New to photography

Quaz · Jun 19, 2012

Hi I am really new to photography. I first got into it by Instagram for my iPhone and now I am really into it. All I have is my very old Canon PowerShot G6 which only has 7.1 Megapixels. I am teenager and I'm running low on cash. First how do I really get started in Photography? And can you guys give me the break down of what software I should use to edit my photos? Also what would be good Camera to start with?

Fred Berg · Jun 19, 2012

If you're low on funds, Picasa is quite good and is free. The Canon you have is as good a camera to get started with as any other. 7.1 megapixels may not sound a great deal by today's standards, but that's more than enough to allow you to produce good quality images.

Quaz · Jun 19, 2012

My phone has 8 megapixels so would i be better off just using that?

Nat. · Jun 19, 2012

It's not just about megapixels, though. The camera might have a better lens, a larger sensor, aperture & shutter control.

TCampbell · Jun 19, 2012

The G6 will offer more control, the iPhone is simple to use. A typical web-sized photo usually less than 1 megapixel! A 7 megapixel camera is plenty.

If you're using Instagram from an iPhone then you're basically taking photos of things "as they are" and you're not yet exploiting the camera to control how something appears. As you learn more, you realize that you can use manual exposure controls to freeze action, or imply motion by deliberately blurring action. On a camera with a larger sensor (neither of the two cameras you have can do this) you can adjust the aperture to create an image with a deliberately blurred background and yet still have tack-sharp focus on the intended subject.

You can learn the basics of exposure via a book such as Bryan Peterson's "Understanding Exposure". The book requires that you have a camera that can shoot on "manual" (which your G6 can do) but some of the creative effects work best with a camera that has a large sensor and a lens with a low focal ratio (which the G6 doesn't have). I wouldn't worry too much about what your equipment is... learn the techniques. You'll actually be a much better "shopper" once you realize what features control the exposure... you'll have a much stronger understanding of what sort of camera you'd like to own (and why).

You can learn about composition from Michael Freeman's book "The Photographer's Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos" -- you can learn about composition and design with ANY camera.

AaronLLockhart · Jun 19, 2012

Quaz said:
My phone has 8 megapixels so would i be better off just using that?

The only purpose MegaPixels will serve you is capturing large amounts of detail at higher resolutions and prints. For the most part, anything above 5 or 6 megapixels is completely irrelevant unless you plan on printing on posters or like. The settings on the camera added with the lens quality will determine what type of images the camera will produce. My first camera was a Canon PowerShot S3iS. I loved it.

exilarch · Jun 20, 2012

When judging a camera (camera body) one of the main properties is sensor size. Even old point and shoot cameras would be a better choice when compared to a mobile phone.