Hando Rei Loc: Long Island New York

Welcome to the UHH...Joining a photo club is another option. Reading a manual is kind of dry because you often still end up with questions . Members of photo clubs have regular meetings with open discussions regarding new equipment and shooting modes . Most likely you will have many shooters who are experts in their own right and they will be right there for you with hands on expertise .

gerry908 Loc: An Aussie from Scotland

Hi Lym, welcome to the ugliest web site on the planet

Although there are many good Sites,you might like to try this one which I think's very good

http://www.dslrtips.com/

Gerry

Chris

Go to you tube and put in what you want to learn at the moment. Canon has a bunch of really great tutorials on youtube

swallowtail Loc: Melbourne, Australia

Hi, Below are a few links you might find useful. John Greengo is very good at explaining. The first link is a short you tube tutorial, the second one is to Creative Live a very good site, they have an extended tutorial for $39. I bought the 7D one and was very happy with it.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WYOIhd6w9A

www.creativelive.com/courses/canon-60d-dslr-fast-start

The link below is a very good tutorial by Rudy Winston, I believe he works for Canon, again he explains things well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Myds2jxQTXQ

If you type below into Google it comes up with a lot of videos.

Canon 60D Info Screen Learn easy fast DSLR Tips Tricks

Also try B & H Photography website, lots of free in depth tutorials and a book called Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson is very good.

Hope some of this information helps.

guitarbts Loc: Charlotte, NC

I didn't read every thread but I did see above where Hando Rei mentioned to join a club which is great advice. Hang out with as many people as you can that share you're interest and if you can - take a class. Education from a pro will cut your learning time.

Happy shooting!

Radioman Loc: Ontario Canada

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Hello Lym,
Yes, I can give you some advice. The first is to realize that you are already a "real photographer". You have years of experience. Look at this in reverse, if photographer Scott Kelby only had a point and shoot camera available when he wanted to take a photograph, it would NOT change him into an amateur photographer. It would only limit what he could do with it.

You already know how to take photographs. Now there are two more skills you are wanting to learn.

1) How to use the camera.

2) Learning how changes in camera settings change how a picture looks. How aperture changes depth of field, how longer exposures allow flowing water to 'look like it is flowing'. There is an amazing amount of information and help here on UHH.

The first is 'how to use the camera'. The basic help here is the manual - read it with your camera in your hands. Practice changing settings without having to look at the manual to find out how. Do a factory reset and put all the initial settings in - until you can do it almost without thinking. The problem that I have with these kind of manuals is that they are fine, IF you already know how to use the camera.

USE THE TRAINING SOURCES PROVIDED BY CANON.

Canon have a "free course" on your camera on the commercial Lynda.com internet training site.

http://www.lynda.com/Home-Computing-Photography-tutorials/Shooting-with-the-Canon-60D/86642-2.html

Take this course, and when finished you should KNOW how to use all of your camera's capabilities

jimscats

I also have a 60D but with the 18-135mm lens.
Another excellent book by Brian Peterson is "Understanding Photography Field Guide"

Jerry Green Loc: Huntsville, AL

If there is camera club in your area, join it. See if anyone has your camera or a similar Canon and ask them to be your mentor for a while until you are comfortable with the camera. I am a mentor in our local club and have worked with members. The first session is usually setting down and going through the camera set up and how to used modes other than Auto.

Reading the links provided by UHH members will be of great benefit too.

Anthony Jr Loc: Spokane Wa area

Like most people here, I would go through the manual and when you get to the settings sections, do some and see what the results are. The main thing is to have some fun with your new camera as I am.

kaz6756 Loc: Canarsie,Brooklyn, New York

Try here! Welcome

http://photographycourse.net/

Kaz

cheineck Loc: Hobe Sound, FL

YouTube is an excellent source! Welcome!!!!!

bunuweld Loc: Arizona

Lym, welcome to the forum. I would use the manual as my base, but books often have a friendlier approach with additional information easier to assimilate. The books "For Dummies" often fall in that category and are really addressed to people well above that intellectual level. There is one of those books for Canon EOS 60D:

http://www.amazon.com/Canon-EOS-60D-For-Dummies/dp/1118004892/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1365341011&sr=8-2&keywords=canon+eos+60d+books

Although I am not familiar with it, The reviews from users in Amazon make it sound like one that would be very useful.

ssajn Loc: Milwaukee, Wi

I have found this series of book to be very informative and easier to learn from than the manual that came with your camera.

http://www.amazon.com/Magic-Lantern-Guides-Canon-EOS/dp/145470134X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1365342419&sr=8-2&keywords=magic+lantern+guides

wilsondl2 Loc: Lincoln, Nebraska

LYM - What you are setting in Manual is called the exposure triangle - ISO - Shutter Speed -Aperture. You get to pick two of them and the 3rd has to be the one setting that will give you the exposure you want. Most people pick ISO first and use the lower settings when they have good light and higher settings when youdon't. Higher settings tend to cause noise (like grain on film) and so are avoided unless you just need them to get the picture. Then you get to pick weather you want to use Aperture or Shutter speed. Aperture if you want to control the depth of field or Shutter Speed if you want to stop action. Then you need to set the one you didn't pick. You can do this by using the meter in the camera (you will want to learn the metering modes of your camera) or a hand held meter and adjusting the aperture or shutter speed to match the one you did not pick. And you are set. To me it seems like a lot of work to make the last setting. If you put your camera In Aperture Priority or Shutter Speed Priority the camera will set the other for you. It will be the same thing as you set it yourself using the meter in the camera. This is how I do it and I use aperture priority most of the time because I like to control the depth of field. Then look in your monitor and see if the exposure looks right if it does not adjust so you get more or less exposure as needed. You can learn to get good exposures in an afternoon. The trick is to learn what the settings will do. I recommend learning aperture first. This will control your depth of field so you can everything sharp or blur the background. Any good book will tell you about it. The next thing you need to learn is the camera settings like white balance settings for sharpens, vivid, white balance etc. The explanation of these should be in your manual. I would also suggest you get a dummies book or I lost the manual book for your camera. They explain things for dummies like me better than the manual. I would also look up Ken Rockwell's site and see if he has a tutorial for your camera. He had one for mine and it gave a great explanation for all the camera settings. Good Luck - Dave

pcwilson Loc: New Mexico

This link is from an ad posted on UHH - free video tutorials - might be worth checking out.

http://easydslr.com/freephototips/?gclid=CPr9xJnduLYCFY9DMgodBi8A0Q