leopoldstotch

A 40D seems like overkill here. If you get an Xti instead, it'll free up enough to cash to get the 17-55 & 70-200 combo. Also, if you shoot anything indoor that moves, you'd be better off with the 70-200 f2.8 instead of the f4 IS.

Better at what? We need more info, such as what you intend to use it for, features you like, etc.

<a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00NFFv">see here</a>

You won't be able to shoot basketball with the 18-55 (at least not without flash), its just too slow. Look at the EF 50mm f1.8 for that, which is even cheaper than the kit lens, but will allow you to shoot basketball without flash. If the soccer games are during the day, the 75-300 should do fine, although it isn't the greatest lens.

Just go into the menu, select the blue tab with the play button, then select protect. After that, the photo wil lshow up, and all you have to do is press the "set" button to unprotect it. After that, press menu to go back. Its all explained in the manual, if you have it.

If you couldn't find a US retailer that sells the Panasonic, you could buy from a Canadian retailer (<a href="http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10075516&catid=">link</a>), if you're interested. Apparently the price has fluctuated a bit since I last saw it in a store, though.

What's your budget? Its hard to give a decent recommendation without knowing that...or which camera body you're using.

Getting back to the question at hand, I use a Panasonic BQ-390 charger. It accepts voltage from 100-240V, charges 4 AA or 2 AAA, works with NiMH & Ni-Cd, and individually charges each battery, to prevent overcharging. It has a 90-minute charge (neither fast or slow), and does not require a seperate power cord. Its only 2x4 inches, so its not big, either. The only thing that doesn't match your specifications is that it has only 1 LED indicator, which turns solid green only when all batteries are done charging. Best of all, its ~$40 new, depending in what country you live in, obviously.

<p><i>"I thought faster was always better?"</i></p>

<p>Not really. Fast charging isn't good for NIMH batteries, because of the higher current used to charge them generally isn't good for them. It causes them to heat up more, which messes with the internals of the battery, and you may get a shorter life out of them with fast charging. However, the faster charge time may make up for those shortcomings. Thats probably why Igor wants both.</p>

When used in the right situation, there's nothing rude about about telling someone to do a search or read the manual, and for a simple reason: It will answer their question. This isn't always the case, but if the question is like "What does SLR stand for?", "how do I set custom white balance?" or the infamous "FD-EOS" threads, it is very appropriate to tell them to search or read the manual. If anything here is rude, its people who don't spend 30 seconds trying to at least find an answer to their question, yet expect others to take their time to answer it for them.

<p><i>"D3 can achieve 256,000 ISO"</i></p>

<p>You added 1 too many zeros.</p>

<p>On the upload page when you post, it says:</p>

<p><i>"Maximum File Size 100 KBytes (full-size images from digital cameras won't work). Please crop or downsize to a width of 511 pixels for inline display; larger images will appear as a link."</i></p>

<p>In plain english, it means that the image has to be smaller than 100kb, and less than 511px wide in order for it to included within the post, instead of a seperate link. Don't know about multiple images, though.</p>

David, a fake email account doesn't mean it doesn't exist, it just means that someone spent 3 minutes to make a new hotmail address, and used that to confirm their membership. I know that first part was worded a bit confusingly, so apologies in advance.

If you can't see through the viewfinder, then its likely a mirror problem, not a shutter problem. Try dismounting the lens and seeing if everything is where it should be.

Yes, english and 14-ish other languages can be selected. The rattling you hear are the tiny metal flash hinges; hearing them is perfectly normal. As for returning, when you ordered it, did you order an imported XTi? If you did, then you got what you ordered, otherwise, send it back and buy elsewhere.

Yep, you got it right, except for that possible typo on #1. I'd just like to add that the 17-40 won't really be any wider than the kit lens (27mm vs 29mm), so if you need wide, go with the 10-22, unless you plan to move to full-frame soon.

Also, is it an older manual focus Minolta or an autofocus one? If its a Minolta Maxxum body, the lenses you have will work on Sony DSLR's.

Nope, you need Canon lenses for it.

You're buying a 1D...but don't want to spend too much on a lens? Thats a bit of a contradiction. If thats the case, spend less on the body and put most of the money on a good lens. You also don't mention which focal lengths you're looking for. Note that I'm just assuming you mean a 1Ds Mk II, since you mention fine art.

Lost my magnifying glass..can you post it a <i>bit</i> larger?

An 8gb card will work fine, but its cheaper and more versatile to get 2 4gb cards instead.

If you do a search here you'll find hundreds of results which can more than answer this. Basically, if you shoot moving subjects indoors, or if you want shallow DoF for portraits then the 24-70 is the obvious choice. Otherwise the 24-105 should do fine.

Depends. What didn't you like or how was the XT limiting to you?

It won't fit, and whether or not it can be adapted depends on which mount you got it in. Besides, assuming its the f3.8 version, its probably too slow for indoor basketball anyway. Look for a lens with f2.8 or faster, but preferably f2 or faster. You really need to research this stuff <i>before</i> you buy.

Maybe they're doing legimate business on eBay in order to bait more people to their website? If they are, I'm sure they think that if people see their 99% satisfaction rate, they'll be more inclined to fall for the crap they pull on their normal website.