The
D-40Z (C-40Z) uses a 4.1-megapixel, 1/1.8 inch CCD, that starts at an
ISO rating of 100, but which can be increased to 200, 400 ISO, or set
to Auto which allows the camera to increase the sensitivity of the CCD
as the ambient light dictates.
The retractable optical zoom lens of the D40 has a focal length of 7.25
to 20.3 mm, the equivalent
of a 35 to 98 mm in the 35mm film format. The lens has an aperture
of f2.8
which becomes f4.8 when the zoom is at the maximum telephoto position.
This is coupled with
a shutter
speed range that covers from 1/1000 sec to 16 seconds (Manual Mode
only).
Any one of 3 focusing modes can be used: single autofocus when the shutter
is pressed halfway — which also acts as a focus lock, Continuous
autofocus which is selected in the menu and lets the camera constantly
adjust the focus, and Manual focus which is turned on by holding the OK/Menu
button for more than a second. The manual focus mode requires the LCD
screen, and displays a distance gauge on the right hand side of the screen.
When either up or down arrows of the arrow pad are pressed the indicator
changes and the camera enlarges the image on the screen to make focusing
easier.
With its 4.0 megapixel CCD, the D-40Z provides an excellent variety of
image sizes, available in two file formats: TIFF for uncompressed images
and JPEG.
2288
x 1712 pixels (SHQ)
2272
x 1704 pixels (TIFF/HQ)
2048
x 1536 pixels (TIFF/SQ1)
1600
x 1200 pixels (TIFF/SQ1)
1280
x 960 pixels (TIFF/SQ1)
1024
x 768 pixels (TIFF/SQ2)
640
x 480 pixels (TIFF/SQ2)
Furthermore, the D-40Z
provides 3 interpolated image modes:
3200
x 2400 pixels (SHQ/HQ)
2816
x 2112 pixels (SHQ/HQ)
2560
x 1920 pixels (SHQ/HQ)
The D-40 is a full-featured
camera. Two metering systems are available the default Digital
ESP system an averaging metering pattern, or a spot
meter which is easily selected with a button near the viewfinder.
Similarly, exposure
compensation (±2EV in 0.5 EV increments) is changed at the
press of the right or left arrows.
The Mode Dial of the D-40 does not have the standard Playback and Setup
options, concentrating instead on recording:
Program
Mode: the D-40 sets the aperture and shutter speed, and other
functions such as flash modes, drive mode are adjustable.
Aperture
Priority, Shutter Priority and Manual Mode. Any of which is
selected, or pre-set in the Mode Menu.
Shutter
Priority: speeds selectable from 4 seconds to 1/1000 sec
(depending on aperture in use and zoom position).
Manual
Mode: Apertures as above, and shutter speeds down to 16
seconds.
My
Mode: lets the user select a preferred shooting mode, and a
wide variety of additional parameters, which can then be immediately
available simply turning the Mode Dial to this position.
Movie
Mode: the LCD screen indicates the total recording time, based
on the capacity of the card in use, and when the recording starts
the maximum length of that specific sequence depending on the frame
size. The camera can record sequences lasting up to 32 seconds in
HQ and 130 seconds SQ with sound. In HQ, the
highest quality image, provides a frame size of 320 x 240 pixels,
while SQ has a frame size of 160 x 120 pixels. Both record
at 15 frames per second.
The
optical zoom (and the digital one) is available when recording movies,
but only when the camera is set to record silent movies.
If the camera is set to record sound with the movie, then only the
digital zoom is available.
Self-Portrait:
to shoot a self-portrait while holding the camera at arm's length.
The camera sets everything and focuses on the main subject(s).
Night Scene: camera uses a slower shutter speed than normal
to record background detail.
Landscape:
camera automatically uses infinity focus. Blues and greens are slightly
enhanced.
Portrait/Landscape:
camera adjusts aperture to get a hyperfocal which will have the
foreground and background in focus.
Portrait:
camera automatically selects a wide aperture to have the background
slightly out of focus, and have the principal subject sharp.
Full
Auto Mode: For simple shots, offers few user controls.
The
D-40Z uses a menu system that only looks complicated at a first glance.
It starts with a "shortcut" screen limited 4 options, each selected
by one of the arrows of the arrow pad. In fact all lead to the same overall
menu, but allow a direct access to particular areas of the menu.
In addition, it is possible
to customize 3 of the shortcuts that are presented on the first screen.
Only 3 modes: P, A/S/M and My Mode, give access to
the full menu. The other modes prevent access to any section where changes
to the settings might interfere with those necessary for that particular
mode.
Outside of these modes, the entire menu is accessed with the right
arrow (Mode Menu). The full menu is composed of 4 tabs, the
first of which Camera:
Self-timer/Remote
control: to use either the 10 second self-timer, or the wireless
remote control that is included with the camera.
Noise
Reduction: On or Off, only used when the exposure is longer than
1 second.
Digital
Zoom: On or Off.
Full
Time AF: On or Off.
Sound:
(for still images) allows adding sound after a photo has been captured.
Panorama:
Requires an Olympus Brand SmartMedia card. Places guides on the screen
to overlap photos accurately, and stitch them together with the included
software once the images are transferred to a computer.
Function:
Records images as Black and White, Sepia, White Board, Black Board.
The
next section of the menu is entitled Picture, and is for settings
directly affecting the image:
Resolution:
Sets the record mode image size and resolution.
White
Balance: Auto, Sun, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent, User-set.
White
Balance Compensation: Allows incremental adjustments to the white
balance (± 7 steps).
Sharpness:
increase or decrease image sharpness (± 5 steps).
Contrast:
allows softening or hardening the contrast of the image (±
5 steps).
Saturation:
increases or decreases colour saturation (± 5 steps).
The
third section of the menu is called "Card", and deals with
a single option:
Card
Format.
The
fourth and last tab is Setup. Details of the items covered in
that section can be found in the Interface and Software
section.
Worth noting, the D-40Z is supplied with an infrared remote control.
The remote control can operate the camera from the front or back, as
IR sensor windows are fitted above the front and back of the viewfinder.
The Olympus
D-40 Zoom is supplied with an 16MB SmartMedia
memory card, and the camera will accept cards up to the current maximum
of 128MB.
The
card compartment is located astride the lower edge of the back, and the
card is pushed in and out manually.
The D-40 offers a total of 10 image sizes, 6 of which can be used with
the TIFF format, and three of which are interpolated images. This makes
for a wide number of possible variations of size/format, which we have
simplified below. Note that all the numbers mentioned for JPEG are at
the best image quality available for the size. With a 16MB card, the camera
can store:
3200
2816
2560
2288
2272
2048
1600
1280
1024
640
JPEG
2
3
13
5
(SHQ)
16
(HQ)
7
(SQ1)
11
(SQ1)
18
(SQ1)
27
(SQ2)
66
(SQ2)
TIFF
—
—
—
—
1
1
2
4
6
16
=
Interpolated
=
Non-interpolated
A
cover that fits flush to the right side of the camera protects the D-40's
two external connections. First, near the top is the camera's USB/AV port.
Two separate cables are supplied, one with RCA jacks for connecting to
a television, the other with a USB plug. The video output is dependent
on where the camera was purchased and the television system used there:
NTSC or PAL.
Second is a DC input, for use with the optional Camedia AC-DC adapter.
The
D-40 is powered by a non-rechargeable Lithium CR-V3 lithium battery pack,
or 2 AA (R6) NiMH batteries, NiCd batteries, Alkaline batteries or lithium
batteries.
