Canon EOS 40D 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera with EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM Standard Zoom Lens Reviews

• Detailed Review of the 40D - I Love My Canon 40D!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  
  By A2KF3QSLO0NT61 on 2007-09-06
  I have divided this review into two sections. The first is a brief summary of how I feel about the camera. The second is a detailed comparison of the 30D and 40D based on my experiences with both cameras. After reading this section you will see why I gave this camera a 5 star rating. I loved my 30D but the 40D simply blows it away.
  
  Update: 1/6/2008
  I have added a third section to discuss general guidelines for determining if this is the right camera for you.
  
  Update: 2/2/2008
  In this section I discuss my thoughts about how the new Canon Rebel XSi might impact your buy/upgrade decision.
  
  
  SUMMARY:
  In less than a couple of months I have gone from a S3 to a S5 to a 30D and I just got my 40D earlier on today. Wow! What a fantastic camera! The pictures that this camera takes are just amazing. I thought it could not get any better than the 30D but Canon has really taken it a notch or two up with the 40D. I want anyone considering buying this camera to know to get it right away. Trust me. It is worth every penny.
  
  
  DETAILED REVIEW OF THE CANON EOS 40D:
  -The Outside
  The first thing that stood out is the larger, 3 inch, LCD screen. This makes reading the menus and changing settings a lot easier. Canon did not stop there. When I used the 30D I really wished reading the LCD screen was a lot easier when I was shooting outdoors in bright sunlight. When I did a shot I would sometimes have to quickly find a shaded area to view the screen. I am happy to say that Canon did address this issue as well. It is now a lot easier to read the screen in bright sunlight.
  
  There are 2 new buttons on the outside that you can use to quickly access settings rather than wasting time going through the menu.
  - Info
  This allows you to quickly review your shooting information for an image - ISO speed, Picture Style and Metering Mode etc. There are two things that I really like here:
  
  1. Highlight Alerts
  When this feature is enabled, if there any overexposed areas in the image they will blink when the shooting information is displayed.
  
  2. AF Point Display
  When this feature is enabled, you will see the AF point(s) that achieved focus displayed in red.
  
  There is another use of the Info button that I really like. It can be used to set the shooting information right there on the LCD screen. I prefer this option of setting shooting information as the names of the various icons are also displayed along with the icons. I remember when I just started using my 30D that I would sometimes forget which icon was for Tungsten Light vs. White Fluorescent Light when I was setting the White Balance using the control panel. Now the name of each icon is clearly displayed as I scroll through them on the LCD screen.
  
  - Picture Style
  I really love this feature. There are times when I make a standard shot and then need to make a landscape shot. Then I would need to switch back to a standard shot. I can now do this really quickly without having to wade through the menu.
  
  There is a new Auto Focus (AF-ON) button. Assuming that you hold the camera in a conventional way, this new button will be just below your thumb. It allows you to auto focus independently of pressing the shutter button. I found this feature really useful when making continuous shots of a trainer riding on the belly of Lolita the killer whale at Miami Seaquarium. I was able to maintain continuous focus right throughout the shots.
  
  There are 3 new positions on the mode dial - C1, C2 and C3. You can register most of the current camera settings under them. Believe it or not but this includes not just the current shooting mode but even the menus and custom function settings. I cannot express enough what a time saver these new positions are to me. I find that I have to do different types of shots frequently so with my 30D I had to really change settings frequently. I can now save 3 of the settings that I use most often and have instant access to them. I also like the fact that I still have the option of making changes even after selecting one of these positions. For example, if my C1 was saved with an ISO speed of 400 I am not restricted to that ISO when I select C1. If I find that I only need an ISO speed of 320 I can make that change just as normal.
  
  One feature that has been removed is the ability to use the Delete button to delete all images. I really liked this feature as there were times I wanted to delete all the images and it was more convenient to use the Delete button rather than having to go through the menu. However, I think it might have been removed because it was rather easy for someone to inadvertently erase all the images when they really wanted to erase the currently selected image.
  
  - Start Up and Power Off
  When you turn the camera on or off you can't help noticing the "Sensor Cleaning" message. This was one feature that I really eagerly anticipated. Buying a camera at this price plus quality lens represents a substantial investment. It is really reassuring to know that the camera has dust reduction built into it. What I like further is the fact that if I need to do a quick shot at start up, as soon as I press the shutter button half way to focus, the self cleaning operation is suspended. I also have the ability to turn this option off for start up and power off and run it manually whenever I feel like. I also have the added comfort of knowing that if the self cleaning sensor unit does not get rid of all the dust, I can always append the Dust Delete Data to images and then use Digital Photo Professional (one of the provided software) to remove the dust spots. At first I was a little concerned about the impact on file sizes as a result of appending the dust delete data. It is important to understand that once the dust delete data is obtained it is attached to every image that is captured after that so I was really concerned about the impact of increased file sizes. However, it turns out that this data is so small that its impact on file sizes is really negligible.
  
  
  - Shooting
  When I first put my eye to the optical viewfinder I could immediately see the benefit of Canon increasing the magnification from 0.90x to 0.95x - images are much clearer and brighter and of course, it is also easier to read the various settings. Another welcome change is the displaying of ISO right there in the viewfinder. I really love this. I never liked having to move from the viewfinder to the control panel just to see what the ISO was. Another small change in the viewfinder is the displaying of a warning (B/W icon) when you are shooting in black and white.
  
  This camera focuses really fast and accurately. At the Miami Seaquarium I had to do several quick shots of dolphins doing jumps. The problem here is that you never quite know from which direction they will be starting. Despite this I never missed a shot. The 40D has the same nine focus points as the 30D. The increase in speed and accuracy is as a result of the points on the 40D being cross-type. This means that they are sensitive to both horizontal and vertical detail when shooting with lenses of F5.6 or faster. In addition, if you are using a lens of F2.8 or faster the center point is twice as sensitive as any other point.
  
  If you want to increase the focusing speed and accuracy even more you can take advantage of the two optional interchangeable focusing screens for the 40D - the Precision Matte with Grid (Ef-D) and Super Precision Matte (Ef-S). The first optional screen is pretty much the standard included screen, with a grid that makes it easier to align vertical or horizontal lines when you are composing the image. The second screen is optimized for f/2.8 and faster lenses and makes it easier to focus manually with these lenses. However, if you are using a lens that is not f/2.8 or faster the viewfinder will look darker than with the standard screen.
  
  Something that really stood out with the very first shot from this camera was the shorter blackout time and the quieter, more professional, shutter release sound. The 30D used a spring to lift the mirror while the 40D uses a motor in both directions which means that the mirror mechanism is both quicker and quieter.
  
  At first I did not think much of the increase from 5 to 6.5fps for continuous shooting. However, when you couple this with the fact that the buffer can now hold twice the images that the 30D did you get some amazing results when doing continuous shooting. I have several action shots from the Miami Seaquarium with trainers riding dolphins and the killer whale and with the dolphins and whale pushing up trainers in the air. Trust me - they are awesome. It is fantastic that a non-professional can find a reasonable priced camera that takes such awesome action shots.
  
  I am really happy that Canon decided to add Live View Mode shooting. I really liked that mode on the S5 point-and-shoot camera. I never used the optical viewfinder on that camera. I definitely will use the viewfinder most of the times on my 40D but I know there will be situations where it is more convenient to use Live View. Also, sometimes I just don't feel like putting my eye to the viewfinder. Well, I thoroughly tested Live View Mode shooting and, no surprise here, it works just as well as it did on my S5. You can even use auto focus while in Live View Mode. The new AF-ON button can be used for this. You can set just about every shooting function, such as ISO speed and drive mode, while in live view mode. The only thing you cannot change is the metering mode. There are two silent (quiet) modes to go along with Live View. Pay attention to the high temperature warning when shooting in this mode.
  
  I have to mention sRaw here. I stayed away from shooting RAW with my 30D because of the file sizes. However, I am now using the new sRAW (small RAW) format and I really like it. A sRAW file is about a quarter the size of a regular RAW file. After applying all the usual post-processing RAW adjustments the resulting image is smaller in size than a regular image. However, this is not a problem for me for the images that I do decide to shoot in sRAW.
  
  There are times when I want to take a shot in dim household light and I don't want to use the flash because I want to capture the moment just the way it was. Of course, there are other situations where you are not allowed to use a flash so this issue is also applicable there. The first thing to do is increase the ISO speed. However, in addition you also need to manually set the color temperature for the white balance. The problem with the 30D, however, was that it only allowed a range starting at 2,800K. With this minimum setting you could capture the moment without using the flash but the image would have an annoying orange look. The 40D allows you to set a minimum color temperature of 2,500K. With this new minimum the orange look is gone completely.
  
  One of the things that I really disliked about my 30D was that it would instantly power down if I somehow opened the card door while it was still recording images. I am happy to report that Canon has now fixed this problem. Rather than powering down, the 40D displays a warning message that the CF door is opened on the LCD screen. More importantly, it continues to write the images to the CF card without any interruption.
  
  - Ergonomics
  This camera feels just right. All the buttons are in the right place. It is not too heavy. It is amazing that despite all the new features Canon has added, the overall dimensions and weight of the camera have not changed significantly.
  
  - Transferring Images to a PC
  I must say that this seems to be a lot quicker than with the 30D. With the 30D it took a while for the transfer utility to launch after I had connected the camera to my PC. However, this part of the process is a lot quicker with the 40D and the actual transfer process itself seems to be somewhat quicker as well.
  
  - Custom Functions
  The new custom function, Highlight Tone Priority, can provide better highlights. However, depending on the ISO speed you are using you might notice more noise than usual in the shadow areas. There is definitely a trade-off involved and Canon has correctly chosen to disable this function by default. So far I have only done shots up to ISO speeds of 800. I did not notice any noise in the shots that I took with this option enabled but I suspect that it will show up at very high ISO speeds.
  
  I absolutely love the new My Menu tab. It allows for the registering of up to 6 menus and custom functions that you find that you have to change often. This is another huge time saver even though you have to use the menu. Some of the items that I have to change frequently are the Image Quality, Review Time, White Balance, Auto Play and Live View Function Settings. I now store all of these under the My Menu tab. In addition I have also set this tab to be my default tab so it is shown first whenever the menu is displayed. Something else that I did to save even more time was to sort the items registered under this tab so I can quickly locate them.
  
  - Tabbed Menu System
  The 30D had one long scrolling menu system. The menu was divided into categories with a different color for each category. You could jump from one category to the next. In contrast, the 40D has a tabbed menu system so it is much easier to get to an item when you do need to use the menu. The tabs and their colors generally correspond to the existing categories from the 30D. The shooting and image playback categories each has two tabs. The set-up category actually has three tabs. The custom function category has one tab. The My Menu tab, discussed earlier on, does not have a corresponding category from the 30D. Having multiple tabs for most categories further allow you to save time when searching for an item in a category.
  
  - Weatherproof Battery and Storage Compartment Doors
  Once the battery and storage compartment doors are closed, dust and water won't be able to get into the respective compartments. This is a welcome improvement. I wish the entire body was weatherproof but I understand that that would have bumped the price up further.
  
