Many years ago — back when “ digital television camera ” meant your images had the particular date and time stamp on them in that lovelyLED font — I owned a 35mmsingle - lens reflexfilm camera . While I loved the picture quality , I grew tired of the work necessitate in set up the television camera to get those great dig . I also did n’t care tote around all the gear — excess lenses and motion-picture show , primarily . So at some decimal point in clock time , I transmigrate to a “ consumer ” 35 millimeter camera that had only a duo of modes to choose between and no lens of the eye to switch .
When digital cameras came out , I abide with the same “ consumer ” case camera , preferring the pocket-sized and light sac digital cameras over their full - sized cousins . As of belated , my camera of choice has been the Canon PowerShot SD400 ( ) . It ’s so small and idle , it move well-nigh everywhere with me , and it takes what I thought were decent pictures . However , the small digital cameras are generally restrict to a 3x optical zoom , and I ’ve often witness myself wanting a better zoom . I also enjoy landscape picture taking , and wanted something that would let me get some better macro shot of the prime in our garden . Because of these issues , I ’ve been contemplate over render to the SLR world for a few months , but had n’t actually done much about finding out which television camera I ’d like to bribe .
Then something very prosperous happened : Ken Smith ofGlazer ’s Cameraarranged to bring a bunch of rental camera gear on the recent Mac Mania / Aperture Geek Cruise . Even well , Ken was cause the equipment useable to the Geek Cruisers for free , and he wreak a lot of really nice stuff . As much as I was tempt to quest the $ 4,500EOS-1D Mark III , I figured my real budget was buy the farm to be substantially lower than that when I did my post - cruise shopping .
show tremendous restraint , I asked Ken to provide something in the “ under $ 1,000 for body and lens ” category . When I meet Ken on board , he told me had brought the new 10 - megapixelNikon D40X , a couple of lenses ( 18 - 55mmand55 - 200 mm ) , a camera bagful , two batteries , and a 2 GB memory card — for complimentary , just because I was on the Geek Cruise . For four mean solar day , I was able to keep this camera and act as though I owned it — though I try my good to avoid the klutzy accidents that seem to bechance me when the gear is really mine ! I snapped well over 700 pictures as I played with the tv camera , trying to figure out everything it could do . But really , by the time I was 50 film in , I was confident : my next camera was going to be a digital SLR . ( The television camera expert here at Macworld reviewed the D40 ( ) in February , notice as a hustle its dispirited pixel count compared to its contender . The D40X addresses that issue , as it now has 10 megapixels . )
For those like me — membership amateur photographers who might be contemplating stepping up to a digital SLR — I thought I ’d provide my opinions on how the DSLR compare to my pocket camera . Please keep in mind that I ’m a total novice photographer — I’m relearning all the technical argot after many age of not worrying about such thing . So this is n’t going to be like reading a review article on a high-pitched - end photography Web site . Instead , it ’s simply my thinking on both the cameras , along with some images to avail exemplify a point or two .
air hole camera
The biggest advantage of my Canon PowerShot SD400 is its small size of it . If I do n’t need to carry around the guinea pig ( which have an supernumerary battery and computer storage add-in ) , I can sneak the thing in a pocket and oftentimes almost draw a blank its there . As a termination , it goes almost everywhere with me , and so I ’ve oversee to grab some depiction that I otherwise would have overleap . At 5.0 megapixels ( 2,592 - by-1,944 pixel sizing ) , it ’s got enough detail to publish vitreous silica - cleared full - pageboy 8.5×11 images , and they ’ve always look great to my center . The camera also has a very overnice movie mood , enamor movies at 30fps at 640 - by-480 . The moving picture lineament is quite honest , though it obviously pal next to a genuine DV camera — but again , because I have the tv camera with me , I ’ve recorded movies of things that otherwise would have dislocate by into the past . As but one case , our girl Erica ’s first steps were captured on a pocket camera , because that ’s what I had with me when she first let go of the sofa and originate teeter across the floor .
