Newbie wanna pick up photography - where to start?

[Mystearica]

Good Day,

First of all - this is my first post! I'm 100000% new and I have never actually done "photography" before. As a matter of fact, I don't own any camera (not even a cellphone camera). I have used a digital camera before (my cousin's) for my graduation - wasn't hard at all and most of the pictures turned out nicely (except the ones in the dark auditorium) but that's probably because I pick up electronics pretty quickly - but I understand there is more to photography than a "digital camera", finding the right angle/source of light and click.

So here's the thing - I finally graduated, got a job and ready to live life. I also want to take up photography - something I have been fascinated with since I was very very very young but never had the resources (cash) to get started. But given my experience-full past I don't even know where to start! I had a friend a while back who recommended some cameras (but his e-mail doesn't work anymore and I'm stupid enough not to write the camera names down since I relied on his e-mail).

So thing is - where to start? What I know is I love pictures that pay attention to fine detail, emotion and are a good presentation of real life - basically simply-ish pictures that capture details that one otherwise doesn't notice - I know it sounds very very very silly... and maybe I'm not just describing it right. But I also love pictures that bring out the beauty in people, sceneries, pets, black and white and colored pictures. I am old enough to remember the age of "non-digital" cameras and I do think I liked their picture quality over the typical digital picture. Dunno sounds like I'm all over the place huh!

Well so... I THINK the first step is to get a camera - but again given my previous experience was a one time graduation picture taking spree - I'm not sure where to start looking and at what? I'm assuming you use different cameras for different types of imaging. Not sure does anyone have any suggestions for me? Any camera suggestions or pretty much any advice would be highly appreciated!

I need to mention I'm doing this as a hobby and not a job. Looking forward to any responses and thanks beforehand!


EDITING: I have access to both a US and Canadian address

 

[PASM]

Hi, how you doin?
Photography - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[reznap]

Sounds like you're getting into it for the right reasons. I'd get a high-end point and shoot (like a Canon S95) and play with that for a while. You might outgrow it and want a DSLR or something at some point.. might be a few months, a year.. maybe never - who knows. But if and when you do make that jump, you'd still have a good point and shoot as well.

Good luck, welcome to the forum, etc etc..

 

[cabrosh]

Try one of the super zooms. The latest Canon superzoom is the PowerShot SX30IS. Nikon and other companies make good ones, too - I'm just more familiar with Canon. They're not terribly expensive for as much they do, and easy to use. You can have a lot of fun with one, and if you decide photography is your thing, then move up to a DSLR (one that lets you change lenses.) The Canon G series (G12 is the newest) are great cameras, but more expensive and maybe have a little more of a learning curve.

 

[PASM]

Nikon F3

Konica Auto S3

Canon 5D

Nikon D300

Plaubel Makina 67

Yashicamat 124G

Olympus XA

Canon G11

Contax G2

Praktica IV, MTL

Fuji S2 Pro

Decide on film or digital, big or pocket-sized...suggest a budget etc

 

[Mystearica]

Everyone thanks for the help!!! My budget - probably less than one grand for now (have a decent paying job - aka no life and only study - and am willing to spend money on the things that I like/matter). I'll check out all the cameras listed and read more about them!

Thanks for the welcome

 

[JasonLambert]

Welcome to the wonderful world of photography. I hope you enjoy your stay. You are correct... The first thing you will need is a camera. Canon and Nikon are the two major brands and both of them do a great job. The one you choose is up to you and relay makes little difference. As a Canon shooter I of course will only be talking about Canon brand cameras but please keep in mind that if Canon makes it... Nikon will too.

A good place to start would be to get yourself a digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera. Point and shoots are great for taking snapshots of things you would like to remember, but a DSLR will give you creative control over your images. A good starter DSLR would be the Canon Rebel seres. Right now I believe the cheapest Canon you can pick up a model XS. But even at $500 it is still going to break the bank a little more than a point and shoot (P&S) will. If you have a little extra cash laying around you could bump up to a model T2i and get the ability to shoot HD video and an all around better camera. Both cameras I suggested comes with a kit lens. The 18-55 kit lens will be all you need for the time being. So much can be done with this little guy.

You will also need a memory card or two. I tend to keep my cards smaller in space but carry more of them. If I lose a card I would rather have lost 8gb of images than 16, 32, or 64gb worth of images. The nice thing about these starter DSLRs is that they use an SD card and the price of an SD card has come down a lot in the past few years. You are going to want to look for a SD card rated to at least a class10 or higher. This is the speed the card can accept data and when shooting in RAW (raw is a digital negative with a very large file size) like you should, that can be a lot of information to send over to a card.

