How to start??

[Hikaribushi]

Keep your manual in your camera bag. You will refer back to it OFTEN in the initial months with your camera.
I also HIGHLY suggest you order one of the books about your camera such as this one David Busch's Compact Field Guide for Nikon D5100 9781435460874
The camera manual will give you a definition of the feature and tell you where it is, but the guide will explain to you what it does, when and why to use it.

Manuals are for suckers. Read through this link.

Nikon D5100 User's Guide

Then look on you tube for videos about the 5100

I read the Ken Rockwell guide for my camera and found it to be very, very useful.

 

[deeky]

Psychology is an inexact science.

The notion of 'learning styles' has been around since the 1970's.

Putting the notion of learning styles to use according to the the 'meshing hypothesis', teachers assess the learning styles of their students and adapt their classroom methods to best fit (mesh) each student's learning style.

Though popular, in so far that both children and adults express having a learning style preference, the basis and productiveness for the proposals of learning styles and the meshing hypothesis, have been extensively criticized since the 1970's.

The criticism stems from the fact there are no well-designed, double blind experimental type studies that provide evidence that identifying a student's learning style, and then adapting classroom methods to best fit each student, actually produces better learning outcomes.
There is hoever significant evidence that implementation of the learning style assessment and 'meshing hypothesis" (that a student will learn best if taught in a method deemed appropriate for the student's learning style) is in fact invalid.

Very interesting, considering its prominence in academia. I'm curious about the studies otherwise. Send them in a pm if you can so we don't totally hijack the thread. But I'm interested in taking a look at them.

 

[andrewochs615]

Yea I say screw the manual I think it is not long enough. I also have a d5100,get the Nikon d5100 for dummies book its pretty awesome. Also Understanding Exposure is also a great book.

 

[pgriz]

I. Hate. Manuals.

My "normal" way of learning anything is to turn it on and start pressing buttons, twirling knobs, unhinging hinges, snapping snaps, etc. Yeah, I had the best collection of unassembled clocks and other mechanical stuff as a kid. Then after the novelty wears off, I crack open the Quickstart guide and see what I missed. After that, I look for the manual and go to the overview section, also to see if I missed any buttons/controls/actuators... And finally, as a sleep aid, I start reading the manual. Occasionally, I'd find something that I haven't come across yet. But not that often.

My significant other, and several of my family, just don't do things that way. They want to know there's a structure and order to the universe. Turning on the machine without knowing anything about it is a threat to the flow of the universe. To be discouraged, if not avoided. Now, I would agree if I was a bomb-disposal member, but otherwise, unless it's wired to explode or give an electric shock, it's not going to be irreversible.

Having said that, DO read the manual. Preferably with the tool next to you. In the long run, unless you're like me, it will lead to less frustration, and the occasional AHA moment. And in relatively short order, you'll know what you're supposed to do with the thing.

 

[jhodges10]

Great minds think alike Pgriz!

 

[otherprof89 31]

While many find Ken Rockwell's camera and lens evaluations less than stellar, he does have a (free) guide to the d5100 that I found quite useful when I got the camera. Just do a search for ken rockwell's d5100 guide. It makes suggestions about settings for sharpness, saturation, etc. which are his personal preferences, but you do get a place to start and do learn what options are available. I found it a better quick start than the Nikon supplied Quick Start.

 

[Furashu]

I am in the same situation, just bought a DSLR,

read the guides here: http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/photography-beginners-forum/123160-tutorial-thread.html

read the basics here: Digital Photography Tips and Techniques | ExposureGuide.com

Read the Manual( i am still reading through mine since last week)

A book that is recommended by all: Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson
Amazon.com: Understanding Exposure: How to Shoot Great Photographs with a Film or Digital Camera (Updated Edition) (9780817463007): Bryan Peterson: Books

i watched the videos here: DSLR Basics: Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO - YouTube
he has a part 1, part 2 covers white balance and part 3 covers f-stop and all that stuff.

good luck, there's a lot of information.

 

[daya007magic]

Thank you all for your valuable suggestions.
I will keep updating you guys about my progress.

All the post were usefull. Thanks

Be in touch:
www.facebook.com/dayanand.sangoli

 

[SCraig]

Accept the fact that at some point you WILL read your owner's manual. You can either read it, as KmH recommended, while your initial battery charge is going. Or you can read it a bit at a time. Or you can read other tutorials and when they tell you to do something you will wonder how to do it and then pick up your manual again. Regardless, at some point you WILL read it.

Since you are very new to photography I would recommend reading through the manual initially. A camera owner's manual does not teach you photography, it teaches you how to use your camera and how all of the functions and features are accessed. Once you have scanned through the manual and have a general idea of where things are start through a basic tutorial in photography used in conjunction with your owner's manual. When the tutorial recommends setting an aperture or shutter speed or ISO, pick up your manual and find out how to adjust it.

Also, as MLeeK recommended keep it with you when you go shooting. You WILL need it for a while until you get comfortable with your camera.

As to Ken Rockwell's information, I'll stick with Comedy Central when I need a laugh. His information has nuggets of useful information lost in the middle of a lot of strictly personal preferences. HIS personal preferences. I disagree with a lot of them and prefer not to use them. Unfortunately most new photographers aren't able to separate the nuggets from the hyperbole and this is why I seldom recommend his site for anyone other than experienced photographers. Once a person is able to separate the factual information from his personal dictums then it can be, in some ways, a useful site. Until then I recommend some of the more informative sites such as Cambridge in Colour.

 

[Primoz]

The single most important thing that you can do (and 99% of new camera owners DON'T do) is read and understand your camera's manual!

I wouldn't start with the camera manual if I were you. When I started out with photography like you, I tried to do that and didn't understand a thing, because camera manual is just technically describing camera's features and doesn't tell you why/when/how to use them.
Manual is fine once you know what you're looking for and just want to know where to find that on your body.

I found it much easier to learn the basics from DVD's, youtube tutorials etc.

This was gold for me: Magic Lantern DVD Guide - Great Photos with DSLR » Graphic GFX Sources More Than You Need! In the 1 hour that the dvd lasts you learn more than from any book... When you watch it for the second time it'll all start to make a lot of sense.
You'll find a lot of these dvd's on youtube as well... So google it! =)

 

[daya007magic]

Scraig-- I'm not new to the photography. Before this I was using digital camera, point and shoot. But yes of course new to DSLR so I'm not aware of the terms like fstop,shutter speed etc etc. Either by manual or by google I will learn this terms and i will enhance my knowledge of photography.

Anyways, thanks for your advice Scraig.

www.facebook.com/dayanand.sangoli

 

[daya007magic]

@primoz- thanks for your suggestion. I will google those videos and will also look for DVD if I can get it from anywhere.

Thanks

Enjoy photography

www.facebook.com/dayanand.sangoli

 

[3bayjunkie]

Read the digital photography book vol 1 by scott kelby.

 

[Solarflare]

I wouldn't try to read the entire manual through in one setting. It's too much info for a beginner. What I would suggest is to definitely read it, but to sit with your camera in your lap as you read it and for everything you read you do with your camera. The manual says, "Turn on the camera by switching x" then do it. Take your time and read the manual, but only in little chunks with you camera. Think of it as a semester in school. Professors don't throw everything at you in one setting. They teach you then give you assignments to try it out. Do the same and soon you will be very familiar with your camera! Good luck and HAVE FUN!

Thats how I did it.

I am confident I can use my camera completely now, except for the retouch menu - I find the very idea to do in camera retouching quite riddiculous and refuse to even try it, some of the special effects, which to me are hopelessly pointless toys, except for night vision, and the movie mode, which I dont need or want.