Complete Newb sorry in advance

[Drumbum27]

Hello I am brand new to SLR cameras and I dont know how to speed up taking pictures. I have a canon t2i which i just bought and I have to hold the button down for what feels like 3-5 seconds before it actually snaps the picture. How do I speed this up?

 

[KmH]

So how long does it actually take? Your 'feel' may be un-calibrated.

As noted in the T2i user's manual auto focus requires a minimum amount of light and if the aperture is set to smaller than f/5.6 all bets are off as far as AF is concerned, unless you use the AF assist feature.

It's very feasable AF can take 3-5 seconds to achieve AF in low light or one of the other circumstances that AF can have trouble dealing with (also noted in the user's manual) so the shutter can release.

It's also possible the camera has been configured in a menu for a delayed shutter release.

So what shooting mode?
What focus mode?
How much light?
What lens aperture?

 

[Dagwood56]

It sounds like your shutter speed is set too slow. Your camera manual is a valuable tool - it will tell you how to correct this. Read it. Learn it.

 

[analog.universe]

You're not using live view autofocus are you? It is orders of magnitude slower than the autofocus mechanism employed when using the optical viewfinder.

 

[Drumbum27]

Im using full auto mode with he AF selected on the lens

 

[Kerbouchard]

So how long does it actually take? Your 'feel' may be un-calibrated.

As noted in the T2i user's manual auto focus requires a minimum amount of light and if the aperture is set to smaller than f/5.6 all bets are off as far as AF is concerned, unless you use the AF assist feature.

Huh? Focussing is done with the lens wide open. Your aperture isn't adjusted until you take the photo. It doesn't matter if you set your aperture to f/2.8 or f/22. Cameras don't work like that. That's part of the reason most cameras have a DOF preview button.

As far as the OP's problem, sounds like you are trying to focus in the dark or on something that has almost no contrast. If you want it to take pictures faster(regardless of whether it's in focus), switch to a single point focus and switch your setting from focus priority to shutter priority.