Newbie to DSLR

[Stinky Bob]

Hi,
Hoping for some advice, just received a second hand Nikon D50, I am used to point and shoot compact digitals, would it be better for me to get used to it on Auto or jump in at the deep end and use Manual mode. Camera is to be used as an introduction into general wildlife photography/landscapes around my area. I have read quite a few reviews on the D50 so am aware of its good points/bad points etc and realise it probably wont allow me to do everything especially at a later date.

Many thanks

PS So far I have managed to take a few shots of my thumb and at least a couple of dozen of my right knee

[GTH]

Hi Bob,

Initially i would have fun with it.

Find out what it will do, on manual and Auto...and get use to it. That way you learn about what you have, what it can do....and what you are looking for photograph wise.

If, as you say you have read up on it, then put it into operation.........and most of all........Have fun !!

Best Wishes

Geoff

[Lancashire Lad]

My best advice would be to spend an evening just reading the manual and playing with the various settings. (If you haven't been given the manual, there are several websites from which both the official and independent versions can be freely & legitimately downloaded).

I would opt for manual control as soon as you feel confident. If you spend a day or two shooting with aperture priority, and then repeat using shutter priority, you will gain an immense feel for the workings of your camera.

Shoot plenty, but spend time with each shot thinking about what controls you are setting and why. Check out the results, (preferably downloaded to a computer screen, as the camera lcd will never give you a detailed enough view).

Try all of the various metering options against each one of several subjects (i.e. a light subject, a dark subject, a small subject in centre frame, a large subject taking up most of the frame, a static subject, a fast moving subject, etc. etc.) This will give you a good grounding into what type of metering works best for a given type of subject, and when you will be likely to need exposure compensation. (Also, a good understanding of the histogram functions will always repay the time spent learning them).

Above all, just take plenty of shots and analyse what worked and what didn't, so that you can recreate the good shots, and avoid the bad ones next time out.

Happy snapping.
Regards,
Mike.

[ron1863]

Originally Posted by Stinky Bob

PS So far I have managed to take a few shots of my thumb and at least a couple of dozen of my right knee

Are they in focus through

[Stinky Bob]

Thanks Guys,
Sound advice

Ron/ Elements has given me a finely chiselled knee

[Geoff F]

My advice would be to do both. Take a couple of shots in auto then switch to one of the manual or semi manual modes.

If you get it totally wrong you will still have the auto shots in your camera. But I expect you will soon start saying 'I can do better than the auto setting' and mostly use manual thereafter.

[acherontia]

Enrol on a course - City and Guilds do a great digital photography course.

I'd advise against reading the manual front to back - it might just put you off (unless you like that sort of thing ) and there's nothing better than practical experience.
Understanding the balance between aperture and shutter speed is vital - photography is all about the use of light and Lancashire Lad has some good advice there.
Look up 'Painting with Light'. It's fun and will teach you a lot about how it all works.

Painting With Light | DIYPhotography.net

Don't bog yourself down too much with technicalities at first - just have fun discovering it all bit by bit!

Acher

[Stinky Bob]

Thanks for the advice Acher and Geoff

I err read the manual two weeks before the camera was delivered, I have since read it about another 4 times, unfortunately it doesnt offer any insight into the "mechanics" of photography but I suppose that will come with experimentation and experience.

So far I am most comfortable with A mode, where I control the aperture and the camera the shutter speed, this is probably because I read it in a magazine over the weekend in response to a readers enquiry .

I have noticed that the electronic analog exposure display in the viewfinder shows as being one third over exposed, should I set this back to Zero. Is this a numpty question

[Lancashire Lad]

Possibly whoever had the camera previously set the exposure to +1/3 stop for the last photo taken before you got it

I quite regularly use the + or - exposure control to counter any tendency for the camera's metering to under or over expose on any given subject. It's just an extension of the manual control that's available to you.

I'd set it back to zero and see how your next few frames turn out. (There's a slight possibility that the camera's metering might have always tended to just under-expose, in which case you would need to set it back to +1/3 again).

Regards,
Mike.

[ianjmc]

I totally agree with the others here. The best thing to do is to build it up in stages. What I often do is try to learn something new in between shoots. Then when I go out next time I give it a try. That way you're not overwhelming yourself with all the techno babble in the manual and you'll learn through doing, if you're anything like me you're more likely to remember it that way!

I'd also recommend you keep reading magazines. Most of them will have a tutorial section each month, they're normally tied in with the season and they are very useful projects. They'll guide you through the various features needed to take the kind of shots in the article.

Finally as GTH said make sure you enjoy it, if you go out trying to master aperture and find you're getting frustrated because it's not working how you expect, flick back to auto enjoy the rest of the day then go home and read some more. Never be afraid to stick it into auto if it means you'll go home with a bunch of decent shots.