Lolli

Oh some of them are frame horribly. I still don't know the rules for framing.

I stressed to her that I'm a total novice and she's fine with that. She offered to pay for my services but I declined, also less pressure.

Thanks for all your help and time. For the most part it is clear, I understand the principle theory of it. I went out at lunch and took some shots at different shutter speed and aperture. The problem is, I don't know in which atmosphere/environment you should change ISO, shutter speed or aperture.

I used ISO 400 and I tried with a large and small aperture and adjusted the shutter speed accordingly.

I'm not quite sure when you'd want to use a slow shutter speed unless you're going for a special effect - usually it's blurred and not as a clear.

I signed up for a basic course in photography.

Malkavian

Cool pix

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Woof!

gonzo

Congrats! You'll have a ball. I did my niece's wedding, plus we videotaped it. I thought I'd be nervous, but once I started all I could think of was catching cool shots.

W.M.DEEEZ

Generally, shoot at the lowest iso you can, whenever you can...the quality of the pix will be better, as there will be less grain/noise.

So...when you're outside on a sunny day, try iso 100, and see if you can shoot fast enough...you never want a slow shutter speed, because of the potential for blur. If you are at a race, and you want to blur the background to show speed, you purposely shoot slow, and pan (follow) the subject as it passes. Otherwise, the only reason for shooting somewhat slow, is to enable you to use a smaller aperture...in order to make crisp pictures.


When you use an aperture of 11, or 16, you generally get crystal clear pix. Inside, without a flash, you probably have to up the iso to 400. When I say slow shutter speed, depending on the length of the lens, you might not want to shoot slower than 80 (1/80th of a second), or 100 (1/100th of a second) unless you are using a tripod.


It really is simple, and the more you play, the more you'll see what I'm talking about...the aperture setting is directly related to the shutter speed. You will decide what you are trying to achieve in each pic. If you have a ton of light, (optimum conditions) then you only have to decide on depth of field...once you get above 250 (1/250th of a second) it doesn't much matter how much faster you shoot. At that point, you will be making your decision based on what aperture you desire. Again...unless you are looking for an effect, you might want to use the smallest aperture (highest number) you can. It makes for clear pictures.








DSC_0831 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!



In this pic, you notice all the space above the girl's head. It kind of throws the balance off in the picture. I always try to bend down, and shoot directly at kids, pets, etc...although this angle does make her appear very small, because you are shooting down at her. It might be desireable, as she is a little girl.

Your framing will change, once you get used to looking at things through a viewfinder. You will find yourself seeing things as pictures, even though you don't have your camera with you.


The tendency is to pay attention to focusing, looking at the meter in the viewfinder, and god knows what else, and we forget to frame the pic just before we take the shot. Those lines in the viewfinder can be annoying sometimes, and we end up moving the camera just to see the subject above/below those lines.

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Lolli

Thanks!

Thanks! I was a little nervous when she mentioned it a few times and sort of blew it off but when I realized she was serious and really wanted me to, I made sure she knew that I was a novice and she said she didn't care so I'm going to have fun with it!

Larger lens (high aperture) brings in more light hence the less clear/crisp are, so that's why it's best to go with a small aperture, is that right?

So for low light both ISO and aperture have to be taken into consideration?

to sum up:

shutter speed - when the priority is for a faster picture meaning less blur

ISO - priority is when there is low light but the higher the ISO the grainer the picture

aperture - when the priority is having crisp photos but shutter speed will be slower hence potential for blur

Is this somewhat right?

Thanks for the critique! That was awesome. I was going to ask you and Gonzo to critique my shots but forgot to mention so that's great - would love to hear more feedback on the other pics, I won't be offended with any suggestions.

I really, really, really appreciate all the information you have provided. It's incredibly helpful and useful...big hugs to you!

W.M.DEEEZ

Sounds like you've got a really good understanding about what we've discussed.


Technically, it isn't so much amount of light, because you will always get the same amount of light to the sensor/film.


