DSLR Photography for beginner - How to shoot like a Pro.

[n1nj4 m0d3]

Originally Posted by DimitrisIX

mine came with a 18-55m is lens. its quite good guys but i will buy the 70-300mm canon is lens to get some longer zoom

i rather buy the 70-200 f/4 or if you have the extra cash get the 70-200 f/2.8. if you even have more cash than that or do low light shooting get the IS version. the 70-200 f/2.8 is easily on of my fav lenses in my camera bag

[007WRX]

Originally Posted by aanthonyd

do any of your guys shoot auto-x pics? I tried panning to get some movement but couldn't get the setting right. Help me with some tips.

Ah man panning is realllllly tricky. I usually set the shutterspeed at something around 1/60 ish or lower depending on the speed of the car, the slower the movement, the lower the shutter speed which makes it very hard to keep it still. What I like to do is pick a spot on the car, say the mirror on the door, and follow it. Your going to have to take a bunch in order to get the shot you need.

Here are some of my panning shots:

[aanthonyd]

Originally Posted by 007WRX

Ah man panning is realllllly tricky. I usually set the shutterspeed at something around 1/60 ish or lower depending on the speed of the car, the slower the movement, the lower the shutter speed which makes it very hard to keep it still. What I like to do is pick a spot on the car, say the mirror on the door, and follow it. Your going to have to take a bunch in order to get the shot you need.

Here are some of my panning shots:

Thanks for the tips, your pics are good. I will need to keep trying.

[fit4130bmx]

wow, gorgeous pics!

[007WRX]

If you are referring to me, thank you!

[rip]

pls critique...really new to the dslr....this is the first camera i've ever owned...







taken with Canon Xsi using kit lens

[nikkadanny]

i just picked up another camera. d70 and a d40, sold my old d40 awhile back

[Jrod@Buschur]

rip: you need to clean the face of your watch. Its all smudged. lol

Nice pics!

[rip]

Originally Posted by Jrod@Buschur

rip: you need to clean the face of your watch. Its all smudged. lol

Nice pics!

thanks....

lol@ smudges - only realized after i took the pic, camera brought out the "imperfections" and the blurr on the second hand gave me a feel for some of the settings - almost like timing duration for the picture to be taken...

[Jrod@Buschur]

Been there done that. You take pics, think you got a good one then pull it up on the computer and are all like "AW MAN WHAT THE HELL!" lol Streaks, dirt, reflections, glare, etc... Its still fun though. It forces you to go back out and pay closer attention is all. Practice makes perfect!

[evolife04]

ive been messing around with black and white on my cannon 50d. There pretty cool and very forgiving

[DimitrisIX]

here are some pics with my new 70-300mm IS lens

[Redlined]

Originally Posted by aanthonyd

do any of your guys shoot auto-x pics? I tried panning to get some movement but couldn't get the setting right. Help me with some tips.

Adjusting the shutter speed will help with getting the movement feel in the photo. Use the time value or shutter priority on your camera. Depending on the speed of the car, distance adjust the shutter speed accordingly. I generally prefer using 1/80 as a base value. It keeps more of the car in focus rather than just a point on the car. The further you are away the from the subject the slower the shutter speed and easier it will be to pan. If you're close to the subject a slow shutter speed will just mean everything is out of focus.

Adjust the ISO value accordingly so the aperture value is a higher value with the slow shutter speed. I've found f8 and above gives sharper, cleaner and better focused shots of the car in conjunction with the slower shutter speed.

Also set the camera to continuous tracking and not one shot focus. With the Canon's they name it as 'AI Servo'. Nikon if i remember correctly is 'Continuous Servo AF'. I'm not sure about the other brands of SLR and what they call it. The continuous focus is generally by default the centre points unless you specify the focus point manually.

Here are some samples of my panning shots.

[Redlined]

Originally Posted by rip

pls critique...really new to the dslr....this is the first camera i've ever owned...



taken with Canon Xsi using kit lens

I've noticed this picture the subject is out of focus. You should select the focus point so the camera knows what to stay focused on.

You've also selected a slower shutter speed of 1/25 with shutter priority (Tv) mode on your Xsi. Perhaps try using aperture value (Av) and a higher ISO (you were on ISO 100) so the shutter speed is higher to reduce handheld shake. If you want to keep more flowers in focus use a higher aperture to have a greater depth of field. But the downside with this the shutter speed will have to be slower to compensate for the smaller aperture. So raising the ISO will be a must if taken handheld especially if in low light conditions.

[007WRX]

Redline great panning shots!