Zahid Shahid

2008
Feb 10

Nikon D40 – My First Digital SLR Camera

110 Comments    [ Posted in Camera & Photography ]

After a long time of shooting with Point & Shoot, I finally decided to move to SLR to have more control over photos i capture… After a lot of research I finally ended up with Nikon D40 (with 18-55mm lens) as my first dSLR 🙂

Also bought SB-400 external flash, a tripod, UV Filter and carrying case with it 🙂

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110 Responses to “Nikon D40 – My First Digital SLR Camera”

1. Posted by Asim Ahmed on February 26, 2008 at 10:10 pm

   Hello Zahid,

   Can u tell how much you pay in total for D40, speedlight, tripod and filter. I also live in Karachi and for quiet a long time thinking of switching from P&S to dSLR. The Nikon dealer in Karachi is charging way too much for D40 although if I order it from US it would cost me $570 with shipping i.e around Rs. 34,770.
   Can u also share your experience with your first dSLR.

2. Posted by Zahid on February 26, 2008 at 11:37 pm

   I got it for Rs.32000 (D40 body + 18-55mm lens),
   SB-400 @ Rs.8500, Normal Tripod would be @ Rs.1000, UV Filter @ Rs.400, Extra EN-EL9 Battery @ Rs.1500.

   everything about this cam is better than my Canon Powershot A85 & Canon SD850 IS.
   When i got it first, it had a dead pixel on the LCD so I replaced that with another 🙂 Now I just had some hardware problem 2 days ago and Shutter has stopped working and have sent it for the repair. (it was a bad luck)

   But honestly, D40 is superb if you are just moving from P&S, and Im happy with it 🙂

   also check KenRockwell.com, you will find a lot of useful info there..

3. Posted by Nida on March 28, 2008 at 10:04 pm

   hey can u tell me frm where in lahore can i purchase it??

4. Posted by Zahid on March 28, 2008 at 10:21 pm

   I am not too sure about lahore.. a friend said ke theres a market for cameras near Gawal Mandi. You may give it a try.. 🙂

5. Posted by Nida on March 31, 2008 at 11:31 am

   sorry 2 dstrb again..i promisr it’ll b da last tym!! 🙂 can u tell me da specificatns i shd b keepn in mind(n wat shd i b chckn?) while buyin’ it.. n wat forcd u 2 buy it? wich features?..actually nobdy in my famly z intrstd n has knwldge abt cameras thts y im bothen u..btw r u a professional fotographer???

6. Posted by Nida on March 31, 2008 at 11:33 am

   n wat abt da prbs u hav mentiond ur facin wid it?

7. Posted by Zahid on March 31, 2008 at 12:01 pm

   Nida: Nah, I’m not a pro photographer, just a hobbyist 🙂
   The problem i faced was just a bad luck.. usually you don’t get such problems.

   By reading your comments i can assume that its your first digital camera? if so, why don’t you look at some Point&Shoot cameras? I love my Canon SD850, and it has an excellent image quality.. You should consider it as well 🙂

   Things you should be keeping in your mind totally depends on what you need. If I were to get a camera I would check the following(listing other things as well that are considered while buying):

   1. Image Stabilization – Reduces the chances of blurry images due to hand shake.
   2. Optical Zoom – It depends on you how close you need to see your subject.. i never zoom with my P&S. and thinking about getting a 55-200mm lens for D40.
   3. MegaPixels – Its worth when you want to print large or crop more.. I was happy with my 4MP Canon A85, D40 is 6MP and SD850 is 8MP, you decide how many pixels you need.
   4. Image Quality, High ISO Performance, Low light Performance…
   5. There are many other things that a person would consider before buying, please read the reviews about the model you are interested in, at, reviews.cnet.com, betterphotos.com, dpreview.com and amazon.com. You may also need extra Memory Cards and Batteries if you are going out for hours.

