SO, you just got a new DSLR.

[table1349]

I agree that this is a good list and a good sticky, however I would suggest an 11th addition.

R.T.F.M. And then read it again. You can save much time and grief for yourself and others if you understand the basic operation of the gear you bought.

 

[JonathanElvester]

Cool! This was helpful!

 

[fractionofasecond]

I'm a newbie just bought a DSLR. I agree with you completely that's why I came here to learn.

 

[Kerbouchard]

This post is moronic and I can't believe people are still reading it.

Skill has nothing to do with this hobby/profession. If you hand me a pro camera, a fast lens, and a good flash, I can make magic in a dark reception hall. If you hand me a mid level body and a kit lens in the same circumstances, I might as well go home.

I don't know why photographers get so egotistical as to assume that they are the deciding factor. They simply aren't.

On many occasions, I have loaned out my camera to somebody else. I ask them what kind of circumstances they will be shooting in, and then I set the camera up for them. The only thing they are responsible for is pushing the shutter release.

Honestly, it isn't that complicated.

 

[Forkie]

This post is moronic and I can't believe people are still reading it.

Skill has nothing to do with this hobby/profession. If you hand me a pro camera, a fast lens, and a good flash, I can make magic in a dark reception hall. If you hand me a mid level body and a kit lens in the same circumstances, I might as well go home.

I don't know why photographers get so egotistical as to assume that they are the deciding factor. They simply aren't.

On many occasions, I have loaned out my camera to somebody else. I ask them what kind of circumstances they will be shooting in, and then I set the camera up for them. The only thing they are responsible for is pushing the shutter release.

Honestly, it isn't that complicated.

This is ridiculous. Half the skill is knowing how to set up the camera in the first place in order to take the best shots. Next time you loan your camera to someone don't set it up for their circumstances, then see how well they do. Then come back and tell us there's no skill involved.

You can get just as good images with a mid-range camera as any other camera in the dark reception hall you mentioned if you properly learn how to use the camera and the lighting.

 

[Solarflare]

Whow, so you claim that it doesnt matter how bad your camera is, you can always make any picture you want, you just need more "skill" ?

 

[Compaq]

The correct way of looking at this is that of course a better photographer will produce better images than a noob 90% of the time. But then there are those situations that REQUIRE certain types of equipment to be able to take photos there. In dark rooms a f/1.2 lens has a better potential for good than a slower f/4 lens.

A pro can't take a close up portrait of a bird with a 50mm, the pro will have to crop as much as the noob.

Gear is absolutely necessary to achieve certain shots. A pro is able to use the gear efficiently, and noobs aren't. It's not about the gear itself, but how to use them. That's not the same as saying that pros can do magic with 50mm on a football field. They may get great shots with it, but they won't get close cup action.

Not all gear is able to get all the shots.

 

[Village Idiot]

Well here is a “top 10” list of things I wish someone would have told me when I started out.

#10 IF you are truly a newbie, this is going to hurt: Your new modern DSLR camera is a heck of a lot smarter than you are at this point. Over a hundred years of knowledge has been programmed into your camera. You need to spend (several) years to gain as much knowledge as it has.

With the right training and direction, it won't take that long. Plus, some cameras like the entry levels ones used to be would not spot meter and would only do scene, which can be tricky with high dynamic range scenes. Knowing how to appropriately meter and being smarter than the camera is a necessity for a good photographer.

#9 Ferrari’s are great cars; you just don’t see to many farmers hauling hay in them.
Everything has a designed purpose. Your DSLR camera and Kit lens, are CAPABLE of taking great photographs; if they weren’t, they wouldn’t be selling them. Really. Don’t begin your career by believing that you are already limited and need better equipment. Until you begin taking specialized types of photos, your equipment is probably going to do just fine (once YOU learn how to use it to the best of its abilities).

I started with an entry level Canon Rebel 300D. I personally would never recommend a rebel. They just don't handle well (unless they've fixed this in the new ones). Having to press in a button and use the shutter speed to adjust the aperture is a lot less intuitive for me than having two separate controls. Certain equipment has features that make life easier and that's why I'd recommend a good used mid ranged camera over an entry level any day of the week.

#8 Until YOUR skill level outperforms your equipment, there is no real reason to “upgrade”. Now, if you only have a 18-55mm kit zoom and you decide to add a 55-250mm zoom, that is SUPPLEMENTING your capabilities, not upgrading. Ask your self this: What is it that I am capable of doing, that my equipment is not capable of? Rushing out and buying a $1,500.00 PRO lens is not going to make you a better photographer.

