camera buffs, need some help.

[Dr.Jeckyl]

the wife and i have made the decision to  FINALLY upgrade to a nice dslr (more on this when it arives). what i would like is a site to help me understand all the settings and what they do BOFORE it get's here. i don't want to spend my vacation weekend next week learning how to use the thing and miss out on the good shots. so a dummy's guide to things like aperture, exif data, shutter speeds, white balance, etc.... i know about dpreview.com but they are more of a review site and not really a instructional site.

any help is appreciated.

[Zazoo]

There really isn't any substitute for practice and hands-on experimenting. It takes more than a few days to learn all the ways that the manual settings work together. I'd just leave the camera on Auto and get some nice shots, then experiment with the camera when you have more time (and when you're not risking ruining valuable vacation shots).

I'd find a decent book on basic photography (If they jhave any geared specifically toward DSLR even better since a lot of the film SLR stuff isn't exactly the same) and take it with you when you go out to play with the camera.
Actually having a camera to play with as you read makes it easier to learn and remember, and DSLR's make it a lot easier (and a lot faster) to learn since you see the results right away and can compare the effects of various settings.

You can also find tons of sites on the internet that will explain the meanings of all the settings and the basic techniques.

~Mike

[Dr.Jeckyl]

Thanks Mike!

after more browsing of dpreview.com i found the glossery which explains alot of the terminology which i guess is really what i needed. i will definatly get alot of use out of this bad boy in the weeks to come since it's summer and we are camping and tripping the heck out of this season.

[Wilson_]

your camera sucks!!!
just kidding Demo

your camera is dope:thumbsup: :moon:

[nicotineforkids]

Hey Jeck, what camera did you end up purchasing?
I have a Canon 10D with an FD adaptor... it's been good to me.

[BajaBravo]

I just bought a DSLR myself. Canon EOS 350D (Digital Rebel XT). I wanted a Canon because I have a few expensive lenses for my film SLR and I wanted to be able to still use them. I got the Rebel XT because that was what I could afford. :tongue:

[Mofoka]

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canons2is/


I'm an ameture but it takes really great photo's with just a stock lens, check out below,



The above was my cousins wedding in Iowa, although the sprite bottle take away from the picture, I think it looks rather nice with just a stock lens.



The image above had to reduced from 2592 x 1944 to 1600 x 1200 for image shack to host it but its a great shot from a garden in my front yard...






My friend madman who has a really nice Rebel with about $3000 in lens alone is part of a good community you might find interesting.

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/

He just bought a $1300 lens that he used when we went to see the 4th of July fireworks in addison (Kaboom Town).

His pictures can be found on,

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=187270&page=5

At the bottom, his name is "that_guy" but you have to have a log in to view them.

[Dr.Jeckyl]

Hey Jeck, what camera did you end up purchasing?

Nikon D50

LOVING IT! i've snapped about 100 pics of various things since 12am this morning and i don't think i've shot a bad photo. and i haven't taken it out of AUTO/dummy settings mode :tongue:. it came with 2 lenses, a Tamron                        28-80mm Zoom Lens and a Tamron                      70-300mm Macro Zoom Lens. the 28-80 was on back order so all i got now is the 70-300. a bit too long shot for everyday use and cute baby shots but i'm having fun. next on the list is a true macro lens and a nice telephoto. i gots to take some close moon shots. i'm setting up a personal website and gallery so prettysoon i'll share the pics.

I just bought a DSLR myself. Canon EOS 350D (Digital Rebel XT).

this was the other one we were looking at but decided on the nikon because it was a few bucks cheaper. the nikon comes highly recommended by a couple professional photographers i have talked with and since they were very close in price we decided on that one.

side note: Wilson, i and our wives have a trip to an old military fort here in the bay area planned that he says has million dollar shots all over. can't wait to share.

[nicotineforkids]

Awesome.. glad to hear you're taking to it like a fish to water. Photography is a wonderful hobby and it also has the potential of making you money as well. I was just recently considered for teaching photography to Germantown kids in the South Boston area. You may have seen the thread on it. Still waiting to hear back from them, but anyways.. enjoy the camera!

[BajaBravo]

cute baby shots

Did someone say "cute baby"?



     

[Zazoo]

Did someone say "cute baby"?

I'm not a parent, but I'm pretty sure you aren't supposed to feed toddlers flowers. :tongue:

Adorable kid Baja!
~Mike

[Dr.Jeckyl]

those are the biggest eyes i think i've seen on a baby. very cute Baja.

[Wilson_]

I'm not a parent, but I'm pretty sure you aren't supposed to feed toddlers flowers. :tongue:

Adorable kid Baja!
~Mike

hahah that was great

[BajaBravo]

I'm not a parent, but I'm pretty sure you aren't supposed to feed toddlers flowers. :tongue:

That's actually just one in a series of shots of him and his Mom wrestling for the flowers. I have another series of shots of him crawling to the garden, picking out a nice rock, and popping it in his mouth. I'm getting pretty good at the finger-sweep method of clearing the airway. Parenthood is the coolest. :wink: