Canon 400D?

kira

kira

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Kira
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Hey

I'm still very much learning at the moment and honestly don't really know much at all! But I love photography so much and so I'm practing a lot!

I have a canon 400D with lenses
18-55mm
28-90mm
and an 80-200mm which I have just ordered but haven't got yet.

In all your opinions, can you get a really decent photo from this camera?

I have been trying and I've been unhappy with my photos and I don't know if it's me, the camera, the lenses or what?! I think it is just me and not really knowing what to do.

I have trouble with focusing and I want my images to be really sharp and they're not.

I also wanted to create a sharp image and blured background so I tried to change the F number which I was advised too, and even then I couldnt seem to get the focus right, on auto or manual.

Can anyone help me at all?

Thanks guys!
 
Hi, welcome to the board I see you're new! I basically am as well but I lurk a lot!
Anyways, I have a 400D and I myself love it and yes you can get decent images from it as you can with basically any camera, the choice of lens will help a lot in the sharpness of the images you're trying to capture.

Now I see you're having trouble with image sharpness, that may be because you're using the kit lens, which I also had trouble with sharpness when I first started which infuriated me to no end! May I suggest buying a 50mm f/1.8 for about 70 quid, everybody bangs on about them but they are absolutely brilliant for the money, and razor sharp even wide open, as generally lens' are sharper the smaller f-stop you use so f/8.0 would be sharper than say f/4.0 if I'm not mistaken, somebody correct me if I'm wrong!

But I'll post some images I took yesterday with my 400d in Iceland to show you that you can get sharp images!


3849160686_855025c85b.jpg


3848366383_be34301e37.jpg


These were both taken with the 50mm I was talking about, I hope this is of some help to you.

Regards, Lukas.
 
kira said:
Hey

I'm still very much learning at the moment and honestly don't really know much at all! But I love photography so much and so I'm practing a lot!

I have a canon 400D with lenses
18-55mm
28-90mm
and an 80-200mm which I have just ordered but haven't got yet.

In all your opinions, can you get a really decent photo from this camera?

I have been trying and I've been unhappy with my photos and I don't know if it's me, the camera, the lenses or what?! I think it is just me and not really knowing what to do.

I have trouble with focusing and I want my images to be really sharp and they're not.

I also wanted to create a sharp image and blured background so I tried to change the F number which I was advised too, and even then I couldnt seem to get the focus right, on auto or manual.

Can anyone help me at all?

Thanks guys!
Click to expand...

Welcome to TP Kira.

The Canon 400D is very capable and you should be able to produce perfectly sharp images with it. Even the kit 18-55mm when stopped down can perform adequately (I'm a bit confused with the 80-200mm though. What manufacturer?)

As said, post some images complete with the exif and maybe somebody can give you some clue as to what the problem is.
 
Hi KIra and welcome to TP. :wave:

I was having the same problem when I started, but I listened to what was said on TP and then thing improved. It is dfficult to comment without any examples and exif information, so please try and post some.
I was trying to use my kit lens wide open with ISO100 which I was convinced would give the best results, but after reading a few posts I tried it at f8 increased the ISO and shutter speed and it all started to fall into place.
Of course expensive L series lenses can give major improvements, but with a little bit of practice and understanding you will get some cracking shots with your kit.

Don't give up, keep reading the posts and things will fall into place.

Gordon
 
I use a 400d! I started my journey on photograph 3 years ago this christmas. Each year i have tried to build my lens collection up as much as possible. Just keep going!!!
 
The 400D is a very capable camera. I've had one for the last 2 years and have produced some excellent results.

The sharpness (settings aside) is more down to the lens rather than the camera as any DSLR is capable of producing pin sharp images.

What lenses do you use?
 
Welcome Kira,

I use a 400D and to be honest I am in the same predicament as you, I think the key is practice, practice, practice, sharp images are possible with your camera I finally got what I've hoped for yesterday afternoon after hours of messing about..... http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=159040
Ok, not the most inspiring of shots and still room for improvement but as well as all that practice I'll gladly take the the advice, tips and suggestions offered by others on here.

Good luck and stick with it, remember though, this is suposed to be fun, I have a habit of forgetting that sometimes.
 
kira said:
Hey

I'm still very much learning at the moment and honestly don't really know much at all! But I love photography so much and so I'm practing a lot!