I ’ve owned the SD400 for about two geezerhood , and I think it ’s a tremendous television camera . However , there are some thing it lacks , even beyond the limited zoom as noted above . First , it does n’t have aRAW mode , so every double has been constrict to some degree . I ’m no photograph perfectionist , but it seems that a camera ’s task should be to get everything as it discover it , then allow me fine-tune the look-alike information when I get home . RAW mode lets you do just that .
secondly , thing come about slowly on this television camera ( and most other pocket television camera I ’ve recreate with ) . The photographic camera take a half - second or so to ferment on , and then running the zoom takes about a 2nd if I ’m zooming in to any extent . Getting the machine - focus to lock can take more portions of a instant . And when I finally press the shutter , it seems there ’s a small delay there as well . sum up it all up , and if I ’ve only engender a second to get the picture I desire , the hazard are good that I ’ll miss it . Adjusting between guesswork , you go through everything again — the dull soar change , the slow automobile - focus , and then at last the somewhat dense shutter waiver .
in the end , it is a pocket camera , which means the number of mode available is somewhat limited . It ’s not as uncollectible as my first celluloid - free-base 35 millimeter consumer SLR camera , but it clearly is n’t a television camera that was designed for those who want to fine-tune their image scope all that often .
Digital SLR television camera
go from my pouch camera to the digital SLR , the first thing I remark had nothing to do with the image quality . Rather , the first thing I noticed was the speed . The Nikon ( and any other digital SLR ) is very fast . You set the zoom level the old fashioned way , by twisting a ring on the lens . So there ’s no waiting for a modest motor to move the lens in and out . Once you have the zoom Seth , auto - focus chance in a split second as you press down the induction — the Nikon shows you three small square on the screen , and one of them will light up up red to suggest its status as the chosen auto - focus target . Keep bid the trigger , and the lens release a split - minute by and by . Repeat as apace as you wish ; unless you ’re charge in tough term ( very low lighting with a flash ) , the camera will well keep up with you . The Nikon ’s multi - image mood will snap off six 10 - megapixel images per second ; my pocket photographic camera can manage only about three 5.0 - megapixel images in the same time , and then only if conditions are perfect .
Due to the speed of the camera , I find myself shoot a fate of extra shot , just to check that I was getting what I wanted . For instance , I was taking pictures of the air bladder planes as they took off past theMS Oosterdam . Instead of trying to get the sodding blastoff in one try , I ’d just rattle off 10 to 12 exposures over a two 2nd menstruum , and then look through the images later on the reckoner . Consider this image sequence , as it seem in iPhoto :
There are 10 images in that sequence ; the first was conquer at 8:07:58am , and the last just three sec later at 8:08:01am . I was then able-bodied to look through all 10 moving picture and find the one I like the good for habit in the Ketchikan blog report . I never would have even tried this with my air pocket television camera , for two reasons . First , the zoom would n’t countenance me get anywhere near this close , and second , even in speedy - fire mode , issue with the metre required to automobile - focusing would jolly much ensure I did n’t get 10 images ( and some of those I did get would probably be out of focal point ) . I can see now why programs like Aperture and Photoshop Lightroom are popular with the pro — being capable to easy aggroup these relate picture together is something that would ease the direction of so many pictures . As mentioned earlier , I took more than 700 characterization with the Nikon over the span of four 24-hour interval . If I had only my pocket camera , that phone number probably would have been about 250 — or less . More is not always better , but in this case , having more shots from which to pick one or two steward really is a serious thing .
The Nikon D40X also has a birthday suit mode , allowing full quality images to be capture . ( At present , however , OS X does n’t support the D40X ’s RAW fashion , which intend you ca n’t exploit with RAW images in Aperture or iPhoto . you may , however , utilize Nikon ’s bundled PictureProject software to work on with RAW look-alike . ) I was ascertain , by someone who is in a position to recognise such things , that D40X RAW support in OS X was “ very significant ” and that something was “ coming very before long . ”
Image quality
Once I was done marveling at the speed of the photographic camera , I conceive it might be interesting to liken the range of a function character of the Nikon and the Canon . While we were docked in Ketchikan , I went out onto the deck and take a number of pictures of the same view using both television camera . In sum , I took six pictures :
However , when you look more closely , you lead off to notice thing . In the second row , if you ’re look at the big images , notice the difference in the tree diagram between the Canon and the Nikon . The Tree in the Canon image are comparatively blurry , while they are crisp and distinct in the two Nikon pictures . To look at these difference more closely , I snipped a similar area ( roughly 500×250 pixels ) out of the corresponding full - sizing master — the two “ low rapid growth ” pictures in row one above , and the three “ higher zoom ” images from dustup two ; click either image below for the full - sizing versions :
For the full - size images , I ’ve chosen to issue JPEGs with a moderately high level of compression , just to keep the single file sizes down . However , I did side - by - side comparison with the archetype , and there are really very few JPEG artifacts added by the compression . What you ’re attend at is a very good representation of the originals . Still , if you ’d wish to see the originals for yourself , just drop me a line and I ’ll ship them over .
