Two Nikon D40 Questions

[camsmomE]

Hi much more advanced photographers than myself!



I have been blessed with getting my hands on a Nikon D40- it's being shipped to me as we speak. So now I am buying all these "extras." (It's like preparing for the arrival of a baby, I swear!)

Question #1: The Nikon website states that the camera takes SD memory "up to 4GB." Does that mean I cannot put my 8GB card in it??

Question #2: If I wanted to buy a "spare" battery... does it HAVE to be a Nikon original, or can I use a generic? Will it harm the camera?

TIA for all your knowledge!

P.S. If there is ANYTHING else you'd like to share with me (tips, things you've learned that are not in the manual, etc... anything short of "you should not have bought that", I would LOVE extra info!) THANKS!!! -Stace

 

[Craig E Hood]

Hi there,

Q #1 - The 8GB card will work fine. My daughter has a D40 and it accepts an 8GB card with no problems.

Q #2 - We use generic batteries in our 3 Nikon cameras (D80, D40X, D40), no problems.

Craig

 

[camsmomE]

Hi there,

Q #1 - The 8GB card will work fine. My daughter has a D40 and it accepts an 8GB card with no problems.

Q #2 - We use generic batteries in our 3 Nikon cameras (D80, D40X, D40), no problems.

Craig

Craig- You're the best! Thanks!! (now I wish I hadn't panicked and purchased a 4GB SD card on ebay! we have plenty of 8's) -Stace

 

[Craig E Hood]

Hi Stacey,

You're quite welcome.

Don't sweat it, you can never have too many cards!!


Craig

 

[Tigger2252]

Congratulations! I love my D40! I'm a beginner and have found it to be a terrific camera and I spent the last year or so learning all about it.

 

[Icemann]

I have the same camera and I have used 8gb+16gb sdhc cards with no problems at all and as for the battery I got two at Ubatt.com and I swear they last longer then the Nikon ones have fun and the people here are great they always have an answer for almost any question.I'm a newbie too so don't be afraid to ask for help

 

[camsmomE]

oh. You all are so awesome!
now... off to buy some more "stuff" for new baby, errr... I mean new camera!

 

[mom2rtk]

oh. You all are so awesome!
now... off to buy some more "stuff" for new baby, errr... I mean new camera!

Don't you wish they would throw baby showers for this kind of addition to the family????

 

[camsmomE]

Don't you wish they would throw baby showers for this kind of addition to the family????

YES! oh man... YES!!!

 

[camsmomE]

and now that I think about it mom2rtk, it wouldn't be a terribly bad idea for a cute house party. and the invitations would be hysterical!

 

[ukcatfan]

If this is an old one (i.e. used) then it is possible that the firmware is older and will not accept SDHC cards (larger than 4GB). If so, then it can be updated and the manual will explain how. I am pretty sure that the D40 did not accept SDHC when the model first came out. If you do end up needing to update the firmware then you will need one 4GB or smaller to do it.

 

[camsmomE]

If this is an old one (i.e. used) then it is possible that the firmware is older and will not accept SDHC cards (larger than 4GB). If so, then it can be updated and the manual will explain how. I am pretty sure that the D40 did not accept SDHC when the model first came out. If you do end up needing to update the firmware then you will need one 4GB or smaller to do it.

oh boy... I have no idea until it gets here (but probably older, yes). well..... I guess it's good that I bought that 4GB card then! Thanks!

 

[camsmomE]

at the risk of sounding like a photography dork... UKcatfan, I've been reading your posts for days now-- I am a fan! (but am surely NOT a fan of cats)

 

[ukcatfan]

at the risk of sounding like a photography dork... UKcatfan, I've been reading your posts for days now-- I am a fan! (but am surely NOT a fan of cats)

Thank you!

Well since you are in FL, is it Gators, Noles, Canes, or one of the smaller colleges? I am guessing Gators if you do not like UK... I have been down here in FL for a little over seven years (and have been a Noles fan for over 20 years), but I bleed Blue! It was a great day for us yesterday when we placed five guys in the first round of the NBA draft. First time ever!!!

 

[camsmomE]

Thank you!

Well since you are in FL, is it Gators, Noles, Canes, or one of the smaller colleges? I am guessing Gators if you do not like UK... I have been down here in FL for a little over seven years (and have been a Noles fan for over 20 years), but I bleed Blue! It was a great day for us yesterday when we placed five guys in the first round of the NBA draft. First time ever!!!

well, um... all I can say is GO GATORS! (but I still think your advice is top notch and WOW the intelligence!) for a non-gator anyway.

 

[ukcatfan]

well, um... all I can say is GO GATORS! (but I still think your advice is top notch and WOW the intelligence!) for a non-gator anyway.

It is alright. My youngest DD is a Gator fan, middle DD a Noles fan, and DW is a UofL Cards fan. All but the DW also like the Cats. It is a tumultuous fan base around this house!

 

[camsmomE]

It is alright. My youngest DD is a Gator fan, middle DD a Noles fan, and DW is a UofL Cards fan. All but the DW also like the Cats. It is a tumultuous fan base around this house!

I bet! my goodness! Both the DH and I are die-hard gator fans (I went there for grad school, he went for undergrad), and my DD's bedroom is painted the most beautiful shades of orange and blue you've ever seen. Maybe that should be my first target for my Nikon d40.. hmmm....

 

[ssanders79]

The nikon site show 4Gb as the max because that was the largest SD card out at the time the manual was printed. I called Nikon and asked them the same question a few years back. In terms of memory cards I prefer 2 smaller card over one big card. I would rather lose half my pictures then all of them in a worst case scenario.

As for the battery I would stick with Nikon. If you get a knock off battery that messes up your camera it is going to cost way more than you saved. Depending on how much you shoot you might boot need a second battery. DSLRs Consume far less power than P&S unless you are pop up flash happy.

 

[spinetnglr]

First off congratulations on the new addition to the family. I used a D40 for about 2 years before upgrading. I loved shooting with it and still do. I should get it out more often than I do though. The max card I have used with mine was a 4gb but then at the time I upgraded the cost of the 8gb was far greater than what it is now. If you are shooting jpeg you should be fine with 4gb as it will hold a few hundred pictures. If you are going to shoot RAW I would upgrade the firmware to use the 8gb for sure. As far as batteries go I only ever had the one that came with camera and it seemed like it lasted forever on a charge. It never hurts to have a spare in case of a battery failure or you forget to charge it after a long day of shooting. With mine I could shoot a whole day and it seemed like the battery meter would barely move. What lens are you getting with it? If you are getting the standard kit lens (i.e. 18-55mm 4-5.6) I would suggest your next "big" purchase be a standard prime lens such as a 50mm 1.8 or a 35mm 1.8. The 50mm can be bought for about $100 and the 35mm would be @$200. Both are great lenses and would give you the ability to shoot in lower light and/or with faster shutter speeds if you have fast moving children or pets.

 

[ssanders79]

I would suggest the 35mm over the 50mm. I feel that I tend to backup way to much when using the 50. In fact, the 35mm has become my standard lens that I keep on my D40. Remember you can always zoom with your feet.