Nikon D40X - I was shocked!

ddhytz · 12-31-2007, 12:32 AM

Originally posted by HGMonaro

I'm afraid I get too many OOF pics with my K10D to be completely happy with it... cannot trust the AF at all. Ergonomically it's great.

Have you contacted your dealer about AF problem? Have you tried different lenses?

Mechan1k · 12-31-2007, 04:59 AM

Originally posted by roentarre

This is because of your photography skill instead of k10d's credit ...

Hahahahaha .... I missed this one.
Thanks for that ... I like to believe that too.
I need MOOOOORE practice.

pentkon52 · 12-31-2007, 05:46 AM

Originally posted by Seafood

HOLY S%$! man...what do you do for a living! 3 DSLR's in two weeks time with lenses! I saved for a 6 months before I could get my K110. Then another 6 for a tripod and zoom.

I want some of the money trees that grow in your backyard.

Guess i better not mention I have six of them.

Dave

Mike Cash · 12-31-2007, 06:21 AM

Originally posted by benjikan

The D40 is basically a TOY Camera...No insult intended. I wouldn't use it with confidence.

Ben

My impression is that it is marketed toward first-time (d)SLR buyers who not only don't ask questions, they don't even know what questions to ask. I'm sure there are some informed consumers who purchase them for their own reasons, but I bet a large part of the traffic they get stems from the recognizable Nikon name and the price.

It initially caught my eye at the store when I was considering a DSLR. And I didn't dislike the feel of the thing. But I came home and did my online homework, in the process dropping the D40 from consideration the instant I read about the lens restrictions. My sole previous SLR had been a Canon AE-1 and I was already ticked at Canon for making my old lenses obsolete.

Like so many others, it was the backwards compatibility of lenses that clinched it for me....despite the fact that I owned not one single Pentax lens.

tux08902 · 12-31-2007, 11:28 AM

I went to Best Buy yesterday to check out some of the laptops they had on sale. I decided to check out some of the cameras there too. I was on one side looking at the DSLRs, and there was a trio being fascinated by this Casio P&S on the other side. I went with my uncle, and he came up and asked me why I was looking at these large ones. He actually thought that the bigger cameras had gone out of style. I had to explain to him the benefits of an SLR over a normal P&S. Then, he understood perfectly, but yes, the people who buy P&S are the ones who don't ask questions. They know little to nothing about cameras and just want something to shoot with. Here's the kicker: they are amazed by the best photos that the P&S can take. Now, compare those photos with the worst results from my Pentax K10D and be amazed. The benefits of a DSLR should be obvious, but they are not because the entire market has shifted from a focus on power to a focus on smaller size and more megapixels. A larger megapixel count doesn't mean that it's a better camera. Most people won't even use anything past 6 megapixels, and a lot of us here crop and resize our photos to a size much smaller than the original. I guess people are victims of propaganda, in a sense.

**Canada_Rockies** · 12-31-2007, 11:58 AM

Originally posted by HGMonaro

I'm afraid I get too many OOF pics with my K10D to be completely happy with it... cannot trust the AF at all. Ergonomically it's great.

Turn the AF selector dial completely to the right side, center point only. In the menus, turn off the AF on half press. Use the AF button to focus, then reframe and shoot. You will not have the camera second guessing your focus point, and it will not refocus every time you reframe. You do have to remember to press [AF] when you do want the focus to change, or use the focus ring and do it manually.

If you examine the Out Of Focus shots carefully, I suspect that the focus is somewhere you did not expect it to be. I found the same thing with the MZ-S in auto point selection. At least the k10d flashes at me to say it's focused over there instead of here where I wanted it to focus.

I turn the half press back on sometimes, but most often it is off.

HGMonaro · 01-01-2008, 02:17 AM

Originally posted by Canada_Rockies

Turn the AF selector dial completely to the right side, center point only. In the menus, turn off the AF on half press. Use the AF button to focus, then reframe and shoot. You will not have the camera second guessing your focus point, and it will not refocus every time you reframe. You do have to remember to press [AF] when you do want the focus to change, or use the focus ring and do it manually.

I usually have it on center point focus but have only tried disabling the half press once and found it fairly annoying way to operate. Maybe it is time to send it back and get it checked as it also has trouble locking focus at all sometimes. Out of warranty I think (assuming 12mths warranty) though

Nitro Fan · 01-01-2008, 08:31 AM

I think you are seeing the effect of Canon's advertising budget (The main reason foor the price of their product) rather than any conspiracy theory.

BTW this only a personal opinion! but I would rather have the superior quality & value for money products Pentax give us than great ad's but that is just my point of view.

