Is a Canon EOS Rebel T5 a good camera to begin with to use for professional photography?

I think shooting with a pro is the best way to learn quickly. Sometimes, no matter how much experience you've had, or how many times you read a manual, you have to ask a question to someone who has done it before. I learned so much meeting up with the POTN members here, I saved myself a lot of time and money.

Exposure is the hardest thing to negotiate, and I shoot in manual and with all sorts of conditions. The last wedding was outside on a sunny day with 5 inches of snow all over, and the bride wore white (of course), but was brown skinned and the groom was a ginger with freckles. I almost cried. Then the reception was in a church gym, badly lit and terrible shadows with flash. I used my most dependable equipment and sure enough, in PSE, I could lighten the faces without glaring on the snow for the outdoor shots, but I started playing with settings about 30 minutes before the shoot. I've shot in that location before, so I was familiar with it.

Practice is the key. And unfortunately, really good lenses and cameras make a difference for me. I could not have done the shoot with my old 10D, but with my new SL1 (which is a beginner's DSLR), I got some great shots. I mainly use a 5D2 and a 7DII. But you don't need the pro gear until you can afford it and really need it. The SL1 does an acceptable job on its own.

Image noise is easier to work with than camera shake. I never shoot slower than 125/sec. Most of the time, it's around 200.

But the original question is such that you can only reply with your opinion. There's no real firm answer to such a question.

apersson850 wrote in post #17490995
But the original question is such that you can only reply with your opinion. There's no real firm answer to such a question.

Precisely my point.

The op needs to buy a book on exposure. It will make their life much less difficult.

Or just listen to the facts... errrh, opinions in this thread. No book needed!

jessiekins wrote in post #17489252
I do find that learning in Manual mode is frustrating without guidance at the moment. I do like that EverydayGetaway suggested I learn in Av or Tv. But I do understand the importance of learning in manual mode.

Well I don't and I did learn that way, because back in the 1980s I didn't have a camera with anything other than M mode. This M/Av thing is a red herring - understand how it works and it just doesn't matter for the typical shot.

I'm not quite sure what you mean here, but Canon's display of shutter speed is highly confusing once it gets to very slow speeds. They don't use any normal notation for seconds. Just remember, if you see a plain "250" with no punctuation it's 1/250 s. If you see punctuation, you've strayed into very slow speeds like 1/4 s, which as a beginner you won't have much use for.

Canon cameras on the other hand are good in that, whichever of the M/Av/Tv modes you're in, they always show you the aperture and shutter speed. It wasn't the case with the cameras I learned on!

I'm going to suggest that you take the camera out of Auto-ISO if it's in it, and set it to something that will work most of the time in good light like ISO 200. That way, what's happening with shutter speed and aperture will be more obvious because the ISO is fixed. And I don't care whether you're in M, Av or Tv.

The actual concept is really easy. You have a hole (aperture) in your lens which you can make bigger or smaller to let in more or less light, and blinds in front of the sensor which you can open for a longer or shorter time to let in more or less light. Some amount of light is appropriate for any given scene, and the meter in the camera measures what that should be. If you make the hole in the lens bigger then the shutter has to open for a shorter time, and vice versa. You can either set them both with dials (M) or set one and let the camera set the other to get the right amount of light (Av or Tv).

What may make it seem hard is the notation used to describe the size of the hole and the time the blinds are open.

First the size of the hole or aperture. The values 1.4, 2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8 are none other than powers of √2, which is about 1.414. When we say we shot with the aperture at f/2, that means the hole is (notionally) 25mm across if the lens is a 50mm lens - the f is the focal length. Because the amount of light is proportional to the area of the hole, we have to square the diameter, which is why doubling the light only increases the aperture by √2. Note that the larger hole has a smaller f-number, because of that division sign. f/2 is a larger aperture than f/2.8.

