New to the world of DSLR photography

[delphicwhisky]

Hello!

I've always loved photography and have always tried using my phone's camera creatively but at the end of the day, none of the pictures I took was rewarding enough and so, I finally decided to part with some of my savings the other day.

I just got my first ever camera in the mail today. It's a Canon 350D that I bought off of EBay (I'm poor, that's all I could afford ). I've been playing with it since morning and reading here as well and I have a few questions.

1. No matter what I do, I just can't get the camera to focus in Aperture priority mode. Why is that?

2. Most of the pictures that I'm taking don't really have much detail or the 'fun' that I'd expect from a DSLR; is that because of the limitations of the kit lens? If yes, what lens should I get and how do I know which lens is right for me? I know I want a zoom lens something like 70-300 for long range shooting but what about a lens that is just say 50mm, what is that supposed to mean? Does it only stay at 50mm? How do these lens numbers work?

Please guide me with what other things I should know as well.

Looking forward to a great photo experience

Thank you and regards.

[OsmosisStudios]

1) I dont know. It should focus the same way it does in every other mode.

2) What do you mean by "fun"? We can't really help if we don't know what you're looking for.

If you can provide samples, we're likely to be of more help as well.

[delphicwhisky]

By 'fun' I meant the pictures look just too plain without any nice contrast that I expected

I'll post pictures in the morning. Thank you for your quick response.

P.S: Why won't it focus in AV mode

[Kellyj69]

Please guide me with what other things I should know as well.

Looking forward to a great photo experience


read the forums here.. - you have been guided

and you have to MAKE the great photo experience, not wait for it

[inkista]

Is the focus switch on the lens set to "AF"?

[Mocha]

After checking the lens for auto focus, as Inkista suggested, I would check my focal point(s). I'm not familiar with the 350D, but my Rebel t2i allows me to set the part of the picture I want to be in focus. I think you would have that option as well. Maybe the focus is set for somewhere other than where you think it is.

I have the two kit lenses (18-55mm and 55-250mm) and am happy with both. I have only had a DSLR for just under a year, so maybe I am still easily pleased. My only complaint is that I wish I had more zoom from the 55-250.

You have found a great photography site. Everybody here is so willing to help. If you haven't signed up for the weekly newsletter, you should. Great articles full of fun and useful information.

I'm looking forward to seeing your pictures.

[faeriegodess612]

Originally Posted by inkista

Is the focus switch on the lens set to "AF"?

I was thinking that as well,... and as for the dull or plain colors. If your shooting in RAW,.. sometimes it'll do that. I took some photos in RAW in Auto Mode, and every single shot was dull and flat as far as color. Try shooting in Program Mode, and changing the settings in White Balance, as well as others. Play around with the settings and practice with something at home. Dont try to take prize winning shots right away,..cuz unless your familiar with a DSLR, you most likely wont get them. Once you get used to it, you will.

[inkista]

Ok, a bit more point-by-point.

Originally Posted by delphicwhisky

1. No matter what I do, I just can't get the camera to focus in Aperture priority mode. Why is that?

Is it that the camera's not focusing? Or simply not taking the picture? Is anything in the viewfinder flashing at you when things don't work? And is it working differently in other modes? How close is your subject?

In a lot of the auto modes, the camera won't take a picture if you're exceeding what the AE system considers reasonable. It may have nothing to do with Av mode in particularly, but simply that you're not in M. If focus can't be locked, if your aperture can't go as high as you want it to, if you're exceeding the maximum shutter speed, if you're inside the minimum focus distance for your lens, etc. etc. etc. There are a lot of ifs involved here.

2. Most of the pictures that I'm taking don't really have much detail or the 'fun' that I'd expect from a DSLR; is that because of the limitations of the kit lens?

Probably not. It's from the fact that a dSLR is a completely different kind of camera that requires that you understand what you're doing in ways that a P&S did not force you to do. I would really really really not recommend looking at purchasing yet more gear until you know that the issue is unrelated to technique. There's a steep learning curve and resetting of expectations when you "upgrade" from a P&S to a dSLR. Because it's not really an upgrade as much as a paradigm shift. dSLR pictures are not automatically going to look better than P&S images. Just get used to that thought right now.

Newbies always want to blame the gear rather than themselves because they know it can't be the camera because they paid so much for it. Sadly, 99% of the time, it's them.

Sharpness looks worse because a) you don't know about exposure settings and their tradeoffs, because a P&S camera took care of that for you. b) You have a larger sensor and longer lenses, so DoF can actually make parts of the image out of focus. This again is something a P&S camera has never made you deal with before. c) The assumption with a dSLR is that you're going to care enough about your images to want to individually process each one with the best settings for the individual image, rather than doing a one-size-fits-all cooking of the files, like a P&S does. So by default, sharpness and saturation are not added in-camera unless you chooose to do so. And you now have the choice of foregoing JPEG compression (shooting in RAW) so that you can tailor it the way you want. Again, something P&S cameras don't teach you anything about.

I'd really recommend going through the beginners' tips on this website to get a handle on what a lot of the issues with your image quality may be. And in the meantime, until you can learn about post-processing, playing with the in-camera processing settings might help you out a little.

But just get used to the idea: you've got a lot to learn.

If yes, what lens should I get and how do I know which lens is right for me? I know I want a zoom lens something like 70-300 for long range shooting but what about a lens that is just say 50mm, what is that supposed to mean? Does it only stay at 50mm? How do these lens numbers work?

I highly recommend taking a spin through this basic guide to lenses. In terms of what lens is right for you, you need to work out what your budget for the lens is, what you want to use it for, and how you plan on using it. It'll get clearer then which lens is going to be the right one for you. Whatever you do, though, make sure you understand the concept of maximum aperture as well as focal length. A lot of newbies get fixated on focal length and ignore the max. aperture, but both are equally important when buying a lens.

Yes, a 50mm lens "stays" at 50mm--it has no zooming capability--you "zoom" with your feet . "Primes" are an older, simpler mechanical design than zoom lenses, and have a few advantages: they're smaller, cheaper, and don't have the type of optical compromises a zoom almost inevitably has to cover a focal length range. They're easier to design. And they'll often have much larger maximum apertures. The reason you should look at a 50mm lens is because its max. aperture might be f/1.8 or f/1.4. Zooms will max out at f/2.8, and typically cost $1000+ to do so. A 50mm f/1.8 II is $100.

Please guide me with what other things I should know as well.

First lesson you should go through is how to hold your camera. Don't laugh. You'd be surprised how many people skip that bit of the manual and get it completely wrong.

Then, exposure basics are probably next. I like books, so I'd say Bryan Peterson's Understanding Exposure is a great place to start.

[Krusty79]

Here are some good tips for beginners:

http://www.livermorevalleycameraclub...O_critique.pdf

http://www.livermorevalleycameraclub...omposition.pdf

[Biomech]

Originally Posted by inkista

First lesson you should go through is how to hold your camera. Don't laugh. You'd be surprised how many people skip that bit of the manual and get it completely wrong.

But ignore the part where it tells you to hold your breath, then read my comment at the bottom of that article