Salutations!

[Peavey]

Hello,

My name is Jon, nice to meet you. I recently bought an old Canon EOS Rebel G, and I am currently waiting for it to come in the mail. My father was a big Nikon fanatic, and I decided I wanted to make photography a new hobby of mine. The camera came bundled with a "Sigma Zoom 28-80mm 1:3.5-5.6 Macro Lens and carrying strap", but it also said that the batteries were dead. My question is, do I need a special battery for this (like a Li-Po battery) or does it take something along the lines of AA's?

Another question is would anyone here recommend any film-development websites (I believe they have those, if I'm not mistaken). Or do you just recommend me taking it to my local Walgreens or Walmart?

I plan on saving up for a Nikon D3100 in the upcoming months, hopefully. After seeing a friend use it, I've stopped in at my local Best Buy and played with it and the Canon Rebel T3i quite a few times now. Instead of having to wait months for a $500 camera, I figured I'd pay $50 and learn how to use a 35mm camera before jumping into the dSLR category.

Thanks for allowing me to be part of your community!

Jon


Also, a quick side note, I was checking out some of the links on the main website and noticed that the "Photography Beginners' Forum" link leads to a 404 error. I noticed at the end of the URL that there was an extra forward-slash/backslash. I took the second one off and it brought me to the forum. I figured I'd point it out so it can be fixed for other "newbies" like me, haha.

 

[Peavey]

I apologize for double posting, but I have just a few more questions. One being, I saw a website mentioned on here that rents cameras, lenses, etc. Not sure what site it was (I have it bookmarked on my computer; however I'm currently on my phone), but is something like that trustworthy and safe to use?

Also, I saw some threads on here that mention terminology and whatnot used on the site, but is there anything that can get me started on understanding things like aperture, exposure, etc.?

Thanks!

 

[cgipson1]

I apologize for double posting, but I have just a few more questions. One being, I saw a website mentioned on here that rents cameras, lenses, etc. Not sure what site it was (I have it bookmarked on my computer; however I'm currently on my phone), but is something like that trustworthy and safe to use?

Also, I saw some threads on here that mention terminology and whatnot used on the site, but is there anything that can get me started on understanding things like aperture, exposure, etc.?

Thanks!

Welcome!

Rent professional cameras or camera lenses for Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus, Leica and Pentax

Amazon.com: Understanding Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera (9780817439392): Bryan Peterson: Books

 

[Peavey]

Thanks for the links! I'll assume that renting lenses and whatnot are safe from mentioned site, but I think I'll hold off on it for now. And I'll look into that book, as well.

Another thing, the camera I bought off of eBay (currently in transit...) says it comes with a "Sigma Zoom 28-80mm 1:3.5-5.6 Macro Lens". If I remember correctly, I heard that the brand Sigma is a pretty decent brand, and also a macro lens is used for close-up shots, if I'm not mistaken. Does anyone have a list of lens brands to buy or stay away from? I understand it might be opinionated, but I just want to make sure what to stay away from especially before I start looking into things like wide angle and (possibly) fisheye. I was looking into full-frame fisheye lenses (which I love so much), but from what I've seen run around $700 or so. Is this correct? And would buying a cheap fisheye lens (under $100) be worth it just to mess around with? Not for any professional photography or anything, just to, like I said, have fun with. Also, I'm looking into camera bags as well. Again, any brands you all prefer and also those to stay away from?

I understand that "you get what you pay for" and I'm sure that statement definitely applies here. But the less I have to spend on getting everything now is more I can put towards a dSLR, like the Nikon D3100.

 

[cgipson1]

You might want to just use the lens that is coming with the body for a while.. and do a lot of study! That way you will have more knowledge to decide what you need, after you figure out what you like to shoot, and how to shoot it.

OEM lenses are usually the best overall... there are some exceptions in some areas. Yes.. the more expensive lenses are usually better than the less expensive lenses! BUT.. until you develop enough skill to utilize top end lenses.. just use what you have!

There are a lot of good bags out there... I find the LowePro line to be a good value for the money, but you will find everyone has their favorites....