abstractist72 wrote:
1: After so many years of shooting film, I knew which film to grab for what occasion, and what ASA would work the best for that situation. DSLR camera makers should have given the owners of these cameras, a set of film types, to choose from, and the camera would mimic the results of those types of film. So If I wanted to use a Fuj1 400, I could choose that in a menu, and the camera would act as if I had Fuji 400 in the camera.
DSLR cameras have the capability to mimic film. They just don't have a menu that does it for you.
abstractist72 wrote:
3: Feeling stupid, because the instruction are printed for someone that can read and follow instructions. I cannot, I am a visual learner, I learn by watching, and by doing. My camera has charts and graphs and histograms??????
I would just like to not feel so stupid, and be able to create those great pictures that I did with my film cameras.
I agree that it would be nice if the manuals were more user-friendly. With my first DSLR [Nikon D7000] I struggled with it too. My newer camera [Nikon D810] I saw definite improvement in the manual. But it still leaves a lot to be desired. As others have said, there are many other ways to find out what you want to know. There are a lot of photographers out there who have branched out into teaching, and have websites and Facebook pages devoted to that. There is a website called CreativeLive where they offer what they call "On Air" broadcasts of tutorials which are free, and those are also for sale if you want to have them to study at your own pace. One of the members of UHH, Steve Perry, has a website and also offers advice on this forum [
https://backcountrygallery.com/]. Others are: Digital Photography School, Digital Photo Mentor, Scott Kelby, Matt Kloskowsky, Ben Willmore, PHLEARN [Aaron Nace] are just a few. UHH is a very good forum, but if you want to try some others, DPReview and Cambridge in Colour each have a lot to offer.
abstractist72 wrote:
4: Using this Nikon DSLR it almost like a chore, the ASA is off the wall, and I try to think what can this camera do for me, I know there are great possibilities, but 1/2 the time, I cannot find the right setting is in in Wrenches, or the Camera body?
Even though the manual is not ideal, it still has a lot to offer. I always recommend reading it from cover to cover. There will be things you do not understand, but go through it anyway. You can work on what you do understand, then do some research and ask questions about the rest. Next, read the manual again, this time with camera in hand. Doing this will show you where each control is, and what it does. There are some things people talk about like "back button focusing" that are not specifically mentioned, but the way to do it is really in there! Leave that for later, then come back to it. First learn what you can, then go out and take photos! You can experiment with different functions and then see how it turns out. No extra charge, since you don't have to buy film... As a result it won't feel so bad when you decide that most of those images need to be deleted! Keep the manual in your camera bag so you can use it to try and answer questions that arise.
It is all so different from what you did before, it is understandable that you feel a lot of frustration. Don't think of yourself as stupid, you can still learn new things. I went from a digital point and shoot which made most decisions for me, to a DSLR where I had to make so many more decisions. Steep learning curve, but it can be done. You already have learned about composition and perspective, you already understand about the light and what qualities are most desirable for a good image under different circumstances. Some people never learn that. You also know about f/stops and the way that aperture, shutter speed, and film sensitivity interact to find the perfect balance for a good image. Translate film sensitivity to ISO and you now have the exposure triangle mastered for digital.
Advantages of digital are many. You have auto-focus, just have to understand how to take advantage of the focus points to get the picture sharp where you want it sharpest. Your ISO can be kept low for very bright light, or raised for low-light situations. There are different shooting modes you can use, each being useful under different circumstances. And more...
Learning to use the digital camera should NOT feel like starting over from scratch, you have so many of the skills already. Just slow down and learn a bit at a time. If you cannot stand the frustration when out to get a particular shot, you can always use Auto. But make sure you practice with other modes when you can take your time. Some people like Program, Aperture Priority, and Shutter Priority. There are also many who like Manual the best. So find a starting point that is good for you and take pictures!
Take advantage of all the learning opportunities out there and you will begin to "get it" more and more as you go along.
Hope this helps.
Susan