NikoDoby said:
Welcome to the forum Dave

Yup, that's it

The D40 is an excellent camera so don't worry about upgrades and all the jazz for now. Just worry about learning how to use it.

I've noticed that all the pictures in your gallery I clicked on had -2/3 exposure compensation. Are you aware of that? It would explain why some of your shots are underexposed (darker than they should be). What mode are you mostly shooting in? Manual or Shutter?

Just giving you some constructive criticism :^)

I agree 100%. The D40 is an excellent choice. I bought one for my wife and I must admit, I borrow it from time-to-time.
I know lots of people on this site don't think too much of KR, but I like his Users Guides. Here is a link if you care to look. Lots of good info here. http://kenrockwell.com/nikon/d40/users-guide/

A very harty welcome and wishing you many years of photography fun.

No doubt AF is an issue, but it doesn't matter, since the 50mm 1.4 was just recently updated anyway.

The 35mm for portraits is pretty nice though, maybe at 75 bokeh might be a bit more nice.

Here I and adamz constantly disagree but I prefer 50mm to 35mm on DX.
“Normal” FOV was never something I liked or wanted on a camera.
On the other hand 70mm was always considered minimal portrait length so 75mm equivalent 50mm seams to be just right. AF remains a problem on D40.

adamz said:
dave - I wasn't looking even at the AF-S, the main difference is the focal length, as I've written many time on this forum already, 50mm on dx is neither wide, neither a normal and neither a portrait lens. too long for the first and second one and too short for the third one. 35mm gives You a natural FOV

I wouldn't mind trying out a 50mm 1.8 on my D40 though, I'd like to see if I like that FOV or not.

Most of the time I'm wishing my 35mm was much wider.

dave - I wasn't looking even at the AF-S, the main difference is the focal length, as I've written many time on this forum already, 50mm on dx is neither wide, neither a normal and neither a portrait lens. too long for the first and second one and too short for the third one. 35mm gives You a natural FOV

Welcome Dave, so it all starts with a D40. haha sounds like myself! The D40 was my first DSLR also after years of using my beloved F90x. I loved it. You are going to like this forum, but gear envy awaits. For example, don't try a D90 for awhile yet because you'll find yourself not wanting to put it down.^^

well focal length is the main problem. even with the 35, it can be difficult to get your subjects in the frame indoors and in other close quarter situations.

adamz said:
go for 35/1.8 - it's much better on DX format than 50mm

Other than focal lengh, what's the difference? I see that the 35mm costs about double what the 50mm does...

[edit] ooh! it's AF-S! autofocus on my d40!

adamz said:
go for 35/1.8 - it's much better on DX format than 50mm

i would agree with this, although sometimes i wish my 35mm was just a bittttttt longer.

go for 35/1.8 - it's much better on DX format than 50mm

Welcome! We look forward to seeing your photo progression.

NikoDoby said:
The D40 is an excellent camera so don't worry about upgrades and all the jazz for now. Just worry about learning how to use it.

heh, that's me just thinking ahead, I like my toys. I'm happy with what I've got, and while higher resolution/better sensor and better auto focus would be nice, it's not necessary right now.

NikoDoby said:
I've noticed that all the pictures in your gallery I clicked on had -2/3 exposure compensation. Are you aware of that? It would explain why some of your shots are underexposed (darker than they should be). What mode are you mostly shooting in? Manual or Shutter?

Just giving you some constructive criticism :^)

Criticism is always welcome, as I said, I'm very much just starting out, and learning. I am mostly shooting in manual mode. I do have a tendancy to mess around with photos in apeture before uploading them, and deliberately make them darker with higher contrast and sharpness, but going back through the photos the -2/3 exposure is there on some before I started doing that. Guess it's time to go through the settings and find out what I changed!

kellenfreeman said:
oh god this is too fucking true. i was just poking around glancing at the 50mm f/1.4...

MUST STOP

I must admit I've been looking the 50mm f1.8 since coming on these forums. No autofocus (d40) is putting me off a little though.

ted2001 said:
My best remedy for it is to shoot so much, that I don't have time to covet new toys. But then after dark...

oh god this is too fucking true. i was just poking around glancing at the 50mm f/1.4...

MUST STOP

Welcome to the forum Dave

yetanotherdave said:
Nikon acquisition syndrome?

Yup, that's it

The D40 is an excellent camera so don't worry about upgrades and all the jazz for now. Just worry about learning how to use it.

I've noticed that all the pictures in your gallery I clicked on had -2/3 exposure compensation. Are you aware of that? It would explain why some of your shots are underexposed (darker than they should be). What mode are you mostly shooting in? Manual or Shutter?

Just giving you some constructive criticism :^)

HI!

I have a D40 too.

welcome here dave

My best remedy for it is to shoot so much, that I don't have time to covet new toys. But then after dark...

Nikon acquisition syndrome?

:-)

What's NAS?

Welcome to the Nikon DSLR world. You are now eligible for NAS. It's a disease here that we all relish.

Hello, I've just joined and thought I'd introduce myself.
I'm relatively new to DSLR's, having wanted one for ages, I spotted a D40 going for a bargain price of £150 (about $250 US) and snapped it up about 6 months ago.
I'm learning a lot and reading a lot. To try and help my learning I am doing a photo a day project of my city ( http://bristoldailyphoto.wordpress.com/ ) which I'm having a lot of fun with.
I recently updated my lens from the kit 18-55 non vr to a Sigma 18-200 f3.5 OS, and am looking at, maybe 6 months down the line getting a D5000 or D90.
So, that's me, hello, I think I'm going to like it here.