dione961

Wow - thanks so much to everyone. I have a few of the books recommended here & am waiting on Understanding Exposure. I've been doing the shoot-at-1-object exercise, changing 1 stop each time. I find it hard to judge things like blur in the results but I have a tripod now (woo hoo) so I can at least eliminate human shake! I will start over, write everything down; & will also try the suggestion to write down what "Auto" chooses, shoot that & then adjust & keep re-shooting from there in Manual & gauge the changes - see what seems better / worse & why. On PP though, I can only edit basic things like level & crop using the software that came with the camera as I don't yet understand many of the terms in the Nikon processing SW & won't be able to use another type for a while (a budget thing) - this forces me to aim to improve shots in camera first. I will post some of the types of pics I like to shoot in Photo Gallery under topic Dione Learning Path Pics 1. Some will be Nikon 1 pics, as I've not had the D7200 long - they are just posted to show what I enjoy shooting, but all critique greatly appreciated. I have had people query the "beginner" thing when I post. In my view, I am a beginner until I can take a good photo without having to rely on Auto; ie, when I chose the settings for the shot and I understood why. Thank you all so much again. What a great bunch.

foxfirerodandgun Loc: Stony Creek, VA

Not a bad idea.

Idaho

Idaho

No one has mentioned You tube? Check it out.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Learn the *principles* behind procedures. Settings don’t mean much if you don’t *understand* what they are contributing to your images.

tasherlock Loc: Brisbane Qld Australia

His book on the Nikon Auto Focus system is a classic.

Bipod

E. L. Shapiro made some very good suggestions.

I'd go a bit further: try to learn just one thing at a time, and set your camera accordingly. I've written out a
sample course in some detail -- not expecting that it be slavishly followed, but to show how the subject can
be broken up into bite-sized pieces.

The D7200 is a very capable camera, with lots of features, settings and options--too many to learn all at once.
Besides, you want to be learning photography--not just your camera's user interface. So start with the camera
configured like a point-and-shoot. Go out and take lots of photos until almost every one is good. Then move
on to the next lesson.

That way you'll be taking good photos with the D7200 very quickly, without being overwhelmed. Later you
can take full manual control of the camera. Also it is a good idea to start out with a prime focus lens (fixed-focal
length) rather than a zoom. (If a prime isn't available, you can set your zoom at one focal length, but it will
have more flare and less contrast -- and the temptation to zoom the lens rather than walking closer is almost
irresistible.)

If you can't take good photos with a P&S, you can't take them with a D7200...or a D850. Of course, with a
P&S you will be limited in what shots are possible-- but that's good experience! All cameras and
all lenses have limitations! So knowing what shots to pass up is very important. And good to get
in the habit of planning your shooting trips or studio sessions.

How you view your images is also important: the bigger the better. Use the biggest computer monitor you
have access to and view the images at full screen. Even then there is is probalby more detail present in
the image file than you can see. So the first thing to know is: what you see depends on how you look
at the image file.

Lesson 1: Chosing a Subject and Perspective
Lens and camera settings:
Lens: 50 mm prime (or zoom set at 50 mm and left alone!)
Metering mode: Matrix (M)
Exposure mode: Programmed (P)
Focus mode: auto-focus (AF)
Instructions:
Plan your shooting: think about what subjects you might find. Evaluate each subject: does it
"speak to you"? Is it suitable for the lens? Do not zoom! Move around until you find the
best perspective.

Lesson 2: Composition
Camera settings: same as Lesson 1.
Instructions:
Try to frame the subject carefully for best composition. Learn the "rules of thumb" for composition
(and when to ignore them). Experiments with lanscape, street, still life, architecture, and full-length
portrait.

Lesson 3: The Sun
Lens and camera settings: same as Lessons 1 & 2.
Instructions:
Shoot outdoors by natural light. Consider how the angle of the sun affects your images. Note the
compromise between best perspective and best sun angle.

Lesson 4: Aperture (Depth-of-field and Diffraction)
Lens and camera settings:
Lens: 50 mm prime (or zoom set at 50 mm and left alone!)
Metering mode: Matrix
Exposure mode: Aperture Priority (AP)
Focus mode: auto-focus (AF)
Instructions:
Try different aperature settings and use depth-of-field preview to see the effect. Does your subject
have a confusing background? Can a wider aperture make turn it into bokah? Also, which aperture
gives the sharpest image (for your lens)?

Lesson 5: Shutter Speed
Lens and camera settings:
Lens: 50 mm prime (or zoom set at 50 mm and left alone!)
Metering mode: Matrix (M)
Exposure mode: Shutter Priority (AP)
Focus mode: auto-focus (AF)
Instructions:
Experiment with stopping motion, and with bluring motion (e.g., a waterfall)

Lesson 6: Exposure Compensation
Lens and camera settings:
Lens: 50 mm prime (or zoom set at 50 mm and left alone!)
Metering mode: Matrix (M)
Exposure mode: Aperture Priority (AP)
Focus mode: auto-focus (AF)
Instructions:
Can the image be improved by departing from standard exposure? Is there a area in the subject that needs
to be represented by a certain tone (e.g., a skin tone)? Are there shadows that are black and can't be fixed
by processing, that need to show detail? Are their blown highlights that need to show detail?

Lesson 7: Basic Manual Exposure
Lens and camera settings:
Lens: 50 mm prime (or zoom set at 50 mm and left alone!)
Metering mode: Center Weighted
Exposure mode: Manual (M)
Focus mode: auto-focus (AF)
Instructions:
Decide the best spot to meter on. Read the EV. Select the best aperture/shutter speed pair from those
matching this EV (normal exposure).

Lesson 8: Advanced Manual Exposure
Lens and camera settings: same as Lesson 7.
Instructions:
Ask yourself: what is most challenging about exposure in this shot? Follow the instructions for Lesson 7,
but compensate your exposure manually based on all factors: backlighting, avearge subject tone, and
number of stops of contrast in the subject. If necessary, take spot readings (change metering mode to Spot).

Lesson 9: The Wide Lens
Lens: aaprox. 35 mm prime (or zoom set at 35 mm and left alone!)
Camera settings: same as Lesson 7 (auto-everything).
Instructions: Experiment with landscape subjects, architecture and street subjects.

Lesson 10: The Long Lens
Lens: approx. 100 mm prime (or zoom set at 100 mm and left alone!)
Camera settings: same as Lesson 7 (auto-everything).
Instructions: Experiment with distant subject and sitting portraits.

Lesson 11: The Telephoto
Lens: approx. 200 mm telephoto prime (or zoom set to 200 mm and left alone!)
Lens and camera settings: same as Lesson 7
Camera settings: same as Lesson 7 (auto-everything).
Instructions: Experiment with very distant subjects, wildlife, head and shoulders shots, etc.

Lesson 12: The Zoom Lens
Lens: any zoom you own.
Camera settings: same as lesson 7 (auto-everything).
Instructions: Experiment with zoom (and perspective foreshortenening) vs.changing camera location (perspective).
Try action/sports photography.

Lesson 13: Basic Processing
Lens and camera settings: any
Subjects: any
Use PhotoShop, Lightroom or some similar package to do basic global adjustments: color correction, density adjustment,
and contrast expansion and contraction. Do not use sharpen filter!

Lesson 14: Intermediate Processing
Lens: and camera settings: any
Subjects: any
Using the same software, perform global corrections as in the previous lesson, then lighten shadows and darken highlights
as necessary to match your visualization of the image.

Lesson 15: Advanced Processing
Lens: any camera settings: any
Subjects: any
Learn what else your processing software can do--but excersise caution and good taste. Only the person who wrote the digital
filter knows for sure what it's doing. It's easy to lose resolution or gradiation, or to gain digital artifacts and not notice until it's
way too late (i.e. the print has been framed).

