Help me NOT be such a photog-IDIOT!!!

[Cinderella Fan]

Okay, so my lovely DH got me a new digital camera for Christmas and gave it to me early for our trip next week! I love it!! It is the Sony DSC-H7. Now, I have to figure out how to take amazing pictures like you guys!!

I previously had the DSC-T1, so this is new for me.

The manual says I can change the ISO, Shutter Speed, Exposure, and Aperture. But, what does that mean?

Please help me with a "layman's" definition of the above and what my camera should be set on to make sure I get the best pictures I can.

 

[Master Mason]

ISO = the cameras sensitivity to light, the bigger the number the more sensitive the camera is. so, in bright light you might want to use 100, in dark light you might want to use 800 or up

Shutter speed = how long the sensor is exposed to light.

Apeture = how big is the hole in your lens (think of your eye it opens bigger when darker to let in more light.

Exposure = the sum of all three of the above, you can also chose to under expose or over expose for the times where your camera cant give you good readings, such as photographing a dark or light subject.

If you have time I would highly encourage you to go to barns and noble etc and get a copy of understanding exposure, it will show you simply and with pictures how changing something will effect the picture.

having said that, if your leaving next week, your sort of behind the 8 ball trying to learn, you might be better off just using the sceane modes...

 

[SharonLowe]

Okay, so my lovely DH got me a new digital camera for Christmas and gave it to me early for our trip next week! I love it!! It is the Sony DSC-H7. Now, I have to figure out how to take amazing pictures like you guys!!

I previously had the DSC-T1, so this is new for me.

The manual says I can change the ISO, Shutter Speed, Exposure, and Aperture. But, what does that mean?

Please help me with a "layman's" definition of the above and what my camera should be set on to make sure I get the best pictures I can.

Taking great photos is not about the camera, it is about the person behind the camera. The best thing you can do is take it step by step to learn about each, slightly more sophisticated thing your camera can do. Start in P or program mode. When you get that, then move on. Great photographers spend years learning and refining their techniques, even in these digital days. Take classes (BetterPhoto.com has some good online ones and NYIP is pretty good too), read books and magazines, and practice the things you read.

As for your trip next week, keep it simple and don't expect that your photography will be 100 percent better just because you have a new camera. A good photographer can use any camera and get good results but the average person will mess up if he/she tries too hard with new equipment.

 

[DizneyNutz]

On this trip, since it is such a new camera to you. I see that it has a fireworks setting on the dial. You will want to make sure you have a tripod or put the camera somewhere very stable and try to trigger the camera with the least movement ie: shutter release or timer. Don't try to zoom beyond the optical zoom range (will get blurry photos) stay within the optical range. The camera has a lot of options available to you, but in a hurry I would reccommend relying on the camera dial for most of your settings on this trip until you get a chance to really learn the camera. It has ISO high sensitivity (for low light indoor attractions), Portrait, sports shooting, twilight, landscape, beach, snow & fireworks. Rely on these this trip for your most saveable photos.

 

[Cinderella Fan]

Thank you all so much!

Just to be clear, Sharon - I wasn't trying to become a professional photographer overnight. I was just trying to get a better understanding of what this camera can do over my other one. I do take a lot of photos, and being a teacher I catch on to new things fairly quickly. But Thank you for your advice.

 

[YEKCIM]

I would also suggest that you experiment with the camera to the extent that you can, before leaving, using various settings (exposure modes, ISO, stabilization, etc), and in various environments (sunny, shady, indoors, etc) to get a feel for what the camera is capable of. Read and re-read the manual to familiarize yourself with the camera's features and operation. Have the manual with you when you experiment in case you need to refer to how to change some setting.

Keep in mind, too, that most digital photos benefit from a little editing. I used Google's Picasa, which is a free download, until just recently (I'm learning Photoshop now ) and it does a fine job, given its cost and inherent limitations.

Hope that helps. Be sure and post some pix when you get back!

~Ed

 

[poppyolivia]

I would also suggest that you experiment with the camera to the extent that you can, before leaving, using various settings (exposure modes, ISO, stabilization, etc), and in various environments (sunny, shady, indoors, etc) to get a feel for what the camera is capable of. Read and re-read the manual to familiarize yourself with the camera's features and operation. Have the manual with you when you experiment in case you need to refer to how to change some setting.

Keep in mind, too, that most digital photos benefit from a little editing. I used Google's Picasa, which is a free download, until just recently (I'm learning Photoshop now ) and it does a fine job, given its cost and inherent limitations.

Hope that helps. Be sure and post some pix when you get back!

~Ed

Does the picasa download include noise removal?

thank you xxx

 

[YEKCIM]

Does the picasa download include noise removal?

thank you xxx

Not at present, afaik. There are some freeware noise reduction utilities available, I think. You can probably locate one or more by googling it, or someone else may suggest a specific one.

~Ed

 

[Master Mason]

Noiseware community edition is free.

 

[poppyolivia]

Noiseware community edition is free.

Thank you and thank you YEKCIM..xxxx

 

[SharonLowe]

Thank you all so much!

Just to be clear, Sharon - I wasn't trying to become a professional photographer overnight. I was just trying to get a better understanding of what this camera can do over my other one. I do take a lot of photos, and being a teacher I catch on to new things fairly quickly. But Thank you for your advice.

I'm sorry if my comments came across that way. All I really meant was that there are so many people who think their photography will be 100 percent better with a new camera, but in reality, it usually suffers a bit as they get used to the new camera. Every new camera has different features and different ways of doing things so it takes time to learn the differences. A long awaited trip to Disney isn't always the best place to learn them