I have a canon 400D with lenses
18-55mm
28-90mm
and an 80-200mm which I have just ordered but haven't got yet.

In all your opinions, can you get a really decent photo from this camera?

I have been trying and I've been unhappy with my photos and I don't know if it's me, the camera, the lenses or what?! I think it is just me and not really knowing what to do.

I have trouble with focusing and I want my images to be really sharp and they're not.

I also wanted to create a sharp image and blured background so I tried to change the F number which I was advised too, and even then I couldnt seem to get the focus right, on auto or manual.

Can anyone help me at all?

Thanks guys!
Click to expand...

If the 80-200mm is this lens;

http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-80-200mm-f-4.5-5.6-II-Lens-Review.aspx

I'm afraid thats not a particually good lens...

Both your other lenses are old kit lenses too - so they wont be as sharp as most lenses (though you can get fairly good results from the 18-55).

To get the best out of a DSLR you really need to invest in good lenses, as with cheap ones you'll just strangle the camera and you just wont get the best from it.
 
The 400D is a great camera - don't fall into the trap of thinking you only get good photos with an expensive camera!

For the focusing - are you using auto-focus? If not, put it on now...
I set mine for single mid-point focussing so that I can point at the subject I want, half-press the shutter and recompose the image (without taking your finger off the shutter button) then fully press.
The standard multi-point auto-focus will try to get as many points in focus and so sometimes latches on to the wrong thing in your image.
Also, make sure there's plenty of light... auto-focus needs light to work and will hunt around (your camera focus ring will whirr back and forwards) if it's too dark.

You've been given some advice on the f/stop or aperture settings so make sure you understand them - a higher f/stop equates to a smaller aperture which means that you get a wide depth-of-field.
If you're finding that parts of your image are out of focus then try upping the f/stop to give a wider DoF.
Unfortunately at a high f/stop the aperture is quite small so you'll need a longer shutter speed to properly compose - it may introduce some blurring to your images if it's too long... again, try shooting in a brighter space, use a tripod or slightly increase the camera ISO settings (not too much or the images will be noisy, say go from 100 to 400).

To get the blurred background you're looking for you want a shallow depth-of-field so do the opposite of what I've said above. Open up your aperture to as wide as it will go - this is when you've got a really low f/stop showing and will mean that only the things in the same distance from you as your focus will be sharp.
It's worth noting the f/stops of the lenses you have so that we can help identify which ones will help give this effect - the 18-55mm that came with the camera probably says something like 3.5-5.6 on it? This means that the lowest f/stop you can get is f/3.5 but only at the widest point of your zoom (the 18mm part) - if you zoom in to 55mm then you'll only be able to get f/5.6.

To get this effect I've got a 50mm f/1.8 prime lens - these cost about £70/£80 and aren't the best made lenses in the world but they will give you this separation you're looking for since the DoF at f/1.8 is tiny.


Don't give up! Keep practicing and post some images with their exif data so that we can try to help!
 
Interesting thread this as for the first year or so I had the EOS400D I was in the same boat - dischuffed and disillulsioned with the snaps I was taking.

I'll chime in with the chorus of advice on the Canon 50mm f1.8 lens. It was the gateway lens for me that finally got the penny to drop.

Couple of things about it that are key.

  • No zoom means no monkeying around - you'll learn to walk about a bit and it will help with composing a shot
  • The low light capability means you can more or less do away with the flash.
  • Shallow depth of field images shot at f1.8/f2.0 have super out-of focus looking blur. I was finally easily achieving the shots I'd always imagined in my minds eye.

So, I spent months shooting nothing other than 50mm on, camera in AV mode with the lens wide open until things got repetetive and started to be a little boring. And then... returning to the kit lens (and a cheapo 300mm zoom) I realised I was taking much much better snaps at last - right the way across the board.
 
Thank you all for your help and comments!

I only have these lenses as I can't really afford much at the moment which is a bit upsetting really.

I guess I am just being impatient! I got upset and thought its me, I'm rubbish. I just need to learn more about how to use my camera and learn about lenses and things, then just go out and practice!

I just realised how little I know and so I'm trying to get advice and tips from others with the same camera!

Also, I don't know how to upload images and what does exif mean?
 
kira said:
Also, I don't know how to upload images and what does exif mean?
Click to expand...

