30d vs. 40d iso, af, etc.

ive been wanting to upgrade from my 350d which im getting sick of, lol

but im caught between the 30d and 40d....

i shoot mostly sports and city events so fps is important....although an increase from 5fps to 6.5fps isnt a deciding factor to me...

what im interested in is which one has the lowest noise at high iso's and best af.....and if theres a significant difference between digic iii and digic ii

if not id probably get a 30d and put the extra 300 dollar savings to a future lens

thanks
-max

40D - better low light and single shot focusing. Slightly better viewfinder, 2 mp of needless upgrade.

30D - some claim the servo tracking is better than the 40D but I dunno.

Buy a good 30D and a 12-24mm lens.

I thought AI servo on 40d was very good. On my 30d it is dog compared to my 1dmk2, IMHO.

bobbyz wrote in post #5309129
I thought AI servo on 40d was very good. On my 30d it is dog compared to my 1dmk2, IMHO.

people say its more easily distracted becuase the actual sensor is bigger. I dont shoot servo so I do not know.

I don't think there is a difference as far as low light noise in concerned. I have shot some ISO 3200 shots that are clear as day...

Here's one at ISO 3200 handheld with my 30D...

noise is not really a selling point for the upgrade to the 40D over the 30D. I have seen tests go in favor of either one..its just too close to call from what I have seen.

Main reasons for the 40D:
-Live View
-Slightly better AF (people say a bit faster and a bit more accurate)
-2mp more
-Bigger/Brighter viewfinder (the one thing I do want from the 40D!)

Frankly I would rather save that huge chunk of change and get the 30D + some other goodies. 2mp is nothing in real use, live view while fun, and useful for some, is not something you would use all the time. AF is still very good on the 30D.

But its all up to you in the end!

Don't fall into the "Spray and Pray" school of sports photography.

Grentz has done an excellent job of pointing out the 40D's advantages.

And I might add--I prefer the image quality out of the 14 bit processor.

And AI servo is somewhat better with the 40D.

My .02--Your mileage may vary

Best of luck with your decision

AF on the 40D is better than the 30D. The center point has improved sensitivity however where I noticed this the most is on non-center AF points.

So in terms of AF, 40D > 5D > 30D.

Liveview is nice if you need that sort of thing.
FPS and MP difference isn't a huge factor.

As for noise, the 40D probably has a VERY slight edge over the 30D...not enough to make is a deciding factor.

The 3" LCD is nice, however the resolution is the same as the 2.5" so...DOH!

Partial weather sealing is a plus and the shutter is not as loud. The battery lasts longer according to reviews as well.

If you aren't sacrificing any plans for better glass, I would certainly choose the 40D over the 30D.

i use live view a LOT when travelling and ive only got a gorillapod or a slik mini-pro with me.

its great being able to whack it on the floor, and crouch behind it without getting rigght up to the camera.

stick it in live view, 10x zoom in to get perfect focus. jobs a goodun

same boat as yo bro, upgrading soon to a 40D from an XT....either one would be good coming from our cameras but I don't mind paying the extra for the 40D features. If you want to put some money to some good glass maybe the 30d is worth considering. depending on what type of sports you shoot that $300 would come in handy for a used 70-200mm f4 maybe

I've already set my mind to getting the 40D...it's the glass I need to consider now