  - Direct Printing
  I do direct printing using a Canon Selphy Photo Printer. One of the less talked about new feature of the Canon 40D is the ability to trim (crop) an image right there in play back mode when doing direct printing. This is a really convenient feature but it does not end there. When you set the crop rectangle you can also tilt it by +10 or -10 degrees in 0.5 degrees increments. This allows you to correct a slightly tilted image before direct print.
  
  - External Flash Management
  The built-in flash on both the 30D and 40D are good walk-around performers just like the 28-135mm kit lens. However, there are situations where I definitely need a high performance flash so I bought the Canon Speedlite 580EX II Flash to go with my 30D. I could not have been happier with this flash. The only small disappointment that I had was the fact that I could not configure the flash from my 30D. Canon has resolved this issue on the 40D so now I can configure my external flash right there from my camera. Please note that this in-camera configuration of the external flash currently only works with the 580EX II Flash.
  
  - Metering
  The metering mode is the way in which the camera determines the correct exposure. The four metering modes from the 30D were carried over to the 40D with one significant change. The modes are as follows:
  -- Evaluative
  The camera measures the light intensity in several points in the scene. The results are then combined to find the settings for the best exposure. This is the default mode on both the 30D and 40D.
  -- Partial
  In this case the light intensity is taken from an area that represents about 9% of the viewfinder area at the center. I use this when backlighting causes the background to be much brighter than the subject. If evaluative mode was used in this scenario the camera would be fooled by the intensity of the light in the background and the subject would be underexposed. This is remains unchanged from the 30D.
  -- Spot
  The light intensity is taken from an area that represents about 3.8% of the viewfinder area at the center. This has increased from 3.5% on the 30D. I use this when I want the metering to be based on a specific part of a subject or scene such as a face, the eyes or a smile.
  -- Center-weighted Average
  With this metering mode, the light intensity is weighted at the center and then sort of "feathered" out towards the edges. I use this when there are many subjects in the central part of the viewfinder but there are small areas that vary greatly in brightness at the edges of the viewfinder. This is the same on both the 30D and 40D.
  
  
  - Image Quality
  At the end of the day I am really interested in the quality of the images that my camera produces. The people viewing my images are really not concerned about the fact that my camera has dust reduction and all the other high tech features. What they are interested in is the final result that they see.
  
  I know some people equate more mega pixels with better quality images. However, simply adding more pixels without modifying the sensor to handle the increase properly only degrades noise performance. This time around Canon not only increased the megapixel but also improved the sensor design. These changes, along with the DIGIC III image processor and a 14-bit Analog-to-Digital (A/D) converter instead of the 12-bit in the 30D have definitely improved image quality. This was obvious from the very first shot I took with the 40D. However, that was in a well lit area. At the Miami Seaquarium I had to shoot at various ISO levels due to the unstable weather at this time of year. I did shots up to ISO 800 and there was absolutely no noise. Canon must be commended for this. Other companies got caught up in the megapixel war and lost sight of the goal of producing quality images. Something else relating to ISO that I really love is the fact that I can now use auto ISO in the creative modes. I considered it a waste of time having to set this on my 30D.
  
  
  UPDATE: IS THIS THE RIGHT CAMERA FOR YOU? (1/6/2008)
  This section is really for first time buyers. If you already own a DSLR I am assuming that you know enough to use the specifications of the 40D along with reviews here on Amazon to make your decision.
  
  After reading my glowing review of the 40D you might think that I would recommend this camera for everyone - absolutely not. The right camera for you depends on three main factors:
  - Your Functional Requirements for the Camera
  You need to identify the main requirements for the camera. For example, if you will be primarily shooting sports then obviously a camera that only shoots 3fps will generally not be a very good candidate unless you are shooting something like child soccer games. If you intend to shoot more fast paced sports then you will probably want at least 5 fps. If you are more into wildlife photography and will be shooting very fast moving animals in low light then ideally you will need a camera with very good high ISO performance and probably something like 10 fps.
  
  Another important consideration is the maximum print size that you expect for your photos. Here is a summary of the maximum print sizes for different megapixels (resolution):
  6 megapixels 8" * 10"
  8 megapixels 11" * 14"
  10 megapixels 13" * 19"
  
  As you can see if your maximum print size is 8" * 10" then you are covered with even a 6 megapixels camera.
  
  Once you have identified the primary use of the camera you can go look at the specifications of the main cameras on the market. Don't get caught up in the Canon vs. Nikon debate. Both companies produce great camera and lenses. Make sure you take the time to first read the specs and then the reviews about each camera. If you come across terms that you don't understand don't be afraid to ask your question right here on Amazon.
  
  Lets apply what we have learn here so far. Assume that you are just interested in shooting pictures of your family and you have decided that 8" * 10" prints are the maximum that you are concerned about. Based on just functional requirements I would NOT recommend the 40D for you. I would recommend something like the Nikon D40 with 6.1 megapixels for a cost of just $470 which even includes the 18-55mm kit lens. You can even shoot 2.5 fps so you could use it to shoot the kids soccer games. The next two cameras on your list would be the Nikon D40x and the Canon Rebel XTi. Both cameras are 10 megapixels and allow you to shoot 3 fps.
  
  - Your Budget
  After you have identified the ideal camera(s) based on functional requirements you have to take your budget into consideration. For example, based on functional requirements you might decide that the ideal camera would be a ID Mark III. However, if you don't have the $4K+ to buy it you might have to settle for the 40D which is its smaller sibling. You might even decide to go for the Nikon D300 instead. On the other hand, you might have a very generous budget and can afford to buy a more advance camera than just what is needed based on your functional requirements. Based on function requirements you might only need a Nikon D40 but can afford to spend $2000. In that case I would definitely recommend the Canon 40D or the Nikon D300.
  
  - Your Personal Preferences
  You have to live with your camera. When you pick it up it should feel comfortable and inspire confidence. Before you buy any camera make sure you go to a store and actually try the camera so you see how it feels. This is totally up to you. What is comfortable and inspiring for one person might not work for another person.
  
  As you can see the right camera for you really depend on things that only you can really decide. One of the main questions people ask me is about the Nikon D300. I do not own one so I cannot offer a review here but I have read the reviews here on Amazon and they are all very good. You can use the guidelines above to decide if that is a better camera for you. It offers a lot more features but is also more expensive. Do you need these additional features and can you afford the difference in price? Don't forget that you will need quality lens to get the most out of these expensive cameras. How do you feel about the difference in image quality and high ISO performance between Canon and Nikon? Is this even a concern for you as there are people on both sides that swear that the other one is better? Once again, only you can really answer these questions.
  
  Here is my personal account of how I ended up going with Canon and the 40D. I wanted a camera that could shoot fast paced action, portraits and weddings. The wedding requirement meant that I needed a camera that had very good high ISO performance since I would need to make many low light romantic shots without using the flash. There is nothing to spoil a romantic picture like using the flash. I started out looking at the Nikon D80 and the Canon Rebel XTi. I hated the small size of the Rebel XTi. It just never felt good in my hands. I really preferred the Nikon D80. It even had more features such as spot metering that is important in wedding photography. However, when I tested the ISO performance of both cameras it was clear to me that the Canon definitely had superior performance when it came to high ISO. This does not mean that the Nikon was bad - just that the Canon was noticeably better. The official reviews by a prominent testing site had the same conclusions. I also felt that the Rebel XTi had better image quality than the D80, something else that was also confirmed on the testing site.
  
  At this point I decided to look at the Canon 30D and the Nikon D200. The D200 cost more but it also offered more features. Both cameras were large enough where I would be comfortable with either one. I went to the closest camera store and tried out the 30D. They did not carry the D200 so I was not able to test it. I was really impressed with 30D but it had a problem since it was only 8 megapixels and I might need to blow up wedding pictures to 13" * 19". I went to a prominent site to see the official tests on both cameras. I was really surprised to find that when it came to image quality and high ISO performance the Canon once again received better scores even though the Nikon had more features. However, since I needed the 10 megapixels I decided to go with the D200. Hey, life is always about some trade-off and I have no problem with a Nikon or a Canon. I almost ordered the D200 when I found out that Canon would be releasing the 40D in a few months so I instead decided to go with the 30D and then upgrade to the 40D when it came out.
  
  After four months of using the 40D I have no regrets. I believe it represents the best combination of features and price. However, this is based on my personal functional requirements, budget and preferences. You need to identify your requirements, see which camera fits into your budget and then make sure that you are comfortable with the camera. That is the best camera for you. What is best for me might not be the best for you. Just don't let the fanatics mislead you - both Canon and Nikon produce great camera and lenses. Pick one and stick with it. Once you have invested heavily in equipment for one there is no reason to be switching to the other. These two companies will always be trying to outdo each other which mean better products for us.
  
  3/6/2008: If you are new to DSLRs and would like to get up to speed quickly with the most important concepts you can check out my Website at tajdigistudios for some notes. You will see a menu item titled Photographic Notes. They were added in response to several questions from Jennie. You can also see some of the photos I have taken with the 40D under the Portfolio menu item. The galleries display photos I purchased from iStockPhoto. Over time I will expand the notes to include photos to better demonstrate the concepts. The site is a DotNetNuke application so it is a bit slow when you first launch the application but it should be okay after that. 8/7/2008: I have started putting the photography notes into a free course at this website, tajdslrcourse.
  
  UPDATE: THE IMPACT OF THE NEW CANON REBEL XSi (2/2/2008)
  The replacement for the current Rebel XTi, the Rebel XSi, is scheduled for release on 4/15/2008. If you are in the market for a serious entry level DSLR I strongly recommend that you take a look at this camera. Here is a list of the key new features:
  - Larger Viewfinder
  - 12.2 Megapixel CMOS Sensor up from 10 Megapixel
  - 3.0" LCD Monitor
  - Live view Mode including Contrast-detect AF
  - Spot Metering
  - Improved 9-point AF System
  - Redesigned Menu System (including My Menu as seen in the 40D)
  - Highlight Tone Priority (as seen in the 40D)
  - Continuous Shooting at 3.5fps up from 3.0fps
  - 14 bit A/D converter and processing
  - ISO setting displays in viewfinder and ISO button
  - Multi-shot Self-timer Mode
  - Auto Lighting Optimiser (boosts shadows after shooting)
  - Kit lens: Image stabilized version of Canon's 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 lens
  
  It is slightly larger than the camera it replaces. At just $800 for the body and $900 for the kit this is definitely worth serious consideration depending on your requirements, budget and preferences. To be honest with you I think current 40D owners might be a little jealous of the features on this "baby" Canon DSLR. In my opinion the competition from Nikon has forced Canon to add more features than it would normally have done. Competition is certainly great for consumers in a free-market. I cannot wait to see what the 5D replacement will be like. I have been waiting on that camera since I plan to use it as my main camera and my 40D as a backup.
  
  
  PURPOSE OF REVIEWS:
  My understanding was that the purpose of these reviews was for owners to share their experience with the product being reviewed. At the time of updating my review it is really disappointing to see that of 13 reviews, there are actually 5 which are from people who have not purchased the product and are simply rehashing the specs and/or engaging in useless debates about Nikon vs. Canon. This makes it difficult for potential buyers to quickly determine if existing owners are happy with the product and if not, why. I purchased a lot of items from Amazon, mostly books, and I find that I cannot simply rely on the overall ratings anymore. I have to wade through numerous negative reviews from people who do not even own the items. Another problem is the people who buy something that clearly could not satisfy their requirements in the first place. For example, I once saw a review of a book where the reviewer criticized the book for being a beginner's book. The problem, however, is that the book clearly stated that it was for beginners. The title of the book "Teach Yourself ... in 24 hours" should have been enough for anyone to know that this book was intended for beginners. Why would someone buy it then and then criticize for being such?
  
