Post tips that you wish someone told you when you first started Photography

[kevinsyn]

Should be fun to see responses :)

- Photography is an expensive hobby... very very expensive
- Your flash gun is not more powerful then the sun
- Always check your bag to see if the memory card is in there....

and finally...

As much information as you learn from these forums and or books, there is no substitute for photography then the real thing! Get out and practice :lol:

[DocFrankenstein]

- film is cheaper for you
- get a rangefinder with 3 lenses and only shoot black/white

[rhys]

If somebody had told me years ago when I started in photography that I'd have been better off going straight into Canon EOS rather than Nikon AI, I would already have excellent gear and would only have needed a body and a wide-angle.

Having said that, when I tried a Canon EOS some years ago, I hated it.

I also wish somebody had shown me some good photos taken with a Leica M4P and shown me then that a Fed 4 was just as good and that I could get excellent Leica lenses cheaply. I might then have stayed with the Fed and later moved onto the Epson RD-1 or the Leica M8.

[J T]

- Always check your bag to see if the EXTRA memory card is in there....


Fixed for what *I* would have said. I ran out of memory a few weeks ago while out shooting about 45 minutes away from my home. My extra memory card did me no good as it sat on my computer desk. http://bestsmileys.com/angry2/10.gif

I guess we learn by our mistakes.

[In2Photos]

1. Shoot RAW!
2. Buy a flash first! (and learn how to use it)
3. Don't shoot pictures just because you can. While I have lots of batteries and memory cards I found that taking shots just because you have the space isn't a good thing. Still treat the shot as if you were shooting film. Wait for the shot, make it count, so you don't end up throwing away a bunch of trash.

[thescottandrew]

that batteries dont last forever, especially in your flash

[saravrose]

1. Buy correctly. don't pick up lenses just because the focal length is right.. Take the time to invest in good pieces..

2. Take your manual with you everywhere.. don't be afraid to look things up

3. It takes time. A lot of time to learn to use a camera... It also takes time to develop an eye for the good/bad/ugly.

4. Don't beat yourself up for mistakes just learn and move on. And don't be afraid of shooting in Manual..

sari

[davidmigl]

Don't buy the "$3000+ AF DIGITAL PROFESSIONAL 2-ZOOM PACKAGE!!111!@@111!!!!2!" on ebay.

Don't buy low-end accessories; they do the exact same thing as the originals but give out in a few months.

Invest in a good tripod; a cheap one will drive you nuts.

Just switch the dial to "M" mode already......

[oic929]

Spend more on gear that will hold its value. ie lenses and not bodies

[kevinsyn]

Don't buy cheap tripods
Don't buy cheap filters.

[rhys]

Pay once, buy right.

[Jim G]

One big thing for me (other than the above) was try custom function 4.1 on the 20d+ series.. separating focus from exposure gives that much more freedom and only took me a few shots to get used to.

I second the "don't buy cheap gear" stuff...



Oh, one big thing for me and an exception to the above - get the kit lens first! If you don't know what you want out of a lens and you don't know whether you need f/3.5 or f/2 or f/8 then get the cheapest possible lens that allows you to figure this out and go from there. Buying the relatively expensive 17-85 and finding you need f/2.8 just means you have to sell the 17-85 at a loss to get something which is more useful to what you do... so work out what you need on a cheap kit lens which can then always be used as a doorstop or light backup (or lens for the kids or significant other)...

[Bamamike]

Yep, the "don't buy cheap gear" had hit me some times (tripod, bags and some lenses). You pay twice while buying cheap....

[rhys]

The problem with a lot of people is the I want factor.

We want it and we want it NOW.

This leads us to buy on credit or those of us who're more sane and sensible don't follow the credit route but instead buy what we can and save for the rest.

This leads us to people's other problem. People can't afford what they really should have and either through lack of knowledge (not a crime) or through wishful thinking (this is a crime) buy cheap. This leads people to buy $30 tripods hoping they're going to be as good as a $150 tripod. It also leads them to buy $110 Quantaray lenses in the hope they'll be as good as Leica lenses.

I went cheap. I bought a Tamron 70-300 which actually isn't too bad as long as it's on a tripod. Of course now that Canon has come out with a 17-50 f2.8L IS lens, I'd probably have bought that instead of my Tamron 17-35 and 28-75. I might even then have got the Canon 70-200 f4L also.

[DocFrankenstein]

The problem with a lot of people is the I want factor.

We want it and we want it NOW.

This leads us to buy on credit or those of us who're more sane and sensible don't follow the credit route but instead buy what we can and save for the rest.