   Note: Above information is just what i think.. other people may not agree to me and may have some different choices, I’m not responsible for that 🙂

8. Posted by Nida on April 2, 2008 at 10:19 am

   thnx alot for helpin’ me out!! 🙂

9. Posted by Zahid on April 2, 2008 at 11:46 am

   You welcome 🙂

10. Posted by Hamid Abbasi on August 31, 2008 at 10:25 pm

    i want to buy nikon d 40 Can u please tell me from where u bought it im living in karachi please mention the complete address.

11. Posted by Zahid on September 1, 2008 at 1:00 pm

    Hamid: I bought from Amin Electronics, Hakim Centre, Saddar..
    It is camera market at Regal Chowk!

12. Posted by Hamid Abbasi on September 5, 2008 at 2:10 pm

    Thanks dear

13. Posted by Mubasher Saeed on October 6, 2008 at 10:45 am

    Dear Zahid,
    eid mubarak and hope you are doing well. I am interested in having a digital SLR camera and after much research i have decided to have a Nikon D40. I know there is little difference between D60 and D40, however, D60 is more expensive (Ken Rockwell says D 40 is even better). I have searched on the net, called the Nikon dealer but D 40 is not available anywhere. the dealer says it doesnt come from the company, as D 60 has replaced it. i dont want to spend more money on D 60, i would rather buy some accessories with D 40 with same amount. do you have any idea where to buy this camera in Lahore? if not, can you please give me the phone of Karachi wala guy so that i can call him and ask if it is available with him any more (the one you bought it from)? any update on your satisfaction level with the camera?
    thanks a lot!! i am waiting anxiously for your reply.
    Mubasher

14. Posted by Zahid on October 6, 2008 at 3:12 pm

    Mubashir: D40 is my first ever dSLR, and i bought it with the intention of upgrading to an upper model once i get used to manual controls and usability of a dSLR.

    I love my D40, but yea, it lacks some features, such as Exposure Bracketing, and no dedicated button to change the ISO settings etc. but overall its worth every paisa u spend on it 🙂

    And i will hopefully be upgrading to D90 in 2 or 3 months 🙂

    According to a friend, there is a camera market near Gawal Mandi in Lahore.
    I bought mine through Amin Electronics at Saddar Camera Market (Hakim Centre), the guy’s name is Farhan.. you can call him @ 0322-2495434

    Regards,

15. Posted by Mubasher Saeed on October 6, 2008 at 4:23 pm

    thanks a billion buddy. i contacted the Gawalmandi market guy (they are distributors from Nikon) and they had no D40 (cos of course they would want to sell more expensive version of D40, which is D60). they dont have even D 50. a friend of mine who is professional photographer loves D 50. i would visit the Nikon shop and ask about D 90 also, and the Saddar-karachi wala guy about D 40.
    thanks for the info.
    M

16. Posted by Mubasher Saeed on October 6, 2008 at 8:28 pm

    Hi,
    I spoken to that Saddar wala guy (Farhan), i got the impression that there is something fishy about that market or people. he said that D 40 and D 50 are out of stock, but he can arrange for me (i wonder how) but that will be without Warranty. he quoted different prices for with and without warranty of the model D 60… i asked why is so, he said, the one without warranty doesnt come directly from the company or the usual procedure (smuggling??) and he even quoted higher price of with-warranty than quoted by the Nikon dealer in Lahore. I think i should go for a D 60 from the reliable dealer in Lahore.
    any suggestion?
    thanks,
    M

17. Posted by Zahid on October 6, 2008 at 10:11 pm

    Cameras sold by Official Nikon dealers have the warranty! I have no idea about official rates here in Karachi..

    Those without warranty are directly imported or hand carried by the passengers for Market people (shops). And they then sell for lower profits 🙂 They are not smuggled, but directly bough from Dubai for the sake of selling here..

18. Posted by Assad Ullah on October 17, 2008 at 11:36 pm

    Hi Zahid !