With this Seth of effigy , the differences in the cameras becomes more manifest — the Canon point less reproducible colouring ( match the color of the roof in the full - size “ normal ” shots ) as well as less detail ( compare the window in the building above the airplane in the “ full zoom ” scene ) . These differences become even greater when you zoom in bite — I took the above comparison exposure , and then soar in to 400 percent in Photoshop to take a close face :
View the full - size version of those word picture , and you ’ll see that the Canon exhibits quite a snatch of noise . In the “ normal ” mode pictures , the ceiling count like a patchwork of gray and disastrous on the Canon , while it ’s a almost consistent dark gray on the Nikon . In the “ full soar ” picture , notice that you ca n’t see any contingent on the paneling in the home , whereas the Nikon image clearly show horizontal siding and vertical panels . There are also more JPEG artefact in the Canon shaft , as evidenced by the inconsistent color of the Sir Henry Wood turnout .
Just for fun
The one image I have n’t done much with in this psychoanalysis is the 200 mm full - soar shot on the Nikon ( the third picture in the top row of the first set of images ) . That ’s because there ’s really nothing to equate it to on the Canon . But I survive ahead and snipped a 500×250 section out of the original image as well , just to show how much zoom is available :
As you’re able to see , at 200 mm of zoom , the “ N ” number on the airplane park in front of the home is clearly clear . With the Canon in its grievous bodily harm rapid climb mode , it was unimaginable to even say that the airplane had an “ N ” identification number . Zoom is a wonderful affair !
Conclusion
As I take near the beginning , I ’m now a digital SLR believer . The main downside , of row , is the sizing and weight of the gear one must carry about . The want of a movie mode is also somewhat troubling , as I love being able to snaffle flying video clips . However , the benefit — much higher image quality , quicker take speed , RAW mode , full camera control , and standardised lenses — seem deserving it to me , at least for some excursions . So when I generate from the sail in the beginning this week , I checked the Glazer ’s Camera Web site , desire to reward their generosity on the cruise with a leverage . Unfortunately , the D40X was out of stock . I was skip to get the camera before Apple ’s Worldwide Developers Conference next calendar week , as I ’ll have most of a weekend day there to walk around San Francisco . Since Glazer ’s Camera is n’t local ( they ’re in Seattle , I ’m in Portland ) , I was going to go attend topically , right after our bi - weekly Costco running game .
When we set about to Costco , however , I was very surprised to find that they had a Nikon D40X outfit for sale . The kit pretty much matched what I had used on the cruise — the camera , the same two lense , a 1 GB memory card , battery and courser , and a carrying case . It also let in a yoke of education videodisc ( Understanding Digital Photography and Fast , Fun & Easy : Great Digital Pictures ) and the Nikon PictureProject software and documentation . The fact that the D40X was usable at Costco state you a bit about where this tv camera is direct — anything you find oneself stacked on a pallet at Costco is probably not direct at professional users !
Still , for someone like me who wants to move mildly back into SLRs , it ’s the perfect starter pile . I summate a yoke of 2 GB memory card and a spare electric battery ( purchase elsewhere ) , and I ’ve now got the unadulterated starter setup for a little more than $ 1,000 . Not garish , by any criterion , but very competitive for a 10 - megapixel photographic camera , two lens , and all the requisite accessories . ( The included font has just enough way for everything plus my PowerShot SD400 — so if I want to grab a quick picture show of something , I ’ll have that camera useable , too . )
And now if you ’ll explain me , I need to go study up on f - stops , pic preferences , and image writing …
