D40 has about double the battery life of my D200, so I never need to buy or carry a spare battery, even to make 750 shots in a day or more. I got my D40 for fun, and since have fallen in love with how fast and easy it is to use. The great images just keep pouring out of it. Its so light weight I carry it everywhere instead of my Canon SD700 pocket camera. I don't use my D80 anymore. When I want a fun, light camera, I grab my D40. I only grab my big D200 when I've got something more serious to photograph. Want to see what I've been shooting with my D40? See my baby Ryan Rockwell's page, most of which I shoot every day with my D40. My D40 and its included lens is the best camera of which I know for people and family photography. Get the lightweight SB-400 flash - it gives great, soft light when used in it's bounce mode, and adds little to the weight of the D40. Firmware: Nikon has a new firmware update as of January 2007. I've never bothered to install it; the original firmware is fine and I'm lazy. All of this review is using my original firmware. Technically my D40 produces exactly the same image quality as the D70s and D50, allowing great prints up to at least 13 x 19," and adds these benefits: It's Weightless! The first thing I noticed, and so did my non-photographer wife, is that it's so light. We thought it would be much heavier, but no! It must be made of air. It's like not having a camera with you at all. The light weight makes it a dream to carry around all day. Having a camera with you instead of left in the car or at home is the difference between getting a great shot or missing it. My D40 lets me get make great results hand-held at slow speeds, probably because it also has very, very little shutter and mirror vibration. It has a Fantastic Screen Nikon D40. (Photo dropped in in Photoshop, as are all camera illustrations) The second obvious WOW! is the big, bright, sharp, contrasty and almost three-dimensional LCD screen. It looks the same regardless of the angle from which you view it. It's the same vivid, accurate screen as on my D80, which I think is the same thing as my D200. It's actually sharper than the image above because it has higher resolution. I don't know about you, but I use my LCD all day to set exact exposure and white balance, and this LCD is just about as accurate and is as bright as my calibrated 30" Apple Cinema Display which cost me $2,500 earlier this year. Next week I hope to stick my color meter on it to measure for sure. If you're on a laptop, it's also much brighter than the illustration above. It makes my Canon 5D look dim and pathetic by comparison. My D40's LCD is bright! It's almost blinding at night, a far cry from the dim Canon DSLR LCDs I've been staring at all week. On the D40, what you see is what you get. The menus and images look awesome! You have a choice of menu colors. The 18-55mm Lens This little jewel of a lens is my favorite midrange zoom other than my Nikon 18-200mm VR . It's so much fun I prefer to use it with my D40 instead of my grown-up 18-200mm. The Nikon 18-55mm II kit lens has better optical performance in some ways than some of my other lenses, and on top of that, it weighs not much more than a lens cap. Its light weight, super-close focus and unusually good zoom ring make it a joy to carry and use. I can zoom precisely with one finger, compared to the $1,100 Canon 24-105m IS which requires two fingers, and is difficult to zoom precisely at the wide end. It is a perfect companion to the featherweight D40. Nikon only sells the D40 with this great little lens in the USA. Don't throw it away unless you already have the much bigger Nikon 18-200mm VR, whose weight takes some of the fun out of the D40. The D40 works perfectly with the 18-200mm lens. Here's a look at them together: Nikon D40 and Nikon 18-200mm, complete with 72->77mm step-up and 77mm filter. Lens Compatibility My D40 only autofocuses with the latest AF-S lenses, and also the the older, professional, AF-I lenses. You'll have to focus manually with traditional AF lenses, which means forget about older lenses except macros (I always focus those manually) and fisheyes and ultrawides (easy to focus). Every AF lens made in the past 20 years meters and exposes perfectly; it's just the autofocus which won't work. Every manual focus lens made since 1959 also works fine, if you don't mind focusing by hand and guessing at the exposure. This is a smaller deal than it sounds, since the included kit lens and other modern lenses obsolete the older lenses I thought I might be using with this. This is why I never waste my money on off-brands. All the Nikon lenses I've been buying since the late 1990s, like my 24-85mm AF-S, 80-200mm AF-S and ten-year-old 400mm f/2.8 AF-I work perfectly. More at Lens Compatibility. Basics The D40 was introduced November 16th, 2006 and started shipping on November 30th, 2006. The one I bought arrived Friday, December 1st. If you're looking for a great Nikon camera to make great photos, especially of moving kids or sports or indoor plays and concerts, this is it compared to any fixed-lens camera. If sports is your full time obsession, then you'll want a faster camera (5 frames per second) like the Nikon D200 or now-inexpensive Canon 20D or 30D. The Nikon D40 is the D50 replacement. The D50 will remain available through about June, 2007. The D40 is a much smaller, lighter version of the D50. It is a completely new design. It takes away some things, like two AF sensors, and gives more in return, like a critical RGB histogram and a fantastic LCD. Top Introduction NEXT: >> Specifications with Commentary Performance and Examples Recommendations

[JohnC]

I shoot with a Nikon D80 and I'll post a few examples for you.

For the gayness, a flower thingy from a local flower show. I don't know WTF kind it is.



I shot this one with a Sigma 10-20mm EX DG HSM zoom on my Nikon D80 at 10mm wide.



I still need to work on getting better car shots...



Boat..



Fireworks



















And this is where the fireworks show was last 4th of July...



Well, there are a few examples of the stuff you'll be able to do with that D40. Just start saving for lenses because that's where it's at with DSLR's.

[ItaliStang]

Thanks for all the info and advice guys, I think I have an idea of what I'm going to get...


now I just have to decide if it'll be worth it when my phone's camera is decent, or spend the money on my car, haha

[Vinyl66]

get the cool pix just on the principle that ashton kucher is in the commercials

[06RedfireGT]

Ask Emay if he still has his Canon Rebel XTi for sale