New to photography... wanting to learn... Some questions

Ok so i got tired of the same old point and shoot. As a wedding gift i was a offered a new camera by the family. A friend of mine has a Canon T2I i was able to see its productions and i was very pleased so to make a long story short i now own a T2I thanks to some wonderful family members... But the main question is in appox one week i am flying away to Antigua to get married, and i want to take some awesome pics. And i am looking for advice on some equipment that i should own to really help me capture this moment. Here is a list of what i have so far.

1. Canon T2i w/ 18- 55 lens
2. Canon 55- 250 lens
3. Tripod
4. 2 SD Cards
5. 2 batteries
6. Uv filters
7.Camera Bag

Also any advice on general shooting would also be appreciated.

I would like to thank everyone for there responses & patience in advance.

Flash.

Books, books and more books. You will have plenty of time to read at the airport and on the flight. I would do some research into what you want to shoot while you are there and get a book that will give you tips. There is nothing better than having your information source right there with you.

You should also look into a CPL (Circular Polarizer) filter. Next, get a ND (Neutral Density) filter. These filters allow you to really slow down the shutter speed to blur water and other uses.

TGrundvig wrote in post #10650364
Books, books and more books. You will have plenty of time to read at the airport and on the flight. I would do some research into what you want to shoot while you are there and get a book that will give you tips. There is nothing better than having your information source right there with you.

You should also look into a CPL (Circular Polarizer) filter. Next, get a ND (Neutral Density) filter. These filters allow you to really slow down the shutter speed to blur water and other uses.

Should you always be using a filter? If i am out at night, Should i remove my UV filter?

I only use filters when they're being used for effect, or when I am trying to shield my front element from harsh stuff like driving sand in windy conditions.

Otherwise, there's not much advantage to putting a piece of glass in front of your lens. In many cases it's actually detrimental, esp night shots.

My wife started with almost the exact same setup. Her next additions were an external flash and a prime to use in low light, the 50 1.4. With the lenses you already have, these additions will give you a lot of options for different types of shots.

You have a lot of new gear, so rather than add more that you need to learn to use, get to know what you have as much as possible before you leave on the trip. The lens complement which you have is suitable for a broad range of circumstances, and the only thing you are 'missing' is a faster max aperture for low available light shooting. For flash you have the built in flash, which many users aver but it will permit photos when it is otherwise too dark...don't forget it is there! You have a tripod, so when this is combined with the self timer in the camera, you can be in the photos next to your new bride. Yes, you want great photos, but do not neglect your bride...she is secondary to your photos.

Monk84 wrote in post #10650425
Should you always be using a filter? If i am out at night, Should i remove my UV filter?

No, you don't always 'need' a filter but there are many times when one can improve an image. There are a lot of people that don't bother with UV filters at all. I still prefer to use one because that way the UV filter gets dirty and not my lens. I've actually accidentally scratched a UV filter while cleaning because a very small piece of sand or something was on the UV filter and didn't come off when I use the puffer. Had that been my lens...I would have had a scratch on the lens. But, there are a lot of people that don't use a UV filter ever....so it's not a 'must have' item.

At night, I don't think you need a filter unless it is windy and there is dust or sand in the air....very common things here in Colorado. Our climate is really dry and anytime it is windy you can rest assured, there is dust and sand in the air. But, if you live in a more humid area, there's going to be less of that. I guess it's one of those personal preference things.

Read as much as you can about using AV and TV mode. Use the self timer to get both you and your the wife in the pics together.

If you're short on cash there's an inexpensive EF 50mm f1.8 II currently for $85 at Dell's web site - good for portraits on the beach or where ever.

http://accessories.us.​dell.com …c=SS&cid=27530&​lid=627063

Btw - an early congrats to you!

read and get as much hands-on practice as you can. it's going to be tough if you don't have any prior photography knowledge. a couple weeks would be doable, but one week will be tough.

figure out how to use you auto focus points. you'll probably start off learning with the center point activated. then learn how to switch to a different point fast. when i started i used the green box, or fully automatic mode. this uses all of the AF points and usually focuses on the closest thing in the frame, which is, unfortunately, seldom times the subject. my first 30 pictures were trashed because people were all out of focus. also, make sure you shoot RAW (or RAW + jpg if you have space). should you get some settings wrong, you may be able to fix them in post. on my camera, green box auto doesn't save in RAW.

a flash would be great, but almost impossible to learn in just a week. if you get one that's ETTL compatible, you may get by. i went with a 580exII and am glad i did. this may be much more than you need, though.

don't over analyze things I guess... I will only recommend 2 things for you... Buy either a flash or a 50mm f/1.8 first. or just don't buy anything.. just practice shooting, have a good time with your soon to be wife

if you don't know where to start, check the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO. you could start shooting with those semi auto modes, Av/Tv and work yourself slowly towards manual.

and also, if you ever get confused just put the damn thing in greenbox mode or P mode until after your wedding when you have enough time to analyze/learn/study the functions.

goodluck, congratulations and happy shooting

I love that 60mm EF-S lens I have....it does take very sharp pictures, but I guess you have that focal range covered.

To get those sunset pictures a nice wide-angle would be cool.....but you may be on a budget, so keep that one for Santa.

If you're new to Digital, and want a fun read, Scott Kelby has a bunch of fun books out. "The Digital Photography Book Vol 1-3", they are reasonably priced when buying with a discount from an online bookseller. He covers a lot of ground in the books.

Also, the "Canon EOS Rebel T2i/550D Digital Field Guide" is a nice book to have in the beginning to learn all the functions of a DSLR (and there is a lot to learn).

As for a bag....love that Crumpler 6 Million Dollar Home. It's great bag to bring on a casual photography trip.

Have fun in the sun!

some form of netbook to view and back up your photos to when you run out of space on the sd cards. or more sd cards.

Monk84 wrote in post #10650321
i am flying away to Antigua to get married

A good quality circular polarizer would be a must for me. Use your tripod to get good shots of you and your bride together. Also use it for most all landscape shots you make. As a general starting point, use the tripod and the polarizer (when it is sunny), Av mode, f/8-11, and use the 10 sec self timer if you are in the picture, 2 sec self timer if shooting landscapes.

Get a decent photography backpack to hold all your gear in. Take a blower and some basic cleaning supplies with you to include a microfiber cloth. Know how to clean your camera/lenses before you go.

Read some of these tutorials...

http://www.cambridgein​colour.com/tutorials.h​tm

Upon your return, consider buying Photoshop Elements or even better, Lightroom 2/3 to make your images better. Post processing even the slightest bit will make your images shine. Increase color, sharpness, crop, etc.. Just a required thing with digital photography. One of the two programs above along with a book will teach you plenty. Scott Kelby has wonderful books for most Adobe software programs.

B&H Photo is a great website to buy from. Amazon as well if it is directly from Amazon.

If you have the cheap UV filters I suspect you might, don't use them unless you really need them. They will drop the IQ of your lenses if not of high quality.

Just dont forget you are there to spend time with your partner. :loL: