Photography - where to begin?

[Zambonie]

So after being at best buy today and demoing this one heck of a nice camera, I think it was the Samsung NX mini, (http://www.samsung.com/us/photography/digital-cameras/EV-NXF1ZZB1HUS), I took some pictures with it and just played around. I quickly got really interested. I've always been interested into photography but not this interested.

 

After some time I think I want to learn some things about photography.. and so yeah.

 

Do any of you know a good source to learn photography, and maybe some good and cheap starting equipment? All I really need now is stuff to take pictures of . best thing is probably my backyard.

 

Thanks.

[Laputacake]

I'd start with an SLR or DSLR camera to get used to manual controls and just play around with it. You can get a Canon 30D for around $100 I think it was and just experiment

[rmac52]

practice, practice, practice.  Any  camera is decent to start with.  You don't need a lot of equipment for general photography.  

Just get out and shoot.

You could try lynda.com for some technical learning.

[Silvercall]

Good photography books will help a lot. I'm not at home so I can't list any right now, but photography books can teach you the basics if what you need to know.

[Koffehh]

Photography is something you learn over time. Getting a budget DSLR like the Nikon 3100/3200 with a 18-55mm is a great staring point. As already said get out of the auto mode and is manual settings.

As where to learn, monthly magazines are great but I would say don't buy any more than 6 months worth as they start to cover what was published 6 months ago. Also digital photography review forums are great, as well as the website for tips and tricks. There is also another website can't remember the name off hand which is also very useful, if you sign up to there news letter they give you monthly challenges..... I'll look this up when I get home.

Good luck with this, also note its an expensive hobby to get into. Cost of lenses, the camera a decent workstation PC to edit on, editing software and accessories like tripods and a printer and other stuff.

[Bsmith]

the most you learn through practice, but if you are planning to read into it i would suggest "the complete photography book" which covers all possible fields, gives idea's and makes you want to experiment with settings and possibilities, it is actually everything packed into one which monthly magazines cover within 1-2years, while magazines don't go to far into it or just too far sometimes.

 

i found it a amazing read through myself since all the things covered in it are dependant on time, style, settings and things like filters, so it filters out the vision of the camera and lens, which is left for your own decision.

 

 

 

also note its an expensive hobby to get into. Cost of lenses, the camera a decent workstation PC to edit on, editing software and accessories like tripods and a printer and other stuff.

 

i would personally say that things like a workstation pc, software and printer aren't things you should think to much about, since printing can be done at shops(higher quality), a normal pc can also do(the average consumer pc is good enough if you got patience) and for software, the thing you need most is something like photoshop, or which GIMP is a pretty good, free replacement.

lenses on the otherhand, are nearly the most important thing(most important thing is the photographer) and overtime you will find what filters etc are the best for you and if you need it at all.

 

example:

photography through glass(car magazines, in zoo's etc) needs a pollerisation filter, but is expensive as FK, in which case the right angle or focus can do alot already.

[Ex14]

i would recommend a mirrorless, but definitely not the nx mini. a entry level dslr i would get a nikon D3x00 over the entry level canons cause canin hasnt changed their tech in awhile in that line...if you want a small pocketable camera, the Ricoh GR (rumored to have a new ver coming up soon) or the RX100 are nice choices as well.

overall tho if you want it to be interchangable lens i still think mirrorless is a better buy than a dslr, anything cept a nx mini.

[Zambonie]

I remembered I have a Nikon Coolpix, something my brother bought a while ago for a trip to take pictures and then abandoned it. It still works great and is in good condition, I just don't like android cameras

[SeanAngelo]

Get a cheap starter DSLR like the Nikon d3100 and just play around with the manual settings, don't buy it with the standard zoom kit, I suggest getting a 35mm f1.8g. Getting a prime lens will help you composition your shots because you don't have the zoom option, whereas you would zoom using your feet instead. Make sure to spend more on glass though, better glass means better pictures in terms of the overall quality of the image compared to the standard kit lens. @Zambonie

[cragger89]

Second hand.