    I’ve reading ur blog yesterday and come to know from the comments that you are planning to buy Nikon D90 (Coooooooooooool) !

    So I was thinking that u could sell me your Nikon D40 because I was in search of the used Nikon D40 or D40X but couldn’t found……!

    If you are not intrested than could you please help me out to buy the used D40 or D40X !
    Waiting for you reply…… !

19. Posted by Fahim Rauf on October 25, 2008 at 7:54 pm

    Hello Zahid,

    I am new to photography and I have the intention to buy a good digital camera with some nice image quality and zooming. By doing some research on internet i found that there are two kind of cameras, the one is point & shoot and the other is DSLR.
    There are some cameras that i found good reviews about them on different websites.

    1- Canon Powershot S5 IS (8 MP, 12X optical zoom) (Point & Shoot)
    2- Nikon D40 (DSLR)

    There are some other newly released cameras but i didn’t find any reviews about them.
    1- Canon Powershot SX10 IS (10 MP, 20X optical zoom) (Point & Shoot)
    2- Nikon P80 (10 MP, 18X optical zoom) (Point & Shoot)

    I want you to guide me that being a newbie what camera should i buy?

    Remember that my budget is around 30K-40K PKR.

    Thanks
    Regards,
    Fahim Rauf

20. Posted by Zahid on October 25, 2008 at 8:17 pm

    Dear Fahim,
    out of your list of 4, only D40 is a dSLR. Go for dSLR if you are a serious hobbyist, otherwise a Point&Shoot performs very well for a normal user.

    Go for either Canon or Nikon, both are good! 🙂

21. Posted by Fahim Rauf on October 25, 2008 at 9:24 pm

    Dear Zahid,

    Thanks for you quick response. As I told you that i am a newbie in the field of photography an I am software engineer by profession. I just want to adopt photography as my new hobby. Being a new comer what will you suggest, a P&S or dSLR. I mean will I be able to get the best out of dSLR if I am a new to even P&S photography.

22. Posted by Zahid on October 25, 2008 at 9:41 pm

    Look at Canon G10, its a nice newly-launched camera!
    If high zoom is necessary, go for Canon or Nikon P&S.

    P&S has good image quality too 🙂 and they are compact and easy to carry around. Look at the images at flickr.com and betterphoto.com

    If you have no problem with the size, and willing to have hard time learning everything in the beginning, go for dSLR. They are faster and give you more control over the shots. But, image quality of P&S are similar as well.

23. Posted by Irfan Ansari on November 14, 2008 at 11:07 am

    Salam,

    Zahid, Could you please guide me what camera make will suit me. I’m not prof photographer, but photography is my hobby. Somebody suggest me following:

    Cannon
    Nikon
    Fuji
    Olympus
    Please guide me which maker is best in digital camera, I mean picture quality…etc

    Thanks

24. Posted by Zahid on November 14, 2008 at 12:12 pm

    w.salam,

    Go for either Canon or Nikon.. both are good.

25. Posted by Guriya on January 16, 2009 at 5:06 pm

    hi zahid.
    im totally new to this stuf, and i want to buy a digital camera. your blog is really usefull and after reading this i can say i know a little about MP & zoom. i only want your answer,, what is best buy if i am willing to spend 18000/= Rs for a camera and please something like fuji e900 as on my cuzin have this camera and i like its result and movie making too.
    please reply as soon as posible coz i have only 3 days left and have to attend a function so would be alot better if i use my own camera.

26. Posted by Zahid on January 16, 2009 at 8:21 pm

    Thanks for the comments!
    Get either Canon G10 or Canon SD880. Both are good cameras and must be able to serve your needs quite well.

