Back to the future

the mega camera site Digital Photography Review https://www.dpreview.com/  has a feature called 'Throwback Thursday'

this week's was the venerable Nikon D40 https://www.dpreview.com/news/7683242978/throwback-thursday-nikon-d40 : the comment thread is quite interesting too.

I had the D60, 2nd successor - almost identical body but 10MP vs 6MP CCD sensors + a few little tools - sensor cleaning, active D lighting. Patrick has it now. I suspect I took some of my best pictures with that camera in the flush of youthful enthusiasm.

D40 had bigger pixels and was very well reputed. Typical Thygo buyer remorse - probably should have bought the D40 at the time. Cést la vie. The early dSLRs had CCD vs CMOS sensors and many contend these give different, and depending on your taste, preferable colour rendition. I suspect I agree.

I now have D90 and D3300. D3300 is a lineal descendent of the D40. Now with 24MP, up to 128000 ISO, video, other bits and pieces. I still reckon the D60 body was more comfortable and controls easier. I am still undecided whether I have an advance over the D90 with the D3300.

I am now seeing if I can pick up a D40 body at a good price (some people ask almost as much as a brand new D3300!) to have as a 'beater body' - walk around in daylight, rough and tumble.

Comparison picks below - probably just nostalgia but I still reckon the D40/40x/60 body design was very nice - uncluttered, clean lines. Nice feeling solid polycarbonate construction (the newer ones feel very light - probably as strong but doesn't feel the same).

 

 

 

Comments

[Thygocanberra]

Don't worry. I will keep shooting with something (providing the property settlement doesn't take all my gear).

[PythonMagus]

Circero once quipped that Pompey was a young man with his future behind him. (He had won the Eastern War and was back in Rome with nothing to do - and no chance to better his past achievements.) Don't be like that - there will always be more photo opportunities - and never in the history of photography has there ever been such interest in it. The internet was brought it to everyone, so everyone is curious to know what they can do after the requisite battery photos (as noted above).