Complete beginner with a camera well beyond his means.

Ebon · Jun 12, 2016

Hey all,

Recently I decided to undertake the mammoth task of singlehandedly cleaning the house top-to-bottom. Upon doing so, I stumbled across a wealth of camera equipment that used to belong to my late step-father, including two Canon EOS 1Ds' ( a Mark 1 and a Mark 3), as well as a myriad of lenses that I haven't a clue are for what style of photography. Having done a little bit of research however, it's clear that this equipment amasses to some serious value and having always wanted to get into photography, I thought it would a vast shame for all this gear to go to waste. So therein lies my problem; the most I've ever done with a camera is the odd memory snapshot on holiday with my trust Canon Powershot point and shoot from donkey's years ago. I've come here looking for advice on a) how to use this stuff (cant find an instruction manual anywhere with the gear) and b) how to start getting into "real" photography using the range of equipment I have at my disposal. See images for a rough idea of some of the stuff I found.

Thanks in advance,

Ben

snowbear · Jun 12, 2016

Welcome to the madness.

There are a number of free or cheap resources on the web that can give you the basics of taking phototgraph with proper exposure and composition, so start there. The other thing to do is get a hold of the user's manuals for the camera and lenses and read over them so you know what the various controls do.

Designer · Jun 12, 2016

User's manuals can be found online and downloaded for free. Each piece will have its own manual. Most appears to be Canon, so go there.

Be prepared for a learning curve and spending some time at it.

If you're going to do this, you'll need more than the manuals. You'll need to study composition, lighting, and editing also.

Dagwood56 · Jun 12, 2016

You should be able to find user's manuals online to help you learn about the camera's functions and another great start for a beginner is Bryan Peterson's book "Understanding Exposure" and his other book "Learning To See Creatively" is also good. Have fun and don't get discouraged if things don't go well at first. You'll get it with practice

fmw · Jun 12, 2016

You are one of the best equipped beginners around.

weepete · Jun 12, 2016

Wow, thats a whole lot of some pretty serious camera gear. But it's a great start, there's loads of room to grow into it.

The 1Ds are great cameras, so they'll excel at shooting just about anything. They do require a bit of learning though, there's a lot of custom functions and different ways to set these up for different scenarios. I'd recomend doing a factory reset on them right off as there may be some stuff thats been changed deep in the menus which may be difficult to unpick unless you are already familiar with it.

I'd get a hold of the manuals for these, the canon website is a good resource. The manuals for these are big, in depth and can be a very dry read. Normally I'd say to read the manual a couple of times but depending on how technical you are it may not be the best approach in this particular case if you have no prior knowledge just because of how complicated these caneras can be. I'd probably try and split it up into managable chunks.

As far as the lenses go it looks like a mixed bag. But here is a breif very rough guide to each one from left to right:

Canon 75-300mm IS: Cheap telephoto lens, image quality isn't great and it's a bit soft. Good if you want to blur the background and have enough space in between you and the subject. Good focal length as a short wildlife lens.

Canon 16-35mm f2.8 L: Fantastic, top quality, sharp, fast ultrawide to wide angle lens. Great landscape lens, good in low light.

MPE-65mm f2.8 1-5x Macro lens: Another fantastic lens, great for close up photography like bugs and small things.

Other Canon lens: Can't see the information on this but the ring tells me it's another "consumer" grade zoom. It'll probably be a bit soft and not too expensive.

Canon 1.4x extender: will increase the focal length of your lens at the cost of 1 stop and some sharpness. Great to get closer images with fast sharp zooms and primes. I'd normally expect this to be paired with something like a 70-200mm f2.8L or a 300mm f2.8 L. Doesn't work well with anythimg that is not very sharp to begin with though.

Sigma 12-24mm HSM: a decent quality ultrawide to wide angle lens. Pretty similar to the Canon 16-35mm though I'd prefer the canon over this one.