27. Posted by Aslam on January 19, 2009 at 3:44 pm

    Hello Zahid,
    Your sincere efforts in guiding others is commendable. My budget is Rs. 30000 to 35000/- I earlier had decided Canon G10 . I enquired the price in Dubai which is 2599 Dirham ( Approx Rs.57,000/ ) here in Karachi , one is availabale for 37,000/- (w/o warranty ) While in your reply to Guriya whose budget was 18,000 you suggested Canon G10 or Canon SD880. What amount should I reasonably pay here in Karachi for a new piece? Nearly new SONY A200 DSLR is available for 39000/- but I prefer compact. Could u please also recommend any shop / seller in Karachi.
    Please guide. Thanks a lot

28. Posted by Zahid on January 20, 2009 at 8:17 pm

    Dear Aslam:

    Thanks for appreciating 🙂 The price difference here in Pakistan and online shops(Amazon/Adorama etc) is minor.. While Dollar was Rs 60, and Nikon D40 $475-$500, you could easily find it here for Rs 32000(w/o warranty).

    Warranty doesnt matter much for me, as the normal shop wala’s at Saddar/Regel Center, and authorized dealers get the cams repaired from the same guys, or at least with the same equipments. And cameras hardly have any issue during the first year.

    You can find many camera dealers at Saddar(Regal chowk), i prefer Farhan from Amin Electronics!

29. Posted by Rafi on January 22, 2009 at 9:55 pm

    Asslamualykum Zahid

    I’ve seen your blog, and was wondering whether you could give me some advice. I have a Nikon D200, which I accidently fell into water. It is now not working. I was trying to get it repaired, and was trying to find out where I should send my camera in Karachi (and whether anyone could give me a cost for repair). It is not starting up at all at present. My wife is currently in UP More for a wedding.

    Thank you

    Rafi Arif

30. Posted by Zahid on January 23, 2009 at 10:24 pm

    Rafi: w.salam, I have just sent you a number via email. contact him 🙂

31. Posted by ali on February 2, 2009 at 10:28 pm

    hi bro i am looking for a cheap manual secondhand SLR Camera with removable lense.can u tell me where can i get hold of one?do u have one for sale.i have an astronomical telescope lense diameter is 80mm and focal lenght is 500mm.i am interested in astrophotography so i just wanna give it a try before moving on to DSLR.bye

32. Posted by Zeeshan on March 29, 2009 at 3:10 pm

    Salam,
    I read your whole blog and i want to appreciate your efforts in helping others. I need your help as well. Can you please recomend me camera upto 25000 range (Power and Shoot).
    Please reply to me as soon as you can.

33. Posted by wajahatmp on April 5, 2009 at 12:32 pm

    plz iam searching nikon p90 or cannon sx10 is can u plz tell me the prices and location regards

34. Posted by Zahid on April 5, 2009 at 12:50 pm

    W.salam.. Thanks Zeeshan 🙂
    Get any Canon Powershot SDxxx series, or Canon G10. They are all good.

35. Posted by Zahid on April 5, 2009 at 12:51 pm

    Wajahatmp: Kindly check Saddar Camera Market (at Regel Chowk)

36. Posted by wajahatmp on April 13, 2009 at 1:05 pm

    man ive cheacked sadar mkt but there is only one shop selling this cam at high price 38,500 its actual price is 32000

37. Posted by Ali on April 28, 2009 at 2:38 pm

    Salaam.

    I’ve been using a P&S camera for the longest time. Always had 35mm P&S canon cameras then in the digital age got the S10 when they first launched then upgraded to the digital elph and in jan 2008 got the canon ixus 70.

    Now I’m getting tired of the P&S camera pictures. The pictures are always nice but never spectacular. I think, actually know, that it is time for me to upgrade to dSLR but the question is which one. I’ve been searching for that answer for quite a few days. Till last week I had it narrowed it down to Canon 1000D & Nikon D60, both is Rs.40K region. I would like the new Canon 500D but Rs.70K is too much money for me.
    But since yesterday D40 has come in the picture. Apparently what I am reading is the D40 is not obsolete and still a better camera than D60. What would you advice?
    Also, I called camera places at regal chowke. D60 & 1000D are readily available for around 43K but when I asked D40 they say it is discontinued but they can arrange it for the same price as D60. Does this sound fishy?

    thanks.

