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Help Needed For Beginner


lee_corrigan

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Hi everyone,

 

This is the first time i've been on here but basically i'm looking for a new

hobby which may turn into a new career (hopefully) and i've decided to take up

photography. I'm really interested in pics and i always have been for as long

as i can remember. Obviously i've used a camera and currently own a DC5300 (if

anyone knows what this is) but i've never used an SLR camera before. Ideally

i'd love to take pictures of sporting events or life pictures but i don't have

a clue where to start, what courses to study or anything. So what i need is a

guide, someone who wants a prodigy and can be there for any advice i require.

I know absoultely nothing and it could be a good challenge for someone. Any

offers let me know? I'm really interested in this and i'm not a quitter so you

will have my 100% attention. Thank you.

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You might want to mention where you're located if looking for a mentor.

 

Bottom line - I'd start by checking out a book on photography from the library.

 

Other resources:

 

Books, Internet, local photo clubs. Local mom-and-pop camera stores. Local community colleges. Other photographers near to you, geographically. If you're in a large city, you could probably meet some other like-minded souls at museums, parks, or sporting events. Strike up a conversation with folks carrying good gear, and you'll meet *somebody* that can help.

 

What type of sports? Shooting photos of kayaks in whitewater is quite a different thing from football, baseball, croquet.... while rock climbing is yet another thing as well. Each sport has rather unique requirements.

 

Best of luck to you. It's a great hobby - easy to learn the basics, yet nearly impossible to master in a single lifetime.

 

Best,

 

Doug Grosjean

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Hiya Lee.

 

This site is an excellent guide offering advice, you can learn alot just by reading old and new posts. I sugguest you try that for a few years. Save up and buy the gear you need.

 

Sports photography is expensive, competitive, and can be very lucrative. There is a lot to learn, so good luck.

 

Cheers.

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See if your local tech College offers classes. Most I took were weak, but did give you the basics.

 

Equipment: Don't be afraid to buy used. Shooting sports typically means using the fastest glass and faster bodies because the light is dreadful in anything but the nice professional venues. Don't waste money on consumer camera like the D70/20 D. Go right for the older used professional bodies. The autofocus alone will mean great images.

 

Alot can be done indoors with a 50mm f/1.4 and outdoors with a 180mm f/2.8, when added to an older body like a Nikon D1X. $2000 investment tops for the body, both lens, memory and spare batteries! A nice start. (though I would probably lean to the Canon side if starting over.)

 

Understand the basics of photography, build a small portfolio and approach your local weekly newspapers. I shoot for one paper, yet a few weeks ago at a county football jamboree and met a giy with a P+S. He welcolmed the images and ran them in their paper. I've been published in five so far in the past month, and will be up for some awards.

 

In my county there are something like 7 to 10 weeklies. All fertile ground, with little or no photography staff.

 

It's very gratifying work, though it doesn't pay all that well. I like the exposure (trying tobuild a wedding photo biz), meet cool people, attend lots of free events, and get to enjoy and relax doing something away from my real job.

 

One day... aiming for a fulltime job at a daily! We can all dream.

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In case I confused you, buy only the fastest glass in terms of F/Stop and a pro level body.

 

It could be a film body like the f100 (Fast Fuji Superiea film can be had cheap on Ebay and developed for $5 per roll at Sam's with a disk).

 

A manual focus 300mm f/2.8 (which I own) isn't perfect in todays automated world, but it is almost the perfect lens in alot of ways (speed, cost) once you learn how to use it.

 

Anything above f/2.8 on the long end and f/1.8 on the short end will only produce frustration until you make these types of purchases anyway.

 

Forget flash and other methods. Many High School or College sports wont let you use flash.

 

Good luck!

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