So the camera was expensive enough and now I'm convinced I need a remote control, ND filter, and who knows what else so I'm really fighting the urge to start buying books.
Thing is, I'm working my way slowly through my camera manual. It can tell you how to do a thing but I'm missing the why part.
Case in point, just last night I was to the part where you can change the automatic focus point. Ok, got it. I can hit this button and turn this dial and instead of the AF going to all 9 little spots I can move it around. It helps me to learn something to show someone else so I showed this nifty feature to an increasinly grumpy husband (nothing to do with me..or the camera...UNC was tanking yet again down the stretch)
Then he said "ok but why would you do that ever?"
Clearly he's MISSING the point. The point is that you hit this button and then turn this dial and a totally different little red light shows up in the viewer - boys are silly.
I'm guessing that the why part is probably in some book, maybe the dummy one that is even available in kindle format.
Do I need this book? Should I just keep plugging away in the hopes that eventually it will all come together?
I would start reading the manual front to back a few times, I still pull mine out of the shelf once in a while and if I want to know more about a feature or button I simply just search the internet. There really isn't any need to buy books when there is so much info for free on the web. You can also check your local library, ours has a pretty large selection on photography related books.
Read the manual, but more than that, just starting taking pictures. Try the different settings and see what they do. It seems disjointed at first, but then it starts to make sense. One of the joys of digital is being able to take hundreds of images to see the differences in the settings.
Also if you see a picture on here that you like, look at the EXIF data to see some of the setting. Try the settings on your camera.
Reading is great. Lots of free online tutorials are available. A wealth of knowledge is in the pictures here. But nothing beats doing.
Keep the book, but spend a lot of time playing with the camera to find out what does what. . I have spent hours learning my very cheep point and shoot camera, for example the firework setting uses a 4 second exposure and no focus, which can be used for light painting. Google and Youtube are excellent for information and tutorials
well do you take photos or just hold the camera? In the practice of taking photos one day you'd be like hey I'd love to focus on this cat sitting by the door waiting to get fed, but then I want to include the door, so the cat is only on the edge of frame, I wish I had some way of selecting through the viewfinder the cat so that the door is out of focus. And voila you'll turn to the page of the manual regarding focus. so get out and take shots then refer back to the manual rather than the other way round. If you'd read a guide to being human in the womb it wouldn't have made much sense.
The why part: The photo I put in my main album today is of a little boy, he was sat on the floor playing with a dinosaur, his feet out in front, his body making an L shape. If I had let the camera focus it would have likely missed the boy and gone thro the middle of the shot and focussed on the sofa behind the boy. I dont want a shot of my sofa. I move the focus point around to the boys eyes because his eyes are what I want the camera to focus on. Hope that helps to explain it.
I took about two dozen picture of sleeping kitty last night to experiment with ISO and focus. DH put his foot down when I wanted to get the dog to chase the cat so I could try out the Al Servo (?).
no, I wasn't talking about the cat. I was explaining that you'll need the multi point focus when you're trying to focus on something at the edge of your frame.
I started with a dvd produced for my specific camera canon d60 and a book called from snapshots to great shots. Both were specific to mycamera and really helped me grasp the buttons and lights very quickly. I also still keep the manual in my travel bag.
I totally forgot about the dvd that came with my camera. I remember trying to watch that when I first got the camera and I was totally lost. I bet it would make sense now or at least more sense.
I'm about a third of the way through my manual now. I did once accidently take the spanish version along on a camping trip - oops. My parents were along on that trip and my dad helpfully pointed out that I took Spanish in high school and have spent a bit of time in Mexico - sure dad ordering a flipping BEER is exactly the same thing as reading about bulb exposure.
Most manufacturers provide camera manuals in PDF format to be downloaded from their website. If you have a smartphone, simply save the file on your phone and you always have it accessible without carrying around the extra weight (or having to brush up on your Spanish!)
Kathryn, why you use a setting depends a lot on you as the photographer. Some times you can search, on 365, for the tag and you will see examples of where and how different photographers used that.
There is also a challenge called the camera settings challenge designed just for learning all about your camera. Some of those are harder or not possible on some cameras, but it's fun to try anyway. I have a feeling they will sort of start over with all the new people that started on New Years. Check under themes and competitions.
Kathryn, it's so easy to get bogged down with all the books that look so tempting. I fell into that trap, and they are just sitting on a table. I have learned much more by just taking photos and I continue to learn.. One day you will have that "aha" moment about a particular setting etc. So don't give up, keep on going and enjoy :)
The manual will help you understand the functions on your camera. If you apply what you are reading then you will not need to be reminded later. You will be able to take pictures quicker when you understand how and what your camera can do. So, read the manual and play around with the settings, learn it inside and out. Only then can you use it to it's full potential.
For me the why comes with experience and the artistic flair you want to put on your images.
Look through mine and other images on this site and ask questions as to how people got the image they did.
If they are helpfully and they remember they should be able to tell you how the image came about and their thinking about why they selected the camera settings they did.
This will go along way in helping you understand why other photographers do the things they do, to get the photo they did.
The "Why" will start to come as you develop your own style over the course of this project. You'll find yourself thinking, "Man, I wish I could..." and then remember a function in your camera that lets you do just that. Learning all the features of your camera is a matter of reading the manual and playing around with what the manual is telling you. The real trick, though, is developing over time how your particular style is simplified or enhanced by functions your camera provides.
