Help me learn my Christmas Canon
December 12, 2009 5:03 PM Subscribe
I've given myself (with the help of others) a Canon S90 camera for Christmas and I need help getting the most out of my photographic experience(s)!!
I'm a total newb when it come to photography with anything but the most basic cheapie point and shoot. I've had some good luck with interesting photographs I've taken though, which has really made me want to learn more about photography and cameras. My true heart's desire is a DSLR, but the reality of the matter is I have a very small expendable income budget and it might be years before I could afford one. So, based on reviews and seeing the Canon S90 mentioned on this and other websites, I took a small windfall and some Christmas gifted cash from family and bought one tonight!!!
Of course I'll read the manual that comes with it, but then what? Assume I know nothing about f-stops and aperture and ISO (because I don't). Where should I go to find information that will apply to this camera? Are there any books that will help or web sites? I really want to learn this camera backwards and forwards and by that time (a couple of years from now), hopefully I'll be financially able to step up to a DSLR.
Thanks for any help or direction you can give a fledgling photographer!!
I'm a total newb when it come to photography with anything but the most basic cheapie point and shoot. I've had some good luck with interesting photographs I've taken though, which has really made me want to learn more about photography and cameras. My true heart's desire is a DSLR, but the reality of the matter is I have a very small expendable income budget and it might be years before I could afford one. So, based on reviews and seeing the Canon S90 mentioned on this and other websites, I took a small windfall and some Christmas gifted cash from family and bought one tonight!!!
Of course I'll read the manual that comes with it, but then what? Assume I know nothing about f-stops and aperture and ISO (because I don't). Where should I go to find information that will apply to this camera? Are there any books that will help or web sites? I really want to learn this camera backwards and forwards and by that time (a couple of years from now), hopefully I'll be financially able to step up to a DSLR.
Thanks for any help or direction you can give a fledgling photographer!!
Best answer: Congratulations!
I'm a slightly-above-average photographer on my best days, but the best advice I ever recieved on photography was to "burn film"--to take a lot of pictures. Fortunately, you live in the modern era, where taking a thousand pictures costs exactly as much as taking one. Chuck Jones said one of his first art teachers informed his class on the first day that everyone has 100,000 bad drawings in them, and that it were better if they got them out sooner than later. (As I understand, he was well past the 200,000 mark at this point, and found the remark to be a relief.) The point is that even if you just use your camera as a point-and-shoot, you'll get better every time you take it out, point it at things, and shoot.
I do have one camera-specific piece of advice. There's a program called CHDK that gives you much more control over what the camera does than Canon's standard firmware. Ah, shoot, it looks like it's not available for the S90. But apparently the camera just came out, so they may port it over the next few months--watch that page. Here's an article from Lifehacker on CHDK.
Oh, see also Rob "Cockeyed.com" Cockerham's list of digital camera tricks. (He's also the guy who made the first page I linked to.)
I don't have any texts to offer, but I'd be interested in seeing what people propose, so I'm keeping an eye on this question.
posted by tellumo at 5:30 PM on December 12, 2009
I'm a slightly-above-average photographer on my best days, but the best advice I ever recieved on photography was to "burn film"--to take a lot of pictures. Fortunately, you live in the modern era, where taking a thousand pictures costs exactly as much as taking one. Chuck Jones said one of his first art teachers informed his class on the first day that everyone has 100,000 bad drawings in them, and that it were better if they got them out sooner than later. (As I understand, he was well past the 200,000 mark at this point, and found the remark to be a relief.) The point is that even if you just use your camera as a point-and-shoot, you'll get better every time you take it out, point it at things, and shoot.
I do have one camera-specific piece of advice. There's a program called CHDK that gives you much more control over what the camera does than Canon's standard firmware. Ah, shoot, it looks like it's not available for the S90. But apparently the camera just came out, so they may port it over the next few months--watch that page. Here's an article from Lifehacker on CHDK.
Oh, see also Rob "Cockeyed.com" Cockerham's list of digital camera tricks. (He's also the guy who made the first page I linked to.)
I don't have any texts to offer, but I'd be interested in seeing what people propose, so I'm keeping an eye on this question.
posted by tellumo at 5:30 PM on December 12, 2009
Best answer: You'll be wanting to bookmark The Strobist. I'm sure you'll get legions of links in response to this question, but primarily, you need to get out there and shoot! Then come back, and compare. Do some science with your new tool - set up shots and take them with different settings and see the difference for yourself. And always be looking at other people's work, be in on flickr or tumblr or in magazines on subjects that inspire you.
posted by Mizu at 5:33 PM on December 12, 2009
posted by Mizu at 5:33 PM on December 12, 2009
Best answer: Are there any books that will help or web sites?
I'd say stick to books. Web sites are full of nonsense*.
The best photography books I've ever read are The Camera, The Negative, and (less importantly) The Print by Ansel Adams. Adams used a camera that is about as far way from your S90—and any digital camera, really—as it gets, but I've learned more from those books than I have from any others. Adams used huge, expensive cameras and huge, expensive pieces of film for his photos, and as a result every exposure was precious. It's a very good antidote for the temptation to take a thousand digital snapshots in the hope that one will become a decent photograph.
My true heart's desire is a DSLR, but the reality of the matter is I have a very small expendable income budget and it might be years before I could afford one.
That's okay. The S90 is an awesome camera (I've got a DSLR and am a bit jealous, frankly). You won't be able to produce most of the "bokeh" shots that are hyped on Flickr, but that's a good limitation. You'll be forced to make your photos interesting for reasons beyond the fact that you bought an expensive lens.
Good luck!
* That said, try bythom.com and cambridgeincolour.com :)
posted by Garak at 6:13 PM on December 12, 2009
I'd say stick to books. Web sites are full of nonsense*.
The best photography books I've ever read are The Camera, The Negative, and (less importantly) The Print by Ansel Adams. Adams used a camera that is about as far way from your S90—and any digital camera, really—as it gets, but I've learned more from those books than I have from any others. Adams used huge, expensive cameras and huge, expensive pieces of film for his photos, and as a result every exposure was precious. It's a very good antidote for the temptation to take a thousand digital snapshots in the hope that one will become a decent photograph.
My true heart's desire is a DSLR, but the reality of the matter is I have a very small expendable income budget and it might be years before I could afford one.
That's okay. The S90 is an awesome camera (I've got a DSLR and am a bit jealous, frankly). You won't be able to produce most of the "bokeh" shots that are hyped on Flickr, but that's a good limitation. You'll be forced to make your photos interesting for reasons beyond the fact that you bought an expensive lens.
Good luck!
* That said, try bythom.com and cambridgeincolour.com :)
posted by Garak at 6:13 PM on December 12, 2009
Best answer: Congratulations on taking the VERY smart step of starting with a compact camera before going to a DSLR. While you might think this is a step back from where you want to go with your photography, it's actually a step ahead. Because you have a more "basic" camera it will help you focus on learning about photography instead of thinking if you buy some special item it will magically take better photos. :-)
Cameras don't take photos, photographers take photos. The camera is your tool, and the more you learn about how to use the tool, the better you will be able to control it to produce the photos you have in mind.
The simplest way to learn everything about camera controls is to take each control and take a series of photos with that control on each of its possible settings. For instance, learn how to change the ISO. Then take photos at each ISO setting. Take a set of photos in bright daylight, then take another set in dim light - e.g. indoors in dim light or at night. In this way you will learn how increasing the ISO helps you take sharper photos in dim light, but that when you have ample light (daylight) the photos don't get better, they get worse because the higher the ISO, the more noise you will see in the images, especially in the dark values in high ISO images.
Then do this same set of experiments with the f-stop values, with the shutter values. You will learn how a small f-stop number gives you a fast shutter speed, and a large f-stop number gives you a slower shutter speed. But you will also learn the difference in how the image comes out when you use a small f-stop (big aperture, big opening in the lens) or when you use a large f-stop (small aperture, small opening in the lens).
In the beginning you will use these 3 modes: AV lets you set the Aperture (f-stop) value. The camera will pick the shutter speed. TV lets you set the Time (shutter) value, and the camera will pick the f-stop. M is manual mode, and you will set both of these values.
Once you know how to change all the controls and how to shoot in these 3 modes, then play with the idiot modes. Put the camera in something like "Sunset mode" and take a photo. Then look at the settings the camera selected. Put the camera in AV or TV mode and see if you can duplicate these settings - you probably can't, at least not without also changing the ISO and/or the exposure compensation. Learn how to put the camera into the same settings for a sunset shot in AV or TV mode, or in Manual mode. Now you have learned hot to do what the camera does automatically in the Sunset mode.
I suggest you go thru the manual and walk thru the controls, page by page, but START with the section for Av/Tv/M modes. :-)
You asked about books, websites. One good website is stopshootingauto.
As for good books, any basic photography book will be a good place to start.
Good luck, and have fun!
posted by jcdill at 7:19 PM on December 12, 2009 [2 favorites]
Cameras don't take photos, photographers take photos. The camera is your tool, and the more you learn about how to use the tool, the better you will be able to control it to produce the photos you have in mind.
