Nikon D40 - Still Impressive by Alpha Whiskey Photography

This is a tribute to my old Nikon D40, now 5 year old technology, which in digital terms might as well be 25 years! But I didn't want to use my more expensive gear at the Notting Hill Carnival the other day, so I took the humble D40 instead and I was most impressed by the images it produced.

But then I thought ‘why wouldn’t I be impressed?’ Most consumers are conditioned into thinking that only the newest and latest gear can deliver the best shots, and anything old is obsolete. But just because something is old doesn’t meant it’s not useful. And while newer cameras may have more bells and whistles, or even better ergonomics, the little Nikon D40 proved that it can still hold it’s own in that all important image quality department.

Its 6MP CCD (today cameras are packing 16-24MP on the same sensor size) delivered excellent RAW files which (coupled to a sharp prime lens) had plenty of detail, even at high ISOs.

With ‘only’ 6MP, those pixels are obviously going to be larger and physically take in more light, so the camera performs pretty well at higher ISOs, even for an old sensor. Other factors come into it, of course, especially with today’s higher megapixel sensors and thus smaller pixels, such as image processing algorithms. Modern DSLRs, even APS-C sized sensors, can now reach very high ISO levels with excellent results.

One thing that clearly helps is shooting RAW. Any noise is finer and thus easier to remove more evenly. Colour is also better retained than in a JPEG.

Anyway, below are some examples and crops from photos I took in a restaurant after the carnival, so you can judge for yourself. Not a scientific study, of course (I have a life to enjoy – can’t be stuck indoors shooting test charts!) but they illustrate my point. All the images were shot hand-held with the Nikkor 50mm F/1.8G AF-S, at F/1.8, and the RAW files were converted using Adobe RAW converter in Adobe CS5.

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Comments

JenaSep 1, 2011 11:52 AM

From point of view of the observer, the composition of the photo distract the eye from counting the pixles of the camera as well as coveying the story in the photo to the eye is what it counts. For example, The cropped photo of the motorcycle tyre contains reasonable details to demonstrate the level of sophistication went to manufacture it.
In my opinion, these are good shots despite using old version of Nikon !!

Asmarabluez ...Nov 3, 2011 10:45 PM

Thanks You So much Alpha....For this Article n Info .. n impressed Wth ur Photos .. All those new hi tech models looks very tempting .... But whatever is I still stick to my D40 just bought a 50mm 1.4G but haven't tried it out yet cos it's raining maybe when weather's I'll shoot something

I Luv my D40Nov 6, 2011 04:21 AM

In the right hands (or tripod) the D40 can take amazingly sharp pictures, with good colour. Its a good size camera.

MihaeJan 9, 2012 11:09 PM

Thank you for writing this! I've been tempted to upgrade my D40 but it's my first camera and I really want to stay with it until it breaks down.

Any tips about shooting under low light and what equipment I can add on to the D40 to extend it's capabilities?

Alpha Whiskey PhotographyJan 10, 2012 12:13 PM

I would try using a fast lens to keep your shutter speed high and ISO low. Perhaps a 35mm F/1.8 as a walk around lens. Some low light shooting inevitably requires raising the ISO. Always try and keep yourself steady and braced, or if a long exposure is necessary, use a tripod.

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