Need help with your Nikon D40/D40x? Then check this out! (Nikon D40/D40x Digital Field Guide - David D. Busch)

Member Name: sakura8

Product:	Nikon D40/D40x Digital Field Guide - David D. Busch
Date:	30/01/09 (53 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very comprehensive guide with lots of colour pictures

Disadvantages: A few errors

I've had my Nikon D40x since May 2008. It is the first SLR camera I have owned and it has taken some getting used to after using my point-and-shoot Sony Cybershot for a few years.

The Nikon manual that is included in the purchase of the D40x is truly terrible, as it is a very laborious read and I found it difficult to connect any of the information with my new slightly intimidating SLR camera. Luckily my fiancé had bought a D40x a few months before me, so he explained the basics of the camera to me.

I had managed to take some OK photos by using the auto setting and occasionally fiddling with the Aperture Priority setting, but I didn't want to just 'get by' using the camera and taking 'OK' photos - I really wanted to know what I was doing and not produce great pictures merely by fluke!

What I needed was a comprehensive guide to the D40x, filled with colourful diagrams and fantastic photos to inspire me and show me how it's done. Well I'd read some reviews on the Digital Field Guide and they were all positive so I was very excited about getting this book for Christmas. So far it has met all my expectations, except there are a couple of things that are either disappointing or just plain annoying.

The disappointing aspect is there are some errors in the book. On page 91 it explains what the three autofocus modes are, but it gives the same abbreviation to two of the modes: Single-servo autofocus (AF-S) and Auto-servo autofocus (AF-S) when it should say AF-A for the latter mode. My fiancé says I'm a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to details (well he uses the more derogatory term of 'nit-picker'), but when it comes to writing a technical manual I don't think that's too much to ask! Errors in a manual are very confusing and it makes the reader lose confidence in the writer.

The annoying aspect is the amount of errors due to bad typing or bad grammar. For example, on page 173 it gives the following advice: "For maximum depth of field, chose a small aperture such as f/16 to f/22". Now I know it's not the end of the world that the word chose was written instead of the word choose, but things like that really wind me up! My writing is far from perfect, but unlike the writer of this book, I'm not being paid to write and I think that the writer or the proof-reader should have done their jobs properly!

OK, time to step down from the soapbox and concentrate on the good aspects of the book.
It is split into the following sections:

* Quick Tour: Shooting Your First D40/D40x Picture

* PART I: Using the Nikon D40/D40x
Chapter 1: Exploring the Nikon D40/D40x
Chapter 2: Nikon D40/D40x Essentials
Chapter 3: Setting Up Nikon D40/D40x

* PART II: Creating Great Photos with the Nikon D40/D40x
Chapter 4: Exposure Essentials
Chapter 5: All About Lenses
Chapter 6: Working with Light
Chapter 7: Photo Subjects
Chapter 8: Downloading and Editing Images

* Appendix: Troubleshooting
* Glossary
* Index

As I'd had my camera for about 7 months, I was a little tempted to skip the first few chapters, but I'm glad I read them as I picked up some useful tips and shortcuts. I learnt a lot more about the different Shooting Modes and learnt which mode is best to use in different situations. I discovered there was an Auto Mode without Flash, which is great as I got fed up of the flash popping up every time I used Auto. I feel embarrassed for not noticing it myself, but it goes to show that you can own a piece of equipment and if you get into the habit of using the same settings, you don't really explore its full capabilities - or as my brother fondly says "All the gear and no idea!"

This book explains all the parts of the camera in great detail and tells you what all the buttons do, so it is suitable for the complete novice as it also goes through all the menus. It is a very comprehensive guide and a book that I have been constantly referring to as I am trying to improve my photography. The chapter on different lenses is very useful, as SLR users will no doubt upgrade their basic lens or venture into using Macro or Wide-Angle lenses.

Once you have mastered the basic workings of your camera, you can explore all the different shooting situations in chapter 7. It covers everything from Action, Black-and-White, Landscape, Macro, and Water Scene photography - and lots more in between. It gives great examples and step-by-step instructions on how to recreate something similar.

The book is about A5 in size, is 256 pages long and weighs about 1lb, so it's pretty handy to pop into your bag if you're out and about taking photos.

Despite the errors in the book, I would still say it was a decent guide and it has helped me to improve my photography. The author, David D. Busch, has also written a guide for the Nikon D80, which my Dad owns and I would recommend that book to him based on this one.

Summary: A decent guide to using an SLR