Happy New Year All

12-31-2007, 11:28 AM	#50
tux08902 Inactive Account Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: North Brunswick, NJ Posts: 473	I went to Best Buy yesterday to check out some of the laptops they had on sale. I decided to check out some of the cameras there too. I was on one side looking at the DSLRs, and there was a trio being fascinated by this Casio P&S on the other side. I went with my uncle, and he came up and asked me why I was looking at these large ones. He actually thought that the bigger cameras had gone out of style. I had to explain to him the benefits of an SLR over a normal P&S. Then, he understood perfectly, but yes, the people who buy P&S are the ones who don't ask questions. They know little to nothing about cameras and just want something to shoot with. Here's the kicker: they are amazed by the best photos that the P&S can take. Now, compare those photos with the worst results from my Pentax K10D and be amazed. The benefits of a DSLR should be obvious, but they are not because the entire market has shifted from a focus on power to a focus on smaller size and more megapixels. A larger megapixel count doesn't mean that it's a better camera. Most people won't even use anything past 6 megapixels, and a lot of us here crop and resize our photos to a size much smaller than the original. I guess people are victims of propaganda, in a sense. Last edited by tux08902; 12-31-2007 at 11:34 AM.

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12-31-2007, 12:32 AM	#46
ddhytz Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Melbourne Posts: 602	Originally posted by HGMonaro I'm afraid I get too many OOF pics with my K10D to be completely happy with it... cannot trust the AF at all. Ergonomically it's great. Have you contacted your dealer about AF problem? Have you tried different lenses?

12-31-2007, 04:59 AM	#47
Mechan1k Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 2,891	Originally posted by roentarre This is because of your photography skill instead of k10d's credit ... Hahahahaha .... I missed this one. Thanks for that ... I like to believe that too. I need MOOOOORE practice.

12-31-2007, 05:46 AM	#48
pentkon52 Veteran Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: York Region Canada Posts: 641	Originally posted by Seafood HOLY S%$! man...what do you do for a living! 3 DSLR's in two weeks time with lenses! I saved for a 6 months before I could get my K110. Then another 6 for a tripod and zoom. I want some of the money trees that grow in your backyard. Guess i better not mention I have six of them. Dave

12-31-2007, 06:21 AM	#49
Mike Cash Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Japan Photos: Gallery Posts: 6,950	Originally posted by benjikan The D40 is basically a TOY Camera...No insult intended. I wouldn't use it with confidence. Ben My impression is that it is marketed toward first-time (d)SLR buyers who not only don't ask questions, they don't even know what questions to ask. I'm sure there are some informed consumers who purchase them for their own reasons, but I bet a large part of the traffic they get stems from the recognizable Nikon name and the price. It initially caught my eye at the store when I was considering a DSLR. And I didn't dislike the feel of the thing. But I came home and did my online homework, in the process dropping the D40 from consideration the instant I read about the lens restrictions. My sole previous SLR had been a Canon AE-1 and I was already ticked at Canon for making my old lenses obsolete. Like so many others, it was the backwards compatibility of lenses that clinched it for me....despite the fact that I owned not one single Pentax lens.

12-31-2007, 11:58 AM	#51
Canada_Rockies Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Sparwood, BC, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 12,385	Originally posted by HGMonaro I'm afraid I get too many OOF pics with my K10D to be completely happy with it... cannot trust the AF at all. Ergonomically it's great. Turn the AF selector dial completely to the right side, center point only. In the menus, turn off the AF on half press. Use the AF button to focus, then reframe and shoot. You will not have the camera second guessing your focus point, and it will not refocus every time you reframe. You do have to remember to press [AF] when you do want the focus to change, or use the focus ring and do it manually. If you examine the Out Of Focus shots carefully, I suspect that the focus is somewhere you did not expect it to be. I found the same thing with the MZ-S in auto point selection. At least the k10d flashes at me to say it's focused over there instead of here where I wanted it to focus. I turn the half press back on sometimes, but most often it is off.

01-01-2008, 02:17 AM	#52
HGMonaro Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Melb. Aust Posts: 840	Originally posted by Canada_Rockies Turn the AF selector dial completely to the right side, center point only. In the menus, turn off the AF on half press. Use the AF button to focus, then reframe and shoot. You will not have the camera second guessing your focus point, and it will not refocus every time you reframe. You do have to remember to press [AF] when you do want the focus to change, or use the focus ring and do it manually. I usually have it on center point focus but have only tried disabling the half press once and found it fairly annoying way to operate. Maybe it is time to send it back and get it checked as it also has trouble locking focus at all sometimes. Out of warranty I think (assuming 12mths warranty) though

01-01-2008, 08:31 AM	#53
Nitro Fan New Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: London Photos: Gallery Posts: 8	I think you are seeing the effect of Canon's advertising budget (The main reason foor the price of their product) rather than any conspiracy theory. BTW this only a personal opinion! but I would rather have the superior quality & value for money products Pentax give us than great ad's but that is just my point of view. Happy New Year All