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Photography Tips for New Camera

raynefyre

raynefyre

Taste the Rainbow
Hey everyone. I was given a new camera and I want to use it to take some pictures of my snakes. However, it's a point and shoot and I know it's nowhere near as good as a SLR. I was wondering if there was any tips or advice for using this kind of camera to get decent quality pictures. Here's a link and specs:

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http://www.walmart.com/Canon-Powershot-Sd1200-Is-Blue/ip/10980058#ProductDetail

Thanks for looking and Happy Holidays! :santa:
 
I love Canon! I've had the same P&S Canon for 4 years and it was never let me down. I've found that, compared to other cameras, the Canons are very good at taking Macro shots.


lildino.jpg



Your camera should be better than mine, since it has greater MP, as well as the IS feature. My advice is just to play around with it. Canon P&S's are very easy to figure out and are exceedingly user friendly. I do know one thing about the SD1200 IS, is that if you choose to bring the ISO above 200, the picture quality will decrease slightly.

Have fun and happy shooting! ;}
 
Such a beautiful picture! And thanks for all the advice!

I guess my biggest problem is that I don't know what all the symbol and terms, like IS, stand for or mean. I'm going to have to figure that stuff out first I guess.
 
Thank you!

IS stands for Image Stabilization. Very handy. :} I can tell you right off that the symbol for macro is a flower, which looks like a tulip to me.

Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it really quickly!
 
Never think you're not going to be able to take good pics because of the camera in your hand. Its all about how you understand light and see the world. Just take shots and have some fun. Try and pick up a few books and learn a little more about exposure and stuff and you'll start taking better pics in no time. Just remember that its digital so you can practice as much as you want without running out of film ;)
 
I am going to mess around with it and try to get some good pictures, I've just been worried because so many people praise SLR's (not just on this site, I'm not trying to pick anyone out, just in general) I just want to do my snakes justice with some decent pics. :)

Yeah I used to use disposables and stuff as a kid... parents spent so much money on buying and developing film they used to yell at me for experimenting with my artistic side. lol.
 
Well, SLRs are great. I'm actually hoping to get the Canon Rebel XTi for Christmas. It's not the greatest dSLR available, but it's one of the more affordable ones. But I'll always want a P&S. They're just too easy and convenient to not have one! Plus, their price tag ain't bad either! ;P
 
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jlindp said:
Well, SLRs are great. I'm actually hoping to get the Canon Rebel XTi for Christmas. It's not the greatest dSLR available, but it's one of the more affordable ones. But I'll always want a P&S. They're just too easy and convenient to not have one! Plus, they're price tag ain't bad either! ;P
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If you're going to get an SLR. Don't get a brand new XTi. Go to this forum and join up. It's purely a Canon forum with AMAZING photographers, but there's also a section where there are classifieds. Try and find a 30D or 40D with about 9k actuations on it for about $450. Saves you money, still has close to 70k actuations on the shutter life expectancy (which can be replaced), and you're getting a MUCH better camera. Just my $.02.
 
Pruddock said:
If you're going to get an SLR. Don't get a brand new XTi. Go to this forum and join up. It's purely a Canon forum with AMAZING photographers, but there's also a section where there are classifieds. Try and find a 30D or 40D with about 9k actuations on it for about $450. Saves you money, still has close to 70k actuations on the shutter life expectancy (which can be replaced), and you're getting a MUCH better camera. Just my $.02.
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What forum??
 
hehe, I think I looked at that site for a whole hour or so. hope I can take pictures like that someday. :)
 
We have one like that. It's an SD790. I didn't like it at first because I am used to using a viewfinder. But once I got used to it, I quite like it. And it has a pretty decent macro as long as you can hold the camera still. That's what I've had to practice with--holding the camera still while I push the shutter button without having the camera snugged up against my face. But it can get some very nice macro shots if it and the object are still. I was actually surprised when I viewed some of these photos at full size. You can actually see pollen on one of the butterfly probosci.
 

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At full size--not shrunk for internet posting--the detail on these turns out to be quite good. You can't tell from these shrunk versions, but this was the first session I'd had with this camera that I was pleased with, and when I looked at the photos on my computer I was actually impressed.
 
raynefyre said:
hehe, I think I looked at that site for a whole hour or so. hope I can take pictures like that someday. :)
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Trust me, I've spent hours and hours just looking around that site. Some AMAZING artists over there and looking can help you learn SO much. I'd definitely suggest it as a good supplemental forum to CS.com.

That said, I like to try and dabble in photography as much as time allows and if you ever want to talk photography or have a question feel free to pm me :cool:

Congrats and have fun with the new camera!
 
It makes me smile to know such friendly people are still out there that will help you with your troubles. Thank you so much ^_^
 
Pruddock said:
If you're going to get an SLR. Don't get a brand new XTi. Go to this forum and join up. It's purely a Canon forum with AMAZING photographers, but there's also a section where there are classifieds. Try and find a 30D or 40D with about 9k actuations on it for about $450. Saves you money, still has close to 70k actuations on the shutter life expectancy (which can be replaced), and you're getting a MUCH better camera. Just my $.02.
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Wow! Awesome site! Thanks for posting the link. I'm actually hoping to get it from my uncle who owns a camera business. He's doing inventory and seeing what he needs to have sold this year, but "promised" me a nice little package of a new XTi, 6 lenses, 2 different tripods, carrying case, 2 extra storage cards, and 4 filters all for around $500. :} Here's hoping he comes through! If not, I'll definitely hit up the classifieds on that forum. :grin01:
 
WOW! I wish I had an opportunity for a deal like that.. maybe someday I can save up to get a DSLR of some sort. Definitely getting envious of all the beautiful pics on that site. Lol.
 
My advice and what has helped me is to take LOTS and LOTS of pictures!! If you only take a couple, then you reduce your chances of getting a good one. So take lots of them and then you have a lot to choose from.

Also futz around with the settings and see how they affect the outcome - I'd recommend looking at the outcome on your computer and not judging them off the little LCD (unless of course its blatantly a poor picture).
 
Hey raynefyre I see that you're from Ohio. I am too, are you anywhere close to Kent State? I always go on field herping expeditions to photograph stuff. I would also like to add that it really doesn't matter as much what gear you have, as long as you can put together a good composition. I have a lower end dSLR and it works amazing for me, it's 10MP and takes some really high def looking pictures.
 
jlindp said:
Thank you!

IS stands for Image Stabilization. Very handy. :}
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This is a requirement for a camera IMHO. A camera which doesn't support this feature should be considered for replacement in the near future (Christmas Present Plug).

I like Panasonic as they were one of the first camera maker to put their Mega OIS into EVERY camera in the lineup regardless of price. This forces competition to eventually incorporate these same premium features in entry level cameras as well and gives me more options. I may be upgrading my FZ in the coming new year.
 
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