This leads us to people's other problem. People can't afford what they really should have and either through lack of knowledge (not a crime) or through wishful thinking (this is a crime) buy cheap. This leads people to buy $30 tripods hoping they're going to be as good as a $150 tripod. It also leads them to buy $110 Quantaray lenses in the hope they'll be as good as Leica lenses.

I went cheap. I bought a Tamron 70-300 which actually isn't too bad as long as it's on a tripod. Of course now that Canon has come out with a 17-50 f2.8L IS lens, I'd probably have bought that instead of my Tamron 17-35 and 28-75. I might even then have got the Canon 70-200 f4L also.
That's not all there is to it.

We shall not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started, and know the place for the first time

There's also the fact that we don't know what we want in the first place. Getting into the hobby you have no clue and have to make the choices for yourself. This means wasting some money in the process.

[Croasdail]

That's not all there is to it.

We shall not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started, and know the place for the first time

There's also the fact that we don't know what we want in the first place. Getting into the hobby you have no clue and have to make the choices for yourself. This means wasting some money in the process.

Hey Doc, I am actually going to agree with ya on something.... ! Dang.

I have seen plenty of great shots done with less the L lenses, and have have seen lots of crap shots done with L lenses. On this forum in the hardware side you will see so much chatter about tac sharp this or that. But a tac sharp shot of crap is still crap.

My advice, instead of running out to buy L glass, take a class. It is a lot cheaper and will impact your photography a million times more then any lens will. Or sign up for a workshop, or join a club where you can do some mentor learning. Then and only then go buy some more stuff.

[ScottE]

- Always check your bag to see if the memory card is in there....

Memory card? When I started photograpy a memory card was a little piece of paper you put notes on when you were giving a speach. IBM was still deciding whether they would ever be able to find enough buyers of they brought out a personal computer. The things we put in computers were called punch cards, not memory cards and I doubt that anyone thought it woul ever be possible to store enough data on one to produce an image.

Good advice would have been "Don't buy Konica, they will never make the transition to autofocus (whatever that is) and will stop making SLRs". The trouble with that advice is that I might have gone Canon and then had to replace all my lenses when EOS replaced FD. Apparently none of the equipment advice from back then would have been very useful today.

Advice on exposure is still valuable. Even though modern cameras do quite a good job with auto-exposure it is still a valuable lesson to know when to take control and do it yourself.

F/8 and be there is still pretty good advice for journalism style shooting.

Look for good light and an innovative composition will always be good advice.

[verty]

when i 1st started off with my digital SLR (exactly 1 yr ago) i heard it would be expensive and i thought yeah right i bet ya i can just live with the 350d and the kit lens...

yeah RIGHT!!

Photography is gonna be the end of my bloody bank balance!

i just wish i had of believed when people said it would be expensive.. i know for some they say photography is a cheap hobby compared to some other hobbies.. but its all relative ya know.. im just an average joe, making average money so it hurts abit...

[Mcary]

Hey Doc, I am actually going to agree with ya on something.... ! Dang.

I have seen plenty of great shots done with less the L lenses, and have have seen lots of crap shots done with L lenses. On this forum in the hardware side you will see so much chatter about tac sharp this or that. But a tac sharp shot of crap is still crap.

My advice, instead of running out to buy L glass, take a class. It is a lot cheaper and will impact your photography a million times more then any lens will. Or sign up for a workshop, or join a club where you can do some mentor learning. Then and only then go buy some more stuff.

Agree I've always thought it was best to start out with a very basic outfit IE a body and a decent fixed lens 50mm for a 35mm SLR or a 28-35mm for a cropped DSLR and learn to use the equipment you have through reading books, taking classes, becoming a member of photography websites like this. Then once you have firm fondation of what equipment fits your needs' invest in the right equipment for you for somethat maybe a 300 2.8 lens for other it may be an 50mm 1.2 it all depends.

Sorry the idea that you should spend $5000.00 on top of the line equipment when they're just starting out instead of $1000.00 because it will retain its value better just incase they decide to sell after figuring that photography just isn't for them is beyond silly to me!

Also with DSLR bodies I don't think of them as something you buy rather as something you're renting for few years IE 20D bought in 2004 for $1499 and sold in 2007 for $600.00 comes out to a cost of just under $30.00 per month or less then a cup of coffee per day.

Mike

[DocFrankenstein]

Scratch what I said earlier. I wish someone told me this:

Here's the complete Canon system with all the lenses, two 1V bodies and two 1DsIIs. You can have it for free.

