Awww, help an infant out!

[DJRobin]

OK. Bear in mind, I am married to a really great photographer. He doesn't do it hardly anymore, but he's great...and has absolutely NOOOOO patience with me on this...

I say that I love it, wanna get better at it, yada yada...God love him...he brings home this Canon, uh, EOS, rebel something camera...nice. He's very cool like that. If I love it, he supplies it.

However. I was diggin' the Kodak easyshare (I hear you snicker)...but know I will do much better if I learn this stuff.

So. I've got what a lot of things are...but...what is:

A-DEP
M
AV
TV
P
green square is automatic, right?
person's head?
A mountain is for landscape or far away, right?
flower, close up
person running...action
Then two more pictures that I have no idea what they're pictures of...

HELPPPP....I swear, I'm trying.....Thank you so much!

[epoh]

Did you get the manual that came with it? If not, I believe Canon has them online. That's the best place to start with decoding the camera.

But anyway, not knowing which camera you've got...

P is usually program mode - generally there are 1-3 presets you can program. I don't think my canon has this, so this is an educated guess.

Tv is Shutter-priority mode. You set the shutterspeed and the camera sets the aperture. this is a great for low-light situations. You can set the shutterspeed to the lowest you can without getting camera shake or motion blur, and let the camera shoose the aperture.

Av is Aperture-priority mode. Just like Tv, you set the aperture to control the depth-of-field and the camera will select the appropriate shutter speed. I use this mode all the time.

M is manual. You need to set the aperature and shutterspeed.

I am not sure what A-DEP is, but I'm guessing some sort of automatic varient. Regardless, try heading over to Canon's website and see if you can find the manual. It will be immensly helpful.

[DJRobin]

THANK YOU! That totally helps...I tried to get the manual on line and it isn't there anymore. So I'm muddling my way through it...very...slowly...I've never felt so ignorant about anything in all my life.
All I've heard for years is how I take the most amazing photos, should do that for a living, it's incredible, yada yada...
yeah. not so much. I can capture some stuff that's cool...got that. But knowing how to take the next step to make it GREAT. Lord have mercy. Much tougher than I thought.
And the bad thing is that I know all these great photographers here...and don't really have the uh, well, you know...to ask them since they know me as a DJ and don't want to step on any toes...which I'm not. My idea of hades is having to shoot someone's wedding...
ha ha ha
thank you so much! Gives me a starting place to go play!

[epoh]

Try downloading the manual for whatever Rebel is online. They should all be very similar. Canon's little picture system is pretty standardized. If you've got a digital (maybe the 300D?) the menus may be slightly different, but not by much.

And don't be scared to ask, here or in real life. Most people I know are happy to share information about stuff they are good at. Makes them feel knowledgable. ;)

[epoh]

Did you find out what model it is, btw? I was going to do a search for you, since I am bored at work.

[DJRobin]

ooh, ooh, ooh....let me get it...

EOS Digital Rebel...but not the XT or XM or X-whatever model is much newer. I think this is an older one. (Love the husband that provides, but...he doesn't "ask", he shows up and says 'here. this is yours.' so I'm working within that! (not complaining...hey, I got a camera)...

[Daniel Bates]

I've got the file on my hard drive. PM me your email address if you would like me to send it to you.

[gardener]

A-Dep is a general setting that's used for portraits (for example) where there are several people together and you're not sure of the depth of field (DOF) necessary to get all of them in focus at the same time. In essence, the camera checks all the focus points and then picks an aperture that's appropriate to get the shot. It's one of the pre-sets and for all practical purposes, will probably never be used after you find out what all the buttons and dials do...
The proper nonmenclature is actually "Automatic Depth of Field AE" and this setting is included on many of Canon's film and digital cameras, both old and new.

The green box is all automatic settings, ie: the camera makes the choices for you.
The person's head is a portrait setting and usually provides less depth of field for a nicer out of focus background.
The mountain icon is indeed a landscape setting with a smaller aperture for more DOF.
The flower icon is a macro setting with a shorter DOF and possibly slower shutter speed.
The running figure is for sports with typically, a faster shutter speed and smaller aperture.
The black square with a star and half a person is for night portraits and uses the built in flash.
The box with a lightning bolt bisected by a diagonal mark is the flash off position.
Like the full auto (little green box) setting, "P" is also an auto setting but you can change the settings slightly by choosing the appropriate buttons and dials.

[epoh]

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/co...4&modelid=9430

When you want to find documentation on older Canons, use the 'Download Library' link at the top of the site. That webpage I linked to should have all the documentation you could want for your camera.

[DJRobin]

GOT IT!
I'm never gonna book another DJ job in my life because I'm going to be playing with the darned camera 24/7! ha ha...
hmmm...conversation tonight..."honey...sorry I don't make money anymore...But I know what an aperture is now!"
*snort*

[venchka]

Originally Posted by DJRobin

...(Love the husband that provides, but...he doesn't "ask", he shows up and says 'here. this is yours.' so I'm working within that! (not complaining...hey, I got a camera)...

"honey...I would really an EF 85mm f:1.2 L Mk. II...I could take great candids when I'm doing my DJ thing."

Good luck. Never be afraid to ask.

[Cope]

Originally Posted by epoh

P is usually program mode - generally there are 1-3 presets you can program. I don't think my canon has this, so this is an educated guess.

Tv is Shutter-priority mode. You set the shutterspeed and the camera sets the aperture. this is a great for low-light situations. You can set the shutterspeed to the lowest you can without getting camera shake or motion blur, and let the camera shoose the aperture.

Av is Aperture-priority mode. Just like Tv, you set the aperture to control the depth-of-field and the camera will select the appropriate shutter speed. I use this mode all the time.

M is manual. You need to set the aperature and shutterspeed.

I am not sure what A-DEP is, but I'm guessing some sort of automatic varient. Regardless, try heading over to Canon's website and see if you can find the manual. It will be immensly helpful.

Does anyone know why Canon calls Shutter Priority Tv and Aperture Priority Av? Seems that A and S would be simpler and more easily understood.

[epoh]

T = time, I'm assuming. Not sure about the v, to be honest.

[gardener]

Shutter priority = TV = Time Value
Aperture priority = AV = Aperture Value
I assume that it's a way to make the setting easier to remember for people who aren't camera oriented...

[epoh]

value! that totally makes sense.