Advice for a novice

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Southsider_78

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Hi folks, first post on the forum so just looking for some hints, tips, advice and good reference material/links for a novice/beginner.

I received a Nikon D3200 with the 18-55mm kit lens as a gift from my wife. She has also booked me a 1 day introductory course which should help me with the basics.

All I've had to date are very basic compact digital cameras. I have no photography experience at all so the key is for me to get to grips with the basics first and foremost.

I've been playing about with the camera just to get used to it but it's mainly been the automatic functions I've been using. I think I'll mainly be interested in landscape photography. I'm an engineer with a keen interest in architecture so this will also be an area of interest.

I've been advised to buy the book 'Understanding Exposure' and just get out there and get as much practice as possible.

I don't plan to spend much on additional kit until I start getting used to my camera but are there any essential extras/accessories I should consider buying?
 
A few things that aren't that expensive but are handy. If your going for landscapes a tripod, I started and still have a £30 one from jessops but it's falling apart now. A remote shutter release (a few quid on eBay for a non genuine cabled one)
A couple of cards and a spare battery. (I had a card fail on me even though it was a decent one)
Some nd (neutral density) filters, grads/hard and a holder. Not major money but around £30 again. Then buy more filters when you have a few quid spare.
 
Hi and welcome to the forum!

Firstly I wouldn't buy anything additionally to start with, have a read if understanding exposure and have a look on t'internet about composition, rule of thirds, leading lines etc..... Stick your camera in auto then go and enjoy shooting some photos! Post some that you are pleased with in the appropriate feedback section on here. You'll soon start picking up on what equipment you need, what techniques you need to practice on. You have plenty of time to start learning how to use your camera in the more creative settings. I'd just start off enjoying shooting what you enjoy.

If you have any money that's burning a hole, you might want to invest in a tripod and remote if you like landscapes, but they're not a necks try to start off with.

Good luck and enjoy!
 
Hello Southsider and welcome to TP.

I think you started well. As you understand more about photography you will be using other settings on your camera but AUTO is not a bad place to start. You will get some good shots but as you learn you will begin to see where using the other settings will help to get the image you want. I don't know the book you mentioned but a good number of folks on here like it. There are also tutorials on this site and on many others, - http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/ for example.

You need an understanding of aperture, shutter speed and ISO; how they relate to each other and the effect they have on the final image. This will give you an understanding of how to use the other camera settings.

Digital photos are effectively free so yes definitely take lots of photos. Along with the image the camera record the setting used to take each photo, this is called the EXIF data. This data, when your understanding of the three basics has developed, will let you see what setting worked and what did not and whether they produced the image you wanted.

I assume you camera came with some Nikon photo editing software. This is a good point to start with editing your shots. There are also many other editors ranging in price from free to hundreds of £.

You asked about other equipment. If you are keen on landscape photography (and other types too) then a tripod would be very useful, but I think at present that is not essential. A spare battery however, is very useful. Nothing worse to be out shooting and have your only battery run down. An addiitional card is also handy, though have to admit I have yet, after 2 plus years with the current camera, to get around to getting one.

If you want a view on your photos, post them up here and there will be plenty of advice.


Dave
 
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Tringa said:
You need an understanding of aperture, shutter speed and ISO; how they relate to each other and the effect they have on the final image.
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Fundamental. I wouldn't buy anything immediately at all. Go out and do, and strive to understand. Still subjects and maybe moving ones too. Composition is a thing to play with. Learn to see light and judge it. Photos display a certain range of tones and exposure must relate to this - at the extremes dark tones will acquire digital 'noise' and block up (go black), and bright areas will 'blow out', ie turn white and be void of detail - often a major defect (ugly).

Take it seriously, but have fun.
 
Thanks very much for the advice folks. Much appreciated.

Tringa - yes, I've got the Nikon photo editing software that came with the camera. I've been playing about with it tonight with some images I took which were just as it was getting dark along the Clydeside in Glasgow.

I've had a bit of a play about with Photoshop in the past as well. I may consider the £9/month Creative Cloud plan.
 