    Ali

38. Posted by Zahid on April 28, 2009 at 6:55 pm

    At least i would not pay 43K for the D40 🙂
    check out Canon XSi and Nikon D5000 as well. D40 is a good camera, but it has some limitations as well, thats the reason why im still looking to buy D90 very soon 😀

    D40 and D60 are almost same, but its sensor cleaner would be a plus in Pakistan due to dust issues.

39. Posted by Adeel on June 5, 2009 at 1:28 pm

    hi
    can any1 tell me that from where can i get D40 from islamabad??
    plz b quick..

40. Posted by Sahar on July 6, 2009 at 7:00 pm

    Zahid Saheb, Are U saying U still haven’t bought D90??? I needed some feedback on that! before I bought mine? Pl tell me where U r getting yours from. And for how much??????
    I need one quite urgently!!! I live in Karachi.
    Excellent work on flickr by the way!!! Ammmazing job!!! 🙂

41. Posted by Azhar on July 7, 2009 at 10:26 pm

    Salam,
    I read your whole blog and i want to appreciate your efforts in helping others. I need your help as well. I need a camera for my personal use at family gatterings or at home etc.Can you please recomend me camera upto 12 thousand rupees with better storage, best picture quality in dat price range, picture preview. It will b my first experience to buy a digital camera. I searched on net n liked sony DSC-S750. what do u suggest about it. Suggest more please.
    Please reply to me as soon as you can.
    Thank you

42. Posted by Zahid on July 10, 2009 at 2:52 pm

    DSC-S750 looks good.
    Please check the reviews and prices at:
    amazon.com
    reviews.cnet.com
    dpreview.com
    steves-digicams.com

43. Posted by Umair on July 14, 2009 at 1:30 pm

    u guys have no idea how much help i got from here !! ty everyone ! i knw d60 has replaced d40 …. but checked the lastest prices with some dealers…the prices have gone down…but the authorized dealers are charging way too much :O

44. Posted by lodaz on July 20, 2009 at 7:57 pm

    I am about to start a blog and your blog gave me much hint how to do it. I really loved to visit your blog. Hope to see more inputs from you in your blog.
    regards

45. Posted by Azhar on July 22, 2009 at 8:09 pm

    thanx for ur reply. i went to a sony display centre n they told comany stopped da supply of DSC S750.

46. Posted by javed on August 1, 2009 at 10:17 am

    i want to purchase a nikon camera D40 kindly tell me the price and location of distributor of nikon

    javed
    fsd

47. Posted by Zahid on August 3, 2009 at 1:20 pm

    @Javed: Please look at Regal, Saddar (Karachi)

48. Posted by Faraz on August 14, 2009 at 2:00 pm

    Would like to know the price of Pantax da 18-55 in Pakistan slightly use.Thanks

49. Posted by Amna on August 30, 2009 at 2:29 pm

    Hi zahid
    I want to buy a D 40. I live in lahore, but im in currently in khi for a 2 3 days. Ive heard the cams r cheaper in khi!
    i dont want to spend more then 35 thousand! would u suggest any other slr camera? anything about 10 Mega Pixels!

    D 40 is 6 Mega Pixels! Arent they over charging??

50. Posted by Zahid on August 30, 2009 at 2:39 pm

    @Faraz: Im not sure about the rates, try contacting Farhan (0322-2495434), he has a showroom(Amin Electronics) in Main Saddar Market.

    @Amna: I dont think you would be able to find a new D40. Try looking for a Canon EOS 1000D(Rebel XS) at Saddar/Regal Chowk. Any Nikon or Canon would be fine. You might also need to consider Sony or Olympus if these end up the only choices within you budget.

    MegaPixel has nothing to do with the picture quality of the camera, and you will not be using even 6MP 🙂 More MegaPixels are important if you’re printing huge or need to crop within a photo.