??? on my rebel xt

[party of 3]

Hey Everyone,
Well I did it! I took my mothers day gift (the rebel xt) out of the box and took some pics with it. Some are good and some are completly blah! I look at some and say, i could have gotten that from my kodak!!! I can't seem to get past the p & s part. I have read the manual over and over and I just keep getting more and more confused. Really feeling down over this whole thing. I thought I was just going to LOVE it and I would be taking beautiful pics in no time. Yea right!
I feel like I could just sit and cry! Having a pity party for myself! I went to the web site that someone had suggested
http://www.photoworkshop.com/canon/index.html
and clicked on eos digital rebel on the bottom, then to rebel xt tutorials, then a new screen appears and tells me to click on the tabs on the bottom, and there are no tabs on the bottom. I tried dragging my screen all the way to the top, thinking i could find the tabs, and still nothing. So that whole thing is out!
Really! If i knew it was going to be like this, I would probably have stayed with my kodak p&s and lived with the red eye, and somewhat "ok" pics.
I just feel some dumb! I can manage a 20 million dollar credit union, but I can't take a beautiful picture! Plus my personality is to not give up. I am one of these people that will not admit defeat! So I am trying to beat the information into me!!!!! I am so worked up about it, i could just scream!!!!

ADVICE please!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Kelly Grannell]

I clicked the link, it opens a new window, and I can see tabs with number 1-20 and all of them works. You may want to update your Macromedia Flash (go to Macromedia.com and download the latest version of their Flash... it's a freeware)

 

[party of 3]

thanks kelly,
i did update the flash and i could get the tabs on the bottom. I read quite a bit last night and am feeling better this am.

thanks for the tip.

i guess i'll keep reading until i get it!

thanks again

 

[WillCAD]

What mode are your using? What ISO? What white balance setting? Flash or no flash? Indoor or outdoor? What are your subjects (people, places, things)?

All of these things help to determine whether a pic is pretty or pretty bad.

Start slow - set the camera in P mode, use AutoWB, and set ISO to 400 for indoor shots. Flash will still cause some red-eye with this camera, because the built-in flash is not high enough above the lens to eliminate it, but it will be a bit less than a P&S camera with the flash right on top of the lens.

For outdoor pics, you can leave the flash off unless you are in super-bright sunlight that causes harsh shadows on faces. The flash will light up the shadowed areas and give you a smoother look. Also in bright sunlight, step the ISO down to 200 or 100.

Later, you can learn other stuff, but for now just learn how to change your ISO and how to pop up the flash when in P mode.

 

[handicap18]

"Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. having been a SLR user since the mid 80's I got away from it about 4 years ago with a digital p&s. I finally got back to slr about 5 months ago with the Nikon D50. I also bought the above mentioned book at amazon.com. It was the best $20 I spent for camera accessories. He does a great job of describing ISO, Shutter, Aperture and everything else.

 

[JR6ooo4]

Hey Everyone,
Well I did it! I took my mothers day gift (the rebel xt) out of the box and took some pics with it. Some are good and some are completly blah! I look at some and say, i could have gotten that from my kodak!!! I can't seem to get past the p & s part. I have read the manual over and over and I just keep getting more and more confused. Really feeling down over this whole thing. I thought I was just going to LOVE it and I would be taking beautiful pics in no time. Yea right!
I feel like I could just sit and cry! Having a pity party for myself! I went to the web site that someone had suggested
http://www.photoworkshop.com/canon/index.html
and clicked on eos digital rebel on the bottom, then to rebel xt tutorials, then a new screen appears and tells me to click on the tabs on the bottom, and there are no tabs on the bottom. I tried dragging my screen all the way to the top, thinking i could find the tabs, and still nothing. So that whole thing is out!
Really! If i knew it was going to be like this, I would probably have stayed with my kodak p&s and lived with the red eye, and somewhat "ok" pics.
I just feel some dumb! I can manage a 20 million dollar credit union, but I can't take a beautiful picture! Plus my personality is to not give up. I am one of these people that will not admit defeat! So I am trying to beat the information into me!!!!! I am so worked up about it, i could just scream!!!!

ADVICE please!!!!!!!!!!

Since this is an entry level DSLR most buyers are in the first chapeters of learning. you are in a group of about 80% who has these exact same results. I'm not sure i have made it out of this group yet only having mine for about 6 months. Apart from reading everthing and tons of practice, if a certain shot is not what you expected it is usually easy to determine why if we can see the pic and the exif info. Post the pics online, and post the full size file for the best quality. Then you can link it here and these pros can tell you what settings may have worked better.

also are you using the kit lens? It does a great job but it needs good light to work well. With this lens shoot at f8 through f11 to get crisp pics. But again, this aperture needs alot of light or you will have a long shutter speed which can result in motion blur from the subject or camera shake from the operator. As said earlier raise the ISO if you are not in good sunlight or similar.

Congrats on the cam! You will be cranking out good pics soon. and not long after you will even be able to tell a good lens from a bad one.

Mikeeee

 

[webshark3]

Just remember, going from a P&S to a DSLR (even an entry level one) is like driving a Ford Festiva, and then jumping in a Semi.

Sure you can drive it, but you're not going to be good without a whole lot of practice. Don't think days... think years..... but when you're there....WOW.

 

[spoon2003]

Party of 3
I just got my Rebel as well and am reading and learning alot. I have to say I am really impressed with the camera so far, I was even able to get pictures of my kids running away from the camera (which my Fuji 7000 had a really hard time). I am eagerly waiting for this weekend's soccer game for me to really test the new Sigma 18-200 arrived this afternoon

Sue from Boston

 

[party of 3]

Party of 3
I just got my Rebel as well and am reading and learning alot. I have to say I am really impressed with the camera so far, I was even able to get pictures of my kids running away from the camera (which my Fuji 7000 had a really hard time). I am eagerly waiting for this weekend's soccer game for me to really test the new Sigma 18-200 arrived this afternoon

Sue from Boston

hi sue,
sound good to me. i will share any info i have with you. we took my son fishing for the 1st time monday afternoon, and i did get some beautiful pictures. (on p mode). i am off to borders this weekend to see if i can find the book that handicap18 was talking about. hope that helps out!
good luck at the soccer game!!! have fun!!

 

[PoohJen]

Hi! I am seriously considering the big jump (from my intro level digital camera) to the XT. I have found the following books on Amazon and other booksellers. I haven't bought any of these yet, but will if I go with the XT.

HTH! The Canon EOS Digital Rebel Field Guide by Charlotte Lowrie

and Magic Lantern Guides: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT/EOS 350D (A Lark Photography Book) by Michael Guncheon

both came highly recommended on Amazon.

Good luck! And post again when you've had more time w/ your camera - I'm interested in hearing others' experiences with their new XTs!!!

 

[poconoboatniks]

I've been lurking on this board for the past 3 or 4 months. I got my Rebel at the end of March and have been playing with it. The field handbook is a good resource. I'm looking for a digital photography class at the local community college. Don't get discouraged. We can learn together. There are some really talented photographers on this board. I read everything they have to say. Keep trying.

 

[JR6ooo4]

Also check out:
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1031
another great board, and site.
Mikeeee