LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field

What the "h"?

boberic Loc: Quiet Corner, Connecticut. Ex long Islander

As it turns out a caman, or shinty stick is the "Hockey stick" used in field hockey, and does not need any settings

aellman Loc: Boston MA

Set to AUTO for now.

sinead

It's working from reading the posts. 😱

JCam Loc: MD Eastern Shore

erinjay64, I agree with your list, but not in the order shown. If the OP is totally new to photography, I'd suggest that he first set the camera for full auto for perhaps a week and look at the photo results. He/she will soon see what he likes and doesn't and go look for info--the Owner's Manual or a book on using his camera-- to correct these things with the camera's settings, but I'd think the first settings would be ISO (I'd suggest auto there too but with a top limit of about 400), Aperture or Shutter speed priority and then focus points depending upon what he/she mostly wants to shoot. Only then, when the OP has some familiarity with the camera should he delve into the more esoteric settings; modern DLSR's have so many varying settings that to start off trying to preset most of them will almost assuredly result in disappointment and discouraging results. Of course if he has more experience than he claims, little of this might be applicable. We wouldn't suggest learning to drive with a Ferrari in city traffic!

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Hey, watch your language!

sinead

😆😆😂

hrblaine

>chaman is asking about a caman?

Maybe a Ghia?

L-Fox

Bob--

Ages ago a friend of mine had a camero; thought he was all that. It never took a decent photo. Camels come in two versions, neither of which seems to function.

qVr16,4.27

-- ljf

SusanFromVermont Loc: Southwest corner of Vermont

Forgive those on UHH forums who let their "humor" get ahead of their helpfulness!

First, read the camera manual all the way through. Then read it again with your camera in your hand. There is a section in there that will deal with camera set-up. This should help a lot. There will be sections where you don't understand what they are talking about, read them anyway. Eventually you will go back to them and understand them.

You do not say what camera you have, so I will assume a DSLR for purposes of making my comments. There are different modes for shooting, on a Nikon they will be called Program, Auto, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual. Each of these works differently from the others, and your manual can help explain the differences. Each of these modes also is useful to understand because in different situations one may be a better choice than the others. Beginners often use each of them for a period of time - at least a week or more - and then move on to another. This helps figure out what each of them do, and which you feel the most comfortable using. A lot of photographers find themselves settling into Aperture Priority, others move around from one mode to the other. And then there are those of us [myself included] who like to use Manual.

Other settings for which you have multiple choices include White Balance and ISO. There are a variety of opinions on how to set such things, but it depends on what you are comfortable with and what will give you the results you seek. My personal preference is auto WB and to set ISO myself - keeping it at the lowest setting and moving it higher depending on lighting conditions. There are others as well, you will learn about them in the manual.

If you want to use the camera while learning how to set it up the way you want, you can always use Auto. But the best way to learn is by experimenting when you are not trying to capture something which is important to you not to miss! Lots of getting out and shooting, and have fun!

Hope this helps.
Susan

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

#1 Read The Fine Manual. Really!
#2 Read Tony Northrup's *Stunning Digital Photography*
#3 Read Bryan Petersen's *Understanding Exposure*
#4 Go make great images and learn from your successes and failures along the way!

This may seem a bit flip, or a bit daunting, or both, but the point is that every decent camera sold these days comes with all the documentation needed to take it out of the box, charge the battery, load a memory card, and operate its controls. If you didn't get a paper manual with a used camera, you can download a PDF file from the manufacturer's web site.

Beyond that, you may need instruction on techniques, and an understanding of the light you are writing with. ('Photography' comes from two Greek words, Photo and Graphos, meaning "light writing" or "light scribing".) That's where the books come in. There are thousands of books and tens of thousands of videos on the Internet that can help, but the two books listed above are quite helpful to beginners.

Photography is not something you do at a high level without some serious effort and time invested in learning. KNOWLEDGE is far more important than gear. A knowledgeable, practiced, experienced photographer with average gear will make better photographs than an uninformed, inexperienced photographer with the best gear available.

leftyD500 Loc: Ocala, Florida

Whatever your camera is, just do an online search, like (I will use the NikonD610): search the topic: "setting up the Nion D610," you are sured to find numerous articles and/or videos on that topic.

Patrick9 Loc: Muncie, IN

You have been given good advice here. Do your home work but also remember you got the camera to have some fun. Start with it on Auto and see what it will do.

jack schade Loc: La Pine Oregon

Welcome to the forum.

Jack

JCam Loc: MD Eastern Shore

IMHO, Most DSLR camera Owner's Manuals except for the Initial Setup are almost useless as a stand alone manual for the novice. They tell the reader everything the camera will do and how to set it up for those things, but not what a newbie also needs--when & why he/she should use a particular setting and how to tweak the setting!