New to this.

[mrskeltner90]

Hi I have finally given in to follow my passion. I am having trouble with setting the right aperture. Can someone help. I am trying to take a photo of a bird of paradise flower outside.

 

[tirediron]

Welcome! When you say 'trouble setting the right aperture', do you mean that you don't know how to do it, that you're getting too much depth of field (too much of the image in sharp focus), too little depth of field (too little of the image in sharp focus), or that your exposure isn't working? Any time you are asking an equipment-related question, it always helps to tell us exactly what equipment you are using, as well as to describe the set-up, and even post some sample images showing the problem.

 

[IgsEMT]

There's more to good picture then right aperture.
To try it out, first set the camera to full auto and see what it gives you, then set it to P mode, work w/ few basic low end ISOs (100-800), analyze the results and see if you can replicate the same or better is Aperture priority or Manual.
A lot depends on the lens you're using. If you're using something of 3.5-5.6 lenses, those tend to perform better at apertures of 6.3-11 (sometimes 16 depending on the lens). If you're using 2.8 glass I found those to be doing VERY well anywhere from 4-8 BUT it a lot depends on the glass you're using along w/ camera settings.
Good Luck

 

[mrskeltner90]

Well my photo comes out to sharp and when I try changing the aperture my photo ends up overexposed or underexposed.

 

[IgsEMT]

What mode are you shooting in? Sounds like Manual, if that's the case then you need to compensate for changes in aperture by adjusting either ISO or shutter speed.
If you're shooting in Aperture mode, camera will compensate for changes in aperture by adjusting the shutter speed.

 

[mrskeltner90]

I was shooting in Aperture mode.

 

[IgsEMT]

Normally in A, exposure isn't an issue unless there are some major changes, try this experiment
Set the camera to A mode, ISO 200, spot meter, if you have a tripod USE IT, if not, set it on a table and point to specific SOMETHING at f/11 - take a shot and see what you get. Then w/o moving the camera open to 5.6 and compare the two shots. Normally you should see the difference in dof, not exposure.

What camera and lens(s) are you using?