Today I did something I’ve been thinking about for a while, I ordered a new camera! My old camera has been great, it’s an Olympus D-560, but I’ve been thinking that it was about time for an upgrade. I began taking quite a few garden pictures when I started up this blog back in October 2007 and would like to make some better quality pictures. I’ve done some research and I think I’ve found what I need in a Nikon D40. It’s not at the high end of the DSRL (Digital Single Reflex Lens) cameras, it’s more of an introductory camera into the DSLR realm. From what I’ve read about DSLRs, it is better to spend money on the lenses since the camera bases can be upgraded. The lenses will always be usable as long as the base is compatible.
This particular Nikon is only a 6.1 megapixel camera. I opted for the camera with the fewer megapixels in exchange for a more reasonable price. While the 10 mega-pixel camera would be nice to have, many people have noticed that once you get above 5 megapixels or so the differences are indiscernible to the human eye. In fact David Pogue of the New York Times did an experiment where he made three copies of the same picture with a different amount of megapixels used for each photograph then took them to the street. Only one person was able to correctly identify the pictures and the corresponding megapixels. When I made my decision on the camera the megapixels weren’t the main factor.
I went to a local store and checked out the exact camera I was considering and studied how it felt, how the lenses worked, and peaked at a few other cameras so I feel pretty comfortable with my camera pick. One cool feature I’ve always wanted in a camera was the ability to take multiple shots per second. The ability to take rapid picture will make nature photography much simpler. Just imagine the shots of a butterfly fanning wings or the fluttering of a hummingbird. The Nikon D40 can take 2.5 pictures in a second! Now you can expect a whole lot of garden pictures coming your way via this blog! Of course it might take 7-10 days…
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I just know it happens to everyone of us. You think you have a pretty good camera until you compare it to the other pics on other blogs. Then you start thinking about getting a better one. One that will take a pic of a butterfly or a hummingbird. Yep!
I have a nice camera but my problem is finding the time to learn how to use it! I just keep it on Auto which is a waste. Oh! one day!
Hope you really enjoy your new camera and I seeing your pictures.
Best wishes Sylvia (England)
I can’t wait to see your pictures. I just got my new camera last week. I opted for the Nikon D-60. I haven’t had too much time to play around with it yet and still use my little point and shoot sometimes. Here are some of my first shots.
Be sure to experiment with the different modes on the same subject to see which effects you like best.
That’s wonderful Dave! I thought your photos were terrific but I totally get how you might want a different camera! My wish list includes: stopping action to get that hummer or butterfly would be a nice feature and a better zoom! gail
You are way too organized. How do you do it with two little ones?
Great choice Dave. I love my Nikon. I have a pretty basic digital camera, but this whole picture taking/blog thing is new to me. My hubby wants to upgrade my camera soon. I can’t wait to see the pictures you can take with your new camera.
You will have so much fun snapping away!
I have always been a big picture taking fool as the Saint says! lol. The favorite feature I use on my new cam is the zoom lens! I have so much fun with it. But unfortunately, the snapping in between shots is a bit slow for me. I am sure you will really enjoy that feature…
Happy snapping!
You made a great choice…you cant go wrong with a Nikon…I own both the D200 and the D80.
That is a really cool camera. And you do already have amazing pictures on your blog. Cam might be getting a very high-end camera at some point, and I’ll end up using it for my garden photos as well. But I can’t wait to see how much better your photos get!
Great pics Dave. Will be glad to see your new ones. I have a little ole Sony psc-s730. It takes pretty good pics. I haven’t learned how to use all the features yet. Shucks, can’t even download my pics by myself yet.