Canon 24mm TS-E: Fantasic wide angle tilt shift lens. Can change the plane of focus. Excelent for architectural photography and for landscapes where there are close up foreground elements.

Braineack · Jun 12, 2016

fmw said:
You are one of the best equipped beginners around.

Agreed, you stumbled on some serious equipment.

Don't be intimated by it all--A camera is a camera, they all share the same basic functions in order to capture an image.

soufiej · Jun 12, 2016

Ebon said:
Hey all,

Recently I decided to undertake the mammoth task of singlehandedly cleaning the house top-to-bottom. Upon doing so, I stumbled across a wealth of camera equipment that used to belong to my late step-father, including two Canon EOS 1Ds' ( a Mark 1 and a Mark 3), as well as a myriad of lenses that I haven't a clue are for what style of photography. Having done a little bit of research however, it's clear that this equipment amasses to some serious value and having always wanted to get into photography, I thought it would a vast shame for all this gear to go to waste. So therein lies my problem; the most I've ever done with a camera is the odd memory snapshot on holiday with my trust Canon Powershot point and shoot from donkey's years ago. I've come here looking for advice on a) how to use this stuff (cant find an instruction manual anywhere with the gear) and b) how to start getting into "real" photography using the range of equipment I have at my disposal. See images for a rough idea of some of the stuff I found.

Thanks in advance,

Ben

TWO EOS 1D's?!

Yikes!

I'll just throw out the idea you might want to sell one or both of these cameras.

Their real world value to a student photographer is, IMO, slim.

Unless you are accustomed to hopping in your McLaren to run to the 7-11, this is waaaaaay more camera than you will need or use.

The feature set for this camera is geared toward the more highly skilled photographer and many of the functions related to the operation of the camera will be found less in the main menu and more in the use of individual buttons to reach a usable state of set up.

If you decide to keep the camera(s), then I agree with the idea of a complete intial reset to OEM status before you actually use the cameras for any "serious" photography. Head to the Canon website for an on line owner's manual.

Due to their intended market these are also rather heavy and cumbersome cameras which can actually work against a student. More modern DSLR's will, IMO, be more user friendly and likely more capable of working with student photographers.

Any decent camera shop can guide you in your decision. If you have no camera shops in your area, you might look for sales receipts for the gear you now own.

Failing that, B&H would be a good source of guidance IMO; Photography, Digital Cameras, Lenses, & Lighting - B&H Photo

Also ask for guidance regarding which lens would be useful with the broadest category of DSLR's intended for a student. I think you'll find most of the lenses you have will work on any Canon DSLR of any pedigree.

Just my opinion but you have no use for two 1D's.

Even one such camera is a fairly heavy lift for a new student photographer IMO. Using the resources you would have from these two cameras, you could buy a much more user friendly 2016 DSLR from Canon which would go further toward facilitating your learning.

As far as where/how to actually learn the rules of photography and how to develop the intuitive skills called upon to create interesting photos, you would need to begin with the basics of whichever camera you decide to own. Knowing your equipment is, IMO, the prime requirement to effectively using your equipment.

Since you would likely be using a Canon, their website is where you begin.

From there, you can find any number of suggestions for sourcing the learning material you'll need. Run through the archives of this forum (and look at the top of this section of the forum for more help) and you'll find a great deal of information to get you started.

Once you have even the most basic ideas in your head, the real process is simply taking photos and then taking more.

And, for any digital camera your post production software will be essential to your results. Obtain good software and learn how to use it to your best benefit.

