I don't have much of a single darn clue what I am doing... as of yet.

Slingin · Apr 3, 2013

Hi! New to the forums and photography with a newly purchased entry level Canon T4i. I am yet to have anything other than the 18-55mm lens that came packaged with the camera or any sort of filters, but I could not resist to take the newly equipped camera to the barrier islands off of my hometown on the Mississippi Gulf Coast this past Saturday. I have a lot to learn about photography and @ this point am currently discovering how my camera shoots as far as the manual settings with aperature, shutter speed, and ISO. I am definitely ignorant to photography by all standards but I am excited to learn. Here are some pics from the weekend that I shot with the camera's presets. Please any words of advice or encouragement are welcome. Maybe even a few lens or filter recommendations would help as well

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Thanx, and I will be posting around!

The_Traveler · Apr 3, 2013

Welcome from the mid-Atlantic Coast.
Photography has a steep but enjoyable learning curve.
My advice (if you want it) is this:

Do not take classes. You can't re-listen, they are rarely on point for the individual and they go too fast.
Read your manual. Read it again.
Don't worry about being perfect, learn to focus your mind, your eye and the camera on what you want to take a picture of and take that picture. Learn to use the camera's bells and whistles as you need them.
Don't buy more equipment until you really know that you need it. (as said by TheRaven in post #3)
Look at lots of pictures, decide whether you like them or not and try to figure out why. (that's the important part) Read lots of comments.
When you need to learn how to do something, find an on-line tutorial
Post your best picture (1 or 2 at a time for critique). Listen to the critique and discard what doesn't make sense.
Books are chancy but get a book on exposure. Books on software are out of date too easily but books that concentrate on process - why and how to do things are helpful (I always recommend Masking and Compositing by Katrin Eismann and The Digital Negative by Jeff Schewe
Don't look for tricks or techniques, just learn to take the pictures you want to take.
Repeat #5 forever - it's good for you

theraven · Apr 3, 2013

^^ Couldn't have put it better than that!

The only thing I will add, as it helped me a lot is don't buy anymore lenses. If you stick to your kit lens, you will know when you have learn all you can from it. When you have mastered it, then treat yourself, but there is a lot to learn from those plastic little lenses!

The_Traveler · Apr 3, 2013

theraven said:
The only thing I will add, as it helped me a lot is don't buy anymore lenses. If you stick to your kit lens, you will know when you have learn all you can from it. When you have mastered it, then treat yourself, but there is a lot to learn from those plastic little lenses!

Absolutely right, should have included that. (and will edit to include)

theraven · Apr 3, 2013

Cheers, also can I just add that you seems to have a natural eye for composition! Usually people (like me when I started), just center everything! Very nice shots!

pgriz · Apr 3, 2013

There is a variation of Lew's very good list, focusing on #5 - take lots of pictures, of things that catch your eye, and then (at home) analyse them to see what you were attracted to in the original scene/situation, and think about what would have made the image better. It takes some time to develop a vocabulary to describe what you see and what you feel. That vocabulary, and awareness of the visual, allows you to bring what was essentially unconscious, up to the level of awareness, and on that awareness, you can start building your learning efforts. Combined with looking at other people's images, you will see some characteristics emerge from mass - the images that grab your attention have certain common elements.

Another ability that you will start picking up with practice is the ability to see light not just as a bunch of photons, but also as a visual modifier which endows your subject with depth and volume and texture and colour. The quality of light has a huge effect on the effectiveness of an image, and it is under-rated as a factor that makes the image sing.

smalltowngirl13 · Apr 3, 2013

Welcome aboard!

IByte · Apr 3, 2013

theraven said:
^^ Couldn't have put it better than that!

The only thing I will add, as it helped me a lot is don't buy anymore lenses. If you stick to your kit lens, you will know when you have learn all you can from it. When you have mastered it, then treat yourself, but there is a lot to learn from those plastic little lenses!

And when you are finally ready for a new lens, rent do not buy them until it fits your style.

pete_6109 · Apr 3, 2013

Welcome aboard. Buy a UV filter to protect your lens from scratches. Especially if you like to shoot at the beach.

Juga · Apr 3, 2013

Welcome! My wife is from Biloxi and that looks like Deer Island. Beautiful place and a ton of photo opportunities IMO. Good luck on your adventure it is tough but worth it.