Lesson 16: Basic Printing
Lens and camera settings: any
Subjects: any
Printer: whatever photo printer you have
Instructions:
Learn how to make your printer work (and struggle to keep it working--everyone does). Try to make a decent 8" x 10" print,
with good contrast and gradiation. (You may need to contract the contrast in your image file.) Begin relearning exposure and
processing as it applies to making prints.

Lesson 17: Advanced Printing
Lens and camera settings: any
Subjects: any
Printer: service
Instructions:
Use a service to make a 24" x 16" print. Note how disappointing it is. Don't worry--that's the beginning of the big adventure:
making an image that is worth hanging on a wall. You may find you need to shoot at sharpest aperture, or use a heavy tripod,
or you might need a full-frame camera to get the results you want. Or might decided it's not worth it and go back to making 8" x 10"
prints--or no prints at all. Whatever your final image is -- on a website, printed 4" x 5" for an album, or 10" x 8" or 24" x 16" -- it
determines the while process of photography.

scsdesphotography Loc: Southeastern Michigan

Hi burkphoto, I know my advice is the inverse of what is usually given. Surely understanding why some procedure works is more important than simply knowing how to follow it. Except it's not. Two examples for you. 1) I get up one cold morning and find my car battery is dead. I know that if I hook up my jump starter to my battery, black to black, red to red, and turn it on, I can start my car. Do I need to know I=rv, that PbO is converted to PbO3 when it reacts with H2SO4 in the battery electrolyte? Or do I just have to know how to hook the cables up and turn it on? 2) I'm at the gun range with my .50 caliber flintlock. Do I need to know the metallurgy practiced by colonial gunsmiths when they hand forged rifle barrels. Do I need to understand the chemistry of black powder. the interesting interaction of sulfur, nitrates and charcoal when a spark from the flint strikes the pan and follows the primer through the touch hole? Or do I just need to know how to hold my 52", 10 lb, barrel heavy rifle steady enough to get the sights on the target, squeeze the trigger, and put the ball in the black at 100 yards? For many human endeavors knowing why something works is interesting, just not necessary. Really!

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

Well- Perhaps your analogies are a bit far fetched. I don't think that Burkphoto was alluding to the electrons flowing through the circuity of the camera or the molecular structure of the silica used in the formation of the glass in the lenses. I think what he means is that the "settings" in and of themselves are limited to getting the camera to work well enough to make photographs. You set a programmable function or you set the set the ISO and aperture and shutter speed accordingly and if this is done correctly an image will materialize. Going beyond the simple operating instructions and fully understanding the interplay between the functions is the knowledge that gives the photographer full technical, creative and artistic control of his or her medium. Comprehending the multiple effects of the aperture setting as to light transmission, depth of field and the possibility of diffraction. The shutter speed not only effects exposure but motion stopping ability and has important function in flash synchronization and flash-fill ratios in natural light balancing. Besides, drilling down a little bit deeper into the science never hurts. It give you the edge when it comes to problem solving and troubleshooting in many issues that arise in photography.

Even boosting or charging you car battery can involve some nuances in technique and procedure. That H2SO4 is rough stuff! It can liberate explosive fumes while recharging so red-to-red and black to black IS proper polarity but any good automotive technician will tell you that the red (+) lead shoud go to the positive battery terminal and the black lead (-) should go the a ground contact elsewhere in the engine compartment- NOT on the battery terminal. A spark from that connection can ignite an explosion. ALSO- overcharging a battery can cause overheating and damage to the cells (plates) within the battery and may even crack the housing. If that sulphuric acid gets out of there it will seriously corrode or burn holes in whatever it comes in contact with.

READY- AIM- FIRE! OK but most firearms enthusiasts don't need to be metallurgists or ballistics experts but the should know about the instability of old ammunition, good gun maintenance, and technology relating muzzle volatility, trajectories and all that good stuff.

