Introduce Yourself & Welcome Other Members (archive)

[carregwen]

Hey everyone,
Name's Lizzie from Sydney Australia and I am so new to this SLR camera business that it's not funny. Have a Canon 1000D complete with 2 kit lenses (75-300mm and 18-55mm) and figured what I saved on the camera I'd spend on extra lenses so recently bought the fixed 50mm F/1.8 with intentions of taking really good indoor shots and super duper portraits with that nice blurred background. Trouble is, I find I am constantly changing lenses ! Perfect example : on holiday recently I put the zoom lens on and took some pretty good shots of distant mountains / marinas /beaches etc but couldn't get a decent shot of something a lot closer with the zoom so off it came, pack it away, bring out the 18-55mm, take the shots, oops no, I need the F/1.8 etc. etc. etc. Am I using too many lenses and not fiddling with apertures and shutter speeds enough?
I think I need some help! Please! Anyone?

Hi Lizzie, and welcome.

A very good question you ask, but it might lead to a lot of discussion. Why not cut and paste what you have written and start a new thread called 'changing lenses' in the general photography discussion here https://www.cambridgeincolour.com/forums/forum10.htm

[Klickit]

Photography is just a hobby for me.......

Mr Hood - I have only three words for you:
Famous
Last
Words

Oh, and one more: Welcome!
#uses smilie in defiance of Rob, the s word hater.#

[Klickit]

Hi Lizzie and welcome from another relative newcomer. Great friendly place and good for noobs of all levels.

[Dave Humphries]

Hi everyone. I'm still learning lots about digital photography every day. I bought my first camera about 4 years ago and my first (and only) DSLR in September of 2008. I'm a Sophomore at Brigham Young University and I'm studying Computer Science. Photography is just a hobby for me but I hope to someday put all my photography knowledge to work some day and maybe earn a few bucks from it.

I have a Canon Digital Rebel XTi (400D) with the 18-55mm kit lens, an EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III lens and I just bought an EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 USM IS lens the other day. I'm interested in nature and landscape photography as well as sports photography and architectural photography.

P.S. I think I let the photography bug bite my younger brother who just purchased a Rebel XS (1000D) kit along with an EF 75-300mm III USM lens.

Hi Justin,

Great to have you join us here at CiC and thanks for the first name btw, it helps a lot.

That's quite a mix of subjects, but no harm in that - I shoot anything that interests me

So, you've infected your brother already; good job! - I guess with that lens, he has the 'wildlife strain' of the photography infection?

I think I may have passed it on to my daughter too

Anyway, I'll utter the time honoured "welcome to the CiC forums from ...."

[Dave Humphries]

Hey everyone,
Name's Lizzie from Sydney Australia and I am so new to this SLR camera business that it's not funny. Have a Canon 1000D complete with 2 kit lenses (75-300mm and 18-55mm) and figured what I saved on the camera I'd spend on extra lenses so recently bought the fixed 50mm F/1.8 with intentions of taking really good indoor shots and super duper portraits with that nice blurred background. Trouble is, I find I am constantly changing lenses ! Perfect example : on holiday recently I put the zoom lens on and took some pretty good shots of distant mountains / marinas /beaches etc but couldn't get a decent shot of something a lot closer with the zoom so off it came, pack it away, bring out the 18-55mm, take the shots, oops no, I need the F/1.8 etc. etc. etc. Am I using too many lenses and not fiddling with apertures and shutter speeds enough?
I think I need some help! Please! Anyone?

Hi Lizzie,

I think I'd might have given the welcome in the changing lenses thread which I saw first, but just in case I didn't, welcome from me to the CiC forums, it's great to have you along for the journey.

We all need help here; some more than others (some not even photography related) - ok, that's enough cheek from me <sheepish grin>, I guess what I'm trying to say is, you're in good company. As you've already seen, we don't stand on ceremony or taking each other too seriously

Welcome to the CiC forums from ....

[aljones27]

Never really know what to say in these threads so guess I'll just say hi to everyone.

[Dave Humphries]

Never really know what to say in these threads so guess I'll just say hi to everyone.

Well, you could tell us your name - Al ?

What you like to photograph?