  I think Amazon need to come up with a way of restricting reviews to people who have actually purchased the item in question from them. This would truly make the reviews more meaningful. In the meantime potential buyers need to carefully evaluate negative reviews. I am not suggesting that all reviews must be 5 stars like the one I gave the 40D. However, I really would like to see the reviews based on the experiences of actual owners. For example, has image quality increased or decreased with the increase in mega pixels and what is the impact when using higher ISO?
  
  

• Canon 40D -- What I like... What I don't like

  
  By A32G94FA0ZE3GG on 2007-09-03
  I was a long time owner of the Canon 10D which I quickly outgrew. Then, I upgraded to the 20D and have been using it for the past few years. I didn't think the 30D was a big enough step forward to warrant the upgrade. Going from the 20D to the 40D is a big leap forward.
  
  Unboxing the 40D is about the same as the other two DSLRs I've owned. Manuals in both spanish and english, plus software for MAC and PC. I got the "body only" package as I already own the 28-135mm lens. That lens is just **ok.** and I really didn't want a 2nd copy. The battery is the bp511A so I can use the already charged one from my 20D. The strap is the same as the 20D. The compact flash memory is the same as well, so I didn't need to buy any new accessories to upgrade.
  
  The first thing you will notice is the big display on the back. It's very nice compared to the one on the 20D. Although, I'm constantly afraid that my titanium rimmed glasses will scratch the screen. The screen is so much closer to the viewfinder compared to the little one on my 20D. I think I'll look for a clear film cover that will shield it.
  
  The controls are very similar to the 20D/30D. However, they are moved around a bit. The menu structure is very different and it will take some getting used to. The first thing I thought of was my old 10D... and how simple it was just due to the sheer lack of features. The 40D has so many that it would be tough for a beginner to get used to them all. It might be good for beginners who are a bit techno challenged to buy a cheaper, used DSLR to get used to using a simple model... then sell it and upgrade.
  
  The camera feels so much more solid than my 20D. The little motor that pops up the flash sounds really solid compared to the old 20D. Even the shutter sounds terrific. Very quick and quiet. The old 10D had a nice shutter sound as well. the 20D always sounded like thrashing metal to me. To contrast, the Nikon DSLRs have a slow sounding swish to them... this one is tight and quick. The camera feels about the same in my hand. Although the lines are smoothed out a bit compared to the 20D.
  
  I tried out the live preview feature and found it annoying since I'm used to looking through the viewfinder. I think I would like it much more if this was my first DSLR as a conversion from a point and shoot where you typically only use a "live view." The LCD is viewable at a strong angle so the live view may be usable for when the camera must be held at odd angles away from the body... like over a stream or something. This camera is heavier than a point-and-shoot and you need your face to help you hold it steady. I found myself a bit wobbly when I was holding it out using the live-view feature. You'll need a high shutter speed to keep from getting shaky looking pictures.
  
  So, what about picture quality?? It's a 10mp camera so the pictures are big. I have a workhorse MacPro tower and it has no problem working on the 10-12MB pictures that this camera produces (.jpg processing for now). I'm happy to say that the focus is spot on in all of my sample pictures from 4 different lenses (17-40 f/4L, 28-135 IS zoom, 50mm f/1.4, 100mm macro). The DPP software can be used to edit raw files if you choose to use it. It works pretty well and it was very speedy on my MacPro. You also get direct access to picture styles from within the computer software so you don't have to worry about setting it in camera. The pictures look very nice. The colors are very accurate. at iso100 the pictures are so nice and smooth. My 50 and 100mm lenses make the most buttery out of focus areas on this camera.
  
  ******ALERT******
  as of this writing(9-2-2007), Aperture, Finder, Preview, Photoshop CS3 (ACR4.1), and iPhoto do not support raw image files from the 40D. This was the case with the 10D when I first purchased it and it took a few months for APPLE and Adobe to deliver updates. I'm sure Canon are working hard with vendors to get their updates in the works. The good news is that there are settings for RAW+.jpg so you can have both files when the software updates come through. If you don't like being on the "bleeding" edge of technology, then wait a few months before you plunk down the cash for the 40D.
  
  ***** ALERT UPDATE *****
  As of 9-13-07, Adobe has released Camera Raw updated 4.2 which now supports the Canon 40D.
  As of 10-26-07, Apple's Aperture and Mac OS 10.5 (Leopard) support Canon 40D raw files.
  
  Picture styles are easily accessed from a dedicated button on the camera. They allow you to make quick sets for defining different picture taking scenarios. It basically does some basic post-processing work in-camera to save time later. It worked really well. I found that pictures even up at 1600iso looked usable for every day stuff (e.g. not blown up too big.). ISO can be set in 1/3 stop increments which is new for me. having iso250 just seems weird but it's actually very handy. Gives you the ability to really tweak the settings to capture as much detail as possible in a high dynamic range image (like a sunset, or a backlit portrait without fill flash). I haven't taken side-by-side shots yet but it seems like the images are more detailed with a wider dynamic range than the 20D. Maybe this is the 14bit image processing from DigicIII at work?
  
  The camera seems more responsive than the 20D. The menu scrolling seems faster, file writing seems about as fast (probably a faster rate but bigger file).
  
  One of the neatest features is the custom C1, C2, and C3 dial positions. You can set these up to "remember" camera settings for quick access later on. They act like the memory buttons on luxury car seats! Very handy if you take really different kinds of shots. I go back and forth from Macro to Landscape all the time so I can quickly dial in my base set and go from there.
  
  The vibration dust remover might be a cool feature. I can't feel the camera vibrate or hear it working, which is nice. Apparently it vibrates for 1 second whenever the camera is turned on or off. I changed this setting so that it's only triggered manually by me. I figured I could just use it when I need it rather than have it going all the time. .
  
  Another of my favorite features is the spot meter. The 10D and 20D never had this feature. Apparently the 30D does, but this one is slightly higher weight at the center point. I tried it out and it works really well in combination with the AF point selectors.
  
  So what do I hate about the 40D? I really hate the Auto White Balance setting for indoor shots. You want to be sure to set the camera manually when you are taking the 50millionth picture of your dog. Otherwise it'll be all yellow looking. Canon, can you fix that please?? If you set it manually it looks great.
  
  SInce I like to do available light photography I like to use mirror lock-up. I wish there was a button for that as do many other people.
  Canon finally has the iso setting in the viewfinder so we'll give Canon props for that.
  My last gripe is that the display screen could have a bit higher resolution. It's nice and big but could have a denser pixel set for really checking out your work.
  
  Overall I'm sure anyone would be happy with this camera if you are willing to spend the time to learn how to use it. If you are a beginner, don't expect to take magazine quality shots on day 1. Wait at least till day 2 :-)
  
  I must say that Nikon did come out swinging this time. The newly announced D300 is quite the camera. It will be interesting to compare the Sony CMOS pics to those produced by Canon. Had I not had a bunch of Canon gear already I might have given up the extra dough for the Nikon. Nikon (Sony) blues and reds always seem too punchy to me but that's just my personal taste. My good friend has a Nikon D200 and his pictures are just beautiful out of that camera. The Nikon D300 has some wiz-bang features but I'm not sure I would take advantage of them... nor do I think they will directly result in better pictures. Spend the $500 bucks you'll save on a photography class and you'll have more fun, meet more people, and be taking better pictures at 3 months than if you start with a really fancy camera that you can't figure out how to use.
  
  I'm hoping Canon has been spending some time re-inventing as Nikon have over the last couple of years. The good news is that all of these cameras take good pictures; however, you have to know how to use them. When I pick up my friends Nikon is seems all foreign to me and I feel out of my element. He makes the same comments when he uses my Canon.
  
  

• Hands-on first impressions...

  
  By A2UQK3DAZ8NO2T on 2007-09-02
  Canon's new cameras at this level are often criticized as "merely an upgrade". This stems from two facts, Canon wishes to produce a desirable camera at a reasonable price, and they are starting from a pretty solid base. Yet if you look deeper, the 40D is the most significant upgrade in the 10D, 20D, 30D line. Of course, most things are much like the previous cameras. As far as size and weight, it's very similar, although I thought the grip improvements made the camera fit a little better in my hands. (I did not have an optional grip to try on the camera).
  
  Most of the hype will be on the upgrade to 10 megapixels and the 3" LCD with "Live View". While the former may be criticized as merely catching up to the XTi and competition, we must not overlook the 14-bit processing. This is a huge boost in image capability if used properly. Those that shoot RAW, and those that understand the desirability of the "Hightone Priority", will gain the most benefit. The LCD upgrade is handy, especially combined with its greater color range, but "Live View" without autofocusing my not be that beneficial to most. However, something very interesting for some is "PC Live", which allows the user to connect to a computer, view the image live on that computer, and operate the camera (including focus) remotely from the computer.
  
  While the AF improvements usually get second billing, this may actually be the biggest benefit to sports photographers (although the boost to 6.5 fps is welcome). The 30D only used a cross-basis system at the center point, where the 40D uses this system at all nine positions. This should greatly improve the off center speed and accuracy. Additionally, the center point (the most often used) has been boosted in performance.
  
  The viewfinder has been increased in magnification, which should be welcomed to all. But people who must use eyeglasses should be amazed at the viewfinder being both larger and better eye relief (meaning they will be able to see the viewfinder better, even though their eyeglasses push their eye further back).
  
  Durability has been improved (including extending the internal metal chassis inside the grip) making a good design even better. The sensor cleaning filter is also welcome.
  
  Images look sharp, but I haven't really put the continuous AF (Servo) to a real sports challenge (just cars down a city street). Additionally, I don't have any real feedback on high ISO shooting, although Canon has traditionally done well here.
  
  Comparisons to the competition are everywhere. Image quality wise, the 14-bit processing and hightone control can come in handy for more critical users vs. all other 10 megapixel cameras that are cheaper. For sports guys, the 6.5fps comes cheap, as $1,000 will only get you 3fps. Only the Pentax K10D comes close in build quality, under $1 grand.
  
  As of this writing, Nikon has introduced, but is not close to shipping, the D300. On paper, it's all of the 40D and more (12 megapixel, higher quality LCD, more AF points), but at a price rumored to be $1,800-$2,000, body only. Additionally, Sony will soon have a higher end product. Will they have enough more to justify the price? Your call.
  
  

• A phenomenal picture taking machine!

  
  By A3IPSECQAUAT8V on 2007-09-06
  The 40D is a phenomenal camera with excellent high ISO performance (though not appreciably better than my 20D in my own tests), more megapixels (10MP), rudimentary weather sealing, improved fps rate, automatic dust removal, spot metering, a 3 inch LCD, auto ISO and improved autofocus. Finally, it also has the ISO displayed in the viewfinder which prior iterations of this camera lacked. It is an excellent camera - make no mistake about that, however I'm disappointed that the autofocus wasn't further improved.
  