It's always better to know exactly what you are doing, what you dealing with and BASICALLY how things work.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

E.F. got what I was saying... exactly. Give someone a fish, and they eat today. Show someone how to fish, they eat for life. Teach someone about fish habits, habitats, favorite foods, migration patterns... they can start a business around fish.

scsdesphotography Loc: Southeastern Michigan

Hey, burkphoto and E.L. Shapiro, thanks for joining in on this discussion. No disagreement with your comments, it is a question of priority. In my previous life as a professional educator (35 years teaching chemistry to teenagers) this was a frequent topic amongst us teachers. What do you teach first, method or understanding. You do need to teach both, but what you do first depends on the experience of the student, and the complexity of the topic. But, for most of us, the biggest consideration was time. In the time allotted you can't teach it all at once. Yes you do need to know that sulphuric acid will burn your skin or even blind you, but do you really need to understand why it does that? When I hand you a container of battery acid, do I say "be careful with this it will dissolve your skin?" Or should I say "be careful with this, it's a dehydrating acid. It acts by literally pulling water out of the proteins and fats in your skin and turning them into water soluble products. This is an exothermic reaction that is self sustaining and will continue if left untreated until the water produced dilutes the acid to the point that it can nor longer burn and dissolve the underlying tissue?" It is a judgement situation, but, almost always, it is better to teach the rule or procedure first followed by more detail as required.

PS. I was a black powder shooter, you should know that black powder does not become unstable over time. Moisture is the enemy, it doesn't make it unstable, just useless. 500 year old powder is just as explosive today as it was when it was manufactured back then.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Agreed, generally.

Adult learners in business generally have to have a reason to do something you want them to do, other than, "because I said so." "Because I said so" worked fifty years ago, maybe, back when lots of people had a military history. It also works with issues of safety as you described above!

But these days, most people are truly motivated to do what they understand. Adults need context, purpose, and perspective — the "what we are doing and why we are doing it" back story. When they have that, rote procedures make sense and are acceptable — with no "because I said so" required. Add the principles, and suddenly, employees are empowered to be flexible at steering through unusual situations.

I was fortunate to have teachers and mentors who knew this, and practiced it. My chemistry teacher taught us the dangers of each element and compound we worked with, and how to handle them, before we did anything. She taught us correct pouring procedures, and why they were necessary. Later, Davidson was a special place where we learned how to learn creatively. They led with "why". My best mentor in business taught me the history of our business, and why things were the way they were, because of it.

Those sorts of things lead to ease of creative application of knowledge, and an ability to know what to look for and where to look for it when searching for information, people, equipment, processes...

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

I have had no formal pedagogical training but circumstance and job responsibilities has found me teaching and training many photograhers over the years. Some of the courses I have given were longer term- there was enough of a time frame to discuss theory and practice- the science and physics behind the procedures. The majority of my training experience was more condensed- things like seminars that ranged from one to five days. In recent years it was more of on-the-job training. Obviously, in short term situations procedure is more important than theory- you simply need to instruct folks in how to get things done and produce results- there's no time for the whys adn wherefores- just NUTS AND BOLTS!

I was once hired to train a crew of folks to shoot "school photos" - very basic head and shoulders "portraits" of grammar school kids. I had two days! So...I provided a lighting diagram, came up with a basic general setup for a fixed lighting and ratio and gave them a few tips on how to get kids to smile naturally. I was told to emphasize uniformity of exposure, head size and ratio so that the lab work could be done quickly and easily. So...thet were producing "mug shots" with nice expressions!

In my ongoing program in professional portraiture, the course was far more in-depth. We got into facial analysis, appropriate lighting and poses and camera positions for various facial structures and body types, angle of incidence theory, the Chiaroscuro effect, the theory of radiant light as approached by the Old Masters painters, exposure, lighting ratio, key, the psychology of portraiture and so much more. At the end of the day, which course is going to produce potentially versatile and competent portraitists? I believe in a balanced mixture or art and science.