Aah! That's spending money!
Don't run before you can walk.
Flickr is free for hosting pics, and a good place to look at others' work.
 
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Adow2 said:
Hi and welcome to the forum!

Firstly I wouldn't buy anything additionally to start with
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droj said:
Fundamental. I wouldn't buy anything immediately at all.
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Welcome. Sage advice above - been there, ignored it and suffered as a result. It's not just about spending money you don't need to, it's also about having too much 'noise' confusing the process. "Do I take this lens or that lens?" "Should I try with this filter or that?"

Work with what you have until you find the lack of something inhibiting. Even then, try and try again with what you have to make sure it really is the equipment that is lacking and not the user.

Also don't be disheartened when you start taking worse photos that you used to get with an old compact - that'll probably start when you drop out of 'auto' mode. Use auto for what it is - a quick and relatively safe way to grab a picture. Look at what it produces and imaging how you might like the picture to have been different. For example - you take a lovely picture of your cat, but find the background a bit too clear and distracting - you might consider taking a bit more creating control by selecting aperture priority mode next time and dial in a wide open aperture to throw the background even more out of focus - you try it, and find all of sudden the pictures are coming out a little less sharp, the cat is blurry. Eh? Stupid camera. Read up a little more - understand why the nose is nice and sharp but the eyes are blurry... and so on.

The 'Understanding Exposure' book will give you a good grounding in the theory. It will initially help you understand why your photos didn't come out as expected, and as you progress, and learn, it will help you get the right shots in the first place. I'm a big believer is the saying that 'you only learn by doing' - reading a book doesn't really give true 'learning' - applying it does.
 
Hi Southsider, welcome to Talk Photography, you'll like it here..i would get a UV or Skylight filter, primarily as a protection for your lens, the more you can afford the better, I also have a lens hood, reduces flare and another good lens protection

Robin
 
...and a lot of people will tell you to ignore the above advice re filters. Your lens does not really need one.
A hood should be used. Your kit lens should come with one.
 
I would say a tripod is the way to go if you're interested in landscapes, it's the most essential bit of kit in my eyes (other than your camera). Not only will it help you get the slower shutter speeds that most landscape photography requires (due to smaller apertures) but it will also slow down your thinking for compositional aspect etc.
 
Furtim said:
Work with what you have until you find the lack of something inhibiting. Even then, try and try again with what you have to make sure it really is the equipment that is lacking and not the user.
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This is great advice.

Welcome to TP, you will learn a lot here!
 
I would have a look at Mike Browne on youtube I think he is great. http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mike browne photography tutorials&sm=1

I have the same camera and lens as you and I think it is a wonderful camera for the money. One thing I found out pretty quickly though was that the standard lens is not enough on its own so I bought a 70 to 200mm Nikon lens to go with it as it gives you much more choice of shot. I would have preferred the 300mm but they are a bit rich for my blood.
 
Hi, I have just discovered Mike Browne as ash59uk mentioned, he is really good!!! Other good video tutorial channels are froknowsphoto (very annoying American bloke with big hair, but really good tutorials and explanations) or digital photography one on one (another American bloke) both have good vids on everything you can think of, from understanding light to using high spec equipment. I have only just got into photography and am loving learning how to use my camera (D3100). Just wish my photos came out a bit better!!!
 
One modest purchase that might be worth picking up, if you're thinking of landscape photography, is a circular polarising filter. The effects are demonstrated well here:

http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/technical/polarizers.html

I've found mine highly worthwhile for landscapes, whether in enhancing the sky, or the look of a river. If you do go for one, be sure it's the correct size, as lenses come in a variety of diameters.
 
Advice for a novice/beginner..

.. look at photographs. Look at lots of photographs, they're everywhere. Learn how to look at them and understand why you like or dislike a certain photograph. The camera can get a decent exposure 9 times out of 10, but it can't help you decide where to point it.

Don't spend too much time looking at photographs in photography magazines. These only contain the photographs taken by people that want to be photographers. They very rarely contain the photographs people like to look at.
 
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