  The pictures have a smooth buttery depth similar to my 20D - to my eye, possibly slightly better. They are simply beautiful (taken mostly with my 70-200 L). In my own tests, the noise performance is roughly equivalent to the 20D. Canon has managed to add the extra megapixels without additional noise - quite a feat though I suspect that the APS sized sensor has reached the maximum number of pixels that can be packed in without degrading the high ISO performance and dynamic range both every bit as important, if not more so, than the number of pixels. The menu system is much improved over my 20D and there are three user defined modes that one can easily accessed. The camera feels essentially the same in my hands as my old 20D. While the additional 2 megapixels don't add much in terms of picture quality they do provide some head room for cropping. The door to the CF card has a more secure feel to it than my 20D. The 3 inch viewing screen is a vast improvement over my 20D, bright and clear. And it focuses far more quickly and accurately than my 20D.
  
  Canon has enjoyed a dominant position in the digital SLR market ever since the D30. It's lead, in this segment of the market, mostly evaporated with the introduction of Nikon's D200, the D40X and the D80. With these cameras Nikon pulled even, or close enough to establish themselves as legitimate contenders. Still Canon has had the edge in high ISO performance. The problem is that Canon has rested on its laurels and insisted on improving its cameras incrementally, protecting the market of their more expensive cameras. Certain feature sets (such as professional grade auto-focus and weather sealing) have been withheld in an attempt to maintain the clear distinctions between Canon's various camera lines while Nikon has been much more generous in incorporating advanced features lower down their product food chain. Canon's strategy worked just fine when Canon enjoyed a dominant lead over the competition, but as I mentioned its lead has been severely cut into by Nikon and now even Sony is introducing a respectable DSLR. None of the foregoing detracts from the fundamental fact that this is a fantastic camera.
  
  For the money, the 40D is a great buy. It is the best camera for the money Canon has introduced so far and, though not particularly daring, still represents a very good buy at this price point, but Nikon's D40x and D80 currently offer better values and the Nikon D300, though priced higher, is much more feature rich. The 40D's picture quality is simply fantastic and its high ISO performance is, at this point in time, STILL the gold standard for this class of camera and in this size sensor. But it could have been so much more had Canon simply listened to their customers and understood that the digital SLR market is no longer being defined by Canon alone. I'm giving this camera only 4 stars because Canon should have given us more.
  
  If you own a 10D or a 20D (as I did) the upgrade to a 40D does make some sense. However, if you own a 30D the upgrade is a bit more difficult to rationalize. IMO, in the area the counts most, image quality, there is not a significant improvement over the 20D or 30D to justify the upgrade at this time PARTICULARLY in light of the fact that Nikon has raised the bar substantially. Canon will have to come to the table quickly with a much improved version of the 40D including pro grade auto-focus and real weather sealing that most have been asking for.
  
  For first time buyers, the build quality and features are excellent justifying the purchase price, but unless you are married to the Canon system, as I am, take a close look at the various offerings from Nikon including the upcoming D300, the D40x and the D80. I just wish Canon had been more aggressive and daring with this camera giving its customers more of the features they have been clamoring for. The very good news is that Nikon is back in the saddle again. This can only be good for all DSLR consumers in general and Canon owners in particular as more features and capabilities will be packed into all future offerings. I love my camera but am a bit disappointed it did not represent a greater improvement over the 20D.
  
  

• The Most Camera For Your Money

  
  By A12KJ9T45HVC10 on 2007-09-17
  The Canon 40D is the most camera for the money that Canon has ever provided. The highlights:
  
  - The new improvded Autofocus: Yes, it's still 9 point, and I was skeptical about how improved it would actually be, but having used in the field on several photo shoots, I was able to compare it directly to my Canon 5D, and the AF on the 40D was noticeably more accurate & sensitive to subtle differences within the Depth of Field. The new system performs especially well with my 135mm 2.0L, and my 70-200mm 2.8L IS. But this is what is advertised about it (i.e. better performance with lens w/ Maximum apertures of 2.8 and greater).
  
  - The 3.0" LCD: Once again, comparing this to my 5D, which has a 2.5" display, the color reproduction is noticeably more accurate. Initially I thought that the colors were being captured differently by the camera, but when I realized they were very similar once I looked at them on the computer, it became apparent the difference was in the display on the camera. Also, the display on the 40D is brighter. I have not yet noticed as dramatic a difference as Canon has made it seem in their product detail when viewed in sunlight, but especially in darker settings, it is noticeable that there's a difference.
  
  - The frame rate & buffer size: The increased buffer is very apparent, in particular at the low speed continuous setting (3 fps), where the speed at 3fps seems faster than the 3fps on the 5D simply because it can continue shooting (seemingly endlessly). In the high speed continuous mode (6.5fps), the speed is mind-boggling. I have not had a chance to fully test this out yet (look for a future edit to this).
  
  - The viewfinder: The size and brightness are noticeably & dramatically better. The look through the viewfinder is so improved over my old 20D, they almost can't be compared. It's not quite as big as the 5D, but not far off either. And it's just about as bright as the 5D, if not as bright.
  
  - The AF button on the back: Although I still use the regular half push on the shutter button the majority of the time, I have found the rear AF button to be very handy at times. At certain times, the way in which I hold the camera makes using the traditional half push much easier. However, as a tip, I have found that in focus-recompose situations, the rear AF button is invaluable, as it is MUCH easier to continue holding down the rear AF Button while recomposing and then snap the shot, whereas with the traditional system, it is more difficult to recompose without accidentally releasing pressure slightly on the shutter and having to try again (or accidentally taking the shot after it refocuses to an area you didn't want).
  
  The menu system: The new tab based menu system is much more intuitive & much better than scrolling through one big list. If you've ever seen the menus on some of the more recent Powershot mini point and shoots, it's like that (similar specifically to my knowledge to the SD630, as that is the one I own).
  
  Battery management: I used this camera at the Redskins/Dolphins home game last week, and I have a routine of where and how much I take pictures, and how often the camera is on. My camera came in the day I had a photo shoot with a model later, so I put in a battery I had already charged to use with my 5D, and left the brand new battery to charge at home. So, I was using one of my old batteries, in other words. This was not a long photo shoot with this model, I shot maybe 50 pictures of the shoot with the 40D. I never changed the battery before the game & what was noticeable was that the indicator did not drop off of "full" until the end of the fourth quarter, right before they went into OT. Since I was shooting with a new 40D as opposed to my old 20D I was shooting more, also - probably 33% more than normal. And with the 20D, if the battery had just been charged and no other use, it would have been down from "full" by halftime, slightly beforehand. The camera is clearly managing the power consumption better. (NOTE: The one improvement that did not make the 40D, disappointingly, is a better battery indicator - it's still the same annoying little 3 bars, of which 2 always go away when it drops from full, so really a two bar indicator).
  
  - The speed of scrolling through pictures: I know this has to be a result of the DIGIC III processor. It's absurdly better than the 20D or the 5D. If you scroll the knob real quick to zip through a bunch of pcitures, it's there in a second or less. The best way I can describe it is the difference in a computer that you'd been running 256MB RAM on & you just upped it to 1GB. It makes the "Jump" button seem almost unneccesary, however, I'm glad that it's still there!
  
  - Picture Style Button: This is very convenient. I hated looking for that through the long menu.
  
  - Flash management: I don't have the new 580EX II yet, but with the 580EX, it's still noticeable that when using the E-TTL automatic mode, it does a better job of managing the output, using a lower output at times when I know it would have overfired or drawn more power on the 20D, and the end result is you can get more good shots quicker. NOTE: I was using the external power pack also. But I'm making my assessment based on use of the power pack with the flash when using the old camera as well.
  
  - Visible ISO on the display on top. And better, although still familiar, layout on the top display.
  
  Assessment: In terms of specs, this camera is amazingly close to it's new big brother the 1D Mark III, more than past models have been. This is a big plus to those of us who don't have a fortune to spend on the top of the line Canon cameras. The image quality of this camera is not noticeably different than that in the 5D, although there is a slight difference when you look carefully. And of course it isn't full frame, which is a minus in certain applications, and a plus in others. The improvements between the 20D and the 30D were negligible, to say the least - it was clear Canon was just extending the lifecycle of the 20D, and the 30D should have been called the 20D Mark II. However, the 40D has many dramatic improvements over both of these previous models, and scrapes at the heels of the 5D in all of the areas where the 5D once had a clear advantage - let's hope for a 5D Mark II (or 7D, or whatever it will be called) soon. I've been reading rumors that it will be the 1st quarter of next year. I will admit that when this camera was first announced, and the Nikon D300 announcement came a few days later, Nikon caught my attention big time. But obviously, with all my investment in so much Canon equipment, it was a no-brainer to continue with Canon. Even to own both brands would be a considerable additional investment for that one body, as I have no Nikon lenses. At this point I will preach the gospel of "L." To truly appreciate how good Canon photography can be, you need to own at least one "L" lens (although it will become more than one once you do, LOL). I own the highest rated (and still somewhat "affordable") L lenses, the Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM Lens for Canon SLR Cameras, the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS Image Stabilizer USM AF Telephoto Lens & Filters & 5 Year Warranty & Accessory Kit(both previously mentioned here), the Canon EF 100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras and the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM Standard Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras, which I haven't used on the 40D yet, as I prefer the idea of using it on the full frame 5D for the wider angles it provides. I haven't used the 100-400 on it yet just because I haven't had a chance or the right opportunity. They're all worth every penny, and I would note that the 135mm 2.0L might be the best lens, period. It's defintely my best one, although the 70-200 2.8L IS comes close.
  
  Once again, the 40D is the best body for the money that Canon makes.
  
  
• Why not more mega picks?
  By A3NQJV63V3Y7K0 on 2007-10-18
  Nice camera, but I am a pro and all the bells and whistles mean very little to me. I've gone thru many of the reviews posted and and am surprised that how little knowledge is presented.
  First off, this is a 10 meg camera....meaning for half the price you can pick up an xti and get pretty much the same results. I'm sure many of my critics will say that this isn't true, but quite honestly I have all three....the xti, the 40d, and a 5d. I've tested both the 40d and the xti against the 5d, and find little difference in output. Sure the 5d is full frame, but as most Nikon users would agree, it's mostly hype.
  Sure the 40d has a larger LCD, nice but does anyone really think you can accurately preveiw photo's thru an LCD?
  It is a nice camera, but if your not a pro, spend less on camera (xti) and invest more in optics!
  Although, if you're a camera geek and are more concerned in looking good than having your pictures look good, go out and buy it.
  Me, I'll wait for the next generation 5d, and am selling the 40d.....
  
  
• Quality issues, solved for now
  By A322LP94RDIKH5 on 2008-06-16
  I really wanted to like this item. I had a Canon point and shoot from 2005, and got the Rebel XTi (5 stars after 10,000+ snaps of flawless performance) in December 2006. Over the next year and a half, I got several Canon lenses including 2 L lenses. When the 40D came out, it got on my radar, since I wanted something more professional, I was worried about my XTi shutter giving out, and frankly my lenses were supposedly better than my camera.
  
  I finally made the plunge and ordered the 40D body in May. The first one was DOA and would not power up. I returned it to Amazon and got a replacement body which functioned fine for 3 weeks. Now it has developed a "stuck pixel" (a red dot in the same place on the frame...see various forums).
  
  One solution is to clone it out, but since I occasionally do a shoot of several hundred pics and have sold some prints this is not really practical on a large scale. And it does show up on enlargements if it is in the shadows. It looks like someone is using one of those laser pointers on your pic.
  
