Beginner

[SraGonzalez]

Hello,

I have always had a passion for photography and have seriously taken it as a hobby now that my husband got me a Nikon d3200 with lots of toys accompanying it. I really want to use this camera the way it was meant to be used not as a point and shoot camera. This is my first professional cam, very excited but have no clue where to begin. Any suggestions on how to utilize features outside of the programmable settings.

I look forward to learning. Thank you I advance. Happy Holidays.

SraGonzalez

 

[thunderkyss]

Hello,

I have always had a passion for photography and have seriously taken it as a hobby now that my husband got me a Nikon d3200 with lots of toys accompanying it. I really want to use this camera the way it was meant to be used not as a point and shoot camera. This is my first professional cam, very excited but have no clue where to begin. Any suggestions on how to utilize features outside of the programmable settings.

I look forward to learning. Thank you I advance. Happy Holidays.

SraGonzalez

I'm a beginner like you. None of this stuff made sense to me. I began reading here, about a year ago when I purchased a DSLR for my daughter. I learned the terminology, & some of the theory, but never actually took pictures, so the practical aspect of using the camera still escaped me.

I recently bought a DSLR for myself & after "playing" with it for a while, and taking pictures at our Christmas get together, it all makes more sense now.

Everything you need to know is in your manual. Nikon does a fairly good job of it to help get you started. The problem though is that there's just too much information. It was for me anyway. I suggest you just skim through it for now, get familiar with the way it's laid out, to make it easier to go back & find what you need when questions arise.

The easiest way to get started, other than "point & shoot", is to find the exposure meter. There should be one on the rear display & one in the view finder. The "goal" is to "balance" the exposure. You want the meter to register zero, or as close as possible. When in full manual mode M the thumbwheel on the back will change the shutter speed. Changing the shutter speed will change the exposure value, which is represented on the meter.

On top of the camera, just behind the shutter release button is the EV button, it has a little +/- on it. If you push that button & roll the thumbwheel at the same time, you will change the aperture size. Changing the aperture size will also change the exposure value, which is represented on the meter.

That's pretty much the gist of it. To get a good image, you want to balance the EV, which is represented on the meter in your camera. To balance the EV, you should make adjustments to your shutter speed, or aperture size. That should get you started.

You'll learn (it says so in the manual) that altering shutter speed has some particular affects, altering aperture size has particular affects, and you'll develop your own style for when to change which for whatever it is you're trying to achieve.

Sensor sensitivity is the third setting that affects picture quality, it is referred to as ISO. Shutter speed, aperture size, and ISO all work together to make up your exposure value. adjusting the ISO will also register a change to the EV meter on your camera. However, on these cameras (I have a D3000) getting to the ISO setting is a little more cumbersome than changing the shutter speed & aperture size. It also has its own particular affect on your image, so learning to adjust it would also be beneficial.

 

[jowensphoto]

Hello,

I have always had a passion for photography and have seriously taken it as a hobby now that my husband got me a Nikon d3200 with lots of toys accompanying it. I really want to use this camera the way it was meant to be used not as a point and shoot camera. This is my first professional cam, very excited but have no clue where to begin. Any suggestions on how to utilize features outside of the programmable settings.

I look forward to learning. Thank you I advance. Happy Holidays.

SraGonzalez

Congrats on your new camera! First, and this is just a nit-picky thing, you have an entry level DSLR. While it's still very capable this is not a professional grade camera. That's not to say you couldn't eventually master it and produce professional results. Anyway...

Aside from reading the camera manual and learning what all the different functions are, starting with the exposure triangle is a pretty good place to start. There's a book, "Learning Exposure," that comes highly recommended. I would also suggest studying up on composition and different art/design theories.

What kind of extras did you get with your camera? Flash, extra lens?

 

[Designer]

Hello, and welcome to the forum!

1. Read the manual.
2. practice the examples in the manual.
3. take lots of pictures (in whatever mode for now)
4. begin the experiment with aperture, shutter priorities, as well as manual mode. Try all of the preprogrammed modes as well.
5. Use the accessories that you have (tripod, remote release, reflectors, whatever)
6. Get a speedlight. Maybe next year?
7. Get one "fast" lens ( f 1:1.8 ) The year after that?

