D-SLRs For The Landscape

Choose the best camera for your landscape photography

Canon EOS 40D
Sometimes, it’s the simplest things. The EOS 40D has lots of great features, and one of our favorites is the ability to set exposure compensation merely by rotating the Quick Control Dial on the camera back—no need to hunt for and press an EC button first (although sometimes it would be helpful to have more than the ±2 stops of EC provided). The multi-controller above the QC dial makes selecting menu items and AF points quick and easy.

Beyond that, the 40D turns out excellent image quality, thanks in part to its 10.1-megapixel Canon CMOS sensor, DIGIC III image processor and 14-bit A/D conversion. There’s a Landscape PIC mode, which sets the camera for typical landscape shots, but most landscape photographers will use the Picture Styles instead. Picture Styles let you start with a preset (Standard, Portrait, Landscape, Neutral, Faithful or Monochrome); then you adjust contrast, sharpness, color saturation, color tone, filter and toning to your taste. A handy Picture Styles button accesses the PS menu at a touch. (If you shoot RAW format, you can change the Picture Style later in the computer using the supplied Digital Photo Professional software.)

Features
Sensor: 10.1-megapixel CMOS, 1.6x
LCD: 3.0 inches/Live View Anti-Dust: High-frequency vibrations
Stabilization: Via IS lenses ISO Range: 100-1600, plus 3200
Spot Metering: 3.8%
Estimated Street Price: $1,150

Other features of interest to landscape shooters include Highlight Tone Priority (which maintains detail in high-contrast situations), a 3.0-inch LCD monitor with Live-View capability and handy grid lines (you even can route the live image to a laptop monitor and operate the camera from the computer using Canon EOS Utility software), a self-cleaning image-sensor assembly that keeps dust spots out of your images (especially important when shooting stopped down and including large sky areas in shots), a mirror lockup custom function to eliminate blur due to mirror slap and a 3.8% spot-metering mode.


The exposure lock and AF selector buttons on the EOS 40D double as magnification in playback—great for checking critical focus	The control dial makes it easy to set exposure compensation	The accessory power booster doubles shooting capacity	The 3-inch LCD is bright and vivid and features Live-View	The mode dial offers instant access to all of the shooting modes. On the other side of the camera, the LCD panel illuminates for edge-of-day landscape shooting

Canon offers more than 50 lenses for EOS cameras, and the 40D can use all of them. Focal lengths range from a 10-22mm superwide zoom (equivalent to 16-35mm on a 35mm camera) and 15mm fish-eye (24mm equivalent) to an 800mm supertelephoto (equivalent to 1280mm on a 35mm camera), including three true macro lenses and three manual-focus TS-E tilt/shift lenses that add some of the perspective-control capabilities of a view camera.

Alternative Landscape D-SLR
Camera: Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III Sensor: 21.1 MP/FF LCD: 3 inches/Live View Anti-Dust: Vibration Stabilization: With IS lenses ISO: 50-3200 Spot Metering: 2.4% Estimated Street Price: $8,000

Lineage: The EOS 40D is Canon’s latest mid-line model, improving on its excellent EOS 30D predecessor in many ways, including 10.1 megapixels (vs. 8.2), a 3.0-inch Live-View LCD monitor (vs. a 2.5-inch LCD without Live View), a maximum shooting rate of 6.5 fps (vs. 5 fps), a self-cleaning image sensor, a DIGIC III image processor and 14-bit A/D conversion (vs. a DIGIC II and 12-bit conversion), and all nine AF points are now cross-types (only the central point was in the 30D).

Cool Factor: The top Canon model that can use all EF and EF-S lenses, the EOS 40D can handle everything from wide-angle vistas to distant details.

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G - HASSLER makes this comment

Friday, 30 October 2009

Going back to all the 2&1/4 cameras made - - - Still no digital in square format?
Steve Tracy makes this comment

Monday, 07 September 2009

Having used Just a variety of Nikons over the years before switching to the Canon EOS-1V, I still find that I think of focal lengths in a film sense. The EOS-5D Mk11 seems to fit that bill in every way, and when matched to an all-round lens like Canon's 28-300mm L series lens, there seems little need to ever remove the lens from the body unless extreme wide-angle is essential. It's a very fine camera in every way, and I have no complaints thus far. The combination produces stunning landscapes.
Michael makes this comment

Monday, 03 August 2009

I'm a recent convert to...FILM!!...for really good landscapes. In particular, a Pentax 645N (which you can get for ~$400 nowadays in pristine condition) shooting Fuji Velvia 50. North Coast Photo Services produces high-quality scans during processing....love it!
Jim Horne makes this comment

Thursday, 23 July 2009

Article
Cees van Leeuwen makes this comment

Tuesday, 21 July 2009

The 5D MII is a fine camera. It has one rather silly design flaw: The program button has no lock and its position can easily be changed. That happens me often in the heat of the photo-battle. Struggling to find the right position of the clouds' shadows, the ideal formation of the clouds. All of a sudden you see it. You slam the brakes, grab the camera, aim and shoot. A split second later the ideal situation has gone. Then you realize the program button has changed position! It happened when you grabbed the camera. Sh.t is the friendliest way to get rid of your anger.
Jack Nichols makes this comment

Thursday, 16 July 2009

the art of the photograph is in the eye of the photographer. The camera is merely the instrument used to create the image. We each have our preferences and it is always an interesting discussion to compare reasons for those preferences. I presonally prefer Nikon because I have used a Nikon, starting with a Nikon F in the late 60's. The most important characterist for me is for the designed to share a philosophy that the photographer is in control, and Nikon does a great job in that respect.
Corker2 makes this comment

Saturday, 27 June 2009

Yha know, I really don't know what the big deal is about the Nikon & Cannon DSLR Camera's. It's true that the Nikon and Canon Camera's are very good, but I don't have any trouble with my Pentax K100D. It shoots a very good Image and will do more than I will ever use. I can inter-change it with all different types of Lens. I have 4 different Lens now and use them frequently. However, since Pentax has decided to dis-continue the K100D and step up to the K10, the K20 and probably more than what I know, I don't really need a more expensive Camera. What I have is just fine for me. As far as I'm concerned, the Pentax has done an excellent job and I will stay with it, rather than change over to Nikon or Canon.
Jan makes this comment

Friday, 26 June 2009

Not knowing when the article was published, it is remarkable that the Sony A900 is not being mentioned as a camera for suberb landscape photography.
Michael West makes this comment

Friday, 05 June 2009

The Canon 5D MKII is currently the canons top image quality dslr, and I can personally swear by its capabilities as a landscape photographers best friend.
Norwood C(ady) Hazard makes this comment

Wednesday, 27 May 2009

I would add that a fully articulated hi res LCD should be among your criteria for a mid-level landscape/nature ready camera. One with a stiff or lockable hinge so that a Hood viewer, with magnifier, can be mounted on it. Like a Rollei twin-lens with snap-up lens— or going way back, to an Exakta. Which mfg will be the first to offer it? And then an artificial horizon line to compliment the grid lines you've already mentioned.

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D-SLRs For The Landscape

Choose the best camera for your landscape photography

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