Nikon D40 Moniter VS. Viewfinder pls help me out?

Your camera doesn't have "live view".

Getting make up on it is not a good reason to downgrade your camera to a point and shoot so you can compose your shot with a LCD screen.

Holding a camera that can be 2 or 3 pounds (or more) at an arm length will make your shot blurry. Try it with a heavy book or something. It is only useful for a shot like this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/little_pooky/38515612... The camera on a tripod, the exposure is the same. And it would break my back if I have to bend over to focus repeatedly.

Up until very recently, all SLRs worked like this, and most still do. Your camera is much faster and takes better pictures than a point in shoot mostly due to not having this feature.

The optical viewfinder is about 1/3 of the reason to get an SLR (it's the "R", or "reflex", in the acronym.). The other two are speed- which comes in part from the single-function sensor- and versatility which is the interchangable lenses and other accessories.

Even the few modern SLRs that offer live view have unpleasant limits attached, so that most shooters will limit use to those few circumstances that really call for it. Live view overheats sensors and destroys battery life, as well as slowing down every aspect of shooting. The reason point and shoots can rely on it is they are slower to begin with (and that's part of why), and the smaller sensors don't heat up as much.

Nikon and Canon tend to be overpriced. The D40 is already discontinued and the D60 will stick to this twelve months. meaning they're the two previous technologies and don't furnish lots of the helpful aspects you're probably to prefer. on your finances, you would be able to desire to look at DSLRs from agencies like Olympus, Pentax, Sigma and Sony. those cameras furnish an identical extreme high quality and a low fee on condition that they do no longer seem to be as universal. Olympus makes use of a smaller snsor than the different agencies and make the smallest, lightest DSLR cameras available. this could be a reliable earnings once you're donning a digicam around all day, or seeking to save it. do no longer permit the attractiveness fool you, Leica is a German business company widespread for great high quality, yet has an rather small industry proportion, yet their cameras sell for thousands or maybe thousands of dollars better than different agencies for comparable cameras. Nikon and Canon have carried out a great job with promotion, that's a great ingredient of their popularity. in addition they make some great cameras. whether, Olympus, Pentax, Sigma and Sony additionally make great cameras and furnish greater helpful aspects for an identical and much less funds. it particularly is the place you particularly get the main bang on your greenback. i in my view use an Olympus E-510. i understand those with Nikon and Canon who have been shocked on the well-known of my %.. you ought to bypass to a save and cope with some cameras for your self. ensure which you do look at a great style of diverse manufacturers in the previous making a determination.