This is true to a point, but kit lens quality is notoriously bad when compared to better lenses. I'd say everyone likes sharp photos and they're easier to get with better quality glass as long as the images aren't fuzzy because of other factors. A $1,500 pro lens may not be needed, but an upgraded third party would be welcomed by most compared to a stock kit.

#3 The IQ (Image Quality) is proportional to the amount of time used to create it. If you grab your camera and take a picture, you have a snapshot. If you take your time, set up the shot, compose carefully, follow the rules, then you are going to have a chance of having a photograph as a piece of art.

This is not true. People have got amazing photos from what you would have considered a snapshot. There are photographers out there that can show up, set up a few flashes in less than five minutes, take the photo they need, and go home. Not everything has to be a big production and big productions don't always produce the best work. It depends totally on the photographer and their knowledge. I'm sure most of us have seen photos where a photographer has set up lights and took their time to take an amazing photo just to end up with a flop because they don't know what they're doing.

#1. This is the single most important thing you can learn about photography:
It is the PHOTOGRAPHER that produces great images; not the equipment.

This has been argued on this forum previously. Hand a nood a camera and they're completely less likely to take a better photo than a *pro photogorapher with the same setup. Hand a pro photographer a bottom of the barrel entry level camera with three cheap flashes and a kit lens and they could take a good photo. Hand a pro photographer a high end medium format digital camera with some professional grade lighting and modifiers and they can make a great photo. It's not a simple equation of "it's the gear not the photographer or it's the photographer not the gear", it's a mixture of both.

*pro assume they're a good photographer. Not all professional photographer put out work that would be deemed remotely good. Marketing can be an amazing tool.

 

[Village Idiot]

This post is moronic and I can't believe people are still reading it.

Skill has nothing to do with this hobby/profession. If you hand me a pro camera, a fast lens, and a good flash, I can make magic in a dark reception hall. If you hand me a mid level body and a kit lens in the same circumstances, I might as well go home.

I don't know why photographers get so egotistical as to assume that they are the deciding factor. They simply aren't.

On many occasions, I have loaned out my camera to somebody else. I ask them what kind of circumstances they will be shooting in, and then I set the camera up for them. The only thing they are responsible for is pushing the shutter release.

Honestly, it isn't that complicated.

So what you're getting at is that if someone gave you an entry level rebel, a fast cheap prime, and three flashes with a kit that's under $1000, you'd shoot worse photos than someone who just picked up a camera for the first time that has a FF DSLR, a suite of top of the line lenses, and $10,000 in professional lighting equipment? If that's the case, I wouldn't pay you to shoot anything.

You can be pretty dense some times.

 

[PhotoWrangler]

So what you're getting at is that if someone gave you an entry level rebel, a fast cheap prime, and three flashes with a kit that's under $1000, you'd shoot worse photos than someone who just picked up a camera for the first time that has a FF DSLR, a suite of top of the line lenses, and $10,000 in professional lighting equipment? If that's the case, I wouldn't pay you to shoot anything.

You can be pretty dense some times.

I think... we finally agree on something.

 

[Raizahblade]

I'm a newbie just bought a DSLR. I agree with you completely that's why I came here to learn.

I feel you here! I don't even have DSLR yet, still doing research but I wanted to learn some terms, basics, and insight into this world from the people that are living in it!

 

[Solarflare]

I think its pretty simple actually. Photography is an artform. ANY form of art is always split into two parts:

a) The tools, the basics, the technique - thats the uncreative, technical base. If you're great at this, you're an excellent craftsman - yet you wont be really an artist.
b) Creativity, expression, composition - no matter what kind of control you have over the respective artform, art itself is created by inspiration, not by mechanically executing some techniques. Techniques only give you the ability to express yourself better.

So yeah, getting better tools (i.e. cameras, flashes, studio equipment etc) and getting better at using these tools gives you more possibilities to create art, but that alone wont give you the inspiration and power to actually express anything original thats worthwhile to show to the world.

 

[Forkie]

Whow, so you claim that it doesnt matter how bad your camera is, you can always make any picture you want, you just need more "skill" ?

More or less, yes.

 

[Furashu]

This post is moronic and I can't believe people are still reading it.

Skill has nothing to do with this hobby/profession. If you hand me a pro camera, a fast lens, and a good flash, I can make magic in a dark reception hall. If you hand me a mid level body and a kit lens in the same circumstances, I might as well go home.

I don't know why photographers get so egotistical as to assume that they are the deciding factor. They simply aren't.

On many occasions, I have loaned out my camera to somebody else. I ask them what kind of circumstances they will be shooting in, and then I set the camera up for them. The only thing they are responsible for is pushing the shutter release.

Honestly, it isn't that complicated.

I'm still new(got my DSLR like 2 weeks ago), but the thought process of a seasoned pro vs someone like me is completely different. The way you approach the shot in your mind, the setup of the camera, what perspective, how to expose the photo, what changes to make in post processing, uh isn't that the skill?