Now the time the blind is open is just the time in seconds, but a stupid way of writing it has evolved. Instead of writing 1/128s, we just take the denominator of that fraction and round to 5 - so 1/128s shows on the camera as "125". So you see now those also are powers of two: 1/8, 1/16, 1/32, 1/64, 1/128, 1/256 etc. are shown as 8, 15, 25, 50, 125, 250 in the viewfinder (and we also say 1/125). And we say a shorter time is "faster".

So you can count stops. If I shoot at f/8 and 1/125, I could shoot at f/5.6 and 1/250 and get the same exposure.

All this presupposes your scene is "average". If it's really mostly white or black you have to adjust for that when you use a reflective meter like the one in your camera. But that's probably a meal for another day.

Back when I started getting serious about photography (mid 1960s), there was no such thing as exposure automation in any affordable cameras (and I doubt if ANY cameras had automation then). To get exposures correct, one either used the suggestions printed on a film box (or on a sheet of paper that came with the film) or bought and used a handheld light meter.

Just about everyone that I knew back in the 1960s who was either already serious about photography or wanting to become serious and good at photography bought and used a handheld light meter. I cannot recall any of these folks who ever had a problem with learning and understanding how shutter speed settings, aperture (f-stop) settings, and ASA (film speed - akin to today's ISO settings) interacted. From what I've read in this and other photography forums, it appears that far more new photographers (who are starting with today's automated cameras and using their automation) are confused about exposure control than back when there was no exposure automation in folks' cameras. This is why I recommend that a beginning photographer start with his/her camera set for full manual exposure control until there is a good understanding of the basics.

SkipD wrote in post #17491748
Back when I started getting serious about photography (mid 1960s), there was no such thing as exposure automation in any affordable cameras (and I doubt if ANY cameras had automation then).

My father had an Agfa Optima Ia in 1962 based on a lightmeter window.

Aparently, the first Agfa Optima to do so was introduced in 1959

http://camerapedia.wik​ia.com/wiki/Agfa_Optim​a

I've used the camera until I got my own in 1971. My mother probably still has it stored somewhere...

SkipD wrote in post #17491748
Back when I started getting serious about photography (mid 1960s), there was no such thing as exposure automation in any affordable cameras (and I doubt if ANY cameras had automation then). To get exposures correct, one either used the suggestions printed on a film box (or on a sheet of paper that came with the film) or bought and used a handheld light meter.

Just about everyone that I knew back in the 1960s who was either already serious about photography or wanting to become serious and good at photography bought and used a handheld light meter. I cannot recall any of these folks who ever had a problem with learning and understanding how shutter speed settings, aperture (f-stop) settings, and ASA (film speed - akin to today's ISO settings) interacted. From what I've read in this and other photography forums, it appears that far more new photographers (who are starting with today's automated cameras and using their automation) are confused about exposure control than back when there was no exposure automation in folks' cameras. This is why I recommend that a beginning photographer start with his/her camera set for full manual exposure control until there is a good understanding of the basics.

Heh, yes, that's how it was in the olden days.

Times change, I notice. People use calculators instead of doing long division. There are those who feel this is bad, and we must at least learn how to do arithmetic by hand (but not doing square roots by hand!).

It's up to the individual. Olden traditions give way to easier and better ways.

In photography, one can start the way previous generations did it, and migrate to partial or full automation. Alternatively, one could start with full automation and then step-wise learn how to intervene to get the result you want. Myself, I would suggest doing the latter. There is no point in deliberately making it harder for little benefit in the end.

Archibald wrote in post #17491804
Times change, I notice. People use calculators instead of doing long division. There are those who feel this is bad, and we must at least learn how to do arithmetic by hand (but not doing square roots by hand!).

It's up to the individual. Olden traditions give way to easier and better ways.

Funny (and true) story: my mother was a small business owner. The local school system asked her to come give a talk about how employers find it very important that employees know how to do long division (and other time-consuming math) by hand. She went... and gave a talk about how knowing the principles is important, but she'd rather have an employee who can use a calculator really well and get the answer in half the time, as long as they know roughly what it should be. When you're paying people, you don't want to be paying them to do by hand things that have been automated for generations.