Of course, COMMON SENSE dictates that SAFETY COMES FIRST. In training darkroom technicians I did not offer a "course" in organic chemistry, emulsion technology and chemical changes and reactions BEFORE telling folks not to spill water into concentrated acids, not to mix potassium ferrocyanide with fixer containing sulphuric acid thereby liberating potentially deadly fumes into the lab. I also reminded them NOT to drink out of the labwear, not dip their bare hands into the chemistry, get stuff in their eyes and all that good stuff. When teaching about electronic flash to the uninitiated, a dissertation on electrolytic capacitance did NOT preface my lecture about NOT shooting with strobe in a swimming pool or NOT poking around in your flash's power supply with a screwdriver unless you know exactly what you are doing! PROCEDURES FIRST.

I did misspeak about black powder. I shoud have not used the term UNSTABLE- I was not referring to the composition of the gunpowder but to the functional UNRELIABILITY and dangers of old ammo. In boot camp our gunnery instructors warned us about the old ammunition and ordnance that was stored on the base for eventual disposal. Also- an old fellow down the block, decided to scare OFF a prowler with his old 12 gauge that he loaded years ago and never used- so he aimed up to the sky, discharged the weapon- and unceremoniously blew one of his hands OFF. I suppose the casings failed and the shells exploded in the chamber(?) I never again fired a gun or owned one since leaving the service- I don't like keeping them around the house! I am not into skeet shooting, target shooting or hunting and if I get a prowler, I'll call the cops!

Teaching teenagers must be very fulfilling- their minds are very absorbent, especially if the are into science or art. and hopefully they are vying for good marks Teaching older "creative" folks is another story. They come with lots of preconceived ideas and most of them think they know more and better than the teacher- some of them might be right in their assumptions! Sometimes, I thought, they come to classes, workshops and seminars just to spar with the teachers. Thank goodness we are not teaching doctors, lawyers or accountants. If they get things wrong, at least, they won't kill anybody or land themselves or their clients in the bankruptcy courts or in jail. Of course we need to make certain they don't burn, mame or electrocute themselves.

With kindest regards

dione961

Boy - I've started a debate & a half. If it helps at all to help me (which UHH invariably does, because you're all so knowledgeable & generous) then the thing to know about me is I need to know the why, not just the how. I'm built that way. So I have Understanding Exposure, and Understanding Composition, and Learning to See Creatively, but I also have a D7200 guide and I find them all brilliant, just not as brilliant as you guys. I need a structured approach (WHAT to do to get good pics in Manual - not going back to Auto until I know it's the right thing for the shot); but I also need to know WHY I'm doing things, so I can get off the (structured approach) training wheels and get creative. The posts from Burkphoto & El Shapiro & Linda from Maine also are right in the ball park of what I (think I) need right now, BUT - reading everyone else's posts is equally educational - for me, there is no room here to be closed minded - this is a creative art after all. So thank you to you all. When I get a good pic (to me) in Manual, I'll post it - but it's sub-zero here & nearly no light in any day now; and, these lessons are going to take quite some time to get through, so, it may be a while before anything good comes along!! Is there anything more fun for one than a camera??!!

dione961

Boy - I've started a debate & a half. If it helps at all to help me (which UHH invariably does, because you're all so knowledgeable & generous) then the thing to know about me is I need to know the why, not just the how. I'm built that way. So I have Understanding Exposure, and Understanding Composition, and Learning to See Creatively, but I also have a D7200 guide and I find them all brilliant, just not as brilliant as you guys. I need a structured approach (WHAT to do to get good pics in Manual - not going back to Auto until I know it's the right thing for the shot); but I also need to know WHY I'm doing things, so I can get off the (structured approach) training wheels and get creative. The posts from Burkphoto, Bipod (thank you so much) & El Shapiro & Linda from Maine also are right in the ball park of what I (think I) need right now, BUT - reading everyone else's posts is equally educational - for me, there is no room here to be closed minded - this is a creative art after all. So thank you to you all. When I get a good pic (to me) in Manual, I'll post it - but it's sub-zero here & nearly no light in any day now; and, these lessons are going to take quite some time to get through, so, it may be a while before anything good comes along!! Is there anything more fun for one than a camera??!!