Newbie Taking Shots In Manual, And Pictures Not Showing In LCD Screen.

As the title says, I'm a newbie, with a 50D.

I tried to delete my previous question, because I figured out that the problem I was having was due to not fully understanding the relationship between Shutter Speed, F Stop, etc. Still have a lot of work to do in that regard, but at least I know why I wasn't seeing anything.

I'll be certain to make sure I haven't figured out the problem before posting another question.

My apologies for any inconvenience.

If anyone has any tips for getting a better handle on the relationship I mentioned, and not having the pictures turn out so dark, I would appreciate them.

Thank you.

Do you mean that they don't show at all (i.e. don't come on when you press the display button) or just that they don't show automatically when you take a shot?

This is just a guess but, if you have just come from green box mode, that may display them automatically by default, whereas going into the creative modes will mean it does what you have set in the functions. If the function is set to not show it automatically (as my cameras are) it won't come on whilst shooting, you have to press the display button to bring it up.

Obviously, if it doesn't come on when you push the button either, it is something more serious.

Lets get the obvious question out of the way first.

What colour is your LCD screen when you view the picture just taken?

If it is tending towards black, you may be under exposing, or, if it is tending towards white, you may be over exposing.

If you can describe the available light when you took the shot and the settings that were used, maybe we can get a better idea.

Exif data would help.

LCD screen color was black. And when I transfered the photos to my computer, same thing.

Was taking some test shots indoors using different speeds, stops, etc., and as I think about it now, while the lighting is fine for everyday tasks, I can see where I definitely need work in better understanding how to get the proper exposure in less than optimal shooting conditions, esp in manual.

Photo1812 wrote in post #10932585
If anyone has any tips for getting a better handle on the relationship I mentioned, and not having the pictures turn out so dark, I would appreciate them.

Get away from the M mode!

Set your camera to P mode and evaluative metering. Then go around and take pictures. You'll get sensible settings all the time.
When you have a collection, you can check later which shutter speed and aperture the camera picked for you. If you feel the picture is too bright or too dark, then you can check the histogram to see how much room you would have had to increase or decrease exposure.

When you want to play with that, stay in P mode and just adjust the exposure compensation. Check how much you need to change to get the result you desire.

Now, when you have gained this experience, hopefully by taking hundreds of pictures, it's time to venture into Tv mode (if constant shutter speed is important for the pictures), Av mode (if constant aperture is important for the pictures) or M mode (which is most effective for taking pictures of differently colored subjects in constant light). M mode will also make some think you really know what you are doing.

apersson850 wrote in post #10932691
Get away from the M mode!

Set your camera to P mode and evaluative metering. Then go around and take pictures. You'll get sensible settings all the time.
When you have a collection, you can check later which shutter speed and aperture the camera picked for you. If you feel the picture is too bright or too dark, then you can check the histogram to see how much room you would have had to increase or decrease exposure.

When you want to play with that, stay in P mode and just adjust the exposure compensation. Check how much you need to change to get the result you desire.

Now, when you have gained this experience, hopefully by taking hundreds of pictures, it's time to venture into Tv mode (if constant shutter speed is important for the pictures), Av mode (if constant aperture is important for the pictures) or M mode (which is most effective for taking pictures of differently colored subjects in constant light). M mode will also make some think you really know what you are doing.

Great tips!

Thank you!

Even in M mode you can at least use the camera's exposure metering for reference. Before you press the trigger button, look at the scale in the viewfinder. If the marker has disappeared out to one side... well, you asked for it, you got it.