  I have a message in to Canon support on this. I suspect they will want me to ship the body to Irvine and have them deal with it.
  
  I suppose I can live without it for a couple of weeks since my XTi is, as I said, working flawlessly, but I really hate shipping precision equipment like this. It is expensive (my shipment back to Amazon on the first one was over $50 with insurance) and the camera takes needless knocks.
  
  I hope Canon reads this. My XTi and the Canon lenses have been flawless, and every picture I took that was less than great was my error. But the 40D is now down two strikes.
  
  June 21 update: Canon recommended shipping to their service center (and they would provide prepaid shipping labels). Searching on the net I found a procedure for a do it yourself remap. Basically, you run the manual sensor clean procedure for 30 sec or so with a lens on and a cap on the lens. It seems to have worked. So the symptom is a stuck pixel from images about 600 to 900, then it went away, possibly as a result of this procedure. I will not send it back to Canon unless the problem reappears.
  
  When it is working, the camera is 4+ stars, not ready to give it 5 yet.
  
  
• Best Camera I've Owned Yet!
  By A38OCDJQOAQ2XG on 2007-09-13
  First off, I'm no camera pro - very amateur. I moved from my P&S to a DSLR this summer. My first DSLR was a Canon Rebel XT. While I was happy with the XT, it was too small for my hands. So I plunked down $$$ for this Canon EOS 40D with the 28-135mm IS lens. My review will compare the XT to the 40D (as that's all the DSLR experience I've had).
  
  I did not purchase this Canon EOS 40D from Amazon - that is why I've had this Camera since late August.
  
  First off, the 40D is the perfect size for my hands. The Rebel XT would leave my pinky hanging cramping my hands after a few shots. The Canon EOS 40D is perfect in terms of hand comfort. All my fingers fit on the grip making the camera feel very solid. The 40D's build quality feels a lot better than the XT.
  
  I noticed that my Rebel XT's autofocus would search a lot over and over. This was extremely annoying especially while trying to take moving pictures. I can tell that the 40D's autofocus is a bit faster and quite a bit more accurate in those situations.
  
  Be aware that the 40D weighs quite a bit more than the Rebel XT. I am still getting used to the weight. However, I am noticing that the heavier 40D is a lot easier to hold resulting in a clear shot than the Rebel XT (at least for me).
  
  The viewfinder is quite a bit bigger than the Rebel XT. I also noticed that it has a "tint" look and takes some getting used to. The viewfinder is a bit brighter than the XT as well.
  
  As far as the lens goes: I had a 28-105mm (nonIS) on my Rebel XT. The 28-135mm is awesome. It zooms further than I've ever needed it to. What I like the most is that it has a nice macro range (better than my 28-105mm lens). The autofocus is extremely fast. I'm sure the Image Stabilizer has saved many of my pictures...
  
  At Large Fine picture sizes average around 4.5MB per shot. So be ready to have a large storage device handy nearby (I use my 500GB external drive).
  
  All in all - I will and have recommended the Canon EOS 40D as a good DSLR for the photography enthusiasts such as myself. I will be keeping this camera for many years. After all, the camera doesn't produce pro shots - the photographer does.
  
  
• A great camera - with room for improvement
  By A3U7HS3TEX6B90 on 2007-10-28
  I'll start off by saying that yes, this really *is* a great camera. I bought it as body only, then added a Canon EF 100 f2.8 Macro USM lens. If you're not familiar with that lens, it is fairly heavy, and so the camera has felt heavy to me since day one. But it is the lens creating that impression.
  
  The 40D starts up, shoots, and shuts down quickly; With the right lenses, it creates clear and consistent photographs; it is hugely flexible, pretty much to any degree you want to flex. Some of the things that have made themselves known to me by how well they work are, in no particular order, the great battery life... I use the LCD a lot, shoot a lot, and generally fuss continuously with the camera, and it just "keeps on going" which is enormously pleasing (this is with the stock battery and a BP-511A spare pack to swap in.) The feel of the camera - just a nice handful of goodness, it really suits my hands, which are large. The clarity of the viewfinder. I wear glasses, and after a little playing with the adjustment, it was *perfect*, first time ever with any camera. This thing is *fast*; it really can do 6 or so frames a second (depends on the shutter speed, of course) and the AF is also fast which makes for more images, and more good images. I love all the preset modes, and I've already had some fun in manual and a *lot* of fun in aperture priority, which pretty much suits the way I think. I particularly like the AF display and the way you can control it; I prefer a single central AF point so I can control focus at the half-press point, and the camera was perfectly agreeable to that. More points did some interesting things with depth of field, and I look forward to experimenting with that, too.
  
  I would buy this camera body again in a heartbeat if something horrible happened to mine, like I dropped it down a well or larval (and soon to be deceased) human beings got hold of it and used it as a kickball. It also offers some optional features like wifi that sound like great fun, though I confess I can't speak to them as I've not tried them.
  
  There are some things I think could have been done better, though, and since you're probably looking at the camera wondering what the downsides are, rather than looking for what made everyone happy, that's what I'm going to focus on.
  
  o The worst problem, by far: The images that the camera uses to let you review your shots are FAR softer than the actual photos, to the point where you can't really tell if you got the focus nailed, or not. This is not a nitpick - this causes me to take extra shots because I literally can't tell if I've hit the mark, or not. I am hoping this can be fixed with a firmware update to the camera.
  
  o That fabulous LCD, huge and bright and crisp, looks awful every time I look at it after shooting through the TTL viewfinder. This is because it has a huge NOSEPRINT on it. Has anyone at Canon ever taken a look at a human face? Placement of the monitor should be offsides and inset so that it isn't a grease magnet. Or do they expect me to wash my nose every time I snap a picture out in the field?
  
  o While I'm harping on the camera's ergonomics, the power switch isn't very easy to manage. I have very short nails (I'm a guitarist and a martial artist, neither of which encourage nail growth) and getting that switch to swing on and off sometimes takes more than one try; that may, someday, lose me a photo I really wanted, especially considering how fast the camera starts up otherwise. I really wish it had a deeper pit for my finger and a more positive tractive surface to drag it on. It's too short and too smooth.
  
  o When in Live View mode, meaning, you're presumably shooting using the LCD instead of the viewfinder (after cleaning your latest noseprints off of it, of course), autofocus doesn't work. But wait, it does. *If* you press a different button. Apparently the power budget of the camera is pushed a little too close to the edge if you use live view *and* autofocus because the mirror is locked in the up position. So they... moved AF to another button? Look, either let me do it, or don't let me do it, but quit changing what the controls do underneath my fingers. That's just poor interface design. Maybe you should have turned it off by default, then let us blatant power-spenders turn it back on, kind of like how ISO 3200 works on this camera (it's a menu option, not initially enabled. Requires RTFM or at least someone telling you what to do.) Anyway, I don't like how this works. At all. But it's a nitpick.
  
  o When you're not in live view mode, the camera will display your shot in the LCD for 2 seconds, then blank (this time is adjustable, somewhat, in the menus. But 2 seconds is the shortest time for it to work at all.) You have to wait for the preview to go away (2 seconds) to enter play mode so you can really take a look at it. I think it should directly enter play when it is in that 2-second "grace" period after the shot; the fact that it doesn't costs me time, at least in some situations. And time, in photography, can mean lost shots.
  
  o Print button - come on. I can think of a hundred things that would be more important to put on a button than "print." That's just... silly.
  
  o I would have liked to have infrared remote firing of the camera. This is MUCH more flexible than the 2s or 10s delayed firing option it has now. You can go out and sit with a group and putter around indefinitely with infrared; even 10 seconds isn't a lot of time to get out there, regulate your breathing, meld into the group photo, and stop staring down your 3rd cousin Hotisha's bodice. Uh, not that I would do such a thing. No. Not me. Cough.
  
  o It isn't easy (meaning, you have to use a deep menu) to clean out all the images on the CF card. Should have been, really. it *is* easy to delete images one at a time.
  
  o The weather flap on the USB connection (and external fire, strobe, and video connectors) are a little difficult to grasp (I have essentially no nails, remember), and they really are just rubber flaps - I fully expect them to wear out, as they don't have proper hinges or otherwise use reasonable bearing surfaces. I *really* don't like having to struggle with the flap every time I want to grab pictures from the camera, which is several times a day on days when I'm *not* seriously shooting. I might *have* to buy that wifi accessory...
  
  These are, in the end, mostly problems I would characterize as "nitpicks", and with the exception of the soft review images, certainly nothing to get in a frenzy over (well, maybe the placement of the LCD screen too... but that certainly isn't a problem only found in Canon products.) This is a fabulous camera; I can't imagine anyone actually regretting buying one unless they've been working with far, far more expensive gear than this. I gave it five stars, and that's just how I feel about it.
  
  About me: I've been into photography since about 1965, my last camera was an Olympus E20, a 5 MP camera with an *excellent* all-occasion lens, macro to telephoto, and an insatiable appetite for batteries. Moving up to a 40D was a great experience for me. I'm not a pro, maybe semi-pro is fair, my experience with cameras includes both BW and color developing, all manner of large format boxes, several 35 mm cameras, and ten or eleven digital cameras from the 320x240 dawn of digital cameras to today. I am also an engineer (EE) and the author of a very extensive image processing software suite and several RAW processing plugins; consequently I am intimately familiar with how digital cameras actually work.
  
  
  
  
• Am i the only one to think that the display sucks big time?
  By A323XGWKX32QTG on 2007-09-13
  it's big, ok, but the pixels are so so big and the colors so inaccurate. When in the field, it's impossible to say if the focus is right or not. Makes me strongly think about bringing it back.
  
  The Nikon D300 will have 922k pixels, the Canon 30D only 230k!!!!
  
  
• Wow factor
  By A21WBLB8KAFE1U on 2007-09-10
  I bought a Canon 20D just over 2 years ago and thought it was a brilliant camera. I've never had problems. I saw the 5D come out and didn't see a need to "upgrade" to it. But the new 40D is just something else. I have it about 5 days now and I'm like a child at Christmas.
  
  There is just so much to praise about this camera - large LCD screen which is very clear, faster focusing, especially when using centre focus point, larger burst rate - ok, this has now caused me no end of problems, like firing off a burst of 20 images when I really only needed 3, and filling my memory card in no time.
  
  This camera is well worth it's price. It's a brilliant step between the 400D and the 1D. I don't have the need (nor money) for the 1D Mk III. This new 40D is just what I need.
  
  My first day of shooting with it was at a horse racing event. I was between two other photographers - one using a 30D and the other using a 1D. I felt like mine was capturing just what I wanted and in brilliant clarity. Ok, not the same fps as the 1D, but my friend with his 30D kept looking at me and laughing - it was because he would get 2-3 shots and I was taking about 20.
  
  For anyone thinking of this camera - try it out. You will not fail to be impressed.
  
  
• The 40D is a great camera
  By A3J5EZYHSV6X0A on 2007-09-11
  I put a deposit on the 40D two days after it was announced and picked up my camera last week. I have the 5D and just sold my 30D after a few days with the new 40D. I'm a Sports Photographer for the most part, and the 3 FPS on the 5D just didn't feel adequate to me.
  