MAKE SURE YOU READ YOUR OWNERS MANUAL!!!! I didn't put that in all caps for fun.... I did it because it is important. Go ahead and unpack your camera and put the battery on to charge. Now get a cup of coffee and.. Eh hem... READ YOUR OWNERS MANUAL!!!! It seriously is the best book you can read to get you started on the right path to taking amazing images.

Have fun.... I hope that we still see you around in another year or so. A lot of cameras end up on Craig's List after a month or two... Probably because the owners didn't READ THE OWNERS MANUAL!!!!

Have Fun,
~Jason

 

[PASM]

Cool. Ask anything you want. They're all good. Best wishes.

 

[Stryker]

Would suggest you get a decent camera you can afford without breaking the bank. I'm a Canon user and would suggest the 600D or 60D with a kitlens as starter. Work your way with the kitlens and find out what field (portraits, landscapes, photojournalism, macro, wildlife, still life, etc) you want and enjoy doing. Join a camera club near your place and be active in photowalks and shoots. If you have the time, attend photo seminars and tutorials to learn the basics. By this time you would know the field/s you are interested in. This would also be the time you may want to invest on other accessories like filters, tripod, lenses, flash, etc.

Dont make the mistakes I did. I bought a lot of stuff not knowing how to use them and what they were for, so I sold them at half the price. After attending a few seminars and joined a camera club, I learned I needed them back so I bought the same stuff again.

have fun and enjoy shooting....

 

[JasonLambert]

Dont make the mistakes I did. I bought a lot of stuff not knowing how to use them and what they were for, so I sold them at half the price.

Tell you what... I could use another 5DMKII as a back-up... Why not buy one and then sell it to me at half what you paid.

Ya, I like that idea!

~Jason

 

[Mystearica]

Okay annoying post from me.... I boiled it down to

Amazon.com: Canon Rebel XS 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens (Black): Camera & Photo

Or just $58 more (shipping including) the combo pack of the above camera (not shipped by Amazon but the seller has a good rating... I hope) Amazon.com: Canon EOS Rebel XS 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera (Black) with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II Lens + 8GB Deluxe Accessory Kit: Camera & Photo


Then there is Amazon.com: Canon Digital Rebel XSI 12MP Digital SLR Camera (Silver Body Only): Electronics which seems to have a slightly better review but less popular

^reminds me according to the dpreview.com, they mentioned that both cameras have "No mass storage USB support" which is a little confusing 'cause I thought that's what the SD/SDHC memory cards cards do - store images then you can transfer them onto a USB/computer if you want to... unless I'm understanding this wrong


Also Amazon.com: Canon EOS Rebel T1i 15.1 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera with 3-Inch LCD and EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens: Electronics
looks interesting - positive reviews but wondering if the $100 up is worth the price


Sorry I know this post is a little annoying - I will research more about them when I get back home tomorrow but in the meantime gotta go sleep (need to wake up at 5AM). Goodnight

 

[subscuck]

The T1i is the best of the three you have listed, however, any of those three would be fine. Even the XS with nice glass is a very capable camera. I don't see as you need to spend anymore than you have to. An XS in skilled hands will perform better than a T1i in unskilled hands. As mentioned above, the kit lens will do you fine for a while, and it's actually a pretty decent lens. Take the time to learn and practice what you're learning. I'll be the one to recommend that you get your hands on a copy of "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. You'll learn a lot from it, and you could certainly read it before you buy a camera. That way, when you read your manual (hint, hint), a lot of things will make sense immediately. If you truly have been interested in photography for as long as you say, do it right and actually learn about the photographic process and how your camera works. Otherwise, yeah, your gear will end up on Craig's List out of frustration.

 

[AgentDrex]

Canon 1000d (aka Rebel XS) user here...can't go wrong with a simple camera that can take photos...mine has held up since I bought it in August 2010 (I think) and is still working after 21,000 photos...

 

[GrantH]

I would get the t1i, but i'm a bit bias on that as I own one. You said 1000 dollars is your limit, you can buy ANY of the listed cameras locally for under 1000 dollars...you'll have a new found friend that you can ask exact questions to by doing this. It's there job to help their customers.

 

[pgriz]

Since you're venturing into a new area, make sure you get all the important vaccines. The first one is against equipmentitis, which can cause severe diarrhea of the wallet. Related to that is brandosis, which skews your ability to make informed judgments. Later on, you have to be vigilant for symptoms of encepahlitis (also known as "swelled head") which seems to follow the successful capture of the first set of images. Other than that, practice makes perfect, and reading about basics won't give you cooties. Good luck!