Just got new T4i and it's my first SLR. Looking for some advice on a few things.

I just got a new T4i that my wife and I decided to pool our money and get it as our X-mas gift to each other. We have a 1 year old (our first child) and would really like to get some better pictures of him at this great age and in the coming years. We were using a digital ELPH point and shoot and our Cell phones quite a bit and the pictures don't look so hot. We had some semi professional shots done when he was 6 months old and they we fantastic and I want to learn how to get similar shots and having been reading about Aperture, Shutter Speed & ISO and other stuff. I would really love to find some great video tutorials that could really help me learn how to produce some great pictures...I find I learn better from seeing how it's done in addition to reading.

My questions are: I got the T4i along with the EF-S 18-55 IS II & EF-S 55-250 IS II and I also purchased the Canon EF 50MM F1.4 since it was a great deal and it came with a Tiffen UV Protector Lense and I heard the Prime lense is fantastic for portraits and that's what I really want to focus on. Is this a good starter kit for me?

Do I need a light meter or something like that to help me with setting my Aperture, Shutter Speed and ISO or should I just try and figure this stuff out on site through trial and error. The reason I ask is with the kids running everywhere it's going to be tough to get him to sit still for long periods. Would a Meter help me in this case so I don't have to keep fiddeling with the settings trying to get everything dialed in correctly while his patience grows thin? If so what do you recommend.

Also, it you know of some essential video tutorials or sites and reading I should check out I would appreciate it....or just any tips in general Everyone on these boards seems really experienced and has probably been where I am now at some point. I really look forward to learning and having some great pictures as a result of my son as he grows.

Thanks and looking forward to learning from everyone here and through my own trial and error of course.

Its quite a leap from your Point & Shoot to a DSLR. You camera has a built in light meter to help you set it up for a proper exposure.

Even if you decide to use a external light meter you still need to understand the Exposure triangle (ISO, Shutter Speed and Aperture) and what effect they have on your pictures. I would suggest starting your reading with this thread below.

https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=414088

After that read "Understand Exposure" by Bryan Peterson.

Read your camera manual to understand how the camera controls work.

Amongst it all - take pictures. Start with P mode and see what settings the camera uses to set the exposure.

PS - You'll probably want to take that UV filter off. It'll cause less than sharp pictures and most cameras have a built-in UV filter.

I've actually been reading Ben's Newbie Guide and it's been very helpful helping me understand the Exposure Triangle. I never got into this stuff with my point and shoot and never understood it. I'm getting pretty excited thinking about all the possibilties once I figure it all out.

Should i start out using auto focus in order for my camera to figure out the settings with the built in light meter? Does the auto focus adjust the aperture, shutter speed and ISO for you on automatic? I wouldn't think so. I would still have to adjust this by hand on auto focus, would the light meter just be alerting me that the exposure will be off and that I need to adjust things?

I appreciate your input above....the "Understand Exposure" looks like it will benefit me greatly as will exploring my camera as I have been doing.

Read understanding exposure. Also buy yourself an external flash like the 430exII and learn how to use it creatively.

Auto focus works fine, but don't let it automatically select the auto-focus point for you -- it will simply select the closest object to you (usually). This can lead to your thinking your images are out of focus, when the camera really just grabbed the wrong area to focus on.

The advice above is pretty great to be honest. Understanding Exposure is a good read - I studied B&W photography (and a couple of 400 level digital courses back in 2003) and even though I have a good understanding of exposure, it was a great refresher when I got back into photography a couple of years ago.

Oh and learn what your histogram is, what it does, and why you should use it instead of the review image on the LCD to check your exposure.

The other thing to be aware of is that while pictures come out of your P&S ready for viewing with lots of "pop" - they will not be the same out of your DSLR.

One of the biggest changes in moving to a DSLR is to understand that ALL photos from your camera need some post-processing in order to sharpen them and make them "pop".

So to start with you'll need to learn about DPP (software that came with your camera) to at the very least increase sharness and contrast to make your pictures at least equivalent to your P&S.