What you have; camera, lenses and PP s/w?

How's that for a start?

Seriously - welcome to the CiC forums from me, glad to have you join us with a picture already.

Best regards,

[Donald]

Never really know what to say in these threads so guess I'll just say hi to everyone.

Actions speak louder than words. That's a pretty impressive first post in Mono Mini Comp #18. Welcome on board.

[aljones27]

Yeah it's Al. Well guessed!

What do I like to photograph - bit of everything really. I don't think my photography is confined to one particular theme / style.

Canon 400D which came with Canon 18-55 and a Tamron 70-300. Have recently started to upgrade my lenses - Canon 50mm F1.8 and Sigma 10-20mm.

Thanks for the welcome.

[13dayzee]

Hi-

I am kind of new to photography and very new to forums. I've had a Canon xs for about a year now and only have a 50 f/2.8 prime lens at this time because I destroyed my kit 18-55mm lens. I've ordered a set of macro filters to add to my 50. I have lots of questions about equipment (mostly lenses at this point), photography, and Photoshop. I'll browse around the fourm before I ask too many questions up front.

My question at this time is how to determine (when shopping online) whether a lens has a fixed f-stop or an f-stop that changes with zoom. I've noticed that some lens titles state: 70-200mm f/2.8 and others . . . 70-200mm f/3.5-6.3 or something like that. Is the first lens example a fixed f-stop? I tried reading in the descriptions on Tamron.com to determine if it's fixed or not, and I'm a little confused still. I want to make sure exactly what I'm buying. I want an 18-55mm and also a lens that zooms to 200mm both with a fixed f/2.8. I also don't want to pay gobs of money for a lens. I want to take close ups of family, vacation shots that will require zoom and I'd like to play with macro photography. I love bokeh, so I want to stay with a large aperture, also my house is like a dungeon and I need to allow as much light in as possible. I have a very active toddler and need to have the fastest shutter speed possible. I've begged for skylights just for better shots in the house, but my husband hasn't given in yet.

Thanks for your help in advance.

-Heather

[carregwen]

Hi Heather, and welcome to CiC.

Not sure I understand your question. The f-stop mentioned in a lens description is not 'fixed', it's the minimum f-stop that you can use. So, the Canon 50mm f/1.8 has a minimum f-stop of 1.8, but at the other end goes up to about f22 at least. A specified range of f-stop such as 70-200mm f/3.5-6.3 will only appear on a zoom lens. It means the minimum f-stop depending on what focal length in the zoom range you choose.

Look forward to your contributions. Why not post a shot or two in the forum?

[Kaje]

Hi From sunny Netherlands.

I'm a photographer from the Netherlands, mainly Nature and somtimes Portraits.
Hope to post a lot here and give my comments wherever I can.

Grtz
Klaas

[revi]

Hi
I'm Dutch, but living in France since a few years now (Brittany first, now Provence)
Main photo interest is nature (flowers, insects, and trying to start with birds), but other subjects can get some attention as well (having two young children around helps )

I did some photography years ago (on film...) and then switched to digital (compact). Since last automn I have a Sony A330 with the kit 17-55mm and a Sigma 70-300mm F4/5.6, and I'm trying to get to grips with it and RAW processing.

btw Klaas: _sunny_ Netherlands? Not what my memory tells me...

[Donald]

Two Dutch people one after the other (with now in Provence). Welcome both.

Remco - You will see in my personal profile that my other great passion in life is wine. So, your first photograph was very appropriate for me. And where you live ....well!!!! Lots of countries have tried making Rose wine, but only Provence knows how to do it properly.

[revi]

Well, there's lots of very nice Reds here as well.
That picture was actually of a very small vineyard, and the product probably only for private consumption by the owner (and that might be for the best...)

[Dave Humphries]

Hi-

I am kind of new to photography and very new to forums. I've had a Canon xs for about a year now and only have a 50 f/2.8 prime lens at this time because I destroyed my kit 18-55mm lens. I've ordered a set of macro filters to add to my 50. I have lots of questions about equipment (mostly lenses at this point), photography, and Photoshop. I'll browse around the fourm before I ask too many questions up front.

