Just purchased a canon eos 500d

Ballyburn

and have no idea what i'm doing but I love taking photos.

Can anyone recommend this book or maybe another one that can get me started.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-EOS-Rebel-500D-Dummies/dp/0470533897/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1295470643&sr=8-1

Thanks, I'd appreciate any advice..

DotOrg

the canon manual that comes with the camera actually does a pretty decent job of explaining the 3 main things that you need to comprehend

shutter speed - how long the camera opens the shutter for
aperture - how wide the hole the light comes in is and the effect that has
iso - how sensitive the camera is to light

after that, play around with each of those settings in turn, look at the results you get and adjust till you take the perfect picture (generally takes about a lifetime to master them)

once you understand those three technical things, you learn to compose the pictures, that involves nothing more than practice. look at the photos you take, print them out and have them next to each other to compare what you like about some and dislike about others

and then repeat

and then if you still need to, buy a book

kelly1

Ballyburn wrote: »

and have no idea what i'm doing but I love taking photos.

Can anyone recommend this book or maybe another one that can get me started.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-EOS-Rebel-500D-Dummies/dp/0470533897/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1295470643&sr=8-1

Thanks, I'd appreciate any advice..

Good choice! I have one too

Ballyburn

I suppose i'm just a little too excited, I barely have the camera out of the box!
I'll have a proper look at the manual so, I really only glanced at it..

Thanks

pixbyjohn

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWC-XG75rSI&feature=&p=765D744FF736E876&index=0&playnext=1
Worth a look here Tutorials.
Good luck with new camera

Necronomicon

1) 500D Field Guide. I got one of these when I bought my 40D and I love it, I thought it presented everything in a manner that was easier to understand than the manual.

2) Understanding Exposure. After seeing this book referenced a number of times on this forum I picked it up in Easons, and I think it's terrific. Breaks everything down nicely, speaks in layman's terms, and there are loads of exercises to do.

DannyBuoy

The 500D is a nice camera, not too laden down with features you'll never use, but still a very capable example allowing the user the benefit of playing with a full blown dslr.
I've read the Dummies book on the 500D, I like the style of mixing teaching with humor. I've also read and would suggest the book below. A nice handy book with plenty of information, and also very reasonable second hand on Amazon.

hbr

The O'Reilly T1i/500D book is quite good. I bought mine in Waterstones.
http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596803643

The 500D is much the same as the other Canon models. You should
get lots of good information from any photography book. The big
favourite around here is Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson.
Many of the topics in the book are also covered on YouTube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEfL6t4MZfI

hbr

Ballyburn wrote: »

I'll have a proper look at the manual so, I really only glanced at it..

Thanks

Always the last resort
RTFM!

Welcome to the forum and good luck with the new camera.