The focus point is a good example of this. Suppose you're photographing a series of fence posts. You want the one close to you to be in sharp focus, and you want the rest to start to fade into blur into the distance. You know the aperture you select will control the depth of field, but now you've really got to work at keeping just the right post in sharp focus. You *could* use the center focus point, depress the button half-way, recompose, and take your shot. If you take a dozen shots, though, you're doing that focus / recompose / shoot dance a dozen times. Instead, you change the focus point on your camera so that, after you've composed the shot, the focus point is centered on that one post you want to be sharp! You compose once, instead of a dozen times, and you're confident that you have the focus right where you want it.
There are plenty of other little tricks your camera has built into it. The more you shoot, and the more you say to yourself "I wish I could..." the more you'll start to incorporate those little tricks into your own style.
As to the books, concentrate on the ones that teach proper exposure and good compositional techniques. That's fundamental to every shot you take. The rest can wait until you see how your style develops and what areas interest you the most.
@aponi Be inspired, not scared. No one is judging you if you don't make the top 5 cut. :) We are very friendly here. We all started at one time too, and some of us still have a long way to climb.
My take on this is like buying a car. You spend lots of money and get a manual which tells you about the car, the knobs and dials. But it doesn't tell you how to drive.
And then there's the xenon lights, body kits and so on that you can put on the car.
Like everyone else I say get out there and shoot. Pick a different thing / subject / style to shoot every so often and try to do it... When you get frustrated and go "how do I do this?" Google it. It'll say to turn something on or do something. Then you take out your camera manual and figure out how to do that :)
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Read the manual, but more than that, just starting taking pictures. Try the different settings and see what they do. It seems disjointed at first, but then it starts to make sense. One of the joys of digital is being able to take hundreds of images to see the differences in the settings.
Also if you see a picture on here that you like, look at the EXIF data to see some of the setting. Try the settings on your camera.
Reading is great. Lots of free online tutorials are available. A wealth of knowledge is in the pictures here. But nothing beats doing.
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Wouldn't it to the same thing to center him, focus, then move the camera to how you wanted to frame the shot?
ps. Amazon is the devil and following me all over the internet putting up pictures of photography books
I took about two dozen picture of sleeping kitty last night to experiment with ISO and focus. DH put his foot down when I wanted to get the dog to chase the cat so I could try out the Al Servo (?).
no, I wasn't talking about the cat. I was explaining that you'll need the multi point focus when you're trying to focus on something at the edge of your frame.
I'm about a third of the way through my manual now. I did once accidently take the spanish version along on a camping trip - oops. My parents were along on that trip and my dad helpfully pointed out that I took Spanish in high school and have spent a bit of time in Mexico - sure dad ordering a flipping BEER is exactly the same thing as reading about bulb exposure.
There is also a challenge called the camera settings challenge designed just for learning all about your camera. Some of those are harder or not possible on some cameras, but it's fun to try anyway. I have a feeling they will sort of start over with all the new people that started on New Years. Check under themes and competitions.
Look through mine and other images on this site and ask questions as to how people got the image they did.
If they are helpfully and they remember they should be able to tell you how the image came about and their thinking about why they selected the camera settings they did.
This will go along way in helping you understand why other photographers do the things they do, to get the photo they did.
The focus point is a good example of this. Suppose you're photographing a series of fence posts. You want the one close to you to be in sharp focus, and you want the rest to start to fade into blur into the distance. You know the aperture you select will control the depth of field, but now you've really got to work at keeping just the right post in sharp focus. You *could* use the center focus point, depress the button half-way, recompose, and take your shot. If you take a dozen shots, though, you're doing that focus / recompose / shoot dance a dozen times. Instead, you change the focus point on your camera so that, after you've composed the shot, the focus point is centered on that one post you want to be sharp! You compose once, instead of a dozen times, and you're confident that you have the focus right where you want it.
There are plenty of other little tricks your camera has built into it. The more you shoot, and the more you say to yourself "I wish I could..." the more you'll start to incorporate those little tricks into your own style.
As to the books, concentrate on the ones that teach proper exposure and good compositional techniques. That's fundamental to every shot you take. The rest can wait until you see how your style develops and what areas interest you the most.
I'm browsing the challenges. They are very interesting but then I see the entries and run away scared. :-)
http://www.amazon.com/Exposure-Photo-Workshop-Develop-Photography/dp/0470114355/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1357950810&sr=8-2&keywords=exposure+photo+workshop
http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Exposure-3rd-Photographs-Camera/dp/0817439390/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1357950866&sr=1-1&keywords=bryan+peterson+understanding+exposure
And Bryan Peterson has written a lot of other great photography books that are really interesting to read.
http://www.amazon.com/secretos-exposicion-fotografica-Understanding-Exposure/dp/8479026669/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1358119788&sr=1-2&keywords=photography+bryan+peterson
And then there's the xenon lights, body kits and so on that you can put on the car.
Like everyone else I say get out there and shoot. Pick a different thing / subject / style to shoot every so often and try to do it... When you get frustrated and go "how do I do this?" Google it. It'll say to turn something on or do something. Then you take out your camera manual and figure out how to do that :)