My question at this time is how to determine (when shopping online) whether a lens has a fixed f-stop or an f-stop that changes with zoom. I've noticed that some lens titles state: 70-200mm f/2.8 and others . . . 70-200mm f/3.5-6.3 or something like that. Is the first lens example a fixed f-stop? I tried reading in the descriptions on Tamron.com to determine if it's fixed or not, and I'm a little confused still. I want to make sure exactly what I'm buying. I want an 18-55mm and also a lens that zooms to 200mm both with a fixed f/2.8. I also don't want to pay gobs of money for a lens. I want to take close ups of family, vacation shots that will require zoom and I'd like to play with macro photography. I love bokeh, so I want to stay with a large aperture, also my house is like a dungeon and I need to allow as much light in as possible. I have a very active toddler and need to have the fastest shutter speed possible. I've begged for skylights just for better shots in the house, but my husband hasn't given in yet.

Thanks for your help in advance.

-Heather

Hi Heather,

Welcome to the CiC forums from me, great to have you join us.

To answer the lens question; yes, your supposition is correct, if the description only states one f-stop, like "f2.8", despite being a zoom, then it's a fairly safe bet that it is f2.8 at both 70mm and 200mm when wide open. Conversely, the "f3.5-6.3" will be f3.5 at 70mm and f6.3 at 200mm. The constant f-stop lens will tend to be more expensive and heavier than the variable kind though, and the wider the maximum aperture, the more so for both (e.g. f2 vs f2.8).

You want what we all want; a lotta lens for little money, but sadly I'm not sure you're going to find it. I don't want to go into too much more here in the intro thread, but by all means do post a question in the DSLR forum about any shortlisted lenses, I went through that same process recently and found it very useful, I had an 18-200mm f3.5-5.6 and have recently bought a 70-300mm f3.5-5.6 and a macro 105mm f2.8. I would recommend getting IS lenses for steadier shots when low light shooting - they won't slow a toddler down, but at least the background will be sharp

Best regards,

[Dave Humphries]

Hi From sunny Netherlands.

I'm a photographer from the Netherlands, mainly Nature and somtimes Portraits.
Hope to post a lot here and give my comments wherever I can.

Grtz
Klaas

Hi Klaas,

Hi from a sunny England too (at least for one more day anyhow).

So, what camera+lenses are you shooting with?

Look forward to seeing your next posts, with questions or picctures, if you need help with anything forum-wise, don't be shy to ask.

Welcome to the CiC forums from ....

[Dave Humphries]

Hi
I'm Dutch, but living in France since a few years now (Brittany first, now Provence)
Main photo interest is nature (flowers, insects, and trying to start with birds), but other subjects can get some attention as well (having two young children around helps )

I did some photography years ago (on film...) and then switched to digital (compact). Since last automn I have a Sony A330 with the kit 17-55mm and a Sigma 70-300mm F4/5.6, and I'm trying to get to grips with it and RAW processing.

btw Klaas: _sunny_ Netherlands? Not what my memory tells me...

Hi Remco,

Glad to have you along and taking part rather than lurking
I'm sure you'll find you'll get so much more from CiC from joining all the fun instead of peering in through the steamed up windows

Hmmm, that's enough of that, welcome to the CiC forums from ....

[sakthi]

Hi all, i'm Siva. i'm from Sri Lanka, but now live in Norway. Basically i'm a structural engineer, but very much interested in photography. i'm planning to buy a dslr in the coming weeks. canon 550D with kit lens. Any alternatives?

[Dave Humphries]

Hi all, i'm Siva. i'm from Sri Lanka, but now live in Norway. Basically i'm a structural engineer, but very much interested in photography. i'm planning to buy a dslr in the coming weeks. canon 550D with kit lens. Any alternatives?

Hi Siva,

You are a long way from home and (probably) rather colder.

On the subject of alternatives, if you are intending Canon only, you may find this current discussion very useful;
Confused... Too many options/jargon when choosing a new camera

By all means contribute to that thread, or start your own if you were considering other brands; e.g. Nikon or Sony, etc.

What camera and lens(es) are right for you depends so much on what you intend to shoot and your budget, so please give us that info when you start that thread (in the DSLR forum)

Anyway, welcome to the CiC forums from ....