A BIG CHANGE:From the 400D to the 40D

Hmh, where to start?
The followers of my stream already know that I have a new Cam now. I bought a wonderful Canon EOS 40D three weeks ago. In this post I will tell you about my personal opinion and experience after using it heavily for two weeks ann shooting about 2500 images with it.

 

I thought about buying a new DSLR for some time now but I always wanted to buy it not before my 400D breaks down. I am still very happy with the 400D but since I am planning a big trip to Chile in July I had the plan to buy a second body so that I can definitely shoot during the whole trip. I am really afraid of a camera breakdown during the trip because this would mean that I couldnt shoot from that point on by any chance.
Thats why I started looking around for a second body that I could take with me.


After reading MANY reports and forums on the internet I became sure and surer that the 40D would be my choice.
To me it seemed like all the new Canons are compared to the 40D especially in terms of autofocus. This somehow convinced me. The other differences to my 400D such as liveview, 6.5fps instead of 3.5, ISO 3200 and the metal body also convinced me to take this one.

When I compared the prices on the internet I was quite surprised how expensive this body is. I planned to spend 700€, not instantly but rather in April or May. Nevertheless I started searching ebay and other sites and as soon as a couple of days later I had found MY camera. It was offered as "practically new" and that it had only been used one time for a couple of shots.
It even has warranty until January of 2011!!
So I bid the minimum bet of 599€ and began to wait until the end. Nothing happened and it was mine.
Pretty easy isnt it?
That way I got a 800€ camera for only 600.

So what is my experience now?

When I first got it in my hands I felt at home.
Everything is bigger and feels more qualitative. Its also a bit heavier.
The whole way the buttons are placed is different and it makes you going loco....the first two hours. Then its just great. The hardest part was it to get used to the display on the upper side.
The 400D shows ALL settings on the LCD Display so this still feels completely "unnormal" to me.
I even thought the battery was empty after putting it in for the first time because the LCD display didnt show anything. I recharged the battery and THEN I realized how this baby works.

Now I want to tell you about the image quality. Since its a 10MP camera just like my old one(400D) I wouldnt have expected such a big change.  The biggest differences are the good high ISO results (at least up to ISO 1000) and a perfectly working focus. Most images dont look really sharp on the LCD until you zoom in. I only use the middle focussing point and it really is spot on. Even in real low light situations its on spot most of the times. This was one really negative point with the 400D which is not at all good in these low light things. For me it is a bit like when I got my first DSLR and had to play with it 24/7.  I used my 400D with my 18-55mm most of the times since I wanted to be spontaneous. Now I store it in my bag with the 50mm in 99% of the cases because I just love to play with it in low light situations. Of course the more expensive Canons are much better in that but in this class its one of the best IMO.

To sum up: Its a really good, high quality camera with many advantages to the 400D and its worth to change since its better in almost all points.

The only exception from that is the ON-OFF Button which is shit. How should I use this fucking small switch for example when I am wearing gloves. Its impossible. And I also think that it is likely to break when used too often. This is why I decided to not switch the cam off when its not in use but leave it in standby. This way its always ready!

Battery Grip:

I bought a Phottix Battery Grip shortly after buying the cam. I did it because this camera is too big to shoot portrait format comforably without one. I wouldnt have thought that these 65€ would be such a good investment. This battery grip really makes the camera even more handy and grippy,  And I can now shoot portrait without having to straighten every image in postpro. Its just possible to shoot symmetrically now. And thats wonderful. So get yourself one and try it out. You will love it. I swear!

criticism:

What I loved most about my 400D was its reliability. I knew that I could trust the battery indicator and that it was possible to shoot up to 500 frames with one charged battery. The 40D is not as reliable as this. Its battery shows the almost empty sign already after 100 frames or so and from this point on it will blink for another 300 or 400 frames. You never know when its going to die. Thats pretty fucked I think.

So this is what I think about my camera. I will update this post if I have new information or experiences.

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