GUIDE TO A DSLR CAMERA – For Beginners

I hope you know that everyone with a DSLR is not really a photographer.

Gone are those days when you could snap photos with your phone and use them to do your blog posts. If you are really familiar with the blogging world this days, chances are that you have come seen some bloggers using professional photo for their content. Nowadays, People invest on high quality camera gadget to shoot photos for their blogs post and personal businesses, so in this case, it is vital than ever to get a gorgeous photos.

Everyone with a DSLR is not really a photographer. There is a lots to photography than just handling a high quality camera and equipment. You can really do a lot of great things if you take time learn how to use your camera in the exact way. So if you have spent money in a DSLR or plan to invest in it, here is a novice’s guide to help you get started immediately:

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Study the capabilities & settings

A lot of photographer likes skipping the user’s manual for a few run of the mill devices, example phone or a regular point & shoot camera. But let me educate you about DSLR camera, there are some settings, modes and buttons that you must know about. So my advice is that you have read your manual – cover-to-cover. Inform yourself with all the settings, features, controls, and capabilities of camera. Few of the information may seriously surprise you! Each DSLR camera is a little diverse, so it’s vital for you to understand which particular functions your camera includes.

Shooting Modes (Auto & Manual)

If you are that photographer that uses only the auto mode of your DSLR camera, you are better off using a point-and-shoot. I hope there is a reason you bought a DSLR — to have more full control taking your photographs? I can assure you this happens best in manual mode settings. I am not saying you can’t definitely take good pictures in auto-mode — no denying that (see the pictures below for comparison) — but why we got the DSLR was to take awesome photographs and It is more realistic via the manual-mode settings.

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Here I will recommend starting off with Av (aperture priority) & Tv (shutter priority) modes and gradually graduating to the manual-mode settings to make the transition easier. But Manual-mode is intimidating at beginning, here you need to figure out the main exposure by yourself. This means, you need to work with setting values for the shutter speed, aperture and ISO. Trust me with this, it will make a whole lot of difference in your photographs. My next topic is about exposure…

Understand Your Exposure

A DSLR alone can’t make a difference in your photographs — you need good understanding of basics photography. Photos is light. Lighting is the most important element that makes or mar a photograph. Once you understand the fundamentals of lighting/exposure, you will see a great difference in your photographs whether you are using an iPhone camera or a DSLR

For a DSLR, you have complete control to play about with the values of shutter speed, aperture and ISO, which all together improve the exposure of a photos. Take time and study about each of these features and how they affect your photos.

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Raw versus JPEG Images

I hope you might have heard of shooting in Raw-format before, do you know what it is? Let’s see. When you take a shot in the usual JPEG format (that we all use and love), the camera automatically create a data in an image file. So we have little control over the picture while editing it. Though, when you take your photos in raw format, your camera does not process the data, But instead the raw data will be preserve until you upload your files to the computer. Computer gives you more control and flexibility to process the data and create a high quality photos. The bottom line: You have more to job And editing with in the Raw format, which can lead to well looking photos.

see the difference in the two photos below, the colors appears much more defined and vibrant in the Raw-format when you compared to the JPEG-format!

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Practice & Learn

The best way to understand using a DSLR is to practice, I said practice…a LOT! As you keep on practicing shooting in different settings and modes, observe the effects of each settings on photos.

For example, take a shot with a low high shutter speed and aperture, and observe how your photos turns out. Later shoot it at a low ISO and high aperture, compare the photos — observe the changes, then try to figure out the details for the differences. This will take few practice and time before you can get comfortable with the camera. Though, the most significant thing is to learn and have fun! Dear photographer it’s all about practice, practice, practice, very soon you will be clicking wonderful shots with your DSLR!.

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