I think I left out a few steps, but you get the idea.

 

[CanonJim]

1) Have fun with it.
2) Take your time. Pretty much everything you might shoot will be there tomorrow too. (Unless you see Elvis and Bigfoot together, in which case you need to shoot like mad...)
3) Learn what the NON-automatic modes of your camera allow you to do, as others have noted. I personally decided that, 9 times out of 10, I would keep my camera in AV or Aperture Control mode - since the aperture controls the depth of focus, I felt I could compose and create the shot I wanted more by setting the f/-stop I wanted, and letting the camera decide on shutter, ISO, etc to get my exposure correct. Most of my shooting is done outdoors, in good light, so I actually set my ISO to 100 for the best grain anyway, so the camera just picks the shutter speed. And I know that if I'm in dim or poor light, I want a tripod and probably a remote shutter release.

What I'd do, is play around shooting STATIC subjects first, in varying kinds of light, so you can see what happens when you do. Shoot a bunch. It's not like you have to pay for a 24-roll exposure to be developed. Notice what happens to the foreground and background when you shoot at f/3.5 versus f/22, in aperture control mode. Then, take the same kind of shots in shutter control mode, at a nice medium f/- stop like f/8 or f/10. See what 1/25 second does as opposed to 1/500th...that's how you'll start to learn what all the various settings mean on your camera.

 

[SCraig]

Start Here.

 

[nycphotography]

GRIMM, "Basic Book of Digital Photography".

Under $20.

Buy it. Read it... and work through it carefully. Make "assignments" for yourself after each chapter to practice what you just read.

(Trust me... that book was originally written for film SLRs and it's the best I've found for getting people over the initial "Exposure, Focus, DOF, and Composition" hump.)

 

[Mully]

Read the manual ....few chapters then go shoot something and see if it is working, keep doing this so that when you pick up your camera it becomes second nature to you and from there you will progress. There are a lot of functions but go for the basics

 

[KmH]

I also highly recommend learning the fundamentals presented here - Digital Photography Tutorials

Have your camera at hand when you read the user's manual.

Take the user's manual with you to read when spend time in the throne room. Pick sections of the manual you have not yet read, or just skimmed over previously.

 

[nycphotography]

I also highly recommend learning the fundamentals presented here - Digital Photography Tutorials

Have your camera at hand when you read the user's manual.

Take the user's manual with you to read when spend time in the throne room. Pick sections of the manual you have not yet read, or just skimmed over previously.

Hmm. I wonder what you have lots of pictures of in YOUR practice portfolio?

 

[ph0enix]

Hello,

I have always had a passion for photography and have seriously taken it as a hobby now that my husband got me a Nikon d3200 with lots of toys accompanying it. I really want to use this camera the way it was meant to be used not as a point and shoot camera. This is my first professional cam, very excited but have no clue where to begin. Any suggestions on how to utilize features outside of the programmable settings.

I look forward to learning. Thank you I advance. Happy Holidays.

SraGonzalez

Congrats on your new camera! First, and this is just a nit-picky thing, you have an entry level DSLR. While it's still very capable this is not a professional grade camera. That's not to say you couldn't eventually master it and produce professional results. Anyway...

Aside from reading the camera manual and learning what all the different functions are, starting with the exposure triangle is a pretty good place to start. There's a book, "Learning Exposure," that comes highly recommended. I would also suggest studying up on composition and different art/design theories.

What kind of extras did you get with your camera? Flash, extra lens?

Jess probably meant "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. It's a very good book, indeed:
Amazon.com: Understanding Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera (9780817439392): Bryan Peterson: Books

 

[SraGonzalez]

I'm a beginner like you. None of this stuff made sense to me. I began reading here, about a year ago when I purchased a DSLR for my daughter. I learned the terminology, & some of the theory, but never actually took pictures, so the practical aspect of using the camera still escaped me.

I recently bought a DSLR for myself & after "playing" with it for a while, and taking pictures at our Christmas get together, it all makes more sense now.

