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Alternative Camera Lens for the Nikon D40x
Posted On 2009-04-30 , 9:20 AM
My current Nikkor zoom lens is 18-55mm and although it is fairly versatile I had been thinking about getting another camera lens with a longer focal length but Nikkor lenses are fairly costly!
I decided to do a bit of research to see if I could find a suitable and cheaper alternative camera lens for my Nikon D40x. Sigma came up trumps! I discovered that they make a compatible camera lens with a built in auto focus motor (the D40x doesn’t have a focus motor in the body – see by blog on the D40x) which is cheaper than similar Nikkor lenses.
In the end I plumped for the Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro. This is a telephoto zoom lens and is excellent value for money. It has a built-in motor and allows auto focus and includes a switch for macro photography between 200mm and 300mm and is capable of a maximum magnification of 1:2.
It is a perfect camera lens for portraits, sport and all other types of photography and the super multi-layer coating on this camera lens reduces flare and ghosting.
This camera lens also comes with a “bayonet type” detachable hood, which helps to prevent any further flare.
I found that it is best to use the circular type of filters with this camera lens but be careful if you use more than one at a time as this can cause vignetting (or cut off) in the corner of the frame.
Also be aware that because of the length of this camera lens, using your camera’s built in flash can sometimes cause “barrel shadow” – so I find it's better to use an external flash.
I know I sound like an advert – but if you have a Nikon D40 or D40x and want a good alternative without compromise then this camera lens takes perfect pictures and has an extremely high image quality throughout it’s entire zoom range!
Eric the Cat
This was taken with my Sigma lens focal length 270mm f/5.6 1/800th ISO200
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The Nikon D40X
Posted On 2009-03-23 , 9:12 AM
If you have read my first blog, you will recall that Graham bought me my first SLR camera, which was a Minolta X-700. On Christmas Day in 2007 he surprised me yet again with a Nikon D40x, which came with an excellent 18–55mm zoom lens – this really is a great piece of kit.
The Nikon D40x has a 10.2 megapixle format (which is more than adequate) and the body is very lightweight, so less camera shake when I am taking pictures hand held!
Another good thing is that there is lots of on-screen help – which is great if you are just starting out as a photographer.
The reason the Nikon D40x (and the D40) is so lightweight is because Nikon omitted the body focusing motor, which means you can only auto focus with lenses that have their own drive motor, so make sure when you are buying lenses that they are either AF-S or AF-I. You can still use most of the older Nikkor lenses, but then you will have to focus manually.
I played around with my new lens - here I was experimenting with
depth of field
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Nikkor (Nikon) lenses can be quite pricey but there are always alternatives - you can either buy lenses from different manufacturers or buy second hand lenses, in fact I now have a Sigma DG 70-300mm lens which works perfectly well - just make sure when you are buying any lenses that they are compatible with the Nixon D40x
In 2008 they discontinued the Nikon D40x and replaced it with the D60 – which is almost identical.
I still enjoy using my old Minolta X-700 and my Mamyia 645 cameras but I must admit I do love my Nikon D40x – I have great fun using it and until I (or Graham!) can afford to buy a more advanced digital camera I will stick with my favourite DSLR, the Nikon D40x.
Last summer Graham and I and a couple of friends spent the day at Loch Lomond, which is only a couple of hours drive away. I of course took my Nikon D40x with me and took a lot of pictures, below are a few of the shots I took. When we arrived home there was a beautiful sunset!
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My first blog!
Posted On 2009-02-24 , 4:02 AM
I first became interested in amateur photography in the mid 80’s. I had a couple of compact film cameras,
My Minolta X-700 Film SLR Camera
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which were ideal for taking ordinary snaps. Then one Christmas to my utter amazement Graham (my partner) bought me an SLR Minolta X-700 camera with a zoom lens - I was over the moon! It was a great camera and at the time a state-of -the art SLR. It was aperture priority but also had a Program facility, which automatically set the shutter speed and aperture. So when using this program all I had to do before releasing the shutter was compose, focus and take the picture. Using the Program facility made it possible for me to learn about aperture and speed settings and I learnt a lot from this camera. As it was a manual-focus camera it did take me a while to focus on subjects much to the amusement of my family and friends - but after a lot of practice I got there in the end.
Those were the days of the 35mm cartridge film and when you bought a film it had an ISO (or ASA) speed setting and these ranged from 25, 50, 100, 200, 400 upwards. So the higher the ISO setting the quicker the shutter speed thus enabling you take pictures in less light but could sometimes produce a grainer image.
A few birthdays and Christmas’s later I had many different lenses for my camera and also medium format camera, plus darkroom equipment - courtesy of Graham!
I would spend hours on Sundays in the bathroom, not having a facial and manicure, but developing my film negatives and printing onto photographic paper - I just loved doing this - sometimes I wouldn’t emerge out of the bathroom until gone midnight.
Now my old darkroom equipment and film cameras have been packed away as I have now been converted to digital!
Digital is great and I am a fan of Nikon cameras and have a D40x. I’d love to have a D700 - but it isn’t cheap (though not as expensive as the new Nikon D3x). I think these two cameras may be a bit beyond Graham’s means, unless he wins the lottery of course - so I will just have to start saving! Has anyone got one of these? If you have, what do you think of it?
There are times when I do miss using my old darkroom equipment and the pleasure of seeing that image magically appear on a plain piece of photo paper!
These days I find I am hooked on digital photography, using the computer instead of the darkroom to enhance images - but are there still any darkroom enthusiasts out there?
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