I'd say, get a flickr account, they're free and will allow you to upload your images online easily. The 'EXIF' data is information that your camera stores inside the image file alongside the actual picture data. Studying some of this exif data on photos you like the look of will give you a little bit of insight into the choices that the photographer took when they made the image.

Here's an example. This photo...
3739206681_83eb055d1b.jpg


has these settings (the lens type, the f1.8 aperture, manual focus, the exposure time, ISO 100 etc. etc.) There's a lot of guff in there that you can safely ignore but study a few of them and you'll learn a lot about the choices that each photographer makes.
 
I started out with a 400D last year, it's a great camera. The quality of the image is largely down to the lens, rather than the camera body itself. Just don't let anybody hand you a 40D or a 50D, you'll want one and find some way to get the cash together. I got my 400D in April 2008 and by January 09 I had sold it and bought a 40D :LOL:
 
Hi Kira, I too have a 400D, if you look through my Flickr I think you can see that my pictures get better (at least I think so anyway) as I slowly learn how to use the 400D and the budget lenses I own.

I think its more about understanding what you have and how to use it to the best of its ability at that current situation, than purely down to the equipment.
 
Cranky said:
Hi Kira, I too have a 400D, if you look through my Flickr I think you can see that my pictures get better (at least I think so anyway) as I slowly learn how to use the 400D and the budget lenses I own.

I think its more about understanding what you have and how to use it to the best of its ability at that current situation, than purely down to the equipment.
Click to expand...

I love your photos! They're amazing! Do you use editing softwear aswell?
And what lenses do you use?:)
 
Like others said 400D is OK, but the glass is very important
50mm f/1.8 (mk1 if you can find) is relatively cheap.
I still use 70-210mm f/3.5-4.5 USM and it is incredible tele for the price paid, don't waste money on sigmas and 80-200 or 75-300
It gets very grim in the wideangle area. I eventually bought 24-70mm as nothing else seemed good enough (except maybe 24-105mm f/4). I didn't really want to invest in EF-S just to upgrade to FF later on.

Software is a must, shoot RAW and get Lightroom or Aperture now.
 
only wish i could help / assist you but i'm afraid i'm a complete newbee myself.......but boy i'm enjoying it so far.
you'll get there in the end though, as there are a lot of very talented and helpful people that visit this website, and i'm sure some of them will help you out...............good luck
 
Am a noob at this myself, but the £70 Canon 50mm 1.8 is awesome. Flimsy build but wonderfully sharp. I've got a 400D and have been spoilt with that lens. Got myself a Sigma 70-300 APO and the Canon kit 18-55 IS zoom and I prefer the shots I get from the nifty fifty. Well worth £70. Talk to Kerso!

Nice Flickr shots, btw
 
For some reason I cannot see the exif data. However, I think there are two things worth checking

First off, how have you set your focus point, and in what mode? With some of the lenses I have, AI Servo doesn't work too well. I think that the centre of the images are in focus, and the edges are not. Which mode are you shooting in? I think that the aperture is slightly too large. 5466 for example, has the belt in sharper focus than her hair. Is it possible that you were trying to hold your breath when you took the shot?

Secondly, how are you taking your photographs? Are you using raw or jpeg? If you use Digital Photo Professional, which came with your camera, on the image 5129, and increase the sharpness, the image does become sharper. If you were to do this on an unprocessed raw image, rather than the final jpeg, it would help a lot too. I find myself shooting in 'neutral' settings, then applying +3 sharpness to the raw tab.
 
The 400D is a very capable camera, as stated above.

I have used mine for 2 years now, and to be honest I am getting the urge to upgrade, but by no means do I feel MASSIVELY limited by the 400D.

All of my photos in my Flickr stream from my sig are from my 400D. I like to think some of them are good :)
 
kira said:
I love your photos! They're amazing! Do you use editing softwear aswell?
And what lenses do you use?:)
Click to expand...

Cheers, I wouldn't go so far as to say amazing but I am feeling more in control of the end result now :D

As far as software goes I just use photoshop to resize the pics, straighten and sharpen when needed as I use raw.
 
400D and 18 - 55...


3234284019_ab50580476.jpg


3444958279_e11c243653.jpg


The one above is still one of my most popular photos even though I now have a 5D
 
David, are those HDR though? They may not give a true representation of the 400d. (if not, wow, I wish I could get that on mine!)
 
