Nikon D50

[Groucho]

Cheap SD card deals are common. I am on buy.com's mailing list and they regularly have SD cards for dirt cheap, as do some other places (ZipZoomFly, etc.) I rarely buy memory cards from NewEgg as they are generally not as competitive, but I do buy a ton of other PC parts from them and they're very reputable.

To add on to what ukcatfan said, Pentax started their new rebate a couple days ago (their old one expired a few days before that)... $50 off a K100D or K110D, or $100 off one of them plus a flash, or $150 off the camera plus the 50-200mm lens, or $200 off the camera, flash, and 50-200mm lens. Not bad at all.

That means that, with current Beach prices, a body-only K110D can be had for $339 and a body-only K100D is $432. Unfortunately, Beach doesn't carry the flash or the 50-200mm (well, sometimes they do, but it's not listed at the moment) so that might not work - I'm not sure if you need to buy all on the same receipt. There are also the usual lens-only rebates - I see that they did from the 50mm 1.4 rebate from $50 to $25.

As for size, it really depends on what you're willing to deal with. Obviously a DSLR will not fit in your pocket like an ultracompact will, but you will have a camera capable of far superior photos plus one that offers far more features. I don't think the size of the entry-level DSLRs is prohibitive in any way, but I was used to carrying about a film SLR before, and the only digital PnS cameras I've owned have been long-zoom ones, so I've always been used to a larger camera.

 

[zagafi]

Ok, I think I've decided to go back to DSLR-land, even though I'm not crazy about the "size".

Given the cost difference is negligible, what would you seasoned photogs choose?

I mostly shoot my kids, vacation stuff, etc. but want to learn more about the art of photography and using all the proverbial "bells and whistles" so I can move beyond snapshots and move into better composition, lighting, etc.

Fire away!

 

[YEKCIM]

One significant difference between the Nikon D40 and D50 is that the D40 lacks a focus motor in the body and thus will autofocus ONLY with lenses that have the AF motor. Other than that, the 40 seems like a fine entry level dSLR.

~YEKCIM

 

[mabas9395]

even though I'm not crazy about the "size".

One of the complaints that most people have about the Canon Rebel XT is that it is too small for a dSLR. If you are not crazy about the large size of most dSLR's, maybe you should consider an XT.

Disclosure Statement: This poster is the proud owner of a Canon Rebel XT, any and all posts will be biased toward said camera as he believes that the only excuse for not owning an XT is because you already own a 30d or 5d.

 

[Groucho]

The D40 seems a little "dumbed down", though obviously the actual guts are identical so you'll get about the same quality of photos. The bigger LCD is an advantage, but I'd probably lean towards a D50, since for me, the ability to use older lenses is important. (Which is why I use a Pentax... )

 

[garris3404]

Go with the D50. You can get some great deals.

 

[ndelaware]

The D50 is an excellent camera. THe D40 is a gimmick to get people to buy into the Nikon line of DSLRs. Get the D50 and you won't regret it.

 

[handicap18]

As a few others have said and I belive it as well, the D40 is to get people into the dSLR market. I was rather disapointed in Nikon when the announce the D40. For the most part (except the D50) their new bodies have been upgrades. The D70/D70s was a bit on the higher end and the D50 came out to get those people (like myself) that found the D70/70s to be a bit to expensive. The D50 is a "dumbed down" (for lack of a better term) version of the D70/70s, but it does have a better sensor and a much better high ISO performance. It lacks a few bells and whistles such as Depth of field preview button, 2nd command dial (mostly used in Manual mode) and a backlit status LCD among other smaller things. That being said, the D40 has even less features.

The D40 doesn't have the top LCD (neither does the Canon XT/XTi) so everything has to be done in the view finder or the LCD monitor. It also does not have the internal focus motor so it can only accept certain lenses. Now granted that list of lenses is still pretty big, but of the 4 lenses I currently have, 2 can not be used with the D40 (the inexpensive and very popular 50mm f/1.8D and the Tamron 90mm f/2.8 Macro). Only Nikkor lenses with AF-S in the title will work along with some Sigma lenses (HSM lenses) and a few Tamron.

If you fall into the category of "photographer" as one who only wants better performance than a PnS and a little flexability in lenses and aren't interested in more serious stuff, then the D40 will work and you'll be very happy for a long time. If you think you want to take your photography more seriously, sooner rather than later you'll need a new body. The D50 will be able to take you further into photography than the D40 will.

