I love digital photography. I've been using my Canon Digital Rebel since 2004. But digital cameras have been improving steadily, and I felt it was time to step up to a new camera body. I knew I wanted another Canon because I already have a collection of compatible lenses, batteries, flashes, and other accessories.

For me, the choice was clear: the Canon EOS 40D. I wanted a more rugged body, since I really do drag my camera nearly everywhere I go. The 40D boasts a magnesium-alloy body surrounded by high-quality plastic and rubber, and it's weather-sealed around the battery and flash card slot. Other cool features include a 10.1-megapixel image sensor, improved autofocus, a sensor cleaning feature and a huge 3" LCD screen. You can pick one up as part of a kit with a 28-135mm image-stabilized lens, or as just a body if you already have enough Canon lenses.

First impressions

Right out of the box, the 40D just feels solid. It's coated in rubber where your hand goes for a superior grip. The body is even raised at the corner just a bit in the crook between your thumb and forefinger, so it fit naturally in my hand. It's very comfortable to hold, even with bigger hands like mine.

The 40D's grip is contoured to fit your hand, and coated in rubber so it won't slip.

A small wheel near your index finger lets you change primary shooting or menu settings. You use the larger wheel by your thumb for secondary functions, like fine-tuning certain camera controls before taking a shot. The ergonomic placement of these wheels made shooting easier — I found that I could change critical settings with one hand, in most cases without taking my eyes away from the viewfinder.

The shooting mode dial on the left has two zones. The "Basic Zone" contains various preset scene modes like "portrait," "sports" or "landscape," while the "Creative Zone" has full manual and "priority" shooting modes. Priority modes let you take control of one function, like the speed of the camera's shutter, and the camera chooses the other settings to get a proper exposure.

The C1, C2, and C3 positions on the dial can be programmed to recall complete camera-setup memories.

New features that save you time

One of this camera's most useful new features is the three user-programmable slots. They're conveniently located right on the dial, and let me save the exact state of the camera for whatever situations I want. For example, I shot a wedding with this camera, and was constantly moving in and out of various lighting conditions. The programmable slots on the dial let me call up the proper settings for each location with a simple twist of the dial.

There's also a "custom menu" tab where you can assign up to six menu functions you use all the time — it's another great feature, because it lets you assign shortcuts to your favorite menu items. For instance, I like to format my CompactFlash® card every time before I start shooting, and that function is hidden in one of the many menu tabs. So I set it as the top function in my custom menu tab, making it easily accessible each time I pop in a card.