Hi Kira.
You seem to be doing something right. Some of your shots are GREAT!

Keep at it. Practise practise and more practise!!!
as mentioned already, I think the 400D and you are capable of doing a grand job.
Get used to learning what settings and mode are best used in different situations, be creative and learn how to use the various editing programs, as this is quite an important part of photography (y)
 
The 400D is a very capable camera (I can't think of a DSLR that isn't), the lens in front and the photographer behind will make the difference, not the camera. I used to shoot with a 400D here's one of my best shots with it...
stonecurlew_190707_0082.jpg

There's plenty more on my website taken with this camera (the EXIF should be on all the shots so you can see which are taken with the 400D).
 
The thing I have such a problem with at the moment Is I don't fully understand my camera. I mean when I say I'm a beginer I literally love photography but I only just learned what appature ment. I still don't know all the settings and what the shutter speed should be and things like that so I don't even completely know how I took those photos!!

I know I have it on Standard, with the sharpness right the way up. I usually have it on the setting <P> with the ISO at about 400. I use L and not raw because I dont know enough about that yet. And I used to just use AutoFocus. Now though I think I prefer Manual and actually selecting my focus point, BUT I still have trouble with sharpness and focus. I know very little about DOF, only that a low F number should give a blured background, but again I don't know which is the best number to have it on and when. For example I went out the other day to try and capture a field and it was absolutle awful!!
I will be getting books to help me as I want to get better sooo badly!!
 
kira said:
The thing I have such a problem with at the moment Is I don't fully understand my camera. I mean when I say I'm a beginer I literally love photography but I only just learned what appature ment. I still don't know all the settings and what the shutter speed should be and things like that so I don't even completely know how I took those photos!!

I know I have it on Standard, with the sharpness right the way up. I usually have it on the setting <P> with the ISO at about 400. I use L and not raw because I dont know enough about that yet. And I used to just use AutoFocus. Now though I think I prefer Manual and actually selecting my focus point, BUT I still have trouble with sharpness and focus. I know very little about DOF, only that a low F number should give a blured background, but again I don't know which is the best number to have it on and when. For example I went out the other day to try and capture a field and it was absolutle awful!!
I will be getting books to help me as I want to get better sooo badly!!
Click to expand...

Try using Av mode.
This is aperture value, and basically you control the aperture and ISO, white balance etc, and the camera chooses the shutter speed.

Also stopping your lens down a bit might help.
So again basically, shoot in Av mode, set the aperture a couple of stops down (if the lens is an F4-5.6, set it on F8) to get the best from it.
If you lot's of good light, use ISO100 or 200. If light is a bit scarce, use 400 or 800.

Manual focus is ok (I hate MF!)
AF is excellent! And it's pretty reliable on DSLR's........
 
Kira,

The 400D is a great camera, my daughter Bridie uses one and the shots she takes are great, she has won competitions with hers so its more than up to the job.

Don't worry too much about RAW, bridie uses large Jpeg and the images are fine. The best way to get used to different settings is to experiment as it doesn't cost you anything. Bridie generally shoots AV mode @ iso 400

Focus is fine, but don't use AI Focus as its pants - stick to one shot or servo.

Hope this helps

Rob
 
Yeah thanks a lot guys! Will just have to read, practice, practice, read. Maybe at some point invest in this 50mm lens you've all been recomending too! Just can't afford it at the moment =(

I guess I should get some decent editing softwear as well!!
 
kira said:
Yeah thanks a lot guys! Will just have to read, practice, practice, read. Maybe at some point invest in this 50mm lens you've all been recomending too! Just can't afford it at the moment =(

I guess I should get some decent editing softwear as well!!
Click to expand...

It might help ;)

There's a bunch of us have regular get-togethers in the Portsmouth and Southampton and surrounding area's.
You are welcome to come along with us one day.
I've learned a huge amount from our meetings!!
 
I recently asked my 2 friends if I could practice on them, in which a couple of the photos are on my Flickr page. Ive now been asked by another friend to take some model type photos for him and I'm scared because I just think they don't come out good enough. Now with the 2 girls, it was purely for me to practice but this time, he wants to use these photos! I told him I'm not very good but he just replied "Im sure they'll be fine"

Does anyone have any tips on settings I could use to improve focus??
 
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