 

[jockey]

Does anyone have any experience of Zenitar fish eye lenses? Was thinking of buying one to go with my D50

 

[boBQuincy]

I have a Zenitar 16 and it's a great lens for the price, very sharp. The fisheye effect is minimized on a 1.6 crop camera, to where only the edges get much curvature. It's noticeable on acrchitecture and such but for landscapes the effect is subtle (unless you tilt the camera).

The Zenitar is manual everything but almost everything is in focus anyway. I usually set it to f 5.6 or 8 and let the camera set the shutter speed. Btw, the EXIF data shows an aperture of 0 as I recall.

Someone else on this board (Groucho?) has one and also likes it.

 

[0bli0]

i have one (and a sigma 15mm fish, too). i had to adjust the focus at infinity as it was off. once i did that it was nicely sharp. it's hyperfocal at around 5 feet @ f/5.6, so it doesn't matter that it's manual everything.

 

[jockey]

Thanks for the replies. Maybe because it's manual I will have to think about more and it may improve my photography. It looks like a fun lens and the price is pretty cool too!

 

[Groucho]

I love my Zenitar (Pentax K-mount)...

As Bob says, you lose a fair amount of the effect due to the crop factor. Here's a shot with it mounted on my 35mm camera for the full 180' effect:

And as 0bli0 said, the focus is hardly an issue due to the massive DoF. The manual aperture is not a big deal, as long as you're not taking a bunch of pictures in a row in changing light (this hurt me when I used it for Splash Mt on-ride photos - I kept trying to re-meter and didn't always have enough time.)

Another option is the Tokina 10-17mm fisheye, which is a Pentax design and goes from the full 180' on a DSLR to more of the Zenitar-style cropped look when zoomed out. Of course, it's about 4x the cost of the Zenitar... I think Nikon may also have a non-zoom DSLR fisheye.

 

[Groucho]

Oh, and as for exif data, I finally figured out a quick and easy way to add the correct focal length info to my Zenitar photos, with a free program and a batch file I wrote. You could add aperture, too, if you wrote down what setting you used for each photo.

 

[jockey]

Wow, great pics, thanks for sharing!

 

[Ellen aka Snow White]

I am away from home and of course do not have my camera manuel and it wants to act up on me! So I am asking the experts for help...

after I take a picture "CHA" appears where the px count usually appears. It won't let me take another photo without turning off/on the camera!?!? The pictures ARE taking and when I turn the camera back on, the number appears.

Any suggestions?? I am sure it must be a setting - but WHAT!!!

thanks!
Ellen

 

[ukcatfan]

I am not at all familiar with that camera, but that sounds like a charge battery message. Have you checked the battery strength or even just tried taking it out for a few minutes to let the system reset?

Kevin

 

[Furgus]

You can look as this for the manual.

http://support.nikontech.com/cgi-bin/nikonusa.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=13644

I have the same camera and I am not sure what it means.

 

[handicap18]

I am away from home and of course do not have my camera manuel and it wants to act up on me! So I am asking the experts for help...

after I take a picture "CHA" appears where the px count usually appears. It won't let me take another photo without turning off/on the camera!?!? The pictures ARE taking and when I turn the camera back on, the number appears.

Any suggestions?? I am sure it must be a setting - but WHAT!!!

thanks!
Ellen

I believe that is an error between the SD card and the camera. Once you are done with the images on the card (after downloading them to the computer) how do you delete the images off? Do you delete them 1 by 1, do you use the computer to delete the images or do you reformat the card in camera.

You should be reformatting the the card. For now, take the card out, then reinsert it (might have to do this a few times as there could be some tiny dust build up, also blow on the card to help get dusties off). When you get home download all the images to your computer then go into the menu on the camera and format the card. This will properly erase the card.

If you've done that or do use this practice regularly, then it might be a faulty card.

 

[Ellen aka Snow White]

Thanks for the quick replies. I think I have narrowed it down to the card.
I usually "delete all" after I download my pictures. Well I noticed this morning my Easter pictures were still on there. I did delete all and they won't go away!:
So following handicaps advise I tried formatting the card and guess what - my Easter pictures are still there!! So does this mean the card is faulty?!?! I don't have another one to try right now.
Ellen