SkipD wrote in post #17491748
Just about everyone that I knew back in the 1960s who was either already serious about photography or wanting to become serious and good at photography bought and used a handheld light meter. I cannot recall any of these folks who ever had a problem with learning and understanding how shutter speed settings, aperture (f-stop) settings, and ASA (film speed - akin to today's ISO settings) interacted. ... This is why I recommend that a beginning photographer start with his/her camera set for full manual exposure control until there is a good understanding of the basics.

You are inferring causation but only demonstrating correlation. Those 1960s SLRs looked pretty intimidating with the f-stops around the lens and marked shutter speed dials, and if there was a separate meter (more a 1950s thing) that would have just added to the general panic. So anyone not prepared to or unable to learn what those settings meant would have selected themselves out of your sample set. Furthermore cameras probably cost more relative to incomes, so no-one would have bought one if they didn't think they'd be able to master it. I suspect most people got a book and learned this stuff. That's what I did in the 1980s and what I (and not just me) recommend the OP does.

To anyone interested:
I now work in a studio and it is the best decision for me. I use a Canon 60d. I have learned so much and I think that practice makes perfect! Thank you to everyone who was encouraging, knowledgeable, and helpful. I am still quite intimidated by how much I do not know yet. But experience is the best teacher! Thank you guys.

I just literally read every single post in this thread. what a journey!!!.

@jessiekins I would love to see how your images have improved.

Since I read all these comments I feel like I have the right to give my opinion! hahaha. here it goes:

- Seems like the OP had an issue with understanding Shutter speed and why her images werent sharp. well... MY rule is to avoid shooting with a shutter speed thats under my lens' range. for example, if im shooting a 50mm then id like my shutter speed to be GREATER than 50. if im shooting at 18mm then my SP should be greater than 18 and so and so and so forth.

- Play a little game with the camera to understand the exposure triangle. lets say you want to shoot a portrait at f1.8 (just for the hell of it) because you want some nice bokeh. then set your aperture to f1.8 and play the game!!! the game is to figure out which shutter speed and ISO will get your exposure meter in the center while you have set your aperture and your mind on f1.8. take a test shot and re-tweak if needed. light is a ****

- Dont listen to anyone telling you to upgrade to the newest model camera. i saw someone saying you should get a 5dMKIII. geez!. ive been shooting weddings for a while and I just "upgraded" my main camera to a 5Dc. my clients are satisfied.

- I didnt see anyone talking about the "Rule of Thirds". Read about it, learn it.... then break it!!!

- Focus on the eyes. depending on your perspective focus on the CLOSEST eye to the camera.

- shoot shoot shoot!!!! and dont think about making money!!! I do photography on the side and I wouldnt think of quitting my job to do photography full time (trust me, I would LOVE to be a full time photographer but lets be real). you wont make one penny with a thousand crappy images. QUALITY is what will get you paid. also, with DSLRs being so easy to buy these days there are Zillions of "Pro" photogs out there, AMIRITE!?

- HAVE FUN!. I remember when I use to shoot every day. at home, downtown, the beach, my dog, my cat, etc... then I started shooting weddings and getting paid like the "Pros".... I didnt touch my camera for months, it felt like work every time I touched it. sooooooo enjoy being into photography.

- I highly recommend the 50mm 1.8, the 85mm 1.8 and get a decent walk around zoom lens. like a 24-105

- try and keep your horizons straight and selective coloring is a big NO NO

- thats it from me! T out!

A prime lens has a fixed focal point. They tend to be sharper than zooms although quality zooms have fantastic image quality. The body that you mentioned is fine so put your money into quality lens.

Oh, forgot to mention that there is LOTS of great free training videos on youtube. It was helpful when I was coming up the ranks. Heck I still search for things photo related.