Thinking of getting into photography

richiee

Hi, Im just wondering about getting into photography in a small way. I would appreciate any advice on cameras and accessories which would suit a beginner. Ive been looking online but to be honest i know so little about cameras and photography that it all means little to me. I was hoping to get into it for around 5-600euro, Maybe slightly more if I thought it was worth it. Has anyone any advice?

denismc

A lot of good compacts these days have many of the features of expensive dSLRs so if you have a decent compact you could start playing with some of the manual functions.
Things like shutter speed, aperture, ISO can be adjusted on most compacts but you first need to know what it all means. Also composition is something you learn. I would suggest doing a short course in photography first, good camera shops offer basic introductory courses or you could join a club.
I good book for learning that i use is the Book of Digital Photography by Chris George
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Book-Digital-Photography-Chris-George/dp/190581464X/ref=pd_sim_b_4
So it may not quite the answer you were looking for, by all means go buy that camera, but i think a little learning will help you make an informed decision when purchasing.
Also there is a lot of info in this thread
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055243345
Good luck with whatever you purchase

melekalikimaka

book - understanding exposure
camera - entry level nikon/canon dslr
lens - 50mm 1.8


/thread

brokenarms

You might also want to consider a 35mm prime also . I found it to be more useful and usable than a 50mm f1.8, and every bit as sharp.
And another really cheap accessory I like to take everywhere is the Gorilla Pod. Its cheap, handy, well made and always in the bag.

Understanding Exposure is a tenner on amazon and a great oul read.

dinneenp

Bridge camera- jack of all trade so you can play with 'macro', have a large zoom etc. in a semi compact body. You can play around with all types of photogrpahy and most importantly have the camera with you at most times and not be fiddling around swapping lenses etc.

Take it from there, just go shooting, talk to some people who are 'into' photography to get the basics (shutter, aperture/light)

melekalikimaka

brokenarms wrote: »

You might also want to consider a 35mm prime also . I found it to be more useful and usable than a 50mm f1.8, and every bit as sharp.
And another really cheap accessory I like to take everywhere is the Gorilla Pod. Its cheap, handy, well made and always in the bag.

Understanding Exposure is a tenner on amazon and a great oul read.

35mm is quite a price jump unless its the motorless nikon number, which I gather is lovely alright

nucker

melekalikimaka wrote: »

book - understanding exposure
camera - entry level nikon/canon dslr
lens - 50mm 1.8


/thread

Correct

dinneenp

I have Understanding Expousre book if you're interested in it. I'm living near Galway (just past Claregalway) so you could be passing sometime and get it. PM me if interested.
I'm also selling a Pentax K-7, see link to ad in my signature, probably too advanced a camera for a beginner though.

RED Lynam

Be careful where you are taking advice from. Don't be reading advice on here about camera features when as a complete novice you probably don't know what any of it really means or if it would apply to what you think you want to do. A lot of people think they know it all when online so be really careful. Find out if there is a local camera where you live, phone them up, explain who you are and ask if there is anyone you can have a casual conversation expressing what you would like to do. After that if you feel you want to invest in a camera the maybe ask the same person would they be able to recommend a few and have a budget to stick to. If there is a camera you are pretty sure you want then maybe look around on ebay and buy it new there (will save you a few Euros). Youtube can be great for practical camera reviews too.

Personally I think film photography is great to learn on as when you are paying to process pictures you really start to think more about what you are doing and your different settings, but once you have a digital camera and editing software it's not really going to cost you a penny. best advice I could offer is just to keep on at it with the camera and take as many shots as you can, if you are looking at a photograph and feel you could of taken it better....then go back and take it better.

Here is my website I'm slowly getting together.

www.redlynamphotography.com

BEst of luck.

brokenarms

RED Lynam wrote: »

Be careful where you are taking advice from. Don't be reading advice on here about camera features when as a complete novice you probably don't know what any of it really means or if it would apply to what you think you want to do. A lot of people think they know it all when online so be really careful. Find out if there is a local camera where you live, phone them up, explain who you are and ask if there is anyone you can have a casual conversation expressing what you would like to do. After that if you feel you want to invest in a camera the maybe ask the same person would they be able to recommend a few and have a budget to stick to. If there is a camera you are pretty sure you want then maybe look around on ebay and buy it new there (will save you a few Euros). Youtube can be great for practical camera reviews too.