  My first experience with the 40D taught me to use K5200 for white balance indoor, and to make sure I'm not overexposed on my shots. Outdoor shots are beautiful, as are properly exposed indoor shots. Overexposed shots indoors have a ulgy yellow cast to them, I had to learn the camera.
  I really love the menu system on the 40D, it's so much easier & quicker then what's on the my 5D, it felt comfortable right away.
  The AF-ON button for tracking action shots is wonderful, and worth the money for the camera by itself.
  
  The image quality on the 40D is excellent, IMHO better then the 30D which is why I sold mine right away.I wanted a better camera for fast action that had picture quality like the 5D. The 40D is pretty close, nothing quite equals the 5D images ( I don't have the Mark 111 ). As far as comparing it to Nikon's D300 coming out, I just sold all my Nikon gear to switch to Canon low noise images. Now Nikon addresses the noise issue by coming out with the D300, for me it's too late. I have excellent Canon L lens and two great cameras, I'm satisfied.
  
  
• Excited 300D user goes upscale...
  By A2GGKJ318HO2GE on 2007-09-24
  As a 3 year dRebel (300D) owner - I've spent the interval time acquiring better lenses than the kit lens I originally purchased rather than upgrade camera bodies. My old (300D) friend has served me well over the years with Battery Grip, Eye Piece Extender and a host of affordable Canon lenses that I've used for portrait and general walk-around photography. My review is more subjective that capability based - as it has renewed interest in portions of my hobby I've not experienced since the 35mm film days. This purchase has supercharged my excitement in digital photography like nothing since my first hands on with the 300D.
  
  In looking for another camera body and lens combination - I considered the XT/XTi series but my attention quickly turned to the newest 40D. I'm a serious semi-pro (do extensive portrait work for formal charity fund raising events) and wanted to upgrade to a second camera body and give my charities the finest portrait work I could afford.
  
  The 40D had enough features (many still being practiced from the manual-highly recommended) that allowed me to invest in this next generation camera body. I ordered the camera with the BG-E2 battery grip - Eyepiece Extender with a diaptor insert to compensate for my eyeglasses) side hand strap (which I absolutely LOVE) and the 28-135mm 'kit' lens to compliment my 'portrait posse' 50mm f1.8 and prime 85mm f1.8 that I also absolutely love - tack sharp and bokeh to die for (jmho)...
  
  The body of the 40D is solid as a rock - the kevlar/plastic 300D never gave me problems - but... this inspires more 'confidence' to last a longer time (more camera - less expendable computer feel). The fps for action shots is outstanding - on a 4 gig CF memory card (SanDisk Extreme II) is adequate for my needs and pocketbook).
  
  Added to this was an upgrade from my 420EX TTL speedlight with a newer 580EXII ETTL which is giving me BEAUTIFUL indoor high ceilinged shots (using a flash diffuser) with no blowouts to date and great exposures over a variety of indoor situations. The 420EX is now a wonderful slave unit to the 580EXII.
  
  I'm now shooting RAW instead of JPEG for the majority of my shots and the difference is noticable. Better able to tweek these RAW images in photoshop also.
  
  If I'm sounding like a kid with a new toy - well - yes! This rig and upgraded accessoriues has breathed a little excitement into this digital photographer. The 3" LCD, Liveshot capabilities and IS 28-135 lens has given me a burst of creativity on the MACRO side not present with other lenses I have owned. A new light tent has renewed my interest in my wristwatch hobby with wonderful macro shots.
  
  This camera body exceeds my present digital photo experience - but as I go thru the manual I'm learning so many useful items on focus range, manual exposure techniques, ISO, and speedlight boundaries the 300D never had. It will be about another month or so before I am "comfortable" again with my ability to better utilize this camera than my 300D mainstay.
  
  This camera is not for everybody - the XT/XTi being a great pro-sumer body for the 'average' recreational photographer (jmho). As I get more serious - I can now concentrate on a series of 'L' lenses to continue my semi-pro hobby. New photographic worlds I could not imagine await me using this camera body. A camera that feels like it will last a lifetiime (until a better technology emerges anyway).
  
  
• Bravo, Canon!
  By A2BZF12UZ53GAU on 2007-09-30
  I received the Canon EOS 40D on 9/26/07. From the time I took it out of the box and held it, I knew I was going to like this camera.
  
  Ergonomics: I've been using a smallish Rebel XT for almost a year, so the larger size and grip of the 40D was a delight. And the 40D is nice and grippy in all the right places. And all the controls fall readily to your fingertips--very ergonomic.
  
  Build quality: It has some heft to it, which lends a sense of sturdiness and quality. Also, the extra weight provides a better balance for my EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 IS USM lens. My Rebel XT, when I had the strap around my neck with the camera hanging down in front, would tend to twist forward under the weight of the lens. With the same lens mounted to the 40D, the camera tends to stay straight--much better balance.
  
  Viewfinder: The viewfinder is another thing that Rebel XT owners will smile about regarding the 40D. The viewfinder is much larger and brighter than the Rebel XT's.
  
  Top LCD: The top LCD display has lots of helpful information that remains displayed at all times (f/stop in Av mode, white balance setting, est. remaining shots on card, battery indicator, metering mode, auto focus mode, exposure scale, ISO, and shooting mode (single shot, 3 fps, 6.5 fps, or timer)). I look at the remaining shots indication all the time.
  
  Rear LCD: The rear LCD is huge (3-inches). And the lettering is large, bright and easy to read--much better for those of us who have difficulty seeing small writing close up. I find that it can be read even if you turn the camera almost all the way sideways to your face. Therefore, the 140 degrees viewing angle rating appears to be quite conservative. The menu options are well-organized, intuitive, and easy to navigate and use. You can set the amount of time the image displays on the rear LCD after you take the shot (Review time = Off, 2 sec., 4 sec., 8 sec., or Hold). I did notice that, despite how very bright this display is, in bright sunlight, it is nearly impossible to see the image in the display. So, I just had to look for some shade (or shield the display from the sun somehow).
  
  Taking Pictures: The 40D lends so much confidence, it is almost impossible to adequately describe. Especially with the excellent EF-S 17-55 lens, there seems to be no shooting situation you can't conquer. The Auto Focus (AF) locks on fast and sure with a quick "beep-beep" in all lighting situations. I generally have the camera set to just the center AF point, since I want to choose the specific spot I want to focus on. The 40D has a high-precision cross-type center AF point that, when used with an f/2.8 or larger lens, provides twice the sensitivity as the other AF points. Lately I've been utilizing the 40D's Highlight tone priority mode and the High ISO speed noise reduction mode. The Highlight tone priority mode expands the dynamic range from gray to bright highlights and the gradations in between become smoother. This mode forces the minimum ISO to be 200. This is no problem, since the 40D produces very low noise, even at elevated ISO speeds. I have noticed that detail in highlights is well-preserved, though I still frequently need to reduce the highlights in post-processing (I shoot RAW almost exclusively). The High ISO speed noise reduction mode applies noise reduction at all ISO speeds, which is particularly effective at high ISO speeds. This mode also reduces noise in shadows. I am having no problems with noise on this camera. And despite this in-camera post-processing, in Photoshop Elements, I still can level, saturate, sharpen, etc. to my heart's content and still wind up with a sharp image, due to the excellent 10.1 megapixel sensor, and the inherently low amount of noise it produces.
  
  Live View: I briefly played around with the Live View mode hand-held, since I have yet to receive my new ball head I've ordered for the tripod legs I recently received. It is really convenient to move the little joy-stick on the back of the 40D to place the little box over the point of interest and zoom in 5x or 10x and manually focus to fine-adjust the focus. You can auto focus during live mode by holding down the AF On button until you hear the quick "beep-beep" of the AF locking on (rear screen goes blank), then release it and the Live View display comes back on immediately. When you press the shutter release in Live View mode, it is nearly silent, since the mirror is already locked up and out of the way. [Note that you initiate Live View mode by pressing the "set" button in the middle of the big wheel on the back of the 40D and the mirror locks up and out of the way immediately, and you get a nearly full-screen, live view on the large rear LCD with info underneath showing (in Av mode) f/stop, exposure scale, shots remaining on card, and ISO speed.]
  
  General observations: The battery seems to be lasting a long time, despite me playing around with the Live View mode, and spending a lot of time going through menu items and deciding which modes I want to use. As of this writing, I've taken about 200 photos (some of which are posted here for you to see). I got the 8GB Sandisk Extreme IV Compact Flash card, so I can just walk around popping off shots without worry of running out of space. I have received a Bogen-Manfrotto 055mf3 tripod, but I am waiting on the Kirk BH-1 ball head to arrive. Then, I will give the Live View mode a thorough going over.
  
  Conclusions (9/29/07): This camera simply does all that is asked of it. There is no better camera that can be used with the top-performing Canon EF-S 17-55 lens, since the 40D is the best 1.6x crop Canon camera body, and the EF-S 17-55 lens can only be used on 1.6x crop Canons. The 40D is ergonomic, sturdy, feature-packed, high performance, high IQ, low noise, and an exceptional value. I'm sure many pro shooters will be snatching these things up, too. And I'm going to have a ball exploring all that it can do. Bravo, Canon!
  
  
• Good, not great.. so far.
  By A35EPNREP16MY4 on 2007-11-23
  Rather than cover all things blow-by-blow( others have already done a tremendous job ), I just wanted to comment on what seems to me, a really annoying issue with this camera.
  
  It is really, really picky about light. That is, if conditions are not *just* so, it will refuse to open the shutter and take the picture. This is especially prevalent in lower light conditions. When I say "lower", I mean anything not brightly lit. Most normal room lighting is apparently too low.
  
  Now, I am not an expert photographer, but I do understand the effects of aperture, shutter speed, etc. and I have tried full-auto( camera refuses to take pictures unless it is pretty much full daylight ), I have tried the various creative modes( camera refuses to take pictures unless you tweak heavily for that mode, e.g. in aperture priority mode you need to open it ALL the way and still need a lot of external light ), and lastly I have tried full manual, with the result similar to full auto. I needed either full daylight, or I had to stop up to fully opened aperture and give 1 sec shutter.
  
  What happens is the flash pops up and it is metering away and flashing various warnings depending on what mode you are in, as to why it won't take the picture.
  
  So, given that other reviewers don't mention these problems, I am concluding that my camera has some defect. I've used a friend's 10D and an old Epson 750EZ 3MP( circa 2000 ) and both take great pictures. I compared photos taken with the Epson from years ago, and oddly, the pictures the 40D did shoot were not much better than the Epson, excepting for resolution being higher.
  
  I don't know what to say. I wanted a really good DSLR for myself and chose this camera because all of the good reviews here. I've been very disappointed with it and I am probably going to have to spend more money having it looked at for problems, as it does not make sense why it seems to have such a limited range for light.
  
  Ultimately, having also used( briefly ) and seen pictures from the 10D, an original Rebel, and other cheaper cameras, I would say to save your money and buy a Rebel for half the price.
  
  * edited *
  
  Doh! I forgot to mention the lens used.
  
  Canon 50mm f/1.8
  
  Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L
  
  Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro
  
  I used all the lens I had available to me, and I realize the f/4 is fairly slow for low light. I thought the 50mm f/1.8 would suffice but no... *sigh*
  
  
• The Wow affect!
  By ASVLUXZRRX4JN on 2007-10-02
  When I took the first couple of shots with the 40D, my
  reaction was Wow.
  