KmH · Jun 12, 2016

Score! Good fortune for you.
A starting place - Digital Photography Tutorials

Ebon · Jun 12, 2016

Thank you all for some great and friendly advice, with special thanks to weepete for an indication of what each lens does as I'd've probably taken ages to work it out. I've managed to locate the instructions manuals online for a majority of the equipment, meaning I have about 3000 (!!) pages of reading ahead of me to get at least somewhat clued up. I should mention that complete beginner may have been the tiniest white lie as, during my undergrad, I had a brief fling with an EOS 1200D and a 75-300mm lens to take several thousand photos of deer for study. However, I did little more than set the thing up on a tripod, adjust the focus and then press the shutter once every ten seconds for what felt like hours, so hardly what I'd call decent photographic experience. I must admit, soufiej, the idea of selling both cameras, batteries and 1Ds-limited accessories, whilst retaining the lenses, has crossed my mind. Although, the idea of selling a professional camera with my lack of know-how is quite intimidating, as pricing for these things seems to vary quite drastically and I wouldn't want to mug-off or be mugged-off by a potential buyer. I think, in agreement with what others have said, it might be best for me to get to grips with some of the basics of DSLR photography first, using the 1Ds MkIII, and then see where that takes me. However, I have no need nor want for the 1Ds MkI, so any tips on selling that would be most appreciated. Thanks again all.

chuasam · Jun 12, 2016

weepete said:
Other Canon lens: Can't see the information on this but the ring tells me it's another "consumer" grade zoom. It'll probably be a bit soft and not too expensive.

Nah, that's the pre-IS Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro lens

weepete · Jun 12, 2016

chuasam said:
Nah, that's the pre-IS Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro lens

I stand corrected then. It's another good lens. (To the op this one is particulary suited to taking close up shots of skittish insects like dragonflies etc which may fly away if you get too close)

Gary A. · Jun 12, 2016

OMG you stumbled upon a windfall. I am surprised that you are thinking of dumping the 1DMK1 ... a good and intelligent move. I strongly recommend you take a class at community (if, like most of us, you lack the self discipline to teach yourself from online sources). I have always found the rigid structure of the classroom beneficial when climbing up the learning curve. Joining up with a local photo group/club/association may also provide a wealth of information, especially if you could find a skilled and experience photog to latch onto as a mentor. Remember that much of photography is a craft. As such, experience and repetition will go a long way in sharpening your skills. The 1DMK1 is pretty old, so holding onto it until the right time to sell probably won't hurt you any, as it has pretty much bottomed out.

The 1D's are action cameras. The 1D's are designed for photojournalists and the ability to capture a subject at the peak of action is pretty much a requirement of these cameras high end cameras. One of the reasons the cameras are large, solid and heavy is for a superior build quality ... allowing the equipment to take a beating in the hands of photojournalists and keep on ticking. (The 'L' lenses are also of superior build equal to the 1D's.)

Where do you hail from?

gsgary · Jun 12, 2016

You have 3 very good lenses, don't be scared of the 1Ds it's just like any other camera you set iso, aperture and shutter speed and take the shot

Sent from my SM-G903F using Tapatalk

Designer · Jun 12, 2016

Ebon said:
Although, the idea of selling a professional camera with my lack of know-how is quite intimidating, as pricing for these things seems to vary quite drastically and I wouldn't want to mug-off or be mugged-off by a potential buyer. I think, in agreement with what others have said, it might be best for me to get to grips with some of the basics of DSLR photography first, using the 1Ds MkIII, and then see where that takes me. However, I have no need nor want for the 1Ds MkI, so any tips on selling that would be most appreciated.

In my first post, above, I nearly wrote that you should simply sell this collection and get yourself a decent mirrorless camera with which to learn the basics.

Here is where I would begin:

Make a complete list of everything, including model numbers and serial numbers.

Write your provenance in a signed letter. (Where you obtained this lot and under what circumstances, who was the original owner, and his relationship to you.) This may or may not be demanded, but it is easy enough to do, and will add much-desired legitimacy to your position.

Contact each of these dealers with a clearly stated intent to sell the lot or possibly trade for something you can actually use.

KEH
Adorama
B&H

You may receive any kind of response, ranging from "sorry, we can't use your stuff" to "here's what we are willing to pay". Make your best deal, and get on with life.