New Camera! Totally excited.

But wait. Can I start using it now?

Well, I need to learn all the settings, all the picture profiles, everything!

👆That was me many years ago. I needed to understand and know everything about my shiny new piece of gear.

This pushed me back a significant amount of time, weeks in fact before I felt ready to start using my camera.

What a waste of time and energy…….😡

I lacked self-confidence when operating my camera equipment and was too anxious, so I spent unnecessary time learning everything there was to know about it.

Learn the minimum - maximise your time

Go out and create! Just work on getting to know how your new camera controls these 5 things:

Autofocus: Let’s be honest, all new cameras have decent autofocus. So let your camera do the work for you, especially if you’re just getting to grips with it. Just set it and forget it for now, especially if you are recording talking head videos. Remember, autofocus for video is your friend!

White Balance: If you’ve read my previous post, well done you! White balance is important to make your images look natural, but if you’re just starting out, you can always select AWB or (Auto White Balance). The thing is, for photos, AWB works well; for video, it’s okay, but you may need to set it to the correct environment just to avoid colour shift. Consider what lights you have, what colour they are and set your Camera accordingly.

Composition: Get familiar with framing and get your subject looking good in your photos or video. Imagine splitting a picture into nine equal parts using two horizontal lines and two vertical lines is commonly referred to as the “rule of thirds”, and suggests that important elements in the picture should be placed along these lines or at their intersections. It helps make the image more balanced and pleasing to the eye. You can enable the rule of thirds grid on most cameras, and then see this as a reference in your viewfinder or rear screen. Simples!

Shutter Speed & Aperture: Oh, these two! Yes, it’s time to learn these two important controls, as these settings will have the greatest impact on your image from a style and exposure perspective.

Shutter speed is like a blink of an eye for your camera. It's how fast the camera takes a picture. A fast shutter speed freezes action, like a runner in mid-stride, while a slow one captures motion, like a flowing river.

Example: 1/1000 or 1/250

Aperture is like the pupil of the camera. It controls how much light gets in. A big aperture (small F-number) lets in lots of light, creating a blurry background (nice for portraits), while a small aperture (big f-number) lets in less light, giving you a sharper background (great for landscapes).

Example: F1.4 (let’s in loads of light, nice blurry background. Great for when you are in darker environments.) F22 (If it’s very bright and you want to keep everything in focus).

But You Can Cheat! Just set your camera to “P” mode on the dial (Programmed Automatic Settings); this just lets the camera do all the work for you, and when shooting photos, it’s amazing.

I want you to have FUN with your gear, not get bogged down with are these settings, right?

At the end of the day, you will learn; just take your time and explore things one at a time.

For more tips, tricks, and tutorials, check out my YouTube channel. I also go live most Thursdays at 5PM UK / 12:00 EST

Bye for now!

Neil.

If you need additional help, why not book a FREE 30 Min Coaching Session with me?