The Product: Digital SLR (Single Lens Reflex) Camera

As digital photography continues to grow in popularity, the prices of Digital SLR’s(dSLR) have dropped to the point where they are now affordable for the mainstream user. The main advantage of an SLR is that you can interchange lenses and use an external flash to take pictures that will be far superior in quality to those of a point and shoot camera. It’s important to note that most digital pictures need to be run through some sort of photo editing software in order to improve their contrast and color as they tend to be “greyish” right out of the camera. Google offers a free editing program called Picassa and most cameras come with the company’s own editing software. To really take advantage of a Digital SLR, you have to be willing to learn about photo editing. If this is not something that appeals to you, a point and shoot camera is really a better investment for you.

Recommendation: Nikon D40X Digital SLR Review

The Nikon D40X Digital SLR is an upgraded version of the entry level Nikon D40 Camera which first debuted in late 2006. The main difference between the two cameras is the megapixels.The D40 has a 6.1 megapixel CCD and the Nikon D40X has a better 10.2 megapixel sensor, allowing for better resolution in large format prints. Other upgrades include a slightly faster continuous shooting rate and an upgraded the ISO sensitivity (to ISO 100), which is great for landscape shots. The D40x is a perfect chose for the “prosumer”. For 90% of photographers, this cameras will give you all the functionality and complexity that you need. I see a lot of people unnecessarily buying more expensive cameras that give them manual controls and functions that they won’t ever learn how to use. The biggest advantage the SLR gives you is the ability to use more natural light with its bigger lens, reducing your need for the flash, which never makes a picture look as good.

The Nikon D40x offers consumer a lot of camera for under under $800 with the standard 18-55 mm kit lens. Although kit lenses are used strictly as backup for the professional photographer, this is a pretty good lens for most basic shooting environments. The D40x is also smallest digital SLR that Nikon makes, conveniently eliminating the need for oversized camera bags and making it more travel-friendly. These newer Nikons are also much faster in terms of starting up and taking pictures than models from only a few years ago. If you remember an early model DSLR's being slow, its time to take a second look.

Devil's Advocate:

if you take a lot of outdoor action picture, you may want to look at a comparable Canon SLR. Canon leads the industry in sports photography, where you rely on being able to capture split-second action. They have slightly faster in-camera capture and processing systems, which means, for example, you can increase the ISO, or capture speed (not to be confused with lens speed), resulting in faster captures and less-grainy action photos.