I’ll be shooting a wedding this summer with a Nikon D40*. How many gigs of memory should I equip myself with if I’m shooting both the ceremony and throughout the reception? *Note: I know this isn’t a professional camera, and the bride knows it too. Yes, I urged her to pay for a professional photographer, but she is on a really tight budget and refused. Multiple times. >> I currently have 2 gigs of memory. Is this enough or do I need more?

Answer:
On page 116 of your manual, there is a chart which gives the approximate number of shots per 512 MB (megabyte) for various resolution and quality settings. If you shoot with best JPEG quality (Fine quality setting and the largest image size), you will get about 137 shots per 512 MB, or 274 shots per GB (gigabyte). If you shoot raw, then you get about 130 shots per GB. I imagine you could take close to 1000 shots during the course of the event, possibly more. Thus, you would need at least 4 GB of memory if you shoot JPEG. Memory is cheap these days. Be sure to practice shooting in low light situations. You should understand how to use exposure compensation, manual modes, white balance and learn about the highlight viewing mode (indicates overexposed areas). Take a look a Ken Rockwell’s users guide for some camera setup ideas. http://kenrockwell.com/nikon/d40/users-guide/index.htm The more you learn about controlling and setting up the D40, you’ll have a better chance at getting some nice shots. The D40 is capable of taking very good images.

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