Personally I think film photography is great to learn on as when you are paying to process pictures you really start to think more about what you are doing and your different settings, but once you have a digital camera and editing software it's not really going to cost you a penny. best advice I could offer is just to keep on at it with the camera and take as many shots as you can, if you are looking at a photograph and feel you could of taken it better....then go back and take it better.

Here is my website I'm slowly getting together.

www.redlynamphotography.com

BEst of luck.

The advise on a best selling cheap lens, a best selling book and an entry level DSLR is great advise!!
Maybe you should use Google to advertise your website and not Boards!!

RED Lynam

Mister, thank you for that. Was just trying to help the fella out with some practical advice. I have only set my own website up there over the last week...designed it there on Tuesday and being honest...I am just kinda looking for feedback on it and I'm finding it difficult having never done this before and second guessing my content. At the moment I'm not looking to really make money from my online business but more trying to engage in photography and see more of what people are speaking about. As for the "best selling"...that doesn't mean it would suit his requirements best. Hense he could be better taking advice from someone in a camera club/shop off someone who has introduced many of people to photography. Best sellers are just for sheep.

humberklog

RED Lynam wrote: »

Best sellers are just for sheep.

And ignore the Shepard? That's just mental and nonsensical.

There's loads of space for your own thread.

RED Lynam

Look, I was only suggesting he speaks to someone (like someone who runs a camera club) than to be taking advice about different lenses or f.stops when it won't mean anything to him yet...from his post he doesn't seem to know anything about cameras or where to start. But yeah, maybe your right.

melekalikimaka

RED Lynam wrote: »

Look, I was only suggesting he speaks to someone (like someone who runs a camera club) than to be taking advice about different lenses or f.stops when it won't mean anything to him yet...from his post he doesn't seem to know anything about cameras or where to start. But yeah, maybe your right.

theres always one

RED Lynam

melekalikimaka wrote: »

theres always one

What, was that bad advice?

dinneenp

1. Buy a camera. Bridge, beginners Dslr; you'll get 10 different recommendations, main thing is get one. This could do you to begin with, selling in Galway.
2. Learn the basics (below, very simply put)
3. Get out there and take photos.
4. Maybe do a beginners photo course or spend time with someone who can tell you the basics. Much easier to learn in person where you can ask questions rather than reading. I did this course in Galway years ago.

Very simply put there’s 2 main things to know-

1 Shutter. Simple to understand- for sports pick high shutter speed to ‘freeze’ the action. For a static object lower shutter speed. To take a photo of a drop of water you use a high shutter speed.

2 Aperture. 2 things to remember:
1.The lower the aperture (f) number the more light that’s let in (bigger the hole, the bigger the light). So for a photo indoors select low f number to let in more light.
Image below shows the ring being narrowed and less light let in

2.For portraits/when you want the background out of focus (like this cuttie http://www.flickr.com/photos/pacork/5525187551/) the lower the f number & closer to the subject or more you’re zoomed in the greater the background blur

If aperture mode you select the aperture and camera sets the rest accordingly.
In shutter mode you select the shutter speed and the camera sets the rest accordingly.

Other thing to remember is there’s a relationship between shutter speed and aperture. If you pick 2,000 of a second the camera has to set aperture to a high number to let in loads of light (cos shutter is open for v short time you need as much light as possible or photo will be too dark. See http://photography.bastardsbook.com/lessons/big-picture-of-exposure/

A third thing is the ISO, normally starts at 100 and can go up to 12k or higher. Basically if it’s dark you can raise the iso and it helps ‘undarken’ your photo. But put it too high and your photo has grain/noise/fuzz. But to start with just set iso to auto.

