Will you/did you upgrade to the 30D or the 40D?

I just added a 40D on the weekend....wanted the insurance of a second body for a Hawaii trip next month. Its a great camera and a significant upgrade from the 20D.

I'm going from the 20D to something with a single digit. Once I get more savings in a few months... If I wanted to stick to 1.6x the 40D would be tempting, however.

i believe that ill just continue wiht my 30d. the next camera is more than likely to be the 5d or the 5d replacement. i will go full-frame!!!

Going from XT to 40D.
very excited.

Is the 40D, aside from size (400D with my grip fills my hand fine) and the wheel (which matters little to me as I am so used to the 400D I can blaze through setting changes), that much of an upgrade over the 400D? I shoot mostly birds and I use a 400mm f/5.6L so I already have lightning fast focus. Is it worth it to upgrade?

My secondary body is a 10D converted to IR.

My upgrade path is as follows: 1st ever Camera, G7 April 2007 which I returned to buy a 30D, which I just sold on Monday and my 40D will be here Friday. I know it's a rather typical novice move to upgrade the body unnecessarily when I should have been buying glass or taking classes and I agree. However it was my intention in July when I got my first DSLR to get the 40D but it wasn't out yet. I have a lot to learn and if I'm to learn a body well enough to use it in the dark(or blindfolded lol) I want to do that with a body I'm planning to keep for a long, long time. I feel comfortable that the 40D will fulfill all my needs and much more for many years to come. Now I just need to save for a decent wide angle lens I've got an itch for the 17-55 IS. My only lenses now are the nifty fifty 1.8II and the 24-105L. I'm tempted to trade my 24-105 for the 17-55 but I'm not going to give in. I really like the IQ of the 24-105.

Grimm75 wrote in post #3960432
Is the 40D, aside from size (400D with my grip fills my hand fine) and the wheel (which matters little to me as I am so used to the 400D I can blaze through setting changes), that much of an upgrade over the 400D? I shoot mostly birds and I use a 400mm f/5.6L so I already have lightning fast focus. Is it worth it to upgrade?

My secondary body is a 10D converted to IR.

Just search the forum for advantages that 40D offers and ask yourself the question whether they are important to you or not.

I went 350 to 20d to 40d and do not regret it for a moment. The viewfinder and live view is awesome. Spot metering adds a new dimension to my photography. Etc. Etc.

good to hear all the good things about the 40D =)

Grimm75 wrote in post #3960432
Is the 40D, aside from size (400D with my grip fills my hand fine) and the wheel (which matters little to me as I am so used to the 400D I can blaze through setting changes), that much of an upgrade over the 400D? I shoot mostly birds and I use a 400mm f/5.6L so I already have lightning fast focus. Is it worth it to upgrade?

My secondary body is a 10D converted to IR.

I have both, so I guess I could answer your question; yes, it is a huge upgrade.

FPS, spot metering, huge buffer, superior focusing system, and all sorts of other features.

If you do mostly birds, the FPS alone would benefit you.

Upgraded from the 10D to 40D. I waited for this upgrade and am very glad I did. It's not just the IQ (yes, the 10D also gives a fantastic IQ when used within its limits), it's the range, the ease of use, the extra capability of the 40D that has impressed me. I cannot compare with the 20D or 30D as I've never used either. But this upgrade was much greater than I expected and IMO it was well worth holding out to get so much for the price.

Some of the features that I really like so far: live view, live histogram, very fast and accurate focus, ISO range, look and feel of the body, colours, depth in highlights (don't blow out easily) and shadows (lots of detail); etc etc (too many good features to list them all).

I went 300D -> 10D -> 20D -> 40D in around 3 years, although I had the 20D for almost a year and a half. The 30D was barely an upgrade over the 20D, but the 40D has many improvements.

If I shot mainly sports, then I'd wait to see how the D300 performs - you could get a pair of them for less than one 1DM3, and with the same 51 point focus system as the D3 will have, it should rival that of the 1 series.

I like to do macro work and what "sold it" to me really was the "live view", so much easier to get spot-on focussing than looking through the viewfinder. It just "feels" good too.

Fotoflyer

I went from a 350D to 30D ....main reason was large hands!! the 350D always felt cramp, and the better build feel of the 30D body. I haven't look back and a couple of weeks ago bought my first L lens . I felt money well spend on this rather than upgarde body.

I may look seriously when the 50D is released with its full frame sensor

My only other comment is that the back of the 40D looks like everything has made way for the LCD. The Nikon D300 looks far nicer from the rear

I've had a 30D for 15 months and the 40D offers some features I would like at what I consider to be a fair price. I have very nearly pushed the "buy" button several times since its launch but I'm resisting temptation at the moment. The main reason I'm holding off is that I want pro-spec performance (AF in particular) in a 1.6X crop body and Canon seems unwilling to build such a beast.

I could afford to get a 1D MK III if I so choose but for my needs and my existing lens collection the 1.3X crop will suck. My 10-22mm and 17-55 will be of no use and my 70-200 and 100-400 will suddenly appear to have less reach. So I'll lose my wide end completely and have less at the long end too. The same thing applies, only more so, if I were to go to a full frame sensor. I want to preserve the investment I have made in quality Canon glass already, whether it's EF-S, EF or EF L. (There is also the small issue at the moment that the 1D MK III seemingly has issues with its own "pro" spec AF so I'm in no rush to get one of those in any case, not that I would for reasons already mentioned.)

I don't need the superior image quality that 1.3X or FF sensors bring and I don't need more than 10 ( or even 8 ) megapixles, but I do want the weatherproofing and improved AF that is reserved for the 1D line.

I just hope Canon realises the demand for such a camera. It seems that Nikon has. I'm going to try to hold on to my cash for now and see how Canon responds to the D300. My 30D will keep me going for the time being.

Here's an example of why I do not believe a 40D is sufficient upgrade over the 30D in terms of AF performance - http://www.prophotohom​e.com …d-interactive-review.html. I've also seen other results, posted by POTN members, that have left me underwhelmed regarding AI Servo tracking performance.