Interactive Learning Tools for Newbies

del.icio.us Tags: newbie,photography,f/no,iso,shutterspeed,aperture,PASM,auto,manual

People who are new to photography or exercising control over their cameras (e.g. new DSLR owners) find that it’s not as easy as it seems. And they think it should be, after all, this is 2009. It’s not like they were Lartigue in 1900.

Sometimes, they don’t want to read dry text, so I point them to interactive tutorials or visuals on the web.

Tamron offers a Focal Length gadget

Tamron offers a Depth of Field gadget

Craig Hickman offers Camera Demo, a gadget that lets you play with ISO, Shutter Speed, f/no, Light Level, Exposure Compensation and different modes – P A S M and full Auto

PhotonHead has some simple pages showing tables of Shutter Speed, f/no and what a “stop” means

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Looking Wide

del.icio.us Tags: uwa,Zuiko,Olympus,FourThirds,wideangle,macro

I’ve had my 7-14mm ultra wide Olympus Zuiko for a while now. The fervour to use it as a general walkabout lens has subsided. The mollycoddling of the bulbous front element has subsided. The fervour to shoot at 7mm (14mm equivalent to film) has subsided.

Now comes a more relaxed, patient and hopefully longer lasting relationship with that lens. One of the happenings that lured me away from the frenzy of all-wide was a return to 24mm equiv for the NILCs (Non Interchangeable Lens Cameras), otherwise known as the Point and Shoots. I got myself a second hand Kodak V705 and it taught me that even an NILC can provide good wide angle shots. Maybe not the technical image quality of a larger sensor, more expensive Interchangeable Lens Camera (ILC), but a shot nevertheless, when the ILC is not with you. And often, in your daily life, the ILC is not with you.

I also learnt that learning about aesthetics, perspective, wide-angle-ness is a journey and the more experience, the better my eye for composition and spotting a scene becomes.

With that eye, one can even finesse a wide angle perspective from a non wide angle lens – it’s the old adage of “it’s not what you’ve got, it’s how you use it”

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Can a Llama outrun a car?

I'm munching on leftover re-heated pizza as I overhear Kim Possible. "Can a Llama outrun a car?" Well, rephrasing that, can a fixed focal length shoot better photos than a zoom? I'm not talking about the eternal quest for image quality. I'm talking about shooting satisfying photos.

And certainly, the answer is Yes. Certainly, a zoom is much faster to frame without moving your legs. And modern zooms are sharp enough - we take them so for granted that we don't even blink when standard walkabout lenses we pick for an Interchangeable Lens Camera are zooms.

So what do you lose with a zoom?

• a large enough aperture / small enough f/no. For light gathering goodness and subject isolation.
• the nudge to move your body and walk your legs - you're not discovering the alternative framing angles, perspectives in composition. Yes, you could use a zoom like a fixed focal length prime and refuse to zoom. If you can resist the temptation, you're a better person than I, Mbutu.

Now, that off my chest, one day, I'll gather enough motivation to write about what you lose when you have an Auto Focus lens.

Photography is a journey. Enjoy your journey