New Nikon D7000

[charlie76]

Holy crap I just got my first digital SLR. Crazy....absolutely awesome. I would love any tips...how you guys shoot with this thing. Im trying to use as low an ISO as possible, but I don't see much noise for higher ISO's (1000+)!?!? So should I be trying to use the lowest ISO possible? Also, Nikon has a ton of crazy settings that I am not sure if I should be using (white balance adjustments, active-D lighting, others). And the manual gives not much explanation of how the various special settings work or what they do...!!!!! What do you guys do?
I took these the first day I got it in the mail....I would love any critique or tips of suggestions for the pictures or the camera... I got a great series of these floating pier posts...was hazy morning on the bay.

 

[LizardKing]

Get yourself a book about exposure or read some online articles. It seems you need to learn the basic concepts first.

 

[charlie76]

Get yourself a book about exposure or read some online articles. It seems you need to learn the basic concepts first.

Hm...well I've been doing BandW film for ages...I am just wondering about this electronic ISO thing.

 

[SoulfulRecover]

setting your ISO depends on the situation that you are in. Me personally, I set mine at 100 unless the light is getting low enough that it needs to be brought up a bit.

 

[BlackSheep]

Get yourself a book about exposure or read some online articles. It seems you need to learn the basic concepts first.

Hm...well I've been doing BandW film for ages...I am just wondering about this electronic ISO thing.

Haha I had the same problem when I switched over to digital, especially when it came to Auto-ISO - that is just wierd, no?

I can't give you specific pointers as I shoot Sony, but one suggestion - try shooting a bunch of stuff leaving the ISO on auto, that way you will get a good idea of how your new camera compares to what you've been used to with film.

For me, I've fallen into the habit of manually setting my ISO, in the same way that I would have chosen a particular roll of film to use. Oh, you'll probably find that the high ISO in digital form is much less grainy/noisy than what high ISO film would produce.

Have fun with the new camera!

ETA - nice shots!

 

[charlie76]

Haha I had the same problem when I switched over to digital, especially when it came to Auto-ISO - that is just wierd, no?

I can't give you specific pointers as I shoot Sony, but one suggestion - try shooting a bunch of stuff leaving the ISO on auto, that way you will get a good idea of how your new camera compares to what you've been used to with film.

For me, I've fallen into the habit of manually setting my ISO, in the same way that I would have chosen a particular roll of film to use. Oh, you'll probably find that the high ISO in digital form is much less grainy/noisy than what high ISO film would produce.

Have fun with the new camera!

ETA - nice shots!

Hey..great...thanks for the info. That's exactly what I was looking for! I have only found noticeable noise in really high digital ISO's on my Nikon...something I did not expect. I guess I will do an experimental shoot with low ISO's to see it a lower ISO will give better detail, less grainy, or something? I also set my ISO manually (out of habit I guess). I have always used TMAX (ISO 200 or so) and TRI-X (ISO 400 I think)...and the differences more to do with tone, rather than grain. I guess this will take some getting used to...and some personal experimentation. Thanks a ton for the info. I see you are an Environmental Consultant....I just got my BS in Environmental Engineering...hope to go down that path soon...as soon as I find a job!!! Thanks

 

[yerlem]

And the manual gives not much explanation of how the various special settings work or what they do...!!!!!

The printed manual that comes with the camera is pretty much useless, get the complete manual online (or does it come in the cd?)