Nikon D40 -- Making the DSLR Leap

Purpose of this:
Share the experience as a point of learning for others on the issues acquiring a DSLR (March 2008).

Plus:
Capture excellent photographs when:

1. when ambient light is preferred, versus using a flash
2. when the subject is fast moving, such as in a sports situation

Minus:

1. Does not have all the features one is used to with the consumer digicam, hence the need to carry two gadgets, instead of just one.
2. Physically heavier and bulkier than a digicam.
3. Could cost more than an average point and shoot.

Reason

1. A trip to the Philippines (13,000 miles, 24 hours door to door) to visit family and friends, so might as well take the best pictures I can.
2. Consider photography as a hobby.

Criteria
Take the best pictures while spending the least amount of money.

Research Process

Sales staff in Wolf / Ritz camera

1. Major upheaval in the DSLR market with the strong push by Sony as marked by its acquisition of Minolta. Sony is releasing capable and aggressively priced DSLRs.
2. Big market share by Canon (2.5M) and Nikon (1.7M), Figures in parenthesis are 2006 DSLR unit sales. Sony (326K), Olympus (311k), with Pentax (286K)

About the Camera

1. Consumer Reports -- Names the Nikon D40 as CR Best Buy.
   
2. PopPhoto Entry Level DSLR Editor's Choice August 2007

About the Lenses

1. Consumer Reports -- Nikon AF-S DX 18-55 lens has the highest rating (96) of all lenses tested.
   
2. PopPhoto Editor's Choice Nikon 55-200 VR Lens

Industry Support
Nikon has been around for years, and is the 2nd DSLR supplier in the market. There is a lot of support for its products, and there are a lot of aftermarket products. There are various online groups (flickr, nikonian) dedicated to being a Nikon camera user.

Price
The Nikon D40 kit with the 55-200VR lens is less than $700 from Amazon, delivered.

What I had to give up

Liveview
My one source of consternation was the Sony A300. I wanted to get Liveview, and the initial reports indicated that their design seemed to have solved the implementation issues with LCD viewing in SLRs. However, one of the first real reviews of the A300 appeared in the New York Times, and while the author was impressed with the LiveView feature, he was disappointed with the low light performance of the Sony A300.

That statement decided it for me. I'm lugging around an extra gadget because I wanted the best picture quality for the money. And in today's market, that is the Nikon D40.