Thread: DSLR Newb!
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Old 05-12-2014, 08:25 AM
Luke1000 Luke1000 is offline
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Join Date: Jul 2013
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ginola View Post
Cracking post Luke

There are a few budding photographers on here
Yeah I see that - I've been jealously looking through the various 'Ring Trip photos among others!

Quote:
Originally Posted by NL03Scooby View Post
Really good read Luke, I was bored on my lunch break at work so made the most of it reading your post .
Hahaha it's amazing how 'productive' one can be when bored at work, but at least you waited for your lunch, I didn't

Quote:
Originally Posted by NL03Scooby View Post
I use a Nikon I got second hand from eBay, best method I have found for working out what an earth I am doing is to keep taking pics and playing with the settings, a bit of trial and error!

I think its important for people to be 'brave' and try taking photos in manual mode, I am sure there are lots of people who have some amazing cameras but they have been left on 'auto' since they were taken out the box !
Yes absolutely, experimentation is key. A good technique especially when first learning or returning to the camera is that of 'bracketing'. Essentially this involves taking three pics of the same scene, doing one at the best-guess 'correct' exposure, one slightly darker and one lighter. This way you're likely to get one that looks right on the screen / in print. But for fun you can bracket with the other parameters too - varying aperture, ISO or shutter speed up and down depending on what you're trying to achieve.

I suppose the other really big tip is to experiment with angle, position and zoom, regardless of whether you feel technically competent with the camera or not... Too many people take a pic from their eye level, hoping to convey to the viewer what they 'saw'. Two problems here. First problem is that psychology of sight is highly selective: we can often focus our minds on the interesting bits while completely ignoring the ugly / mundane. Hence seeing pics with a pylon sprouting from the person's head and similar Angle is everything, so experiment with getting down low, high and out to the side to try to bring the view into proper context and convey what you're feeling.

Second problem is that camera lenses usually present a different view of the world to our eyes - they're usually either wider (wide-angle, 35mm or lower) or narrower with more 'reach' (telephoto, 50mm or higher). This distorts the view hugely, but can be used to great creative effect. If you have a zoom lens, experiment by taking two front-on pics of someone's face. Fill the frame with their face at the longest zoomed setting and take a pic (you may need to step back a fair way). For the second shot do the opposite, zooming right out and getting close to the subject to get their head roughly the same size in the viewfinder. If you compare the two images you're going to see a massive difference. The telephoto pic will be largely flattering, with a shallow depth of field (unless you were able to stop aperture down a lot). The wide picture on the other hand is going to make the subject look comical, with an overly-enlarged nose and small ears. You can really mess with people's expectaions of beauty with this simple technique, it's one of the ways the paps / photo editors manipulate public opinion both when celebs are on the up and on the wane. Get in close with a wide lens and you can make anyone look funny... But on the flip side this really 'works' for some pics too!

It's also worth noting what you can see in the background of each shot - you'll notice that the tele shot is much more 'compressed' with a narrower view of the background. Also you'll find that what is visible in the background is made more prominent. With the wide shot, you'll see loads more in the background, but each item / feature will appear to be further away than they are. Definitely worth considering these variables when you compose a pic!

It's a key moment when a photographer realises that there is an infinite choice of camera position, angle and zoom and starts to play with these. Add good creative use of aperture and shutter speed effects, and you're definitely getting somewhere: you can vary all these simple physical aspects to convey exactly what you want. Really this is the essence of creative photography.
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...And, as in uffish thought he stood,

The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,

Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,

And burbled as it came...

Last edited by Luke1000; 05-12-2014 at 08:53 AM.
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