New to the photography club!

[joem1cha3l]

Just picked up my first DSLR yesterday guys and I couldn't be more excited. My tank is currently cycling also which is perfect. It'll give me some time to get used to how to use this darn thing! I bought a Nikon D3200 with w/ 18-55MM lens and 55-200MM lens. Any tips are appreciated it any must join photography forums would be great to know about also!

 

[SVTour]

Very nice - I'm sure you'll have years of fun with it. :thumbsup:

Check out this guys site - basically he gives tips on how to use your specific camera, and it's a bit easier than trying to decipher Nikon's manual.

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d3200/users-guide/

 

[DamonG]

Congrats! Just take photos of any and everything in any lighting situation (from pitch black to lend flares) so you can get used to what the camera does and you have to do in a variety of situations..

 

[NTP66]

I have a D5200, and was in the same boat as you a while back. Outside of just reading a ton of stuff online (all free), and taking a beginners DSLR photography course, I actually thought the D5200 Field Guide that I bought in Amazon was worth it. The guy who wrote mine doesn't have one for your model, but there are a few others that are under $15 and have great reviews. Once you understand aperture, depth of field, and ISO, things get easier. I still think that composition is the hardest part about photography.

Joey, what's your opinion of Ken Rockwell? To me, he comes off a bit pompous in a lot of his writing, which put me off. I know others feel the same way, based on what I was reading about him on other forums. I disagree with some of the items he mentions on his D3200 page, personally.

 

[Misled]

Read, read, then go back and read it over again. For shooting tanks, check out the stickys at the top of the forum page. Shooting reefs is different than shooting other things out there. Here's a couple websites:

Nikon Cafe

Digital Photography School

Both those places are free and have a wealth of info.

MHO on Ken Rockwell. Don't bother.

You can also start putting pics in our pic of the week thingy.

 

[xtm]

First rule of photography is avoid the Ken Rockwell site. It's ok to read, but take it with a big grain of Instant Ocean.

Second, get a copy of Bryan Peterson's Understanding Exposure and read it. It's a very good book when you're just starting out. There are some things that don't make sense at first and that book will lay it out.

And third... just go out and shoot. Less reading online forums and more outside shooting. Experiment and learn. Take notes. Learn to read the Exif info and start post-processing. It's a long learning process.. you will continually learn, go into a slump, have gear lust, upgrade itch, regrets and happiness. All part of the fun

As for forums? I like NikonCafe and FredMiranda. DPR is ok, but hostile. POTN has a Nikon forum now but it's relatively new and there's not a lot of traffic yet.

 

[joem1cha3l]

Thanks guys. Here are a couple shots with some lightbox editing that I did the first day with the camera. Nothing professional quality, but I'm pretty happy with them!

 

[joem1cha3l]

 

[Misled]

Dude, that's very good stuff!!!!

 

[joem1cha3l]

A couple more from yesterday...

 

[frankyrivera]

Seems like you got the outdoors stuff in the bag. The real challenge will be royal blue leds. camera sensor love that.