New to photography, where to start?

[cuddles]

I'm sure you get asked this a lot, but I didn't see a sticky or anything, so here it goes. My girlfriend wants to get into photography, and for her birthday I'm getting her a camera. I was thinking of the Canon Rebel series, but anyways, I've heard for beginners you want to get something with manual settings for most options so that you learn how to take pictures to start with.

Can anyone recommend any books, websites, or anything for general information on how cameras work, how to get started with photography, or anything of the sort. She's unsure if she wants digital or 35mm, and would prefer 35mm for the... how could you say, authenticity of it, but as far as developing her own photos, she'd have to learn that as well. If someone can point me (and her) in the right direction for how to get started with photography, that'd be great :)

Edit : It also may be relevent, she will most likely be taking most of her photos at night, or in very dark conditions, so if anything is specific regarding that as well, just letting you know.

[robertwgross]

A good way to get into photography is to take a short course from a local community college. These courses generally give an overview of how cameras work, how photographers can set up proper exposures, and then how to compose a pleasing image.

A basic and fundamental difference exists between the film world and the digital world. You really need to decide in advance which way you want to go. There are still a few of us dinosaurs who go both ways.

---Bob Gross---

[Jesper]

If she decides she wants a digital camera, and she wants to use it in low light conditions (will she be using flash or not?), you better not take a compact digital camera. Those don't work very well in low light situations (they produce very noisy, bad quality images when you set the ISO setting higher). Maybe a Canon EOS 300D (Canon EOS Digital Rebel in the USA) would be an interesting camera for her. It's an SLR-type camera with exchangeable lenses, and it has fully automatic and also all manual controls.

How Digital Cameras Work (http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/digital-camera.htm)

dpreview.com (http://www.dpreview.com) has a lot of background information and in-depth reviews about all kinds of digital cameras.

[Andy_T]

Some thoughts ...

... I difinitely would not buy a film camera today if I started shooting.

Apart from the cost, the great thing about digital cameras is the spontaieity of it. You take the shot, and you immediately (or some hours later at home, when you have downloaded the images) how they have turned out.

When I got my first SLR a long time ago, I was very enthusiastic about it for some time, took a lot of photos and kept a log noting down the aperture/shutter speed etc. of each shot so that I later could judge what effect different settings have. However, if the time between taking the photograph and actually seeing it after you've shot the whole film is something like a week, the spontaneity and the feedback is gone.

Now, with a digital camera, this enthusiasm is back and I take a lot of pictures.

... with Canon cameras (apart from the most basic ones), you can set all the settings manually (but also use the automatic modes). That's a great way to learn more about photography.

... how much do you want to spend? Forgive me for asking so harsh a question, but it's a cruel, heartless world out there and it always comes down to that question :lol:

If you say '300$', the answer and suggestions you get will be different than if you say '1500$'.

I personally think (as already suggested) that the Digital Rebel with the kit lens (18-55) will be a very good package and your girlfriend will certainly love it, but at 850$, it's a lot more expensive than the film rebel. Maybe if you get somebody else (her friends or family) to join you, you could raise some money for the good cause.

Best regards,
Andy

[PhotosGuy]

Take a look at these links (in no particular order):

Canon Digital Learning Center
http://www.photoworkshop.com/canon/
Online Tutorials
http://www.photoworkshop.com/canon/rick_sammon.html

How Cameras Work
http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/camera.htm
SLR vs. Point-and-Shoot
http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/camera7.htm

Jodies Coston's Free Online Photography Course - Excellent!
http://www.morguefile.com/ver3/classroom.php

PhotoCourse - "A Short Course in Digital Photography."
http://209.196.177.41/contents.htm

Photo basics:
http://photos.msn.com/
http://photos.msn.com/department/photobasics.aspx
http://www.grumpysworld.com/photoguide/photoguide.htm
http://www.grumpysworld.com/photoguide/basics.htm

Understanding Exposure - A Complex Subject Made Simple for Beginners
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/understanding-series/understandexposure.shtml
Accurate Exposure with Your Meter
http://www.kodak.com/global/en/consumer/products/techInfo/af9/

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

[robertwgross]

Basically, there are millions of folks out there who decided to buy a camera this year. Some bought digital. Some bought film. Not very many bought both.

Some buy a camera just to have a camera handy. They take snapshots and generally have 4x6 inch prints made from. Largely, it doesn't matter whether they get a 35mm film camera, a high-megapixel digital, or a low-megapixel digital. They will all turn out small prints fine.

The major difference here is that digital has a big cost of operation advantage for everything up to but not including the prints. Once you have made your initial purchase, you can shoot all day long and view your work on a computer screen, and it doesn't cost anything. In contrast, of course, a film camera requires you to buy film and then pay for the film processing, and that generally ends up with getting prints. The other big advantage of digital is that you can see some evidence of your work just a couple of seconds after you snap it.

Some photography classes will require you to have a 35mm SLR camera with manual exposure setting capability. If you really want to learn how to do it, that is the way. On the other hand, many digital SLR cameras will do a hell of a lot automatically, so exactly what is it that you want to learn?

If you consider the advantages of the camera choice that you make, there will be disadvantages.

With any camera decision, you still have to learn how to compose the shot.

---Bob Gross---

[Panza]

........... With any camera decision, you still have to learn how to compose the shot. ---Bob Gross---

So true and often forgotten in these times of high-tech.

My brother doesn't understand much of how my camera works but when I give it to him for a couple of hours it's amazing what comes back on the CF card. He can take better pictures with a $20 disposable cam than I can with a $1000 SLR.

My point is: It doesn't matter much what camera you get her. The important thing is that she learns how to compose and choose subjects.

That said i think a good quality compact digital cam is the way to start. That way you don't waste a lot of money if the interest isn't there after some time.

[PhotosGuy]

she will most likely be taking most of her photos at night, or in very dark conditions, so if anything is specific regarding that as well, just letting you know.

You CAN do that with a slow lens, but there will be times when only a 'fast' lens will do (F-1.4 to f-2). It depends on what kind of pics she's taking.

I ran across this link last night. It might help to narrow your search:
Find the best camera for you:
http://www.myproductadvisor.com/mpa/camera/inputSummary.do

[Andy_T]

I ran across this link last night. It might help to narrow your search:
Find the best camera for you:
http://www.myproductadvisor.com/mpa/camera/inputSummary.do

I checked the link. It might not be very helpful for the following reasons:

- It ONLY compares compact digital cameras (Point-&-shoot cameras).
- Only input parameters are price, resolution, size, brand and the possibility to do manual settings.

(So I ended up with either the Canon Pro1 or Nikon Coolpix 8700 as possible options for me :wink: )

Best regards,
Andy

[cuddles]

Thanks for the advice everyone.

This is the camera she got :

http://www.canon.ca/english/index-products.asp?lng=en&prodid=594&sgid=23&gid=2&ovr=1

The Powershot S1 IS. The photographer we talked to at the store we went to said that the IS is a decent feature, and it works well. She doesn't want to carry around a tripod, so she should be able to get decent longer exposure shots with the IS. I've been reading a bit, and so has she, so we know a bit more than we did a week ago.

The plan is for her to learn with this camera (you can set all of the settings), and then next year, if she's still into it, I'll be getting her a 35mm with a budget closer to $1500-$2000 (CAD). The budget the other day was $400, but obviously, we went over that... by $500 :oops:

Thanks for all those links everyone :)

[Andy_T]

Hi cuddles,

I think she will love it!

Best regards,
Andy