Considering a Canon 40D, some questions

gjl711 wrote in post #5738408
There really is nothing that the 40D does that you can not do with the XTi. I don’t consider a XTi to 40D an upgrade unless you want one feature, live view.

apersson850 wrote in post #5740146
Puh! The difference between the 400D and the 40D is tremendous. The 40D, with a BG-E2N mounted, is much more a 1D Mark III "light" than it's a beefed up 400D. Virtually everything the 400D can do, the 40D does twice as good. Especially now, when Canon has felt the competition from the Nikon D300, and thus the cost of the 40D has been reduced to levels where you get very much camera for your money, it's an excellent choice.
There are more features on the D300, but for fast action photography the 40D is the best camera today, south of models in the range of the 1D Mark III.

The EF-S 55-250 mm f/4-5,6 IS is an excellent lens for the money. Which doesn't say that the EF 70-200 mm f/4L IS USM isn't better, as that's one of the best telezoom lenses money can buy, but you get a few 55-250 for the same money.

I agree 100% Anders!!, whilst I'm not expecting much, if any, improvement in image quality, having handled one in the shop, the whole experience is so much better. Faster FPS, rear wheel (If there is one thing, and probably the ONLY thing on my beloved 400D that I dislike, is having to push a button, whilst moving the wheel, to change the aperture in maual mode. As I'm getting more and more experienced with my first DSLR I am now finding it more restricting to change my aperture setting quickly on the fly), joystick and the pure feel and weight of a much more robust feeling piece of equipment.

Pete

Get a UV/protection filter fer every lens.
Get a lens hood for every lens.
The lookalike lens hoods work just as well and are a lot cheaper than the canon ones,
Get only the best filters the Hoya pro1 and Kenko pro 1 are the same product but marketed in different regions.Kenko are marketed in Japan and the far east but available on line at better prices than the Hoya named ones.

TMaG82 wrote in post #5738272
4. While I've seen the 40D in person, I've yet to hold one. My cousin keeps telling me not to get it since it's a heavy camera and that holding it will be a chore. I realize that it's noticeably heavier then the two that I've used in the past and being an Asian male I don't have the largest hands in the world, but for those of you that have it, does it bother you? I travel more these days and I plan on taking 200-300 shots per photographing session, probably no more then 2x a month. So I'm not going to be a frequent user like some of you, I would venture to say no more then 10,000-15,000 actuations a year.

As a fellow Asian male, the size does not bother me (sorry when I read the thread I had to reply with that). I recently upgraded from a Rebel XT to the Canon and shot 100 or so pics in one session without any noticeable fatigue. In fact depending on your future lens investment this body maybe a better weight balance, which is more important. As an example I slapped on a 70-200 2.8 IS L on my XT body, it was ridiculously front heavy. So as the old saying goes, size doesn't matter, it's how you use it.

Now it fits snugly in my LP 100 slingbag whereas the XT had wiggle room. That's the only size "issue" I may have.

I am trying to make the same choice.

The three biggest things I dislike about XTi are (1) tendency to underexpose so I have to remember to play with EC and FEC whenever I get in different lighting conditions (2) iffy AF in low light (now I understand it's mainly lens' fault but I feel the body has something to do with it, too) (3)small viewfinder, coupled with my not perfect eyesight it makes manual focusing useless. What I do like is size, weight, and cost. Well, I could also use spot metering

So, by switching to 40D I would get a heavier, more expensive camera. Will it solve any of the above problems, to make it worth it ? Also, what are owners' experiences on the reliability and build quality ? If you look up reviews on Amazon there's somebody complaining about getting two bad copies in a row (one I believe got a dead pixel).


Also, what can I expect to get for a silver XTi body that was used just over a year, excellent condition ?

Thanks !