All below articles are good but these two (and above one) will get you started)

http://photography.bastardsbook.com/lessons/shutter-speed-priority/
http://photography.bastardsbook.com/lessons/aperture/

arcius

my choice would be:
-Canon 550d or 600d (650d is more expensive)
-All around lense (for example tamron 18-270 or similar)
-canon 430 ex II flash (or do a research for some third party flashes for example Nissin, Sunpak, Vivitar, Metz, etc, and make sure it has ETTL function)
-Tripod - you'll need it for night photography or long exposure. I started with hähnel Triad 60 Lite Tripod - cheap and really not bad for a starter photographer.
-Scott Kelby's Digital Photography book set, Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4. To be honest after long research I found this set of books the best paper photography teacher. So easy and understandable - was worth every penny I spent. Check out here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Scott-Kelbys-Digital-Photography-Boxed/dp/0321839951/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1357613533&sr=8-2

RED Lynam

RED Lynam wrote: »

What, was that bad advice?

I'd say so.

You're essentially telling him to ignore the advice of several people online who partake in an established photography forum, and instead question a camera club member, who may or may not know the first thing about photography.

I know people who have studied photography at third level for 3-4 years and still haven't really got a notion of what's going on.

A group will rarely agree on poor advice, especially on such a common question. People have recommended specific cameras and lenses to begin with, and even mentioned potential upgrade lenses for down the line.

Everyone thinks they know their stuff inside out. A lot of people do. However, a lot of people don't, too. I think it's silly (and impractical) to move from a group to a single person's opinion.


Implying someone should avoid best-selling books about the subject they wish to learn is something I would generally consider to be poor advice, too (but that's just me).

dinneenp

arcius wrote: »

my choice would be:
-Canon 550d or 600d (650d is more expensive)
-All around lense (for example tamron 18-270 or similar)
-canon 430 ex II flash (or do a research for some third party flashes for example Nissin, Sunpak, Vivitar, Metz, etc, and make sure it has ETTL function)
-Tripod - you'll need it for night photography or long exposure. I started with hähnel Triad 60 Lite Tripod - cheap and really not bad for a starter photographer.
-Scott Kelby's Digital Photography book set, Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4. To be honest after long research I found this set of books the best paper photography teacher. So easy and understandable - was worth every penny I spent. Check out here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Scott-Kelbys-Digital-Photography-Boxed/dp/0321839951/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1357613533&sr=8-2

I'd agree with an all round lens but a flash for someone who's just getting into photography? There's a learing curve with a Dslr so why add the extra of a flash onto it?
I'd say start simple, don't even get a tripod. Again this is something you can get down the line if you decide you really like photogrpahy.

pedatron

Thinking of taking the plunge today on a Nikon D3100 off amazon. Is that an OK call for a beginner DSLR? The D3200 is a bit too much for me I think. Couldn't justify the extra price. Can someone else? haha!

arcius

pedatron wrote: »

Thinking of taking the plunge today on a Nikon D3100 off amazon. Is that an OK call for a beginner DSLR? The D3200 is a bit too much for me I think. Couldn't justify the extra price. Can someone else? haha!

I am a canon man but just looked at specs of both cameras and I would go for 3200 for sure. The parameters are much better on it. especially in image quality in low light conditions. My colleague got this camera few weeks ago. He is very happy. He got it from here: http://www.hdewcameras.co.uk/nikon-d3200-digital-slr-camera-nikon-18-105mm-vr-lens-1058-p.asp

the lens is all around so you'll not need to change it where in amazon it sells with 18-55 lens which is not really good choice. that is my advice

pedatron

arcius wrote: »

I am a canon man but just looked at specs of both cameras and I would go for 3200 for sure. The parameters are much better on it. especially in image quality in low light conditions. My colleague got this camera few weeks ago. He is very happy. He got it from here: http://www.hdewcameras.co.uk/nikon-d3200-digital-slr-camera-nikon-18-105mm-vr-lens-1058-p.asp

the lens is all around so you'll not need to change it where in amazon it sells with 18-55 lens which is not really good choice. that is my advice

