I had hesitated to suggest the Nikon D-40X, because you seemed to have decided on a Canon, but I've got the Nikon's big brother (D-80) and like it a lot. I got it with the 8x zoom kit lens package and it's been a lot of fun.

I'm laughing because everyone who does online research on digital SLRs comes down to the Nikon D40 and the Canon Rebel.

The D40 wasn't available when I got mine so I opted for the D50 just based on weight. The Nikon's lighter than the Canon. That's what was the deciding factor for me. Everything else was pretty equal.

I stood in a big box electronics store for an hour trying the 2 cameras out, going back and forth, playing with the features.

Looking forward to seeing what you get!

Canon XTi vs Nikon D40x

Yep, they are on my shortlist too ... sigh, I have a Canon lens that will probably work (and the offer of another) but the grip is supposed to be small and I have large hands and so the D40x might be better, but it's more expensive and I'd have to think about lenses ... argh!

My friend bought the Nikon D40X in May and she's very happy with it :-)

I hate to make it harder for you, but the advertised features of the Sony Alpha make me think it might actually be worth being locked into a more limited lens line.

When we had the choice there were the predecessors, Canon 350 (Rebel XT in the USA) and D70 (which is more a predecessor for the D80 than the D40).

The choice was done when we actually held them in our hands. The Canon had a haptic that was classes below the D70. The grip was too small, compared to a D70 it was not possible to hold and operate it well with one hand.

The D70 had a much faster, more accurate autofocus. And the kit objective (the AF-S types) were automatic with manual override: just half-press the button, the autofocus does its job and you can still manually re-adjust the focus without having to switch anything between manual and auto. Just dial in if needed (the AF-*S*, not the AF, which are hands-off autofocus).

Another big bonus was the recognizably bigger field of view through the viewfinder - especially important for those of us wearing glasses. At the Canon it was much smaller and darker than the Nikon's.

Of course you could test our D70 at FilkCONtinental if you come...
*BWEG* ;-)

I'm a happy Nikon D70 owner and have considered getting a D40x as a 2nd camera.

Avoid the Nikon D40. It does NOT have an autofocus motor in the body, so it will NOT work with older Nikon autofocus lenses. The newest Nikon lenses have motoers inside them, but that adds to the cost and weight of the lens.

Rebel XTi, without a shadow of a doubt. :)

Happy Rebel owner here, bardling owns a Rebel XT, and I have a work colleague with an XTi.

You can do a side by side feature comparison at dpreview.com. They are incredibly thorough in their reviews as well. I check them before all my camera decisions, but the final verdict on a new body only comes after I've held it in my hand. I had decided on a particular CoolPix for my fist digital about five years ago and went into a store on a whim to admire it before ordering. As soon as I picked it up I knew it was wrong - the buttons were all in the wrong places for my fingers. Nothing short of holding it in my hand could have told me that I would be very unhappy with that camera.

stevemb and I are also digital SLR shopping, so we're following the discussion with great interest.

Does anyone have any experience with the Nikon D86? I tried out an acquaintance's a while back and was very impressed. The grip even fits my small and cramp-prone hands better than the Canons.

We're also considering various Canon models, but except for the above haven't yet started to look at other makes. Are there any others we should consider?

You are welcome to come and play with our Rebel XTi if you want - and swap gardening talk while visiting. We can give a personal tour of our drought-affected garden, with more time to chat than at the filk on the 28th. Let us know when you could come.