Nikon D40/D40x Digital Field Guide
by David D. Busch
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Book Reviews of Nikon D40/D40x Digital Field Guide
Book Review: Essential guide for my step up to digital SLR photography
Summary: 5 Stars
Last week I bought my first digital SLR - the Nikon D40x 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED II AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor Lens. I decided to step into the world of digital SLRs after years of experience with different (and very good) compact or "point and shoot" digital cameras.
My current compact digicam is the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3K 7.2MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Black) - which I took to Peru, and with which I took some wonderful photos. As good as they were, I wanted to try for even better pictures, and happily bought my Nikon D40x SLR.
But after I opened the boxes and got my pristine new D40x ready to use, I suddenly felt lost and overwhelmed. Yes, there's an "auto" setting, but if that's all I use, I figure I might as well not have spent all the money to get into the digital SLR world. The owner's manual is, I'm sure, complete and accurate, but I found it difficult. It tells me the name of a button and something of how to use it, but I don't have the background to know what most of that means in terms of taking a photo.
Fortunately, I ordered this book from amazon - and it's saved the day. I'm still working my way through it, but I know it's a keeper - and it's going along whenever possible, for reference on the spot when I'm taking photos.
I'm no dummy, nor a total novice at digital photography. But I'm not a professional photog, nor a "camera geek" familiar with a lot of the technical terms and concepts.
The author strikes just the right note for me with the explanations in this book. At last - I'm starting to understand histograms, and feel more assured when changing ISO settings. I'm also learning the uses of all those dials and buttons on my new D40x.
Reading this book has conquered a vague sense of dread I felt about this new gadget ("what was I thinking buying this complicated expensive camera?"). Instead, I'm looking forward to using my D40x and learning more as I go.
I don't know if it exactly replaces the owner's manual supplied by Nikon, but I encourage anyone who's feeling baffled by that manual to get their hands on this book. It's made all the difference to me between puzzlement and comprehension.
Book Review: Nice companion for the manual
Summary: 3 Stars
This is a nice companion book to the d40 manual, but it's not a replacement for it. I bought it with my camera because I'm brand new to the slr world, and figured it would give me some extra info, since I like to research and learn all I can with whatever hobby I'm into.
It provides some good detail on the camera, and covers not only setup and use, but photo composition as well. It's easier to read then the manual, and it's good to get a different "take" on things from a different perspective.
I gave it three stars because I realized that the manual is actually very extensive and isn't lacking at all in information. It's easier to read than I thought it would be, and is packed with all the information you could want on the camera (as it should, of course). The manual actually has more specific information on the camera and it's settings, but it's in black and white, doesn't have fancy photos, and a bit harder to read. I have a fairly small camera bag, and the manual fits in it so I carry that with me instead of this book - just because of the size difference, but I don't feel at all like I'm losing anything.
If you could only buy one book with your d40, I'd get a book that goes into more detail about photography in general, and stick with the manual for instruction on how to use the d40. I DO like the book, but I don't think it's quite as necessary as some of the reviews indicate.
Book Review: D40 beginners need this book!
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm a SLR newbie, just "graduated" from a point-and shoot. I wasn't getting very far trying to learn about my D40 just by experimenting and reading the camera's manual, so decided to get this book since it had good reviews. I was looking for something to teach me all about the camera, PLUS give me actual examples to try. The author really explains things well. I did have to keep cross-referencing some topics, but that only re-inforced my understanding. To give you an idea what I'm talking about, the book starts out with basics, to get you taking pictures right away, then gets into more details in subsequent chapters. So certain features were necessarily discussed at different depths accordingly, so if you looked in the index you would have more than one page on which a topic was discussed. Overall a great book that I will turn to again and again. The only complaint I have is that, while the scope of the book was to introduce the camera to users (otherwise why buy the book), in the try-it section the author used different filters and flashes in some of the example pictures, which I felt was a jump from the level at which the book was intended.Book Review: I came out confused
Summary: 3 Stars
I thought this book was just ok. I am fairly new to the DSLR world, but have many cameras and am not exactly clueless when it comes to understanding terms and taking good pics. I didn't think this book explained things in common sense, it just made things more confusing. If you already know everything about f-stops and exposure you might do ok, but these things weren't explained in a way I could understand. I read a few parts out loud to my husband, who would laugh hysterically because it made it sound so complicated. I bought this book hoping to grasp a greater understanding of the manual functions of my camera, and am more confused than ever now. I wish I would have bought Nikon D40 for Dummies.Book Review: Excellent for beginner or intermediate
Summary: 5 Stars
This guide to the D40/D40x is aimed at the beginning digital SLR photographer, but has some excellent information even for advanced amateurs.
It is well-written, well-illustrated, and covers the subject in depth. If you've just purchased a D40 or D40x, or have had one for awhile, you will learn many things here that are very difficult to get from the manual.
The first third of the book explains all of the features and settings of the camera in clear, well-illustrated format. The remainder provides basic information on photographic techniques, and specific suggestions for many types of photography.
Highly recommended!