Looks a super deal. Serious camera! It's £170 more than the other camera all the same. I might have to save more moneys I think! Very tempting though!! :pac:

arcius

pedatron wrote: »

Looks a super deal. Serious camera! It's £170 more than the other camera all the same. I might have to save more moneys I think! Very tempting though!! :pac:

it is worth to save money. and the most important thing is the lens. if you'll buy a 18-55 you'll need more zoom very soon. That's why I would highly recommend to spend a little bit more and get the lens with higher focal length range (get 18-105 instead of 18-55). And just to let you know I started photography (not pro) long time ago and my opinion and advice is based on my personal experience and mistakes I did

pedatron

arcius wrote: »

it is worth to save money. and the most important thing is the lens. if you'll buy a 18-55 you'll need more zoom very soon. That's why I would highly recommend to spend a little bit more and get the lens with higher focal length range (get 18-105 instead of 18-55). And just to let you know I started photography (not pro) long time ago and my opinion and advice is based on my personal experience and mistakes I did

I completely understand. Spend money to save money situation. I appreciate the advice. The specs on the nikon d3200 look deadly to be fair. I'm a total beginner though so I understand that a good camera doesn't = good photos and that practice will be needed.

I just want to get the best bang for my buck!

pedatron

Hopefully going to order the D3200 with the 18-105mm VR lens tonight. Saying the offer is available til the 1st of February. Surely they'll still honour the deal??

ImagenEstilo

Hi Pedatron,

The latest replies by Arcius are very good advice both on the camera and on the lens recommendation. So if you plan to get them then you will not go wrong. Forget about the 18-55. It's junk. The 18 to 105 will give you a lovely range to start with. You should not need any more gear to start you off.

Also the D3200 is an excellent entry level DSLR. It is the camera I would recommend to anyone starting out (I'm a Nikon user as opposed to Canon).

But certainly, as Melekalikimaka mentioned at the very start, the book is most important and is a top read.

Certainly, get the gear, have a play with it. But most important is read as much as you can.

Dave

pedatron

ImagenEstilo wrote: »

Hi Pedatron,

The latest replies by Arcius are very good advice both on the camera and on the lens recommendation. So if you plan to get them then you will not go wrong. Forget about the 18-55. It's junk. The 18 to 105 will give you a lovely range to start with. You should not need any more gear to start you off.

Also the D3200 is an excellent entry level DSLR. It is the camera I would recommend to anyone starting out (I'm a Nikon user as opposed to Canon).

But certainly, as Melekalikimaka mentioned at the very start, the book is most important and is a top read.

Certainly, get the gear, have a play with it. But most important is read as much as you can.

Dave

Thanks Dave,

I'm trying to read up as much as I can atm and have started a photography course online which I'm finding really useful. I got it online on that groupon site. It's normally £399 but I got it at €49!! It's great and is explaining the basics out very clearly for me.


I'll go for the D3200 and that lens tonight so. Really can't wait to get started!


Thanks,

Peter

arcius

I could send you a lot of e-books if you want. They are very useful. I also have a lot of DVDs (downloaded from internet). Also go on youtube. It's a perfect teacher And the most impportant thing is read and try to do in practice the same thing.

ImagenEstilo

If it helps any I have a few articles (I'll be adding a lot more over time) on my website under the Article Index link from the homepage. You can reach the English version of the homepage from my sig link.

TTWNF

I'm pretty new to photography & found Bryan Peterson 'Understanding Exposure' brilliant.... he has great videos on youtube too.

Also found this guy great too https://www.youtube.com/user/theartofphotography

pedatron

TTWNF wrote: »

I'm pretty new to photography & found Bryan Peterson 'Understanding Exposure' brilliant.... he has great videos on youtube too.

Also found this guy great too https://www.youtube.com/user/theartofphotography

I need to delve into youtube vids more. There's probably a load of great free content there for consumption. Looks like a great channel. I'll check it out when I'm home!

I got a pdf copy of understanding exposure and have it on my tablet but am struggling to read it as the resolution is bad. I'll probably just pick it up on amazon as it has been recommended so many times here!