Everything you need to know is in your manual. Nikon does a fairly good job of it to help get you started. The problem though is that there's just too much information. It was for me anyway. I suggest you just skim through it for now, get familiar with the way it's laid out, to make it easier to go back & find what you need when questions arise.

The easiest way to get started, other than "point & shoot", is to find the exposure meter. There should be one on the rear display & one in the view finder. The "goal" is to "balance" the exposure. You want the meter to register zero, or as close as possible. When in full manual mode M the thumbwheel on the back will change the shutter speed. Changing the shutter speed will change the exposure value, which is represented on the meter.

On top of the camera, just behind the shutter release button is the EV button, it has a little +/- on it. If you push that button & roll the thumbwheel at the same time, you will change the aperture size. Changing the aperture size will also change the exposure value, which is represented on the meter.

That's pretty much the gist of it. To get a good image, you want to balance the EV, which is represented on the meter in your camera. To balance the EV, you should make adjustments to your shutter speed, or aperture size. That should get you started.

You'll learn (it says so in the manual) that altering shutter speed has some particular affects, altering aperture size has particular affects, and you'll develop your own style for when to change which for whatever it is you're trying to achieve.

Sensor sensitivity is the third setting that affects picture quality, it is referred to as ISO. Shutter speed, aperture size, and ISO all work together to make up your exposure value. adjusting the ISO will also register a change to the EV meter on your camera. However, on these cameras (I have a D3000) getting to the ISO setting is a little more cumbersome than changing the shutter speed & aperture size. It also has its own particular affect on your image, so learning to adjust it would also be beneficial.

Thank you for the advice.

 

[SraGonzalez]

Congrats on your new camera! First, and this is just a nit-picky thing, you have an entry level DSLR. While it's still very capable this is not a professional grade camera. That's not to say you couldn't eventually master it and produce professional results. Anyway...

Aside from reading the camera manual and learning what all the different functions are, starting with the exposure triangle is a pretty good place to start. There's a book, "Learning Exposure," that comes highly recommended. I would also suggest studying up on composition and different art/design theories.

What kind of extras did you get with your camera? Flash, extra lens?

Thank you for the advice.

Extras:
-52mm pro optic filters
-58mm pro optic filters
-Wu-1a
-AF-S Nikkor 55-300mm 1:4.5-5.6 G
-Tripod
-Other things like a camera sling, extra battery, and cleaning kit.

 

[SraGonzalez]

Hello, and welcome to the forum!

1. Read the manual.
2. practice the examples in the manual.
3. take lots of pictures (in whatever mode for now)
4. begin the experiment with aperture, shutter priorities, as well as manual mode. Try all of the preprogrammed modes as well.
5. Use the accessories that you have (tripod, remote release, reflectors, whatever)
6. Get a speedlight. Maybe next year?
7. Get one "fast" lens ( f 1:1.8 ) The year after that?

I think I left out a few steps, but you get the idea.

Thank you for the advice.

 

[SraGonzalez]

1) Have fun with it.
2) Take your time. Pretty much everything you might shoot will be there tomorrow too. (Unless you see Elvis and Bigfoot together, in which case you need to shoot like mad...)
3) Learn what the NON-automatic modes of your camera allow you to do, as others have noted. I personally decided that, 9 times out of 10, I would keep my camera in AV or Aperture Control mode - since the aperture controls the depth of focus, I felt I could compose and create the shot I wanted more by setting the f/-stop I wanted, and letting the camera decide on shutter, ISO, etc to get my exposure correct. Most of my shooting is done outdoors, in good light, so I actually set my ISO to 100 for the best grain anyway, so the camera just picks the shutter speed. And I know that if I'm in dim or poor light, I want a tripod and probably a remote shutter release.

What I'd do, is play around shooting STATIC subjects first, in varying kinds of light, so you can see what happens when you do. Shoot a bunch. It's not like you have to pay for a 24-roll exposure to be developed. Notice what happens to the foreground and background when you shoot at f/3.5 versus f/22, in aperture control mode. Then, take the same kind of shots in shutter control mode, at a nice medium f/- stop like f/8 or f/10. See what 1/25 second does as opposed to 1/500th...that's how you'll start to learn what all the various settings mean on your camera.

Thank you for the advice.