Canon 40D + Sigma 18-200 OS or Canon 400D(XTi) + Sigma 18-200 OS

Hi there,
i am new to posting and forums and a bit new to digital photography too. Learned the basics of photography a few years back, on my dads 40 years old but still alive Roliflex twin lens film camera. Now I'm looking to buy my first Digital SLR. I am an architect and enjoy biking, traveling and art. id like to click landscapes, architecture, portraits, people, a bit of wildlife etc. but not sports.

After researching a bit i have narrowed down the search to Canon 40D or 400D , both with Sigma 18-200 OS zoom lens. i didn't consider Nikon cause Canon has some sort of dust removal system, which i feel is essential being in India. i want a single zoom lens to be on my camera to avoid dust on sensor and to travel light, so i narrowed down to Sigma 18-200 OS. i am confused and have some questions. Id really appreciate if someone can help me in choosing.
1. Plastic body of 400D is good enough for my needs and for my requirement?
2. I wear spectacles so will buying 40D with Live View function going to help much in avoiding the view finder? i don't now how much trouble is it to use the viewfinder with spectacles.
3. Partial weather sealing of 40D vs. no weather sealing of 400D , considering Indian conditions?
4. No top LCD panel in 400D matter much?
5. No spot metering in 400D matter much?
6. Will 40D help me a great deal in taking better pictures? i can afford both 40D and 400D but don't want to spend extra if 400D will suit my needs. Maybe itl be better to upgrade after say 3-4 years to say 60D.

please help

I think the 400D will work fine for you. I've been using it for a year to shoot all kinds of stuff - including a lot of mountain biking. It's been great. I finally bought a 40D only because I needed the faster frame rate to shoot races. But other than the faster frame rate, the 400D has been more than adequate for me. The image quality is excellent and it's far more durable than people give it credit for. It's been on tons of very technical mountain bike rides and photos from it have been published and used for advertising.

I also wear glasses and that's never been a problem. Live View is neat. But I only use it in the studio. I prefer the viewfinder unless I'm working on a tripod and then I can use Live View so I don't have to bend over and look through the viewfinder.

I haven't found the lack of weather sealing in the 400D to be a problem. I have shot with it in pouring rain a few times and never had any problems. Of course, I keep it covered and only expose it to the rain when I have to. But it's never misbehaved because of rain or humidity.

Spot meters are nice. But I haven't used one since I got my first digital SLR. They're much more important when you're shooting film and have no instant feedback. With the LCD and histogram display on a digital SLR, I think the spot meter is no longer a necessity.

Hope that helps. Let us know if you have more questions. And please post reviews here for whatever you buy. I'm curious about the Sigma OS lens. I haven't had the opportunity to try one yet and haven't heard much about them from people who've had the chance to use them.

thank you Photo-John for your time and effort in answering some of my questions. i really appreciate it. i think il buy 400D for now and improve my photography skills for a few years and then upgrade to the best available at that time say 1D mark 4.

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Originally Posted by master_j_100

thank you Photo-John for your time and effort in answering some of my questions. i really appreciate it. i think il buy 400D for now and improve my photography skills for a few years and then upgrade to the best available at that time say 1D mark 4.

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Good plan. You may find you don't even need to upgrade. I think digital SLRs are getting so good thhat upgrading is starting to seem more like luxury than necessity.

Fwiw, the January 2008 issue of Shutterbug has an interesting article on sensors and interpolation. They compare prints made from a Canon EOS 5D, a Nikon D200, and the Sigma SD14. Interesting, and I definately learned a few things.

- Joe U.