I've just taken my new camera out of its box...

[kazzie]

... and I feel out of my depth!!!

I hope I've made a reasonable choice: Canon EOS 300D. Is this the same as the Rebel (when I connected to the computer, it recognised it as a Rebel)?

The handbook is full of terminology that I don't fully understand. Is it best to just get out there and experiment?

One of my objectives is to get some good shots of a barn owl that hunts at the bottom of my garden. At times, it comes within 50 ft of me. Am I aspiring to the impossible (outside of the camera's capabilities)?

Is it ok to ask such basic questions here, or is the forum more geared to experienced photographers?

Many thanks

Kaz

[mikesd]

Ask away Kazzie, the forum is full of great people that are always ready to help.

[Conk]

Do not hesitate to ask any questions. Please don't start by saying "this may be a stupid question..." There are none.

P.S.
I can't wait to see the barn owl. :wink:

[PhotosGuy]

We all had to start somewhere! RTFM & go take some pics. Then read it again & take more. Etc.
Try to get into the Tv, Av & M modes soon so that you're controlling the cam instead of having it controlling you.

Look at other peoples work & read a lot in this forum.
Then, when you have some spare time, :lol: take a look at these links:

MONITOR CALIBRATION - a good place to start
Monitor Calibration and Characterisation + Photoshop CS Colour Settings
http://www.computer-darkroom.com/ps8-colour/ps8_1.htm
http://www.ltlimagery.com/monitor_calibration.html
Then: Colour settings in Photoshop
http://www.dcmag.co.uk/news/article.asp?UAN=247&SP=336525370515510295520&v=2
Part 1 - Monitor Calibration and Characterisation.
http://www.computer-darkroom.com/ps7-colour/ps7_2.htm

http://www.kodak.com/eknec/PageQuerier.jhtml?pq-path=38&pq-locale=en_US

http://photos.msn.com/
Photo basics:
http://photos.msn.com/department/photobasics.aspx
Understanding Exposure - A Complex Subject Made Simple for Beginners
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/understanding-series/understandexposure.shtml

Excellent Camera lessons: Resolution, White Balance, Depth of Field (Focus), Product, & more.
http://www.webphotoschool.com/newschool/default.asp
White balance - good article
http://www.webphotoschool.com/newschool/freelessons/lessons/d560wbIn/index.html
Using the Kodak Gray Card to determine a 'starting' exposure:
http://www.rogercavanagh.com/helpinfo/29_graycard.htm

Being "in The Moment"
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/telling.shtml

I took the pic. What do I do now?
Instant Photoshop - A Fast-Start Introduction to Photoshop For Photographers
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/instant_photoshop.shtml
Understanding DSLR Workflow
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/understanding-series/digital-workflow.shtml
A Digital Workflow Primer
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/techniques/process.shtml
An Image Processing Workflow - Step-by-Step Processing of Photographs using Photoshop
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/workflow1.shtml

And, there's:
Photoshop techniques: (If you work through them all, you'll probably know more about the program than I do!)
http://www.arraich.com/ps_intro.htm
Down the page there's three on Combining images:
http://www.arraich.com/ps6_tips_combine1.htm

Photo$Hop Elements
Photoshop Elements users
http://www.arraich.com/elements/psE_intro.htm

Artistic Filtering
http://www.arraich.com/elements/pse_ooutline1.htm

That should keep you busy for awhile!
;-)

[Sgouz]

WOW, thanks for the great links.... so much reading tomorrow.

[kazzie]

Thank you for taking the trouble to reply.

Reading those links is going to keep me out of mischief for a long time! There is so much information to absorb and understanding technical stuff has never been my forte.

So far, I have taken some bog standard pictures and the results are pleasing, although at this stage, they appear to match the quality of my old 'half the price' digicam.

I have heaps of questions, but better start with the links to avoid being a burden.

Many thanks again.

Kaz

[John_T]

In case you don't know, you can take great photos without having any idea what you are doing. :lol:

My girlfriend does it all the time. :oops:

[kazzie]

What a comforting thought John!

