What and How,,,,,,,,,???????

I hope some of you have some answers to this age old question.

My wife and I had dinner last night with a couple who we have been acquaintances with for years.In casual conversation they mentioned they are going to Greece in April and she is planning on buying a Nikon D90 because she wants to take good pictures she can look back on 10,15 and 20 years from now and have 1st class images to show for it.

She plans to take a crash course in photography between now and then so she can operate it proficiently.

I told her that that camera was to much camera for her prersent needs and she didn't have time to learn its capabilities in the time frame she is working with.She kind of indicated that the compact point and shoot class cameras were not acceptable, she wanted something better.I'm not sure if she wants to look the part or wants to take good pictures.

If you were confronted with this,what would you reccommend to a friend who knows absolutely nothing about cameras but wants good images coming their way in 3 months?

dick

Teach her what ISO, Shutter Speed and Aperture means and how they work together.

I did a similar thing for a friend before they went to Italy for a month. Their pictures were better than any others in their album. It all depends on the person. Why worry if they aren't willing to actually apply themselves and learn to use their camera?

The basic functions of a camera are fairly easy to understand.

I sense you've built photography up to be rocket science when it's not.

Exposure can be learned in half an hour. Metering is trickier but they can shoot RAW, and they can bracket and chimp whenever in doubt.

Going for a lesser camera seems counter-intuitive if they're willing/able to spend some time learning.

A few thousand pics between now and April, plenty of reading, and some time on POTN is all that's needed to get some keepers. Maybe you could take them on a photo shoot or 2 and give them some tips?

3 months is heaps of time to learn enough...I'd be telling them to go for it!

I just checked out your post history. No wonder you are worried for her, you shoot macro

The depth of field gets easier to work with when you are shooting the full size world

By the way,
https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=647122

Great shot there.

I would myself, like you, would say to get a point and shoot, maybe a powershot range of cameras.

SLR are really for those who want to step up, and kind of know something about photography, not to say I know everything...

I would recommend a course in photography to her, but how fast your friends learn is another matter

I wouldn't talk someone out of buying something thats too much of anything for them (unless they are financially in a bad situation or it could hurt them). As far the camera goes she will use it up to her ability and maybe increase her abilities because of it. I know people who have 7d's and d90's and they never take them out of auto modes, some people just want to have the best they can whether they need it or not. And you know they put those auto modes in just for people like this, imagine how many less dslr's they would sell if they didn't.

What an elitist, snobby sentiment on your part, dicklaxt!! My dad gave me a D70 about 3 months before I took a 2 week trip to France. I decided to learn how to use it so that I could come back with some good photos with which to remember my trip. They are not of the same caliber as my work these days, but that trip, and learning about that camera, absolutely ignited my passion for photography. Now people pay me for it.

I think it is just plain snobby to assume that someone can't learn the basics of using a DSLR in a short time frame. No, she's not going to be Ansel Adams overnight, but good photography is more about seeing than geeky gear proficiency anyway. It's her money, and her opportunity to discover that taking good photos is about more than having good gear, but a D90 is a great camera for her to learn that with.

She doesn't even need to learn that much about it, for crying out loud. She can put it in Auto-ISO and P mode and still get fantastic photos better than her P&S. If she's just not a good photographer, she's just not a good photographer, but not every Joe with a Ferrari is Schuey now, are they?

dicklaxt wrote in post #9458783
I hope some of you have some answers to this age old question.

My wife and I had dinner last night with a couple who we have been acquaintances with for years.In casual conversation they mentioned they are going to Greece in April and she is planning on buying a Nikon D90 because she wants to take good pictures she can look back on 10,15 and 20 years from now and have 1st class images to show for it.

She plans to take a crash course in photography between now and then so she can operate it proficiently.

I told her that that camera was to much camera for her prersent needs and she didn't have time to learn its capabilities in the time frame she is working with.She kind of indicated that the compact point and shoot class cameras were not acceptable, she wanted something better.I'm not sure if she wants to look the part or wants to take good pictures.

If you were confronted with this,what would you reccommend to a friend who knows absolutely nothing about cameras but wants good images coming their way in 3 months?

dick

If she's interested in learning, 3 months is way more than adequate to learn how to use a dSLR competently. All she really needs to learn between now and the trip is how to get a good exposure and some understanding of perspective, position, focal lengths and composition.

I think her iniitial plan to get something like the Nikon D90 is a good one.

it is all about Wants,Desires and Eagerness, Be a Help mate to Her not a hindrance. It may cost you some time to show and help them,but the benefits of that is unlimited, for them and yourself.

My only suggestion to her would have been get a Canon.

Then I would have been able to let her use different lenses of mine while teaching her how to shoot.

Markitos wrote in post #9459036
I think it is just plain snobby to assume that someone can't learn the basics of using a DSLR in a short time frame. No, she's not going to be Ansel Adams overnight, but good photography is more about seeing than geeky gear proficiency anyway. It's her money, and her opportunity to discover that taking good photos is about more than having good gear, but a D90 is a great camera for her to learn that with.

She doesn't even need to learn that much about it, for crying out loud. She can put it in Auto-ISO and P mode and still get fantastic photos better than her P&S. If she's just not a good photographer, she's just not a good photographer, but not every Joe with a Ferrari is Schuey now, are they?

I would have to agree. When I bought my XTi I was firing off shots in Av mode that were better then I was getting with my P&S. Certain things were more difficult, but other things (like low light) was easier having high ISO power. Learning about focus points and ISO doesn't take long to learn. Nikons seem to produce that "pop" that people like straight out of the box (not saying Canon doesn't- just needs a few tweeks). The D90 is an excellent start without spending too much or having a giant beast of a camera to lug around.

If she plans on taking a "crash course" in photography then it sounds like she has an interest and she should pursue it!

Assuming she is truly willing to learn the camera, there is no reason to try and stop her. My only thought would be to try and recommend a D5000 (which is the D90 in a D60 body) which would free up some money for better lenses or a flash, and be a bit easier to use for a beginner.

i'd loan them my copy of 'understanding exposure'...

tell them to make sure they select their focus point...understand how shallow the DOF in SLR's can be...and tell them to practice a whole lot with their SLR for the few months before...then show me their pictures that come out the worst...and i'd explain to them what could have been done to get a better shot...

if someone is able to retain a bit of information they can use the SLR fine...yeah they might not be able to get "professional" images like they think...but will certainly be able to get images that are better than their P&S, and definitely something they can be happy about

If she's going to take a class, she's prepared to learn the camera. She may not be perfect by April but it seems like she's willing to learn. If I were going on a nice vacation, a P&S definitely would not be what I would want to take.

I certainly wouldn't dissuade them from it. Three months is plenty of time to learn enough to be able to take good vacation photos and preserve their memories, if she makes the effort. As SOK said, photography isn't rocket science. She undoubtedly won't come back with a hard drive full of images worthy of being framed and sold in fine art galleries, but that doesn't sound like her aim anyway.

Not trying to sound harsh or judgmental, but I agree with other posters that if I were in their position I'd find your viewpoint kind of elitist and condescending. Not everybody who gets into photography has the goal of becoming an expert / professional photographer (in fact, I'd say it makes up a very small percentage). Even a basic knowledge of exposure and composition would enable her to take better shots than the vast majority of people popping off snapshots with their P&S. Will she learn all the capabilities of her camera in that time? Doubtful - but most people don't need to worry about AEB, mirror-lock up, microadjustment, AI Servo, back-button focusing, etc. to take decent vacation photos.