Wouldn't you want someone to say that to you, when you're just starting out? :lol:

[In2Photos]

Scratch what I said earlier. I wish someone told me this:



Wouldn't you want someone to say that to you, when you're just starting out? :lol:
I would let someone say that to me at any time.;)

[Roach711]

Focus on the eyes
Learn to use the histogram
Be aware of the background
Check your DOF
Take flash pics in manual mode
Wait for the proper light
Think about what you want this photo to be before pressing the shutter

And

Don't drop the camera in the lake.

[Margie]

Focus on the eyes
Learn to use the histogram
Be aware of the background
Check your DOF
Take flash pics in manual mode
Wait for the proper light
Think about what you want this photo to be before pressing the shutter

And

Don't drop the camera in the lake.

Very, very good lessons to learn...I guess I'd better get some books out today! No better yet, take my camera and go out and take photos!

[4x4rock]

I wish someone had told me...

"Don't listen to anything on those Photography forums."

:D

[andrew chong]

"Knowing what you’d like to do in photography, don't buy that camera. Let me introduce you to DSLR cameras..."

My first foray into photography was a point and shoot by Sony with its limited choices in memory storage due to Sony's proprietary format and its other shortcomings vis-à-vis DSLRs.

Sony then replaced it with a better though similar version that did offer the slight flexibility of additional lenses via an adapter and compatibility with increased memory stick sizes, leaving me holding an obsolete camera.

One day much later, I suddenly noticed the DSLR cameras for sale in flyers. Somehow, I had never known what DSLRs were, much less known of their existence.

Postscript: In hindsight, having had that Sony camera was a good introduction for me as I managed to take a myriad of shots including valuable pictures of all my relatives (especially on a trip to my mom's homeland) and found ways to coax fine images from it in spite of its many limitations; though that’s not to say starting out with a DSLR wouldn’t have been more rewarding sooner rather than later.

[Dan-o]

It's been brought up a few times already but, you get what you pay for. (to a certain extent of course)

[Ephemeral]

- Always check what ISO your camera is set at.
- Spot metering only works on the centre focus point.

Those two are my pet hates that I keep forgetting. :P

[Margie]

- Always check what ISO your camera is set at.
- Spot metering only works on the centre focus point.

Those two are my pet hates that I keep forgetting. :P

SO,SO right about the ISO...I wish it would show up on the back of the camera! It is so easy to change it and not look the next time you go to take a picture and have it way higher usually than you wanted it!!!

[drparker]

Read Curtis's Flash Photography 101 (http://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=171657)series of posts then read them again!

[squashed]

We shall not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started, and know the place for the first time

There's also the fact that we don't know what we want in the first place. Getting into the hobby you have no clue and have to make the choices for yourself. This means wasting some money in the process.

Isnt that the truth !! But unless you totally buy crap, its not a waste at all.

[tim]

- Shadows are one of the most important things in photography. The aim of lighting is to help you create shadows in the right places, as well as to produce enough light so we can capture a little with our cameras.
- People photography is 2/3 interpersonal skills and 1/3 photography skills.
- Equipment is less important than most people think, but good equipment comes in handy. A single good 30mm or so fast prime and maybe a flash is all you need to start out.
- Laying on the ground and getting up high can make for more dramatic shots, as people are used to seeing photos taken by someone 5-6ft off the ground.

More will come to me i'm sure.

[J Rabin]

Get closer to the subject. When you think you are close enough, get closer. Closer again until it is uncomfortable.

[kevinsyn]

- Shadows are one of the most important things in photography. The aim of lighting is to help you create shadows in the right places, as well as to produce enough light so we can capture a little with our cameras.


Very very true. Shadows is a huge tool in Photography and a lot of times can define a good photograph. Shadows can tell a story or portray depth. Study the shadows!

[mspringfield]

As a friend of mine once said. "Go ahead and buy the 200 1.8 first. Every thing else is cheap by comparison."

As it has already been said:

- Go ahead and buy the good stuff and save yourself the heartache of dealing with the cheap stuff.

[thrumyeye]

Definitely "shoot RAW now - make space for it later"

[Akchas]

Playing with light means painting with shadows.
Three memory cards and a back-up drive are worth every penny.
Models are people treat them with respect for they will tell twenty people about you.
Get a outstanding body and a good backup.
Tri pods, mono pods and sand bags are really your best tools use them.
having more lens is a good thing.
Is the camera manual within reach?
Sometimes cheap lights work really well candels anyone?

Find a mentor, a photographer that rocks, study them!

Offer what you learn to others, one day the favor will be returned ten fold.