  The 40D is 80% to 90% of the 5D, The slight change to the control layout is an
  improvement. Spot metering, is a real plus. The sensor seems to have
  significantly lower noise than the 20D. This is my new happy-snap camera. It
  goes everywhere with me. I've only taken a few thousand photos so far, and I
  have to say I am very impressed. I really look forward to the times I can get
  out just to take photos with the 40D.
  
  For it's class, just a little lower than the 5D, this is the finest camera I
  have ever seen. The value, the bang (or should I say click) for the buck is
  the best value I have ever seen. The 40D, delivers more than I ever expected
  to see in a camera at this price point. I think Canon, has once again,
  undeniably taken the lead, in the Digital SLR camera market with the 40D.
  
  Last but not least, ordering through Amazon, I was able to get the 40D when
  all of my local camera stores were sold out...
  
  
• Goodbye Rebel XT
  By ALEFITQEPEPM8 on 2007-10-17
  I've been reading about the specs on this thing for 2 months and had everything memorized. I think I'd bust a gasket in my head if I read one more review.
  
  After such a long wait, finally getting my hands on the thing was quite a shock. It feels so alien to me. But you'll be pleased to know it feels very good. Nice and solid. The sound the shutter makes is much nicer than my old XT. And the there is a noticeably larger view through the viewfinder. Still nothing as grand as my old seventies SLR, but a definite improvement. These are the things that are most important to me. If my experience taking pictures is more pleasurable, then I'll take more pictures. That's the way I am and I guess you probably are too.
  
  The next most important thing for me is having the ISO setting visible all the time. You can easily adjust it without removing your eye from the viewfinder. This is such a luxury, it really is. I have shot at the wrong ISO so many times in the past it's not funny.
  
  I love having the two dials too, which is what I suppose makes this a "semi-professional" camera. It's funny how the more you pay the easier everything is to use. You'd think "pro" equipment would be trickier, but that's not how it works at all. I remember trying to find the exposure settings buried deep in my old point and shoot and feeling like throwing it against the wall. No such issues with this.
  
  The only letdown is the LCD. I had read it wasn't very high-res and that is blatantly clear. If you have bad eyes and look at it from a distance, it is great, but if your eyes are good and you want to see detail, you have to zoom. It just doesn't look very nice. In a way I preferred the smaller LCD. That was like seeing a little negative before seeing a print. This is like seeing a bad print before seeing a print.
  
  I'd give this camera 4 and a half stars if I could. I am very pleased with it and would recommend it to anyone thinking of upgrading from the rebel/xt/xti. For the way it feels and for the pro controls.
  
  Oh yeah and if you are an idiot like me, here's a tip. The on switch has on/off and another setting which is "on with the big dial on." I thought the exposure compensation was broken until I realized this.
  
  
• Great camera, versatile lens.
  By AQWMKQGCA4TJP on 2007-09-06
  The Canon 40d a pretty serious camera for anyone who wants an advanced piece of equipment at a reasonable price. If you are upgrading from the Minolta/Sony/Pentax class of dSLR to the 40d you are taking quantum leap in noise reduction technology, color reproduction, and auto-focus precision among a large list of other features.
  
  I won't mention too much about the 6.5 frames per second shooting other than it is exhilarating hearing the shutter click that fast for the first time. The live view feature is perfect for working with a tripod and macro shooting where manual focus is important. The ability to have live view displayed on your computer with full camera controls is handy when you need to reduce vibrations. Focus is fast, and almost always accurate in ideal conditions, very quick even when searching for focus. Menus are easily navigable with the wheel and joystick controls.
  
  Overall image quality excellent. All your photos can easily turn out great after spending some time behind the view finder of the 40d.
  
  The 28-135 EF IS USM kit lens is a pretty good deal, especially for photographers investing in a Canon camera for the first time. The money you save by buying the lens with the body is a very substantial amount at the time of this writing. The first notable feature about this lens is that it is image stabilized. The picture quality seems better than a stabilized sensor, but it won't keep my images blur free for as long. 28mm is a little wide with the 1.6 crop factor, ok for inside photography in large rooms, the 135mm on the high end isn't bad either, good for zooming in on faces for portraits or to bring the wildlife a little bit closer. Its minimum focus distance of 1.6 feet allows for some close-up macro photography when fully zoomed. This is also an EF lens, this means that if you ever upgrade to a full frame dSLR the lens will still work. It's not an `L' series lens, but if you're upgrading from lesser optics, it really is quite a luxury.
  
  
  
  
  
• Locked up after 35 days
  By AF805U8FSQ0QS on 2008-04-11
  I'm sure overall this is a great camera, but I got a lemon I guess. 35 days after I received it, which is 5 days too late to return it, I got the "busy" sign of death. Locked up, couldn't shoot, LCD is blank. I had to mail it to Canon Factory for repair. Hope they fix it like new!
  
  
• Canon EOS 40D 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera
  By A1DOCBKTWHI7PV on 2007-08-30
  since no one yet written a review for this camera body, I think I should write one just to give you some idea. The eos 40D is newly introduced in this August, Aug 07. One thing pops up to me is the LCD live preview. The LCD live preview is first introduced in Olympics DSLR. It allows the user to have live preview in the LCD like the most of the Non-DSLR do. It is useful to take pictures in a rather different angle such low in the ground.
  another thing is the 6.5 fps shutter mechanic. now you can shoot 6.5 pictures in a second up to 75 pictures. You will never lose any thing with this camera in continuous mode.
  The 40D now updated with a dust removing system which first found in the 400D. In my professorial opinion, it really doesn't useful. You just need to be cautious when you change the lens.
  The most important update to me is now that 40D has a bigger viewfinder. A bigger viewfinder means brighter, easily to focus, and bigger. Those entry DSLRs just aren't big enough.
  
  In conclusion, the 40D is an affordable professional and serious amateur photographer's first choice. If you don't have one, you should own one.
  
  
• Should you upgrade? Heck yah!
  By A3V10TJNFQM3ZG on 2007-11-10
  After less consideration than I probably should have given such a big purchase, I decided to upgrade from my Canon 20D to the Canon 40D shortly after it was announced. Let me start out by saying that I haven't been disappointed by my rash decision; Canon has improved so many aspects of the camera since the 20D (two models ago) that it's definitely worth upgrading if you're using a 20D or earlier. For those of you with 30D's, that might be a harder decision as fewer things have changed.
  
  Without trying to be too wordy, let me list a few of my favorite new or improved features over the 20D (in no particular order).
  
  - Huge, beautiful LCD screen makes it much easier to see and show others your photos.
  - Playback mode now lets you see the RGB histogram as well as the traditional luminance one.
  - Hitting the info button twice shows an enlarged and easier to read/understand view on the main LCD of the data normally shown on the top LCD. For example, when switching metering modes, it lists the name (spot, center weighted, etc.) in addition to showing the symbol.
  - Much improved menu system which is better organized and easier to navigate.
  - Custom menu which you can populate with those items you use the most (I *love* this feature).
  - Three custom modes on the mode dial which you can pre-set as you desire.
  - Much hyped live view mode which lets you compose photos with the LCD screen is actually pretty useful for macro work, or any shot which you want to focus manually. You can zoom up to 10x to focus precisely on a certain region.
  - Can you say six and a half frames per second! Wow!
  - ISO is now displayed in the viewfinder which makes it easier to see when you've left it on 1600 by accident.
  - A new auto ISO mode is included which attempts to choose an ISO fast enough so you can handhold the camera. One less thing to worry about when shooting in situations where you don't have time to mess with the ISO setting.
  - Beautiful grain on the images - I like the way the grain (noise) looks better than the 20D.
  - Ultrasonic dust shake off system for reducing sensor dust. I still have managed to get a few flecks of dust which won't come off, but after taking 5000 photos with many lens changes in the wild, it's not nearly as bad of a problem as on the 20D.
  - Improved autofocus system is more accurate than before.
  - 14 bit RAW files! This gives you many more gradations to work with than 12 bit (16,384 per channel instead of 4,096).
  
  I'm sure there are many other things I've forgotten. I've been using the camera now for over a month, taken 5000 shots, and love it!
  
  There are still a few things missing about this camera which I wish Canon had addressed.
  
  - Still can't use infrared shutter releases with this model. Canon lets you use these with the consumer oriented digital rebels, so why not on the 20, 30, and 40D models? Go figure.
  - Optional wireless file transmitter / GPS connection, but why not just build wireless into the camera?
  
  Go upgrade before your old camera is worthless! You can still sell the old one now before too many people get the new ones.
  
  
• Fine camera, not the right lens choice for most.
  By A2UQK3DAZ8NO2T on 2007-09-03
  [I'm not going to review this kit here, as I have an early hands-on review posted for body only. This concerns this kit lens].
  
  Unfortunately, Canon has decided to include the 28-135 initially as the only kit lens. While not a bad performer, this older, made for 35mm design, is not a good match for the high performance 40D.
  
  The 1.6 crop factor of the 40D makes the 28mm unacceptable to most for a wide angle solution. Thus, you'll probably have to drop down additional money in the future for a wider-angle lens. Although it costs more, the 17-85 IS is a very good solution that will give the majority of shooters all the wide angle they will need. Yes, it falls short of the 135mm range, but that length, too, is probably not enough range at the top; therefore, you'd have to expect to buy 2 additional lenses.
  
  The one attractive feature of the 28-135 is the price. Canon's definately taking a hit, trying to reduce their supply of this lens. But by the time you read this, you might be able to get the just as afforable, new for digital, EF-S 18-55 IS. This will help at the wide side, allowing you to put your additional money in the telephoto.
  
  Of course, if money is no object, look at the 17-55 f2.8 IS, or one of the many "L" series.
  
  Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Lens for Canon DSLR Cameras
  
  
  
• Too Little
  By ASIRHRCW8LSC7 on 2007-09-02
  This is in incremental upgrade to the 20D and 30D. Canon really has not brought a lot too the table with the 40D. The new Nikon D300 and D3 DSLRS are truly amazing upgrades.
  
  1) Screen. Canon has a 3 inch LCD at 230,000 pixels. However, both Nikon and the Sony A700 blow the 40D away with has 920,000 pixels. Almost twice the linear resolution !!
  
  2) Live view: The Autofocus is disabled during Live-view. You can press the AF-on button and then have the camera auto focus and then watch again in live-view. Lots of button pushing and several limitations. Nikon on the other hand does not appear to have any such limitation. AF works during Live view.
  
  3) 40D has 9 AF cross points. While Nikon has 51 points.
  
  4) The Canon still does not have an AF Illuminator beam to focus in low light. Both the Nikon and Sony have this basic feature.
  
  5) The Nikon D300 has now an Active D-Lighting feature.
  
  6) Canon still does not have the in-body image stabilization like the Sony. Nikon does not have this either but at least Nikon has good value lenses with built-in VR.
  
  All in all, too little too late. This is an incremental upgrade and there are better offerings from Nikon, Sony and Olympus. Not to mention Panasonic and Pentax...
  
