About a week ago, it looked like the leaves were turning and would have lots of nice color anytime soon. Well, it didn't happen. There are lots of green trees with some of them going direct to brown. Just a few are exhibiting some reds and yellows.
Since I wanted to test the 40D with the Autumn colors, I decided to help nature along. I found a few red maple leaves and yellow cottonwood so I arranged them in a falling leaf pattern.

For the moment, that is the Fall 2007 leaf color. I hope to get more color next week.

Mel

This is my equipment recommendation/approach. It has been accumulated over 3 years of owning the Canon 20D and 1 month of the 40D. There are lots of other things you can choose. This is what works for me.
This is my preliminary list. I will be adding details of tripod, head, camera bags, etc. In addition to a Canon 40D, I would pick the best lens for your needs.
For example I have these Canon lenses:
1. EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM
2. EF 50 mm f/1.8 USM II
3. EF-S 17-55 mm f/2.8 IS USM
4. EF 24-105 mm f/4L IS USM
5. EF 70-300 mm f/4-5.
6 IS USM 6. EF 100 mm f/2.8 USM Macro.
These lenses that cover the spectrum of shooting I do [mostly family/landscape/architecture]. Since I do little long distance wildlife shooting, the 70-300mm suits me.
If I were to convert to the possibly upcoming 5D Mk II [or whatever it might be called] I have 2 lenses that I can sell with my 20D, or keep with my 40D as backup/alternate camera. [plan ahead if possible]
7. I also have the Manfrotto 3021 tripod and 3265 ball head. The ball head is good for light camera/lens combos [5.6 lbs.], but for long lenses like the Canon 70-200 L that are pretty heavy, it is not enough. For more weight, the Bogen/Manfrotto 488RC2 [17.6 lbs.] for example.
8. I also have a Battery Grip mounted on the 40D, Epson P 4000, 580EX flash, Flash battery pack, 2 different size camera bags, and 20D backup body [kept mine when I got the 40D]
If you have to buy a single lens [for now because it won't be your last] you probably should take a look at the new 18-55 IS EF-S that Canon is producing. Often, you can think of your feet as a "longer" telephoto lens. Move closer.
Mel

My backup is somewhat based on my experience with mainframes in the late 60s-early 70s. I have 3 external HDDs [min 250 GB] and one 500 GB internal along with a safe deposit box.

1. About once per week I back up by adding the changes to the 500 and one of the 250s. The other 250s are in the SD box.

2. About once per month, I swap the 250 with the oldest 250 in the SD box [costs $75 per year], format the old one and copy the photo file to it.

3. Repeat.

This way I have 2 cys of my master photo file internal for very fast recovery from the 500 to the working internal 250. In the unlikely failure of the internal drives [both of them], I recover from the external 250.

If the house burns down [I will have lots of other problems LOL] I recover from the newest cy on the HDD in the SD box [those drives are labeled 1,2,3]. If a hurricane destroys the state of OH, I hope the bank vault remains. I carry the SD box key with me so if I remain, I just buy a new PC and reload.

Beyond that, it is someone else's problem [or not, probably no one will care].

NOTE: I no longer use DVDs because they have a limited life and are almost impossible to work with in volume. With 15,000 images at 116 GB and growing, that comes to 29 DVDs and beyond. Recovery would be very slow and if you use the best DVDs [archive gold] at $1.50 each, no reuse, you wind up spending more than using HDDs. Plus you will have to convert from DVDs to HD or BluRay or beyond.

Mel

This is a preliminary usage review of the new Canon 40D DSLR. I have been taking photos on and off since 1956, but digital only since mid 2001. 40D, 100mm f/2.8 Macro Lens, Hibiscus Bloom after the rain. No tripod, kneeling in the wet street. :-)

My DSLR experience started with the Canon 20D in Nov. 2004. My comparisons will therefore be between the Canon 20D [that I am keeping as a backup body] and the 40D. My first observation out of the box is that the 40D appears more angular somehow. Maybe it is the change in the built in flash. The 20D had more rounded edges. The more angular appearance lends a more business like air.

As near as I can tell from first usage, the flash unit behaves in a similar manner. Note that I don't take many flash shots and usually have my Canon 580EX mounted when I do. A side plug for the optional battery pack. It holds 8 AA batteries and along with the 4 in the flash unit itself, provides a recycle time that is as fast as the capacitor charging circuit will permit. Very handy and no running out of battery power.

The photos I first produced were JPEG Standard. At that time, only the Canon DPP software was available to process RAW output [my normal shooting mode]. The JPEGs were very good and better than I remember coming from the 20D under similar circumstances. I was shooting in poor light either at ISO 1600, with or without built in flash [as determined by the camera in P mode, mostly without]. Except for a couple of shots where I forgot to remove the lens hood from the Canon 17-55mm IS lens, the photos were impressive. The colors seemed more accurate and vibrant [maybe the result of the new microlenses over the photo sites along with the 14 bit A-D capability. The grip has a better shape compared to the 20D, and provides a more secure ability to hold the camera securely. The difference is not profound however, and when I was messing with both of them, I had a hard time telling the difference without looking.

With the menu buttons grouped along the bottom as opposed to the left side as on the 10D, 20D, 30D, it seemed easier to find and press them. That might not be true for a left handed person though.

Mel

I got my Canon 40D on Sept. 22 or so and am working on learning the difference between it and my Canon 20D. So far, the differences seem pretty significant. More to follow.

Mel