The simplest way to learn everything about camera controls is to take each control and take a series of photos with that control on each of its possible settings. For instance, learn how to change the ISO. Then take photos at each ISO setting. Take a set of photos in bright daylight, then take another set in dim light - e.g. indoors in dim light or at night. In this way you will learn how increasing the ISO helps you take sharper photos in dim light, but that when you have ample light (daylight) the photos don't get better, they get worse because the higher the ISO, the more noise you will see in the images, especially in the dark values in high ISO images.
Then do this same set of experiments with the f-stop values, with the shutter values. You will learn how a small f-stop number gives you a fast shutter speed, and a large f-stop number gives you a slower shutter speed. But you will also learn the difference in how the image comes out when you use a small f-stop (big aperture, big opening in the lens) or when you use a large f-stop (small aperture, small opening in the lens).
In the beginning you will use these 3 modes: AV lets you set the Aperture (f-stop) value. The camera will pick the shutter speed. TV lets you set the Time (shutter) value, and the camera will pick the f-stop. M is manual mode, and you will set both of these values.
Once you know how to change all the controls and how to shoot in these 3 modes, then play with the idiot modes. Put the camera in something like "Sunset mode" and take a photo. Then look at the settings the camera selected. Put the camera in AV or TV mode and see if you can duplicate these settings - you probably can't, at least not without also changing the ISO and/or the exposure compensation. Learn how to put the camera into the same settings for a sunset shot in AV or TV mode, or in Manual mode. Now you have learned hot to do what the camera does automatically in the Sunset mode.
I suggest you go thru the manual and walk thru the controls, page by page, but START with the section for Av/Tv/M modes. :-)
You asked about books, websites. One good website is stopshootingauto.
As for good books, any basic photography book will be a good place to start.
Good luck, and have fun!
posted by jcdill at 7:19 PM on December 12, 2009 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Thanks for the thoughtful answers. Lots of good info in each of them!
posted by SweetTeaAndABiscuit at 7:02 AM on December 13, 2009
posted by SweetTeaAndABiscuit at 7:02 AM on December 13, 2009
dude if you are looking for a DSLR...think about an older Canon or Nikon used camera in good condition. You can probably get one for the same price as the S90.
Older cameras that are still useable: Canon 20d and 10d. Pretty cheap these days:
Two cheap good lenses to go with it are the 24mm 1.4 or the 35mm f2. And the kit 18-55 or even better, the new 18-55 with image stabilization would be good choices.
Good luck!
posted by sully75 at 8:28 AM on December 13, 2009
Older cameras that are still useable: Canon 20d and 10d. Pretty cheap these days:
Two cheap good lenses to go with it are the 24mm 1.4 or the 35mm f2. And the kit 18-55 or even better, the new 18-55 with image stabilization would be good choices.
Good luck!
posted by sully75 at 8:28 AM on December 13, 2009
Just keep shooting. And when you find something you like shooting (people, animals, landscapes, etc), shoot shoot shoot shoot shoot it! Keep a journal about it and write down why you like certain subjects. The more you think about it, the more your creative energy will flow & expand.
posted by Lukenlogs at 8:01 PM on December 19, 2009
posted by Lukenlogs at 8:01 PM on December 19, 2009
This thread is closed to new comments.
(You'll find yourself doing a lot of experimentation anyway; if you learn the theory from a book or Web tutorial you're still going to have to take a lot of lousy pictures to learn how everything works. As I and many others have said many times, "the secret of great photography is very large amounts of bad photography". Think of it as being like learning to drive; it's possible to learn every single thing about how to drive a car from a book, but that still won't leave you able to actually coordinate all of that knowledge and drive, until you practise for a while.)
The PowerShot S90 seems to have an excellent suite of features, including full manual control and a lens that's quite "fast" (lets a lot of light into the camera) at the widest zoom setting. This stuff will help you learn, and will also mean you probably won't need to buy a newer fancier camera once you've figured out the basics.
(Really cheap entry-level digicams often lack even the most rudimentary manual modes, and just give you a bunch of "scene modes" of questionable utility, plus goofy stuff like a "sepia" mode. The S90, in comparison, lets you take the training wheels off when you don't need them any more.)
I reviewed an excellent book about digital photography, Mikkel Aaland's Shooting Digital, some years ago. The current edition is a few years old, but this isn't likely to be a problem; even the edition I reviewed remains almost perfectly applicable to current cameras.
I don't have an encyclopedic knowledge of the digicam-tutorial options; there may be some free Web tutorial out there that's just as good as Shooting Digital (I actually wrote a somewhat specialised tutorial myself).
But I still don't hesistate to recommend that book.
posted by dansdata at 5:29 PM on December 12, 2009