What you are doing, is deciding how you will deliver this light. Think of the shutter...quite literally...as a window painted black so no light can get through. The shutter speed, is you opening this window, and then closing it quickly, to allow a specific amount of light in.


The lens opening is another way of letting light in. The smaller the lens opening, the longer you will have to leave the window open, because you need a specific amount of light in each pic. So, a large lens opening lets in large, "blobs" of light in, while a small lens opening allows smaller, more focused "blobs" of light in. Kind of how focused a laser beam is, when compared to a flashlight.


Generally...and shutter speed too.... Ideally we would love to shoot at a low iso all the time. Unfortunately, we can't. Indoors, you must decide on what combination you will use...low iso and:

flash
artificial fill light
a tripod and a slow shutter speed, if your subject is still enough.


Or, you bump up your iso, and do what you must. You'll get this down, when you shoot your next couple hundred pix. You will also learn just how slow a speed you can hand hold, without blur. This will also depend on the size of the lens you are using. You're lucky...you can see your results immediately if you've got your computer nearby. When I was a kid, I shot a ton of black and white. I would shoot some pictures, go inside, develop them, print them, and then decide what I did right, and what I did "not so right"...it was a great experience, but this instant stuff makes for a quicker lesson.


Yes it is...there's a whole lot of stuff going on inside that camera!


One more thing...that word "priority".

When shooting auto, in shutter priority mode, you are demanding that the camera shoot at a certain shutter speed. The camera will choose the correct aperture, based on changing light conditions.


Aperture priority, now that you know about the difference, you demand a certain aperture setting, and the camera will choose the correct shutter speed, based on changing light conditions.

So, outdoors on a bright day, you might demand aperture setting 11, or 16, because you have the ability to use this small (clear) setting. The bright conditions will make it unnecessary to worry about a shutter speed that will be too slow.








Hey, I haven't posted anything on these boards that I would consider good quality pix. I post them anyway, because we're showing off our flowers, birds, etc.. It's still nice to see other people's pix. I say, there's no substitute for the quality you get from film, but my buddy tells me that if I printed some of these pix I wasn't so impressed with, they would look much better than they do on my screen.



I'm still learning too...it makes for great conversation. I will never forget the day my best friend/neighbor showed me how to develop pictures. I sat in the darkroom, and watched a picture "appear" on this piece of paper, that was submerged in chemical.


I was hooked!

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Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got til it's gone

W.M.DEEEZ

Here's a cool one of an osprey.

It stinks, from many photographic aspects, but it's a cool pic.

There's a nest in a nearby cell phone tower, and I visit every couple of days to see if the babies are ready to fledge.


Look closely...the sucker is carrying a fish, and if you really look, you can see a trail of osprey turd behind him/her.

I think it was trying to crap on my head!

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Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got til it's gone

Lolli

I took all your posts and put the info in a document as a reference point - can't thank you enough! I have a good understanding of these concepts now. This weekend I'm going to take a shitload pictures!

I would've never noticed it if you hadn't pointed it out - boy that's clear!

Lolli

So I've been playing around with my camera and I'm taking much better shots.

Just wondering what the optimal setting for taking action shots in both bright light and low light. I realize the faster shutter speed the better but I'm not getting quality that I want. What's happening is the whole shot is blurred instead of background.

I'm also uncertain when it's beneficial to use panning or still.

My other question is about my lenses. There was a "special" when I bought my D40 for a twins lens kit (18-55 & 55-200) - now that I know a little more I regret getting these lenses. I think it would've made more sense to get 18-200 lens. I find it very choresome to change the lenses. I usually stick with the 18-55. Is it a good idea to sell these 2 lenses (I just bought them in October and have a 8 or 9 year warranty on them) and get a 18-200? Or should I stick with what I got?

My other problem is that I'm not sure when it's a good situation to use the 55-200 - is it only when I want a close up or are there other situations where it's advantageous?

gonzo

There's nothing like it! I LOVE playing in the dark room. There's only one thing I like better...playing in the mud! (Making sculpture out of clay).

Still...there's something special about B&W. My composition and framing is always better in B&W.