  
  
  
• A worthy Upgrade
  By ALS5SVPGWX1S6 on 2007-10-09
  I've had the 20d for 3 years now, and passed on the 30d when it came out.. Just not enough of an upgrade for my money. Then the 40D showed its head.. and Wow! Finally a worthy upgrade! The Huge display LCD makes my 20d look like a child's camera... The live view, I figured would be for amateurs, but I was Wrong! Live View mode allows you to fine-tune manual focusing like never before. With the live mode turned on, you can digitally zoom into any area on the live image, and see it at 5x or 10x zoom, and you can see your focusing change down to the millimeter!.. It's awesome.
  Also, the 10mp is nice, but honestly you will likely not even notice this difference.
  If fast photography is your thing (sports or wildlife) nothing beats the 6.5fps.. I thought the 20d was fast, but it feels old compared to this new machine.
  
  One bit of advice, get at least a 4gb card.. If you shoot raw or raw+jpeg like I do, then you will fill those 1 and 2gb cards in no time.
  The feel of this 40d is much the same as all the series, but the back buttons have been moved to make room for the huge LCD.. Not a big deal, but you will be able to adapt.
  
  Almost forgot, the settings dial now has 3 custom options on it.. Very Cool. This effectively allows you to make custom functions for one touch changes to every important setting all at once. I have one setting that has 400 ISO, continuous shooting, center weighted metering, and several other settings, all for shooting animals on the run. With one turn of the dial, all my settings are now set for landscape; 100ISO, 1/2 stop exposure bracketing, evaluative metering, ect..
  It effectively makes missing a photo opportunity impossible, as you don't have to spend 3 minutes making all your adjustments to the camera to adapt to your situation. This is one of the main reasons I pony'd up for this bigger brother to my 20d.
  
  All in all, I'm a very happy customer, and unless you really need full frame (I know we can talk ourselves into anything), this camera will make you smile. :)
  
  P.S. don't expect to get much out of your 20 or 30D on eBay, as they are going for pennies on the dollar.. keep it as a spare or give to your mother.... ok, sell to your mother..
  
  
  
• Did my homework, bought it, then returned it.
  By A1E2G0ZDOV8A1J on 2008-06-28
  For months I researched dSLRs and, after considering the Nikon D40, D60, and D80, had just about settled on the Rebel XSi. Then Canon announced their rebates, bringing the 40D within reach. I jumped on the bargain, ordered the kit with the 28-135 lens, and was delighted when it arrived. After a week of shooting, though, my excitement faded for one main reason: inconsistent metering. Before I go into detail, let me tell you what I really liked, even loved, about the camera.
  
  1. Ergonomics. The bigger grip (compared to the XSi) felt great in my medium-sized hands. I especially liked the rubber texture up high on the back, where my thumb rested naturally. At first I thought the heavier size of the 40D would bother me, but it seemed a good match for the lens--very well balanced. The shutter button was positioned perfectly, angled slightly forward toward the front of the camera rather than directly on top. I also liked that (unlike on Nikons), the 40D had no other buttons immediately adjacent to the shutter. The shutter button is segregated from the others by the top control wheel.
  
  Many experts will tell you that you should base your camera choice in large part on what feels best in your hands. That way you'll be inclined to use it more often. To me, the 40D felt absolutely perfect.
  
  2. Controls/Displays. One thing you buy with a semi-pro dSLR is direct, one-button access to most of the camera's critical settings and adjustments. The three buttons on top of the 40D control six key functions, depending on whether you spin the top wheel or the quick-control dial on the camera back. This can be daunting at first, but I caught on quickly and found this infinitely preferable to navigating through multi-layered menus. Having used Canon point-and-shoots, I was familiar with their menu scheme and found the 40D's easy and intuitive to use. As for the top LCD display, I could take it or leave it. Some folks love it, but my 40+ year-old eyes found the type a bit small, and I just as often turned on the main LCD to view various settings as I changed them.
  
  3. Speed. I might have actually ranked this number one. I like to shoot kids sports, and the 6.5 fps burst rate was a huge factor in my decision to go for the 40D. I found the autofocus to be fast, too, more so than its Nikon competition (but not noticeably faster to me than the Rebel). The autofocus wasn't, in my experience, 100% accurate, though this may be more the fault of the lens than the camera.
  
  It all sounds pretty good, right? So what happened? Based on everything I had read, I expected the pictures to be amazing. In large part, they were good - excellent color, resolution, and contrast, though a little soft without some sharpening in post-processing - but they weren't "amazing." My biggest complaint was that I experienced a higher-than-expected percentage of underexposed shots. Oddly, pictures I took on an mildly overcast day with what should have been non-challenging lighting and background - kids on the sidewalk with a gray road, green grass, and neutral-colored houses across the street - were way underexposed, probably a whole stop or more. I tried this on two different days, with a variety of ISO, shutter speeds, and aperture settings - even tried using the "Basic Modes" - and all the images were underexposed (both to my eye and by virtue of examining the histogram, which was sharply skewed to the left). Still, if it were just a matter of the exposures being a bit darker than I preferred, I would have been content to just dial the exposure compensation up a third or two-thirds and shoot away. But it was more complicated than that. The evaluative metering seemed to do better with high-contrast scenes, with sunlit objects and shadows behind the people in the center of the frame. But even there, when I took two or three shots with the same settings and roughly the same composition, two might be perfect and one might be underexposed by two-thirds or a whole stop.
  
  I fully expect to get some flaming comments about how I just needed to get to know the camera, learn more about the various metering modes, become a better photographer, etc., etc. Maybe so, but I guess I wanted my $[...] camera to produce more consistent results without a lot of tinkering, especially in photos of what were truly uncomplicated scenes.
  
  Some might also say the camera was defective and I should have just exchanged it instead of returning it for a refund. Again, maybe so. However, there are a lot of user comments on various internet forums complaining of underexposure with the 40D. One prominent review site (dcresource.com) recounts the reviewer's experience in two weeks of shooting: "My only photo quality complaint is that the 40D has the tendency to underexpose. I took hundreds of photos on my vacation, and the majority of them were underexposed by 1/3 or 2/3-stop." Unfortunately, I missed all this during my initial research.
  
  I may have had a bad copy of the camera; perhaps the lens contributed to the issues as well--who knows? Nonetheless, the way I see it, this is a mature product, having been on the market for almost a year now. Any quality control issues should have already been ironed out, and I just wasn't willing to take a chance on spending the money to send it back only to get another lemon.
  
  Based on the many glowing reviews here and elsewhere, my experience is apparently not typical. It's a funny thing about reliability/satisfaction and repair ratings. Even Consumer Reports ranks Canon among the best. But to those customers in the minority who end up with defective, or simply unsatisfying, products, the odds don't mean a thing.
  
  I'm going to try a Nikon.
  
  
  
• LCD Monitor doesn't work... Beware, ISO setting is auto-only for basic shooting...
  By A9PKYI8B9V9VB on 2007-10-21
  Five stars for the camera - 1 star for myself for being so stupid not to realize why the LCD monitor wouldn't work (as has been rigthfully pointed out, it's an SLR, not a P&S). As I mentioned in my unedited review, I'll leave the technical reviews to others since so many good ones have been written already. Canon was very helpful in answering my emails concerning the LCD monitor, but it was thanks to the Amazon community that I realized how dumb my earlier review was.
  
  I have removed any other negative and irrelevant comments from my review, so if you read it before, you are not mistaken when thinking that stuff is missing. Great camera, nice grip, highly recommended - though perhaps a bit of a stretch for someone who's coming from P&S. I used a Nikon 8008 for many years, before "falling" for the convenience of the advanced features of the 9MP Fuji E900 - which I still use for less intrusive shots.
  
  
• Buy the Nikon D300
  By AQR7UFIP4K84Y on 2008-01-25
  I bought the 40D as soon as it came out and was very happy with it for about 3 months. I then had the chance to compare with a friend's Nikon D300. Unfortunately for me and the 40D, there was no contest in terms of colour rendition or noise in low light. I take a lot of pictures indoors and soon became very disenchanted with my purchase, so much so that I sold it on e-bay and bought the Nikon. I've been a customer of both brands over the years so I have lenses to spare, but if you're going for a prosumer model, then save the extra dollars for the D300 if you're not locked into Canon with your lens collection.
  
  
• Loved until it stopped working and then it got worse!
  By A1IO1WJP0ZRG4T on 2008-07-12
  I was excited to get my first DSLR after years of using a 35mm SLR followed by a Canon Powershot S3 IS, a good camera but limited. When I received it, I immediately started using it and was extremely happy with the ease of use,many functions, and the resolution. I even signed up for a $200 nature photography course/workshop. Forty days after getting it and 10 days before the course, I got the dreaded error 99 message and the camera completely stopped working. I can't return it since it lasted 10 days beyond Amazon's return policy and Canon tells me to send it in to be fixed and the warrany MAY cover all the cost. Even if they fix it I will then have a camera I will not completely trust and will lose the oportunity to use it in the course/workshop for which I will use S3 IS rather than completely lose the nonrefundable $200. I almost bought a Nikon, guess I should have.
  UPDATED RATING ONE STAR
  I send my camera in for warranty work after my initial rating. I was told the repair would cost $747 since my warranty was voided by "moisture" damage. Since the camera had not been near water, not even rain, I asked how that was possible. They asked me about high humidity or if I had been prespiring. I live in AZ and our humidity had suddenly gone from about 10% to storms overnight, and I may have prespired. I was told digital equipment is sensitive to moisture, and that either could have caused the problem. I can not believe that either could cause problems in a properly built camera. Later after searching the internet I discovered that Canon used this story at least once before to explain moisture damage voiding the warranty on a camera not exposed to liquids. The camera is coming back unrepaired and going to an independent electronics lab where a friend works since he is interested in looking at it but warns canon's opening the camera could have made it hard to spot bad seals. After that it will go in the trash or I'll mount it as a thousand dollar bad memory. I am selling the accessories and lenses I bought for it - most unused and still in the box, and I am buying a Nikon. Lemon's will happen, bad faith dealing with customers is unexcusable.
  
  
  
• Just got this camera - It's Great!
  By A352EZO4K5ZBZT on 2007-09-06
  I just unboxed this camera a few hours ago. I've just gotten into SLR Photography, upgrading from a Canon Digital Elph point-and-shoot. Let me just say: if you are an upgrader, you can't go wrong with getting the Canon EOS 40D.
  
  First Impressions:
  -The Screen Size is AWESOME. It's really big. The only issue is that, when using the viewfinder, my face was hitting the screen. I decided to place a screen protector I had on it.
  
  -Focusing is fast and accurate - I tested this in a relatively low light situation. I was very impressed in random shots and complicated shots where the focus wasn't evident the steps the camera took to pick an appropriate autofocus.
  
  -Flash is powerful
  
  -The lens included in this kit is wonderful for the many of the reasons listed above - Fast AF and IS (Image Stabilizing).
  
  -The camera is very nice to hold. I was considering the Canon Rebel Xti as well, and the EOS 40D is definitely much more comfortable to hold. The bigger size, I think, is worth it.
  
  -The viewfinder is nice, and gives you all the details you could want regarding your picture.
  
  -The flash is powerful but won't 'overblow' - close flash shots of people's faces look good.
  
  -I love the control scheme - much more intuitive than many of the point-and-shoots that I have used. The dial wheel is an awesome way to go through your images, and the "joystick" allows you to explore zoomed in images very intuitively.
  
  Overall, I feel I have made a great choice in investing in this camera as I learn more about photography. Luckily, the camera is easy enough to use that one can use it as a very large point-and-sh