Starting out with your camera.

SETTING UP YOUR CAMERA

OPEN THE BOX

If you haven’t done so yet, open the box with your camera. Select a table free of clutter to do this. Some parts may be small and you don’t want to loose them. The box will generally contain the camera, a memory card (this may be built in to your camera so don’t worry if you can’t find one), a strap, a lens cap(if your camera requires one), a battery or batteries, and perhaps a charger. the package almost always has some kind of instructions which may be difficult to read let alone understand. It MAY also have a CD that contains instructions and programs relative to using your new camera.

If your camera comes with a rechargeable battery, charge that battery before you start shooting, so do that NOW. This may take several hours but don’t rush the process. If your camera came with disposable batteries you can use these until you get rechargeable ones. If this is a new camera, the battery will NOT be in the camera, so look for it.

The two main types of batteries used in cameras are LiON rechargeable batteries and AA batteries. The LiON batteries ARE NOT INTERCHANGEABLE so find the charger and use it. Some cameras come with a cradle for charging the battery while in the camera.The cradle holds the camera while charging and for transfering pictures to the computer.

If your camera uses AA batteries, then go out and buy rechargeable batteries and a charger. Most chargers will do the job in 4 to 8 hours. The rechargeable AA batteries are NiMH batteries and come in a variety of strengths (1800-2700 mAh). The larger the number the better. The AA rechargeable batteries I strongly suggest are ENELOOP by GE/Sanyo. Costco haws them with a charger for under $30. The ENELOOP batteries do NOT require charging prior. Buy batteries in sets of 4 REGARDLESS if your camera only uses 2 at a time. DO NOT MIX BATTERY TYPES, STRENGTHS OR MANUFACTURERS.

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INSERTING BATTERIES & MEMORY CARD

The battery cover can be difficult to locate and to open. Most often it is a two step job. A slide or switch is moved in one direction and then the entire cover is MOVED at a right angle. If you are having trouble, go to the place you bought your camera or a local camera store. AA batteries can easily be insert incorrectly. Look for directions on the correct way to insert the batteries. The LiON batteries can only be inserted one way.

Check to see if you have loaded the batteries by closing the battery cover and turn on the camera. This is done by sliding a switch, pushing a button, or turning a dial. If the camera does not appear to turn on, check to see if you are in the shooting mode, if so, then open the battery compartment and reinsert your batteries.

Many of the newer cameras have some memory built into the camera. You can take 6 10 pictures without inserting a memory card. Get one or two 2GB or 4GB CARDS. DO NOT BUY 128, 256, OR 512 Mb MEMORY CARDS. Memory cards are not interchangeable. Check which one your camera uses, your camera can use only one type, so buy carefully. The common types of MEMORY CARDS are SD (Secure Digital), CF (Compact Flash), Memory Sticks, and xD memory. Check with your manual before buying the SDHC or SDXC memory cards. Older cameras cannot use those cards. Some of the older card readers may not work with these newer memory cards.

Frequently the memory card slot is hidden under a flap or small door OR MAY BE NEXT TO THE BATTERY. Open the door or flap. The card goes in one way only, don’t force it. If in doubt, read the directions or let someone show you how

SETTING DATE & TIME - A new camera may display a “Set the date and time” notice on the LCD. On other cameras you may have to access the MENU to do this. Once done you don’t have to repeat it unless you change time zones. FIND THE MENU BUTTON IF YOU HAVE ONE AND PRESS IT WHILE THE CAMERA IS ON and IN PICTURE TAKING MODE. The MENU may have a SETUP setting or this mode may be on the dial. Most cameras use a 4-way rocker setup to set the date and time. Up / down increases or decreases the value displayed while the right / left moves the cursor right or left over the date and time fields. The buttons are built into the ring and are pressed to activate. Many of the buttons are double duty and their function will change depending upon the camera or mode setting.

NOTE: You can stop setting up your camera at this point and your camera will take great pictures if you set AUTO or SIMPLE mode on the DIAL or slide switch. The camera will use the default settings the manufacturer thinks best for you.

MORE ADVANCED SET-UP FEATURES

If your camera has a dial which says “AUTO” or shows a HEART, or has something that indicates a “SIMPLIFIED POINT AND SHOOT MODE, change the dial to another setting, preferably one that says P, A, S, Tv, or shows icons of a runner or just about anything else. The AUTO type settings may NOT allow you to make some changes to the defaults settings on the camera. In most cases the default settings will be used when in the simple or AUTO mode and cannot be changed by the user.

Pressing the MENU button turns on the LCD which will display a series of options. The choice of options is dependent upon the camera setting to PLAYBACK or TAKING MODE. Place the camera in the picture taking mode. Displayed across the top will be several pages or tabs, one of which will probably say SET UP. It is also possible that the dial has a position on it marked SET-UP. It is here that you want to be. So use the LEFT/RIGHT BUTTONS to move to that tab or page. Your camera may be different in that some of the features may be located in places other than SET-UP or MENU.

RESOLUTION –Expressed as a size in pixels (pixel is a picture element) commonly shown as a pair of numbers. The larger the numbers the more pixels, the better defined the image, the larger the file size, but the fewer image that can be captured on a memory card. Set resolution (generally done only once) to LARGEST size. If the largest number has not been selected then use the UP/DOWN or RIGHT/LEFT arrows (buttons) to select it. You may have to use the LEFT/RIGHT buttons to activate that feature first. You may also have to push the OK or SET button to lock in the selection.

