Product Description

Welcome to the next generation of digital SLR photography-the CanonEOS 40D. The EOS 40D combines Canon's tremendous know-how in boththe digital and photographic worlds creating a camera that notonly does everything one would expect of a traditional digita

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #36731 in Consumer Electronics
• Brand: Canon
• Model: 1901B026AA
• Released on: 2007-09-17
• Dimensions: .0" h x .0" w x .0" l, 1.54 pounds
• Display size: 3

Features

• EOS 40D 17-85 Digital SLR Camera Kit

Manufacturer's Description
Advanced amateur photographers have long desired a digital SLR that matches the power and speed of professional models. With the EOS 40D, Canon delivers.

Customer Reviews

Pro quality product - skgr
Having delayed moving to a DSLR for a number of years, I feel the market has now stabalised in the way of features, and prices have come down considerably.
I started looking at the 350D then the 400D and then the 450D, but luckily decided to opt for the 40D, especially as the additional price over the 450D seemed justified for the extra build. To be honest the features of the 450D are not that far behind the 40D, although what you are paying for is mainly the build quality - die cast aluminum and stainless steel body, etc.
Similar to the 450D the 40D includes a 'live view' function, which you may feel is essential if you are used to a compact, although in reality you are unlikely to use very often.
The lens is very good and another reason why I opted for the 40D over the 400D or 450D, although I believe the lens on the 450D is superior to that of the 400D.
You get a 17 - 85mm, which in old SLR terminology relates to 28 - 135mm. It is very quiet in operation, being a USM lens, and also includes IS (Image Stabilisation) which does reduce the effects of camera shake, especially in low light conditions, by up to 4 stops.
The stabilisation is actually in the lens which may seem odd compared to other lens/camera manufacturers, although it does mean that the image you see through the viewfinder has been stabilised as opposed to other systems which only appear stabilised after you have taken the photo.
Camera is intuitive and easy to use in fully auto mode, until you become familiar with all the manual features. This is a large camera, especially suitable for those with larger clumsy hands!
I have no regrets whatsoever and would recommend to anyone who is above the amateur, or at least thinks they are, who wishes to pay that extra to own a higher quality 'fully loaded' product.
Don't be put off by 10+ mpg image; this is sufficient for images up to at least A3 if not even A2. Last point - I have purchased the Sandisk 4GB Extreme III card which I believe is an excellent choice having researched just about every other card out there. Really no need to go above 4GB as this is sufficient for 999+ jpg at the highest quality. Unlike compacts there is no facility for recording mpeg video so no need for big cards.
For those tempted, don't delay your purchase - you will not be dissapointed.

My first Digital SLR
After doing much research I decided on the Canon EOS 40D,I have only had it for a few weeks but can say with out reservation it is a real joy to use.
I have used 35mm SLRs for many years and would describe my self as an happy amature.at first the handbook seemed a little overwelming but after working through it and trying settings as I went I soon had a reasonable grasp of the basics[unlike film you can click away without wastage].
The camera has real solid feel to it and is very comfortable to hold and the buttons and dials are in easy to use positions.
The 3 inch screen is beautiful and clear and as a glasses wearer the diopler adjustment really helps.
the lens works well with no problems so far with focusing in low or bright light,the view through the view finder is very clear and uncluttered with all the info nice and clear.
all together a very good quality camera which I have no regrets buying and i am looking forward to the better weather when it will be getting much more use.
I have only given this camera 4 stars as I am not qualified or knowlegable enough to say it is perfect.
I would recommend to anyone planning to start out with a canon DSLR or even a present owner the magazine 'PHOTOPLUS' which is dedicated to the Canon Camera only so everything they print is relevent to you.

All hail the Canon EOS 40D
I started off with an EOS 400D as my first DSLR, and quickly realised that it was just not the camera I needed. After hours of poring over the specifications and white papers for the 40/50D and the 5D models, I decided that the 40D was the way to go. I wasn't wrong! Canon themselves have described the 40D as "very much like a slightly cut down version [of the 1Ds Mark III]" (watch the 40D Masterclass video on Canon-Europe). While there is some creative license involved in this claim, after using the EOS 40D for a while you can see why they said it.

There are some good reviews already for this camera so I will mention the biggest disappointments and the best overall features (in other words, what you want to know before buying). I'll also include some information to help you choose the accessories which will work out best for this camera as well as keeping you ready for an inexpensive future upgrade.


