Answering Some Questions...

I have gotten quite a few emails over the last few weeks that I have not been able to answer due to internet issues.  There have been some recurring questions, I thought I would try to answer some of those.  I hope people do not think I am purposely ignoring them.  Believe me, if and when I get this internet situation resolved I will be much better about personally answering emails like I used to.

So, a few of the questions I have gotten a number of times:

1. What camera/lens do you use? What would you recommend?: 
I shoot with a Canon 20D (it's an old model, but works fine). Up until sometime this past spring, I shot with a Canon Digital Rebel.  I was getting frustrated with my photos and wanted them to be better.  I foolishly thought that better camera = better photos.  I soon found out that that is not necessarily the case.

When I got my dSLR in November 2006, I was so excited.  I wanted to be able to lower my aperture so I could get those "nice blurry backgrounds." I had no idea was I was doing.  When I got a 50mm lens I set my camera on AV mode and my aperture to 1.8 and I NEVER changed it! I couldn't figure out why I would ever want to change it.

Anyway, all that to say is that I had a lot to learn about taking photos.  I still have a TON to learn.  I feel funny when people ask me about my photography because I feel like such a baby still.  Even for being an amateur, I don't compare with people like Jennifer or the other Jenn or my good friend Kellie (amateur gone professional and totally rocking it!)

I learned most of what I did by hanging around I LOVE PHOTOGRAPHY.  I just read and read and read and drooled and read some more and then slowly, some things started to make sense.  I realized that if I wanted my photos to look the way I wanted them to that I HAD to learn to shoot in manual mode and learn about how MY camera sees light.  I have learned to expose properly and even though I made mistakes, at least I know WHY now. I have learned why aperture is important, how shutter speed affects photos, and why some photos turn out great and others are super dark (even when on the same settings).  I have got some ideas rolling around in my head and so hopefully I will be able to work on some ways to share simple and easy-to-understand photography information.

I shoot with a Tamron 28-75 2.8 lens and I LOVE it.  There are better quality lenses out there, but for being totally amateur it is the best (and cheapest) all-purpose lens.  I had a 50mm lens on for the longest time and it was so frustrating in my tiny house and I just wanted more flexibility.  I rented it first and then purchased it.

As for what I would recommend -- it all depends on how much time and energy you want to put into taking better photos. I will be honest here -- dSLR's are great, but if you don't have the time and energy to put into REALLY learning how to use it (out of auto!) then I don't think it is your best bet.  I think for those who want to put a camera in auto (and that includes auto modes like sports, portrait, etc) that there are better options out there than a dSLR.  Before my Rebel, I shot with a Panasonic Lumix and, at least for outdoor photos, was INCREDIBLE when it came to color and clarity.  LOVE that camera.  I have also seen other camera that are at the pro-sumer level that do an amazing job with color, clarity, and exposure without the user having to learn much.

If you really want to learn and know that you are going to take the time to actually do it, then yes, a dSLR is a better choice. You will have better control, more options, and a better chance of screwing up if you don't know what you are doing :)

What I WOULDN'T recommend is spending lots of money on a new camera thinking that better camera = better photos.  In reality, better camera + LOTS of time learning, practicing and making mistakes = a little photoshop = better photos.

2. Do you edit your photos or post them as-is? I would say that I edit almost all my photos. I almost always do a levels adjustment and add some brightness and contrast.  Most photos take me all of 10 seconds to edit.  I have worked very hard to obtain correct exposure IN camera, to nail focus, and to crop IN CAMERA. So, when I do my editing it is very minimal.  That doesn't mean, though, that I haven't had to save some REALLY bad pictures. 

I am also working very hard at accepting photos for what they are -- a picture of reality.  I can't always have the "perfect" photo. My life has lots of imperfect moments and I need to capture those, too.

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Alrighty -- I am out of time for today -- have to go pick up Caleb from school...however, I have some more questions that people have asked so I am hoping to get to some of those in the next few days.  If YOU have questions, please feel free to comment here or to email me (scrappingjanet AT gmail DOT com) and ask and I will try to answer them.  They can be photography related, scrapping related, or personal/work/family etc. 

Comments

[MandaKay]

Oooo...a great answers post! Great information!

[Gretchen]

I am learning my camera too...very time consuming, but also rewarding when it finally clicks! I would love to know how you get things sharply in focus (eyes), and what settings do you use (brightness & contrast) to edit your pic's? Do you shoot in Raw? Also How do you determine what settings to use...to be honest, sometimes I just guess and hope for the best, lol!

thanks! Love your blog!!!