I found the Digital photography one on one videos to be really useful ... http://www.youtube.com​/watch?v=Xnn5nzPvoIM

WaltA wrote in post #15333893
The other thing to be aware of is that while pictures come out of your P&S ready for viewing with lots of "pop" - they will not be the same out of your DSLR.

One of the biggest changes in moving to a DSLR is to understand that ALL photos from your camera need some post-processing in order to sharpen them and make them "pop".

So to start with you'll need to learn about DPP (software that came with your camera) to at the very least increase sharness and contrast to make your pictures at least equivalent to your P&S.

If I have Photoshop...I can use this rather than the DPP software. I imagine that photoshop would be better and more powerful, or does the Canon DPP software work better for the pictures from the T4i?

cc1995 wrote in post #15334243
If I have Photoshop...I can use this rather than the DPP software. I imagine that photoshop would be better and more powerful, or does the Canon DPP software work better for the pictures from the T4i?

Photoshop is excellent s/w but quite expensive if you have to buy it for the first time. Very likely you can find Photoshop Elements on sale for far less than the the full CSX suite, and it has plenty of power and features for most photographers.

Canon DPP is also quite good, but a lot of folks often like to move to the more powerful PS after using DPP for a while. Nothing wrong with either .

sapearl wrote in post #15334265
Photoshop is excellent s/w but quite expensive if you have to buy it for the first time. Very likely you can find Photoshop Elements on sale for far less than the the full CSX suite, and it has plenty of power and features for most photographers.

Canon DPP is also quite good, but a lot of folks often like to move to the more powerful PS after using DPP for a while. Nothing wrong with either .

Yeah...I already own Photoshop Extended CS4 since I work in advertising and do some design work. It's good to know that I will need to do some post shot stuff to my images after to make them pop. I might have thought there was something wrong with my pictures not popping had i not known that the point and shoot cameras emphasize this in the images as opposed to the more natural look of the DSLR's.

Lots of great information. Thanks.

gonzogolf wrote in post #15333871
Oh and learn what your histogram is, what it does, and why you should use it instead of the review image on the LCD to check your exposure.

I'm going to have to look at this further. I guess I can use this in Live view on my screen before taking my picture to see if the exposure is correct. Going to try and find a tutorial on how to use it. Thanks.

cc1995 wrote in post #15334383
I'm going to have to look at this further. I guess I can use this in Live view on my screen before taking my picture to see if the exposure is correct. Going to try and find a tutorial on how to use it. Thanks.

Unless you are on a tripod doing landscape work, please wean yourself off of using live view. your camera was designed to be used by looking in the viewfinder.

cc1995 wrote in post #15334372
Yeah...I already own Photoshop Extended CS4 since I work in advertising and do some design work. It's good to know that I will need to do some post shot stuff to my images after to make them pop. I might have thought there was something wrong with my pictures not popping had i not known that the point and shoot cameras emphasize this in the images as opposed to the more natural look of the DSLR's.

Lots of great information. Thanks.

Well, typically the P&S cameras generate a "finished" JPG that have a certain amount of sharpenning applied to the final image, and perhaps even a picture "style" that may be VIBRANT, BRIGHT, or rendered in some other fashion.

With the dSLR you can shoot RAW - as well as with some P&S - but you can do so much more with the RAW file. Back in the film days the lab took care of this as well as your choice of a particular film. But now YOU are the lab with quite a number of creative options .

I used to work in a wet darkroom. I still do but now it's digital, it doesn't smell and its' nowhere near as dark as that prior facility. I can also experiment more quickly and creatively in a way that won't bankrupt me.

Also, do you guys advise me to just get a lense protector like the Tiffen UV protector that I got for my EF 50mm f/1.4 USM for my other two kit lenses? or show I get a hood for them? I think I read that I should atleast have a lense protector on all my lenses in case of a scratch or drop it will protect my actual camera lense. I imagine I can't just switch out the Tiffen lense I have and put it on the other two lenses I have? I probably need a different size for each one. Any recommendations for just a normal protector that doesn't alter my image?