Nikon D40

Reviewed December 2006

Test Photos

STILL LIFE PHOTO

This subject is photographed in a room that has a mix of fluorescent and incandescent light, but which is not brightly lit. The camera's flash is used to add fill light. The backdrop is 1.95 m (6.5 ft) from the camera.

With the exception of the Macro Photo, all the photos presented in this section were captured using the kit lens, an AF-S Nikkor 18-55 mm f3.5-5.6G II ED.

This image, as well as the zoom photo were captured using the RAW format, then converted using the "as shot" settings with Nikon Capture NX.

The built-in flash of the D40 provides perfect coverage at the wide angle end of the zoom. There is no light falloff in the corners of the image. A very slight yellow cast is detectable in the image, however, probably caused by the artificial lighting. Sharpness is excellent throughout the image, and there is no detectable noise anywhere.

ZOOM PHOTO

Now we zoom in on a specific area. The intent is to test the sharpness of the image at the zoom's maximum setting. The camera remains at the same distance as with the preceding photo.

At its maximum magnification the kit zoom lens is equivalent to a 82.5 mm on a 35 mm camera.

The image offers very accurate colours, and there is no trace of noise, even in shadow areas, anywhere.

As can be seen below, the image contains an excellent level of detail.

MACRO PHOTO

While the kit lens of the D40 makes it possible to capture close-ups, macros require the use of a lens with that capability.

To capture this images an AF-D 60mm f2.8 Macro Nikkor was used. Using the Aperture Priority mode allowed control over the depth of field so as to maximize it. This lens, however, does not have an internal focusing motor and as the D40 does not have a motor to drive the lens, it has to be focused manually.

BUILDING PHOTO

This image is our outdoor test. The architecture of the building, in particular the angled girders, immediately show the presence of jaggies. The shadowed entrance can also often reveal the quality of the exposure.

At the wide angle end, the 18-55 mm kit zoom of the D40 is equivalent to a 27 mm. This wide field of view makes it possible to capture large sections of the building wings.

The lens yields a sharp image, and barrel distortion — occasionally noticeable when the subject is closer and contains straight lines near the edges of the frame — is not visible with this subject.

ZOOM PHOTO

Zooming in on the entrance of the building, the shadowed entrance takes on a greater importance for the metering and can cause an overexposure of sections that are directly lit.

The maximum magnification of the zoom is limited, and with this subject it still captures a large section of the outside of the building.

Nevertheless, the 3D Matrix metering manages to capture a well balanced exposure that reveals a lot of detail inside the building, behind its green-tinted doors, and which avoids any overexposure outside.

NIGHT PHOTO

Since this camera is capable of long exposures, a photo taken at night is included here.

The D40 offers an unlimited B (Bulb) mode, but it is best used with the optional remote control to avoid accidentally blurring the image by moving the camera while maintaining the shutter release pressed.

Alternatively, the D40 offers a timed exposure that can be as long as 30 seconds, more that sufficient to capture interesting images at night.

The lowest sensitivity of the D40 is 200 ISO, making it possible to capture low light images. The 10-second exposure shown here is captured using an aperture of f14 as the lights of the docks are quite bright.

Although the white balance was set to incandescent to adjust colours as much as possible to the artificial lighting, the sodium vapour lamps that are common in this area add a yellow-gold cast to the image.

The noise reduction system — which can be turned off in the menu — is used for this image. The noise processing is very effective and the image shows no residual noise after processing, as can be seen in the cropped section shown below, taken from the image at 100%.