COMPRESSION Set to FINE (may show as super fine or ultra fine). In many cameras the default has been selected to the middle value or NORMAL. If you are not sure which one to select look at the number of pictures that can be taken. You want to use the compression and resolution settings that yield the lowest number of images.

REVIEW-. This allows you to see the picture you just took for to 2 to 10 seconds or even longer.The longer the review is on the faster the battery will drain and need recharging.

NUMBERING Set numbering system for the images to CONTINUOUS. This means that a new memory card continues the numbering of the card just replaced

DIGITAL ZOOMING - Turn off the digital zoom if allowed. In a later blog i will discuss digital zooming but for now, turn it off.

FLASH -Set flash to OFF. This setting is frequently a separate button on the 4-way rocker. There are several FLASH possibilities. Pushing the FLASH button repeatedly cycles through the settings: FLASH ON (always fires); FLASH AUTO (flash fires when in low light); FLASH-REDEYE (flash emits a short burst of light just before the real flash fires); FLASH OFF (flash doesn’t fire regardless of the lack of light). We will be visiting this topic frequently over the semester. On some cameras the flash must first be raised to activate. On many cameras the use of the flash is also controlled by the mode dial or switch. Check out our camera's flash setting if you want to take pictures in a museum without getting into trouble.

EXPOSURE MODE-Set the camera to AUTO mode (camera focuses, sets exposure, sets flash, sets white balance). AUTO mode will produce satisfactory pictures under most conditions. This control may not be available on many cameras

ISO – Set ISO to AUTO. ISO determines the sensitivity of the image sensor to light. The camera will adjust this settiung as needed. The higher the ISO number the more sensitive the sensor is to light. The lowest ISO numbers (50, 80 or 100) are capable of capturing more detail with far fewer artifacts. High ISO, Like ISO 200, 400, or 800 can be used in dim lighting situations, but tend to be grainy or noisy. Note that pictures taken with high ISO settings may have excessive noise or grain in dark or very light areas and may not be useable.In great detail is needed, then set the camera to the lowest possible ISO.

LIGHT BALANCE – Set to AUTO. The AUTO settings does OK most of the time but can (and will) be fooled, especially indoors. Light is changed by what is around it, by the time of day, cloudiness, reflective surfaces, etc. The AUTO setting reads the light and automatically makes adjustments to produce natural looking pictures. You can override the camera by changing the AUTO setting to some other value. This is similar to using a filter on a lens in 35mm photography

DIAL OR MODE SETTINGS- Not available on many cameras..

AUTOMATIC MODE (AUTO)

This setting is usually shown as the abbreviation AUTO on a setting dial. The user just aims the camera and presses the shutter button and the camera reads the light and then adjusts the shutter speed and aperture according to the light while focusing the camera on the object in the center of the viewfinder.

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PROGRAM MODE – Many cameras also offer a PROGRAM or ADVANCED or MANUAL mode. This is a confusing setting since on some cameras it allows the photographer to alter the camera setting while still maintaining the proper relationship between shutter and aperture. On other cameras it simply allows adjusting parameters in the MENU. This mode is generally shown as the letter P on the dial.

APERTURE PRIORITY (A or Av) – In this mode you choose the aperture and the camera sets the shutter speed. Use the UP/DOWN or RIGHT/LEFT buttons or turning a wheel to change the aperture. Useful for controlling depth of field (DOF).

SHUTTER PRIORITY -S or Tv -"Shutter Priority" means that the photographer chooses the shutter speed and the camera automatically adjusts the aperture for the correct exposure. Use the UP / DOWN or LEFT / RIGHT arrows or buttons to make changes. Useful for taking fast moving subjects. A fast shutter speed (1/500 and above) is used to stop motion of things like race cars, hummingbird wings, and children playing..

FULL MANUAL CONTROL M -Some cameras offer full manual control in which the shutter and aperture can be set independently regardless of the light need to produce a well exposed picture. You choose the aperture and shutter speed for each shot. BEWARE: Some camera manufacturers (Canon) indicate a control setting of PM or M but that is not a real manual control. If there are no S (Tv) or A modes then there is no real manual mode.

SCENE SETTINGS

The more common scene settings may use ICONS to indicate the setting. The more common scene settings are PORTRAIT, NIGHT, and LANDSCAPE, followed by the less common scene modes such as Flower, Sunset, Sport, Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Beach, Close up, Snow, Fireworks, Indoor, Kids, and Backlight just to name a few. Some of the more common scene settings may be on the MODE DIAL while others must be accessed via the SCN icon on the MODE dial..

If your camera has a SCN (SCENE) setting then placing the dial in SCN generally accesses the other scene modes via a display on the LCD. The LCD displays the various scene options. Each of the scene modes makes an adjustment to the exposure algorithm and may also change other camera settings. Using the UP or DOWN arrows to select the scene

Well, you've done it, you have set up your camera and should have great results. But there is a lot more to do that you may want to explore at some other time. Tune in and see what else is up. If you don't have a camera ask me for help. I publish suggestions for a wide variety of pocketbooks and desires.