I am looking through those links at the moment and am starting to think I need to enrol on a beginners course somewhere!

One question I do have:

I would like to take a picture of a bird perched in a tree, 25 ft away. Would I be able to zoom in enough to actually get details of its markings? What type of setting should I use?

Am I trying to run before I can crawl?

Many thanks

Kaz

[Big_B]

In case you don't know, you can take great photos without having any idea what you are doing. :lol:
\
My girlfriend does it all the time. :oops:

Mine too! She doesn't seem to understand that I'M supposed to be the good photographer :wink: :D

[PhotosGuy]

I would like to take a picture of a bird perched in a tree, 25 ft away. Would I be able to zoom in enough to actually get details of its markings?

It would have to be a BIG bird! Remember, with an SLR, what you see through the viewfinder is what you will see in your pic except the pic (may) be sharper.
Take some pics. Have fun. You'll get it!

[kazzie]

At last I think I'm getting the hang of it!!! I did loads of experimenting this morning and felt gutted when I viewed the pics taken.

Then my teenage son came to the rescue... the advantage here being he's young so not intimidated by change, he's male so loves anything technical and finally, he's not as thick as his mother!!!

Anyway... the first mistake I made was not focusing correctly on the subject (I really didn't understand the red target lights... duh). Once I understood the focus, I was able to gain the detail I was after e.g. he took a picture of a building about 300 ft away... after multiple zoom ins, I could read the small sign above the door of the building. This far out performing my binoculars! Ok... 300 ft was not an ideal target, but made me feel more positive about achieving a decent shot at 25 ft.

Thanks again for your support and interest.

Kaz

[Andy_T]

Then my teenage son came to the rescue... the advantage here being he's young so not intimidated by change, he's male so loves anything technical and finally, he's not as thick as his mother!!!

Kaz

Hi Kaz,

say good bye to your camera .... your son will love it :lol:
Show him the forum, he'll help you find whatever is important.

Only risk is, when he reads this thread, he'll bring you some pictures of the barn owl, say 'your objective is now achieved' and keep the camera...

However, the two of you will most likely have a great time together with your new toy.

Best regards,
Andy

[kazzie]

Yeap... you're right. I'm sure I owned a decent laptop computer at some stage!

[DocFrankenstein]

I hope I've made a reasonable choice: Canon EOS 300D. Is this the same as the Rebel (when I connected to the computer, it recognised it as a Rebel)?
Yeah. 300D is the Digital Rebel :wink:

[kazzie]

Thank you Doc... that cleared up that mystery!

[RoB_m]

sounds like you've got a good subject to take photos of [the owl]. the thing i'd like to bring up, that i've noticed with new photographers and their concern with zoom and photographing objects that are far away, is that they get too focussed on getting close to the subject and forget about other compositional elements that make a good photo, most often framing. you want to get the owl close enough but never let your mind stray from the big picture. the overall image. all of the elements in a photo, foreground/background, placement of the subject and their surroundings etc, all work together and compliment each other to make a pleasing image. it's nice to be able to get super close to the owl because you can, but that doesn't mean it'll make the most interesting photograph. being close enough to it to show a candid yet detailed view of the bird interacting with or being part of the environment would seem more interesting to me because it tells a story and keeps your eye on the photo more. keeping this concept in your thoughts while photographing the owl will help you look more objectively at what it is you are trying to do and if you are going about doing it the right way.

i could keep going with this and write a whole paper, but i think you get the point :]
have fun with the camera. looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

[PhotosGuy]

Excellent advice, Rob!

[kazzie]

Thank you for the advice...

Ever the realist, I have had to re-evaluate my goal of getting a good shot of the barn owl. Instead, I need to practice on an easier 'non-moving' subject. It could take me a decade to achieve anything worthy of posting!

Regarding the composition... at least this is one area that I feel comfortable with, although I still have tons to learn.

Many thanks for your support.

Kaz