Photography and Life : A Guide to the Perfect Camera for You

About me?

It's actually quite fun to be me.:D
I occasionally enjoy a good read, I draw, I like taking pictures.
I like being outside, whether it's daytime or nighttime.
I like having a drink or two with close friends, and I enjoy meeting new people.
I look for good, intelligent conversations. I'm not that good with small talk.
I like sunsets and sunrises, the beach and the waves.
I enjoy a gentle breeze; I embrace the sun's warmth.
I have a dog, I call him Aso, which means 'dog' in Filipino, and he's the sweetest dog ever.
I love doing dares - there are very few limits for me.
I live to have the most fun out of life.

Now, about my hub:

I made this hub for me to be able to share my thoughts and opinions about how we can possibly express our views on life visually through photographs. I'll gladly give some tips and advice on such topics, and would love to help you out on your own projects. I will post more of my works in due time, so feel free to ask me about anything related to my posts.:)

When I ventured into photography, I started using a Canon EOS 10QD - a film SLR, with the stock lens, no external flash, and just a skylight filter. The photos impressed me, and my friends - after all, film is a far better light sensor than most sensors nowadays.

Photography isn't just about dSLR's with big sensors, a dozen external flash units, reflectors, and huge, powerful lenses.

It's about having a good eye for wonder. I challenge you to look around, and see the world for the first time all over again. See the water droplets on that flower you always pass by on your way to work? Have you ever considered where that butterfly came from, and glanced around to check if you can capture another one's birth? Did you ever have that moment of breathlessness from witnessing something magnificent unfold before you? Well don't just stand there! Share it with the world!

It's about taking control of emotions and capturing them. Learn to understand how you feel. What makes this scene so brilliant? What is it that takes your breathe away? Focus on that, and compose your image while keeping true to the beauty you've witnessed. Don't cheat yourself into thinking that "this one photo is good enough"! Find the perfect angle, tweak the settings so that what you see with your heart is what you'll be seeing with your eyes when you look at that photograph. If you've failed to do that on the first attempt, try again. As long as the wonder is there, you shouldn't give up capturing it - and let that smile show while doing so. When you've given up on wonder, you've given up on your humanity.

It's about understanding your equipment. What camera do you have right now? If you don't have one, what are you thinking of buying? What do you intend to use it for? I'll help you out on the features you'll truly need for the purposes you'll need that camera for. This isn't just some scam to make you buy trash you don't need! Although, outside advice can only go so far.

If you have a camera right now, hold it.

_{Do you know what all those buttons are for?}

_{Do you know what will happen to a picture when you change each and every setting you have there?}

_{How reliable is your camera, when you use the maximum possible settings on it?}

_{Which features do you think you can truly use?}

If you're finding it difficult to make that perfect shot, and you don't have a solid answer to the questions above, then maybe it's because you don't really understand how to use your camera. I'm currently using a Canon Powershot S5 IS, and I'm always on full manual except when I want to use the Color Accent mode. I've also taken advantage of the Super Macro, Flexizone, AF Lock, and wide aperture, ISO, and shutter speed brackets. If you have the same camera, but don't know what I'm talking about, I'm telling you that you're pretty much wasting a lot of the money you've invested on that camera. Same goes for you who can't decide on which aperture, shutter speed, EV, or white balance setting to use - and for you who always rely on the Automatic and pre-programmed modes.

Why?

If you've ever been unsatisfied with using the Auto modes to capture those jaw-dropping wonderful moments, then you already know why. If you've ever tried going manual, and can't decide on how to compose your picture, then perhaps you're already curious. If you're heavily-reliant on image-editing software, then that means you know for yourself that your raw images aren't that interesting. Features on a camera aren't just there to automatically generate great photos; the challenge is for you to open the gates to various possibilities offered by these features.

If you don't have a camera yet, but interested in purchasing one, it'll be helpful to answer these:

What kind of pictures do you really want to take? You don't just have to stick to landscapes, party photos, portraits, sports photos, and the like, but if you want to focus on just one or two, then you'll be able to know...

