Need help choosing a dSLR (D40, D40x, or Rebel XTI)

[SolracSelbor]

Im really torn between which of these cameras comes out superior. I like the Rebel because it has Auto Exposure Bracketing which helps A LOT with HDR photos. To tell you the truth, I don't know how else to make good HDR photos without this, unless i manually change the expusure settings before each picture which gets really annoying since the camera may move slightly causing a blur after HDR has been rendered.

I hear alot of good things with the D40, but not so much with the D40x. Ive read people saying the D40x is not worth the extra price because of its low flash sync and because its 10mp capabilities causes more noise and that "Megapixels aren't that important"

As you can tell I am a beginner and have been toying around with Kodak Easy share cameras for a whuile and I would like to step it up. Thanks for the help!

Merry Christmas!

PS: How about the Nikon D80?

 

[SLC Flyfishing]

Well since you said it right there at the end I'll say that out of your choices I'd pick the Nikon D80.

The viewfinder on that camera is way better than any of the other 3, it has a screw drive for older autofocus lenses. And it's built much more solidly than the Canon XTi.

If you want a 10 megapixel with the bracketing like the XTi and better dynamic range, check out the Pentax K10D. Popular Photography's online technology editor made an entire HDR how to book that you can purchase, his weapon of choice in the endeavor? the Pentax K10D.

The link for the book is here: http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/9780596510176/

SLC

 

[Grimace]

22,643 threads on this very question....

 

[ChrisA]

Im really torn between which of these cameras comes out superior.

Don't think so much about the DSLR bodies. Which ever one you get yo will replace it in a few years. Think about the "system". That is all the lenses ad strobe and so on. If you buy the Canon now your next three DSLR bodies will also be Canons because you will want to use all those Canon lenses you own. Same for Nikon. So look down the road 3 to 5 years and think about "system building". Look at the markets for used lenses. Lenses last forever, decades really. Digital bodies are things you use and replace, almost like film.

The first step is to pick out a lens then figure out some options for your second and third lens then buy the camera body that fits those lenses. The lens is what really matters select those carfully. Resist the tempation to buy a long f/5.6 telephoto zoom.

About moving the camera when making HDR images: If the software you have can't realign the images when it composites them get new software. If you've not use DSLRs before, you may find just taking one RAW image is enough

 

[ChrisA]

Well since you said it right there at the end I'll say that out of your choices I'd pick the Nikon D80.

The viewfinder on that camera is way better than any of the other 3, it has a screw drive for older autofocus lenses. And it's built much more solidly than the Canon XTi.

I have to agree with the above. But the D80 is in a totally different price class. One could also say the D300 is even better. Of course it is but then it is also $1,800

If your main interest is photography is HDR images shot from a tripod why go with a digital camera? Film is so much better for this and at 1/4 the price. Hard to beat the combination of 4X better technical quality at 1/4th the price. You can buy a good used Nikon, Canon or Pentax film body for $100 and it can use the same lenses as the current DSLR (well, more or less the same lenses) Negative film as such large dynamic range that you can likely capture most scenes with just one exposure but you can take three or six if you like. Then you scan the negatives or have them scanned and continue. None of the cameras you are considering can match the overall image quality of film.

What I wrote before about "building a system" applies here. you might want to plan a system that includes a DSLR and a flim body too and lenses that can work on both. If you want to do that Nikon and Pentax will be the best brands.

 

[SolracSelbor]

Don't think so much about the DSLR bodies. Which ever one you get yo will replace it in a few years. Think about the "system". That is all the lenses ad strobe and so on. If you buy the Canon now your next three DSLR bodies will also be Canons because you will want to use all those Canon lenses you own. Same for Nikon. So look down the road 3 to 5 years and think about "system building". Look at the markets for used lenses. Lenses last forever, decades really. Digital bodies are things you use and replace, almost like film.

The first step is to pick out a lens then figure out some options for your second and third lens then buy the camera body that fits those lenses. The lens is what really matters select those carfully. Resist the tempation to buy a long f/5.6 telephoto zoom.

About moving the camera when making HDR images: If the software you have can't realign the images when it composites them get new software. If you've not use DSLRs before, you may find just taking one RAW image is enough

I see what you mean. Iv'e been hearing a lot about the Pentax K10D, but that the lenses it comes with is not all that great. Can you direct me to a couple of "good" lenses that you and many other would recommend having?

 

[abijnk]

22,643 threads on this very question....

Might us noobs then suggest a noob sticky? The ones that already exist are for people who know how this stuff works already, trust me, I know.

 

[ab2650]

Since you're interested in HDR, I'd think the D40 (and especially the D80) would be quite suitable. I made the attached HDR with a D200 and CS3 - I'd expect near same results using either the 40 or 80.