To have the knowledge and equipment is one thing, but to understand and capture a great photograph does in fact require skill.

So... based on your logic I would be able to give my 15 year old cousin a canon mark 5d iii with the best lens against you(same equipment) and his photos would be of equal quality and greatness?

"If you hand me a mid level body and a kit lens in the same circumstances, I might as well go home."

So... there have never been great photos taken by a kit lens EVER? You sir have blown my mind, i might as well throw my t3i and kit lens in the trash as Ill never take great photos because i cant afford a mark 5d. Good bye all!!!

 

[Kerbouchard]

This post is moronic and I can't believe people are still reading it.

Skill has nothing to do with this hobby/profession. If you hand me a pro camera, a fast lens, and a good flash, I can make magic in a dark reception hall. If you hand me a mid level body and a kit lens in the same circumstances, I might as well go home.

I don't know why photographers get so egotistical as to assume that they are the deciding factor. They simply aren't.

On many occasions, I have loaned out my camera to somebody else. I ask them what kind of circumstances they will be shooting in, and then I set the camera up for them. The only thing they are responsible for is pushing the shutter release.

Honestly, it isn't that complicated.

So what you're getting at is that if someone gave you an entry level rebel, a fast cheap prime, and three flashes with a kit that's under $1000, you'd shoot worse photos than someone who just picked up a camera for the first time that has a FF DSLR, a suite of top of the line lenses, and $10,000 in professional lighting equipment? If that's the case, I wouldn't pay you to shoot anything.

You can be pretty dense some times.

Perhaps I overstated it a bit, but then again your choice of gear was very telling. In your scenario, I have three lights and a prime. With three lights and a prime, I can do almost anything. In the scenario I was basing my statement on, it was a mid level body and a kit lens in a dark reception hall. The point is, a piece of gear makes all the difference. The lighting is essential. Without it, no amount of skill is going to change the fact that it is dark or that you need light to make a photograph. As was said earlier, there are certain types of shots that a specific set of gear is required. No amount of skill is going to turn an 18-55 kit lens into a 300mm 2.8.

This post is moronic and I can't believe people are still reading it.

Skill has nothing to do with this hobby/profession. If you hand me a pro camera, a fast lens, and a good flash, I can make magic in a dark reception hall. If you hand me a mid level body and a kit lens in the same circumstances, I might as well go home.

I don't know why photographers get so egotistical as to assume that they are the deciding factor. They simply aren't.

On many occasions, I have loaned out my camera to somebody else. I ask them what kind of circumstances they will be shooting in, and then I set the camera up for them. The only thing they are responsible for is pushing the shutter release.

Honestly, it isn't that complicated.

I'm still new(got my DSLR like 2 weeks ago), but the thought process of a seasoned pro vs someone like me is completely different. The way you approach the shot in your mind, the setup of the camera, what perspective, how to expose the photo, what changes to make in post processing, uh isn't that the skill?

To have the knowledge and equipment is one thing, but to understand and capture a great photograph does in fact require skill.

So... based on your logic I would be able to give my 15 year old cousin a canon mark 5d iii with the best lens against you(same equipment) and his photos would be of equal quality and greatness?

"If you hand me a mid level body and a kit lens in the same circumstances, I might as well go home."

So... there have never been great photos taken by a kit lens EVER? You sir have blown my mind, i might as well throw my t3i and kit lens in the trash as Ill never take great photos because i cant afford a mark 5d. Good bye all!!!

Sure, there have been a lot of graet photos taken with a kit lens. Just not in a dark reception hall. The gear requirements for an outdoor shot in good light is much different than your living room at dusk.

Yes, there is skill required in setting up your camera to achieve what you want it to do, but honestly, that's relatively easy, and in digital, you can always take a look at the lcd and reshoot it.

But the first skill, and perhaps one of the hardest to learn, is knowing what equipment you need to make consistent photos in a certain environment.

The biggest limitation on a new photographers development is that they don't know why there shots aren't turning out and they don't know what equipment they need to change their results. Instead, they keep trying the same thing over and over again. Then they go on some online forum and they will be told to buy a prime lens. A few months later, they will have improved, but still can't figure out how to take the next step. Then they will be advised to buy a flash to which they will argue that they 'hate the flashed look'. Then someday the light will click on and they will have figured out that they hate direct flash, but a directional flash can be magical.

Some time after that, they will finally have gotten to where they thought they were going to be when they bought their first DSLR...and all it took was a better lens, a flash, and a little bit of experimenting.

The hammer doesn't build the house, but it sure is hard for a Carpenter to get those nails in the wood without a hammer.