What features would you badly need in a camera? Some people, like my mom, really just want something which is easy to carry and can take pictures of people in events - most of which would be well-lit, with the subject/s eager to pose for the camera and just about every part of the venue available for shoots. While she might be interested in something which has customizable depth-of-field, she probably won't need a camera with 12x optical zoom. Knowing the features you need will help you in deciding this:

How much do you really need to spend on a camera? There's myriad cameras out there, ranging from old-school film cameras, to film SLR's, to action-samplers, fisheye's, to lomo cameras, to simple point-and-shoot cams, high-power digicams, entry-level dSLR's, bigger and more powerful dSLR's, to the top-of-the-line. But maybe you don't really need the "best". Your needs can define how much you're willing to spend for the right type of camera.

If you don't have any idea on what features you need, go ahead and ask. Take some notes, and check the cameras which might interest you. Try them out before buying them so that you can decide on which best fits your needs and your budget. You can even look for cheaper prices online, and compare "upgrades" and newer models from previous versions. Some of them don't really improve much. This way, when you see the world with wonder, it won't be through the lens of confusing grids and numbers.

For you, it's about being able to capture anything the way you want to. Well, good news for you, there are now handy digital cameras which will most likely meet your needs. Here's some tips for you though:

1. Check if the camera allows for you to set the ISO. This will be very helpful when shooting in dimly-lit to dark conditions, or extra-bright ones. Setting the ISO to 100 is good for sunny and bright scenes, and setting the ISO up a few notches can make your image brighter in lowlight scenes, therefore helping you compose scenes easily. Once you've composed your image, you can keep or change the ISO, but keep in mind that this will also alter the resulting photo.
2. Check if the camera allows for you to freely change the aperture and shutter speed. Aperture defines two things: the amount of light that passes through, and the depth of field. Shutter speed controls how long the sensor or film gets exposed to the light that passes through. A big number for aperture, like f/22, means a smaller hole for light to pass through. A smaller number, like f/2.7, means a bigger hole. A smaller hole means sharper images - that's a large depth of field. A shallow depth of field means that only select objects will be in focus, preferably the ones closer to you. Used in combination with ISO settings, the control you have over aperture and shutter speed will determine how much creative control you can have while using the camera. Therefore, you'll probably want a wider range for both.
   
3. Check to see other features which might be there to replace control over ISO, shutter speed, and aperture. Some digital cameras have EV settings, which stands for Exposure Value. Setting the EV to +values will brighten images, and setting it to a -value will darken the resulting photo. Also, some digital cameras have a way to manually edit your focus - much like changing the depth of field.
4. Check for the macro mode. Check the image quality on close objects. This also allows you to see if the lens barrel will cast shadows while you're on macro. Then check for image quality while you're on full optical zoom.
5. Check for the effectiveness of IS, or Image Stabilization. Focus on something small and far from you. Zoom until full optical zoom, and then zoom again until full digital zoom is reached. Make sure your hands are rather stable, then click. If you get a blurry image, this means either your hand is unstable, or that the IS doesn't work or isn't there at all. Either way, it'll be really hard for you to use the camera on full zoom. While a 20x zoom maybe tempting to some, it's pretty useless without the IS.
6. Check for noise on different ISO levels. Take pictures using different ISO settings. Feel free to mess with the zoom as well. Start with the highest possible ISO, and go lower and lower until you know where the noise disappears. Taking a picture is required for the different ISO settings, because some LCD's can misfire while you're only viewing the composed image. After taking pictures, zoom the resulting images to 100% to check for any noise. If you find the noise levels acceptable, don't just go ahead and buy the camera, look for something which might perform better.
7. Look up the camera's frame rate (frames per second/fps) and test it. If you're also interested in doing continuous shots, make sure you test the camera's fps. Set the camera to continuous shooting mode, then press and hold the shutter button. Continuous shooting is good for moving objects, like models who look this way and that while on the catwalk. You'll want to have at least one photo of her looking your way.^^
   
8. Don't just rush into a store and check the available cameras there. Do some research online, and read some reviews. This way, you won't waste time testing products which already have low ratings. Create a shortlist of cameras you desire the most, and then test those cameras out for yourself. Remember, images online may have already been post-processed and are therefore rather unreliable measuring sticks of the camera's true power.

Do you think that most photographs are starting to get dull? Do you like messing with camera modes, filters, and effects?

If you want to show a little more of the queer and bizarre, the uncommon and mind-boggling, then maybe you're looking for a camera as different as you.

Try the following cameras out, they might bring back the joy of photography for you.