All of us want to own a DSLR camera at some point in time, and there are good reasons for that. Of course, it makes you look like a pro, but then at the same time, there are some unwanted effects. For example, you get some attention if you’re at a wedding or function and you have a camera hanging around your neck; you become the de facto photographer. Those are but minor problems. More importantly, the world of photography expands dramatically the moment you upgrade to a DSLR. There’s more power, there’s more performance, more speed, and a ton of possibilities, things no mobile phone or point-and-shoot camera can match. In this article, we are going to help you by showing you quickly, how to get up to speed with a DSLR. Let’s go.
Buy yourself a nice DSLR!
Before we get to the DSLR itself, we need to buy ourselves a model that suits our needs. Buying a good camera is important, and we have a wide collection of them to choose from at Reliance Digital. Prices haven't been this low either. Some good options to kick off your new hobby are the newly launched Canon EOS 1200D or the Nikon D3300, among others. If you're looking to do some professional shooting sometime in the future, models such as the Canon EOS 60D and Nikon D5300 should be on your list. There are many other models for all kinds of budgets and needs that you can find on our DSLR catalogue page here.
What are all these buttons and what do they do?
Before we look at what all these controls mean, understand that every camera make and even models have different button and control layouts but they are all there. In some cases, the controls maybe named or marked slightly differently. You will figure out most of these features when you start using your DSLR.
Using the lens to focus
The lens is the cylindrical object at the front of the camera. It can be removed and replaced, by pressing down a button on the side of the camera and rotating the lens. Be careful while doing and try not to leave the lens or the camera opening exposed for long. Replaceable lenses help improve the performance and capabilities of the camera, letting you take all kinds of shots. This is one of those great things about owning a DSLR and you won't find this on any mobile phone or point-and-shoot camera. The lens on DSLRs doesn’t zoom using buttons like a point-and-shoot; you need to rotate the large ring on it to zoom in and out. There is also a small switch on the side that lets you switch the lens from auto focussing to manual focussing. If you set it to manual focus, you also need to rotate the thinner ring on the lens to focus on the object you’re trying to shoot. While this is more complicated, you can get some really artistic photos with it.
Selecting the mode and shooting
Jog dials and navigating through the menus
Depending on the camera you're using, you may find one or two jog dials on it. A jog dial is a small roller that can be used to change settings on the camera. There are also some directional buttons at the back of the camera which let you browse through menus, photos and they’re also used for changing some features of the camera, which we'll explore shortly. These features can be seen marked as icons next to each of the directional buttons.
What mode should I click photos in?
There are many ways of clicking a photo using your DSLR. The easiest one of course is using the Auto mode, which works and behaves like your phone or point-and-shoot. You get a simple, straight-forward, no-nonsense photograph. This is good if you’re handing the camera to someone else to click or if you’re in a hurry and need to just capture a photo quickly. That's not the point of DSLRs though. They are so much interesting because you get manual controls to play around with and the photos you can shoot with these manual controls look creative and better than the ones shot in Auto mode.
The manual controls you should know
The major controls that you get to play around with, are the shutter, the aperture and the ISO. All these controls can be changed once you switch the camera to the Manual mode (marked as ‘M’ on the mode selection dial)
Shutter speed controls
Aperture controls
ISO controls
Using semi-automated aperture and shutter priority modes
To help make things easier there are two modes that can help. These are the shutter priority mode and the aperture priority mode. These are denoted by the alphabets 'S' and 'A' in most cameras. In Canon cameras, they may be marked as 'Tv' and 'Av'. 'Tv' mode denoting shutter priority and 'Av' denoting aperture priority. These modes are handy because now, you can force the camera to set a certain shutter speed and the camera will take care of the rest. This happens in the shutter priority mode. Similarly, in the aperture priority mode, you can force a specific aperture and the rest of the settings are handled by the camera. These are useful when you want to click a specific kind of photo but don't have the patience to adjust all of the controls using the manual mode.
Other controls you should know about
Apart from these major controls that we spoke about, there are some other tools that are built into your DSLR that can help you click good photos consistently. One of them is the light metering. The camera needs to adjust the shutter and aperture settings to make sure that the photo that you click isn't too bright or too dark. It measures this by using light metering. It measures the intensity of lighting using a few samples in the view you’re pointing the camera at. You can choose the light metering modes from the menu on the camera.
Similarly, the focus mode lets you choose what the camera focuses on. You can choose a spot, the entire area or a spot that can be moved. This option can be changed using a button on the camera in some cases. In some other cases, you may find it in a menu. If you are using the manual mode, and the camera isn’t gauging the amount of light, watch the EV meter on the screen. It is a small horizontal line that runs between -2 and +2 and tells you how much light there is. Ensure that the marker is pointing at 0 to get evenly lit photographs. If it’s at +2, then the photo is going to be too bright and if it’s closer to -2, it will be dark.
Get yourself additional lenses, widen the possibilities
Practice, more practice and have fun while you practice!
Experience DSLRs at Reliance Digital
You can check out all the cameras we have in our camera section on the site. You can also visit one of our Reliance Digital or Digital Xpress stores closest to you and take a look at some of the cameras and lenses we have on offer. Our friendly staff will be more than happy to help you choose a camera that suites your needs. Don’t forget to ask about the ResQ Care Plan. There are some good deals on extending your camera’s warranty for a small price. If you need any help or have any queries, please get in touch with us. All our contact details can be found here. Happy clicking!