DISAPPOINTMENTS

Starting with the bad points then. It's easy because there aren't many:
* No infra-red = no cheap generic remote,
* Bundled lens is EF-S and not EF,
* Mediocre card writing speed,
* Setting up custom settings can be a chore.

That's it. Nothing there is worth losing a star over!

The lack of an infra-red receiver is annoying as it means that your Canon RC-1 or generic remote won't work; you need a cabled or wireless shutter trigger. In reality it's less fuss to simply use the 2 or 10 second self timer. The 40D includes a live view mode, as well as computer-controlled shooting, which can be used to great effect.

The bundled 17-85mm IS USM lens is EF-S mount and not EF, which means that if you eventually upgrade to a full frame Canon camera it will not be compatible. However, by buying this bundle you are getting a £400 lens for about £100, which is adequate compensation seeing as it will hold its value quite well for the life of the camera. And it IS a good lens, if a touch slower than we would like on the aperture side of things. The image stabiliser doesn't give you the extra four stops of the second generation IS found on the newer L-range zooms, but it is a godsend for people who can't hold still for more than 1/80 of a second.

The speed with which this camera writes to Compact Flash cards could be much better, considering it is based around the Digic III processor (google "Rob Galbraith" to see his outstanding performance database). On the other hand, you can eke about 20 full size RAW shots out of this camera at the maximum rate of 6.5 frames per second before the buffer starts clogging up and shooting speed falls to about one frame a second, so it's still excellent for capturing action moments.

Finally, the custom settings feature (which I'll go into below) is brilliant but setting it up can be a chore. Because the camera remembers ALL the settings that you save to a custom shooting mode, you need to be sure that you have programmed it properly before registering the settings. This means checking each menu tab, the four custom functions pages, and the shooting functions accessible from the buttons on the body. Getting it wrong is not the end of the world but it does mean a lot more work.


BENEFITS

Okay, let's move on to the good points:
* Shooting speed. It's a joy,
* Half-a-millisecond shutter lag,
* Three (count them - three) custom modes,
* User-defined menu page,
* Highlight Tone Priority,
* 14-bit image capture,
* RAW and sRAW recording,
* Dual RAW/JPEG recording with different size combinations possible,
* Configurable AF-On button,
* Three user-defined picture styles,
* Very low noise at high ISO,
* Computer controlled shooting,
* Rated to 100,000 shutter actuations,
* Good battery life,
* Very rugged build,
* Makes high quality lenses worth the money.

The maximum burst rate of 6.5fps makes shooting with this camera an absolute joy, and it feels a bit like firing off some kind of machine gun. Coupled with the AI Focus drive mode which can track moving subjects, and a shutter lag of just 0.59 milliseconds (or 0.0006 seconds), that means you are unlikely to miss the critical moment in a moving action shot.

As well as the usual modes such as Program, Av, Tv, etc, the mode dial includes three spaces called C1, C2 and C3. Basically these are your custom modes, and you can set the camera up however you please then store those settings to one of those three custom modes. So if for example you take a lot of indoor comedy shots which you upload to Facebook, you can set up the optimum low-light, high speed shooting profile for that purpose and even have the camera automatically use small JPEGs to save on post-processing time and all that image resizing. And you have another two slots free for, say, a very high resolution HDR setup, and a panoramic setup.
To use the custom mode once it's registered, you just turn the mode dial to the relevant C setting. Aces! Saves a lot of time if you can predict the sort of shots you want to take on a day out, because you just take out your camera, turn the dial a bit, and shoot.
Related to this is the "My Menu" page, which is a blank page in the main menu. You can add six items to this page and choose what order they go in. I was cynical at first, because you still need to go to the menu anyway to access My Menu, but the camera has custom function menus and the thing you want to change frequently could be buried under several levels of menu navigation, so as it turns out this feature does help speed things up. Adding Highlight Tone Priority, High ISO Noise Reduction, Live View settings, and Mirror Lockup will save you a lot of time.

Highlight Tone Priority appeared I think on the 1D Mk III, and it's now made it to the 40D. HTP prevents blown highlights in shots which include dark colours next to very light colours with fine tonal gradation. Coupled with the 14-bit image recording of the 40D (16,384 colours per channel), HTP will be a godsend for wedding photographers and HDR enthusiasts.