 

My camera is an admittedly old one now, the EOS 40D. My dad recently sold his far more modern 1100D to get one because the image quality is still superb, it's a mid range camera so has the magnesium body which feels a lot more solid in your hand. It also accepts a genuine Canon grip which accommodates 2 batteries rather than 1. Well aware of the missing features compared with a modern entry level, but I started with a 350D and once I confirmed I liked shooting with a digital SLR, I felt disappointed in the feel of the camera. Your mileage may vary, though. The choice between Canon, Nikon, Sony, etc, basically boils down to your personal preference. I chose Canon because the button layout is much, much comfier for me. I sampled the D200 twice for a 12 month period and just didn't get on with it so well.

 

Second hand, again. You'll get a lot more for you money. The mid range models such as the 40D/50D/60D and the relevant equivalents from Nikon hold their value quite well, so should you decide they aren't for you, you won't lose as much money on resell as you would if you bought a brand new entry level model.

 

From personal experience, the automatic mode of the 40D is actually fully automatic which is good for a starter; you can just learn to compose photos. The D200 had what is referred to as "Program" mode, where metering is done automatically, but you can alter the dials. It does not have a fully automatic mode, something worth pointing out. There is absolutely nothing wrong with shooting with a D-SLR and leaving it in automatic if you like shooting that way.

 

I use the 18-55 IS EF-S II kit lens with mine and I adore it. The shots I can produce with this cheap lens always bring doubt when showing them to other people that I really used the kit lens. A skill worth developing (excuse the pun) with photography is buying cheap hardware and learning how to squeeze the absolute best out of it. Buying a tonne of expensive hardware is tempting and a therapeutic thing to do, but you do not need to spend mega bucks to get good results and master a new hobby well.

 

Most importantly, do try and hold the equipment and test it before parting with cash. Whether that means borrowing one from a friend or visiting a camera store and holding brand new equivalents - you will get a feel for the differences from all the different camps. Buying hardware carries no set rules, everyone has their own preferences - the most important thing is to gain an understanding of what you want from your daily use camera.

 

EDIT: Also, somewhere on this thread there has been mention of computing hardware capable of dealing with the files a camera produces. My PC which is an i3 4160, 8GB DDR and an SSD processes the CR2 RAW files from my 40D nice and quickly. The final RAW to JPEG conversions at high quality take about 4 seconds per file to process. The 40D is a 10MP camera. In other words, don't worry too much about computing hardware.

Edited February 10, 2015 by cragger89

[ExcitezR]

you need to have a good eye 

[Scruffy90]

So after being at best buy today and demoing this one heck of a nice camera, I think it was the Samsung NX mini, (http://www.samsung.com/us/photography/digital-cameras/EV-NXF1ZZB1HUS), I took some pictures with it and just played around. I quickly got really interested. I've always been interested into photography but not this interested.

 

After some time I think I want to learn some things about photography.. and so yeah.

 

Do any of you know a good source to learn photography, and maybe some good and cheap starting equipment? All I really need now is stuff to take pictures of . best thing is probably my backyard.

 

Thanks.

Depends on what you want to shoot.

 

In terms of buying equipment, I'd say learn film if you have a place near you that sells and develops on the cheap, or buy a used dSLR that allows for full manual controls and a standard prime lens (usually 50mm on a 35mm equivalent camera).

 

The best thing to do is get your fundamentals down. Framing and composition are the most import, more so than learning the settings and such at such an early stage.

Take pictures of anything and everything that interest you.

 

Youtube is a good place to see how techniques are implemented, some websites like SLR Lounge and Cambridge in Colour provide good tutorials and explainations to learn the basics. When I was learning (what seems like a long time ago), my mentor recommended a book called Black & White photography by Henry Horenstein, which turned out to be a good read and did a good job of explaining alot of techniques and uses for said techniques.

 

Most of all, have fun! Don't worry about specs and camera models and brands. Overtime as your skills grow, you will learn what you need and what camera system could provide you with the tools you need to push your photography further.

[Pony080905]

I super expensive camera isnt essential, I would say a camera that doesn't look like poo

[Victorious Secret]

Practice, buy more expensive glass than bodies. 

This was done off a $400 body with $1200 glass:

 

This was done off a $900 body with a $2600 glass: