Sometimes, I do this thing..where I really want something.
I know deep down it'll be a good buy, but, I waffle.
and then I pull the trigger on it,
and then I want to vomit.
Which is rare, because usually I'm not a second guesser. (I did this with my wedding dress too.. a brief moment of panic, if you will...that hit 3 days later.)
but last night, I decided, someone needed to come live with us. I clicked buy...filled out all the shipping information, the credit card, clicked "buy!" and the SECOND that screen went to white indicating a "thank you for your purchase!" screen was coming next, my heart dropped and I had 5 seconds of "OMG TAKE IT BACK WHAT DID I DO" panic.
needless to say, it happened, and this is who is coming to live with us:
yup, I did it.
I know I tweeted a little while back asking for reviews on cameras, and the overwhelming consensus (4 to 1) was the Canon Rebel.
The most "amateur" version they have out right now is the T3.
So, after all 4 of you said this was the best, and after reading 5 pages of reviews on best buy.com that basically said "even an idiot couldn't F up taking a nice photo on this thing" (hi, me.) I bought it.
5 minutes later I told M and he said "What!? really? aw. I was maybe going to buy it for you."
merka mer.
except, last night it was $100 off, included the lens and body, a free 16G camera card, aaannnnddd a free 8x8 shutterfly book ---> clearly, the shutterfly book sealed the deal. OH, and free shipping. So, while waiting to count my christmas money may have made sense, I would've paid more anyway.
I told him instead he could buy me something like this for Christmas:
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If I'm going to do the "nice camera' thing, I'm going to do it cute, damnit.
M also looked at me and said "you better use that thing." and scared the pants off me. SO, that ought to motivate me!
Here's my question for you other "nice camera" owners: how did you learn?
Had you tinkered with one before?
did you just mess around with it after you got it?
did you scour the manual?
is there some secret "how to" website on the internetz I NEED to know about?
Help.
please and thank you.
Ok, so like I tweeted you yesterday-- YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE IT!!!
ReplyDeleteWe have had our 50D for almost two years and it is a stud. Srrsly. I like, treat it pretty horribly and it still rocks.
I would suggest buying the book for your exact model from Barnes & Nobel. It will be super specific and teach you things.
About teaching though? I STILL don't know how to get mine off auto settings... I probably should learn that, two years later.
One last thing? Be prepared for M to take more interest in it that you ever expected (or at least, that is how Greg was!! He became obsessed) HAVE FUN!! You're going to love it :-D
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEK! :) :) :)
ReplyDeleteKelly has great suggestions! I bought the book for my camera at Half Priced Books, and it's really helpful! I also read some stuff online (thank you Google) but I think the biggest thing is to just play with it. I put it in manual, and start messing with stuff until the pictures look good, and then I figure out what I did to get it right. It'll start making sense... and until it does, you can use Auto! I still use auto for a lot of my family photos, because I don't want my family to have to sit there while I take 75 million pics.
I've pinned some tips in my DSLR board on Pinterest... I'd look there!
Kelly is totally right - M will love it. I have come home numerous times and found Jake taking pictures of the dogs, flowers and other random things.
One thing that I've LOVED is having a cute camera bag. I bought a purse bag from Jo Totes, and it's amazing! Then, when I want to bring it somewhere, I don't have to carry two bags... my camera bag can do both! It's perfect for trips. M could get you that if he wanted to get you something camera related for Christmas!
If you have ANY questions, ask away! I am not a pro by any means, but I sure do love my camera!!
ahhh, so exciting! i want a big girl camera too, hehe.
ReplyDeletecan't wait to see your pictures!
Congrats on this purchase! I started out with this type of camera and loved it!
ReplyDeleteStart slow with the auto settings, but then gradually try using the other settings in your camera. Even if you don't master using it in "manual" mode, there are other settings you can use to achieve the look you're going for. I would suggest reading your camera's manual. I still look through my manual from time to time and I'm a professional photographer on the side. ;-) You can never learn too much.
Have fun!! Can't wait to see pictures!
Whoa. You're like a profesh blogger now. Get it, girl. ;)
ReplyDeleteAhh I'm jealous! My hubby and I have talked about getting a DSLR for a long time. Our point and shoot is on the fritz (broken screen), so we were in the market for a new camera. We decided to compromise and buy a camera with more settings than a regular point and shoot, but not a DSLR. I'm sure it'll be fine (and much better than what we have), but I do die a little inside every time I see blogger's pretty pics with their DSRLs. First world problem, much? :)
ReplyDeleteExciting! This is my goal for the 2nd half of 2013, because I want to make sure I have the time to invest in learning how to use it! Can't wait to watch you learn. :)
ReplyDeleteOh I've been lemming for this camera for so long!
ReplyDeleteI'm super jealous haha!
xx
I am SO jealous!
ReplyDeleteI'm by no means a pro, but I learned my DSLR just by playing with it. And referring to the manual when I had to. Once you start fiddling around with it, you'll get the hang of it and it becomes easy. Good luck and have fun!
ReplyDeleteHi Kelly!
ReplyDeleteI've been reading your blog for a while and felt I should comment on this post! I'm going to school for photography, and this is a great starter camera! As far as learning your camera, I would start with auto, and then go to either Manual(m), shutter priority(Tv), or aperture priority(Av). The only way you'll get REALLY good at taking pictures with this camera is messing around with those settings. I would try and stay away from the other icons, but that's just my opinion.
As far as if you want to take classes, kelbytraining.com offers classes on pretty much everything you can imagine.
And reading your manual is important too!
i have a "nice" camera too and I NEED to learn to use it to it's FULL potential- i am ALWAYS on the hunt for a class to attend, let me know of any good leads. i am very hands on so a book (although VERY helpful) is not what i would learn well from.
ReplyDeleteI have the same camera and i LOVE IT. It's the best! I never got a book for it, and i kinda skimmed the manual. I shot in auto until i got together w/ two friends who both had a dslr (one the same as mine) & taught me some basics. I just learn better that way. After that, I took an online class w/ Bella Pop: http://www.bellapop.com/ She helped me learn a lot too. You will learn the best by playing w/ it. Even though i am not the best photographer or anything... my pics have definitely gotten better & better... and I HATE shooting in auto. Sometimes i just can't figure out the settings (usually when i'm inside & the lighting is weird). I'm just not experienced enough... so i'll give up & turn to auto. But i hate when that happens! Manual is more fun when you get the hang of it & the pics look awesome!
ReplyDeleteYAY! :)
First time to your blog btw. :)