The 40D can record sRAW or "small RAW" files, as well as the full 10.1Mp RAW files. With a 4Gb compact flash card this makes the difference between storing 284 shots and storing 509, if you aren't bothered about image size but still want the benefits of raw. As usual you can also record as JPEG images in small, medium or large size, in standard or fine resolution, but there is now a new twist. You can also record a shot as any combination of a RAW and a JPEG. For example, an sRAW and a Large Fine JPEG. This makes your life a bit easier in a variety of sharing and collaboration scenarios.

The 40D includes the "AF-On" button which Canon seems to be pushing onto all new lines (perhaps they have a button surplus?), and this can be configured through the custom functions menu to take away autofocus control from the shutter button. So you use your "trigger finger" on the shutter button to control exposure, and your thumb on the AF-On button to control focus. There are other setups which are possible and just to make things more optiony (or confusing) you can then switch the functions of the AF-On and AE Lock (star) buttons.

Continuing the theme of configuration, the Picture Styles menu (which now has a dedicated button under the LCD screen) includes 3 empty slots for user-defined styles. You can adjust sharpness, contrast, saturation, and colour tone and save it to one of these custom slots (you can also tweak the existing preset profiles, but unless there is a very compelling reason I would advise against it). I found it useful to define these custom styles specifically for the types of shot I have programmed into the custom modes. Seemed to make sense!

The (lack of) image noise on the 40D is incredible, when compared to the 400D and the 30D. The camera can reduce noise at high ISOs (you DO need to turn this on in custom functions though), but even WITHOUT noise reduction the noise level on the 40D is directly comparable to that seen on the much more expensive 1D Mk III.

As with other EOS models, you can connect your 40D to a computer or laptop and use the included software to take control of it. Coupled with Live View, this is an excellent boon for studio photographers who now need not worry about the resolution of the LCD screen or the minute vibrations caused by touching the shutter button.

The overall quality of this camera's build is excellent. The shutter is rated for 100,000 actuations, and can be replaced. This puts earlier EOS models to shame. The body is stainless steel and a magnesium alloy, so it's very tough. The camera feels very rugged and durable. A word to the wise: although the 40D has *some* weather sealing it is by no means what you would call "weather sealed". You don't want to drop it in a puddle. The battery life is really good compared to other models and brands, with the supplied BP-511A battery rated between 800 and 1100 shots per charge, depending on flash use (50% and none respectively). The supplied charger only holds one battery at once but it is conveniently compact.

Lastly for the pros and cons bit, this camera answers that important question of "do I want to pay extra money for my lenses?" The answer is YEAH BABY. At the time of release, the 40D had the densest sensor available on any Canon DSLR, with a microlensing system to "drag" the light into the pixels. High aperture and L-series lenses will improve your shots dramatically.


BEFORE YOU BUY

If you are upgrading, you may as well sell your infra-red remote. I'd also suggest selling any EF-S lenses if they fall into the same range as the bundled kit lens and any other lenses you buy with the camera, unless there is an IS or aperture argument for keeping them.

When buying lenses, buy EF and not EF-S. The argument for this is that when you upgrade, you'll want to take as many lenses with you as you can. Realistically the only sensible upgrade from the 40D (for both price and quality) is to a full frame camera, and these won't accept EF-S lenses.

As I mentioned before, it is worth investing in quality glass. Aim for fast lenses, and L-series if you can afford it. Open a savings account and treat yourself periodically. Don't be suckered into paying less for an inferior lens. For example, the 50mm Prime f1.8 lens is attractively priced at about £80 and has over 60 Amazon reviews singing its praises, but the f1.4 version is built much more solidly, has USM, and is a faster lens. You can pick these up second hand for less than £250.

CF cards in the Extreme III range are good enough for this camera but if you expect to upgrade to full frame at some point, you might wish to buy UDMA cards. This decision should be made keeping in mind that the price of those cards will inevitably come down before your upgrade, so the longer you expect to keep the 40D the less important it is to buy the faster cards now.


BEFORE YOU RATE

I wrote this review to include everything I would want to know about this camera before buying it. If it is inaccurate or incomplete, I'd like to be able to improve it to help people who are interested in this camera. So I much prefer to get a comment than an anonymous and unhelpful "this review did not help"! Thanks for reading this wordy effort.