Am I missing something? "DSLR"

Look, when I got into photography, about five months ago I didnt no chit about

it. It didnt take me long to learn the technical basics, shutter speed,

aperture and ISO. So why is it I see so many questions or references to "DSLR"

like it's some mystery or some crazy high tech machine? "IT'S A CAMERA!, NO?"

Am I missing something?

DSLR = Digital Single Lens Reflex

Shay -

 

Even in this age when the majority of people have computers and other tech, there is still a "fear" factor associated with the unknown. And to most DLSR's are unknown. Add to that the sales person at the Huge Buy electronics store or the Big Box that doesn't know the difference between a Point and Shoot and the DSLR other than the price.

 

And if you get beyond the basics (like aperature, iso and shutter), which were pretty much all you could change on the 35mm slr's, into the complex menu's - it is very high tech.

 

Dave

Yes, a DSLR is a camera. But many people simply shoot, film or digital, their cameras in "P" mode. Yes, basic photo concepts apply to both.

Shay: Most people with a digital camera these days do NOT have a single lens reflex body. They have cell phones or higher quality digicams (with little separate viewfinders, or those that only allow you to compose through the LCD display). These aren't the same as an SLR. And of course there are untold millions of film-based SLRs still running around out there, including some fantastic pro bodies. And don't forget the medium format and other flavors (digitl and film, both).

 

This web site is visited and used by people who are interested in all of the above. Typing those four characters ("DSLR") immediately narrows things down and sets aside entire realms of discussion that do, or do not, interest certain groups of people... or which do or do not involve certain technical, financial, and other issues. Sure, they're all cameras. But a web sites devoted to freight trucks, racing cars, bicycles, skateboards, locomotives, and everything else with wheels don't just call them "vehicles," either. There's a reason!

Yes it is a crazy high tech machine.

 

Your question in the other thread proves that even though you may know a lot. You still don't know the basics. Insert quote about glass houses and stones.

P is for perfect. Start there. Read the book and add to your knowledge base a little at a time as required.

 

Give the manual a quick read just to learn what is in there. Mark the pages you will go back to like different exposure modes, how to set the flash, how to clean the sensor, etc. Sticky notes.

 

I just hope you do not have a Nikon manual as they read like a nightmare. Everthing I want to know like how to clean the sensor is not even in the index. Then I am forced to go page by page. When you do find what you want, you need more info to understand it, so you to another section you can`t find, and it goes on and on and on.

Then they like icons that make no sense so you have to memorise a bunch more junk. The English translation is poor and ink must be a premium in Japan.

 

I just put mine on manual, took it back to the store and asked them how to read the onboard meter and set the camera to it. Problem solved.

 

My view camera with swings, tilts, no meter, film holders is easier to use.

 

Keep plugging away and take small steps. You will get it eventually.

 

I think my second Nikon will be better as lots of stuff translates from one model to another.

DSLR stands for digital single lens reflex. This tells us that the camera is digital, doh! but also that the camera uses the same lens for viewing and taking, and that a mirror is involved in the viewing part. DSLRs are fairly high tech as cameras go, but photographers have been using "SLR" to refer to single lens reflex film cameras for at least 75 years. To continue your education in camera design you should google: rangefinder, TLR, and view camera.

<i>Look, when I got into photography, about five months ago... Am I missing something? </i>

<p><p>

Uh, yes, after ONLY five months... of course you are.

Shay, like with anything some people catch on and learn the basics quickly without asking questions, other people are less sure of themselves and so ask questions to help with getting to grips, some people continue to learn past the basics on their own, others stop at the basics as that's enough, others think that once they've learned the basics they suddenly know it all and consider themselves competetent photographers - but there's a lot more to taking good pictures than knowing how the camera works. Some people can do this naturally, some have to work at it, some think they've got talent and think that they don't have to work at it when clearly they do. It takes all sorts. Just because I know how to work every single aspect of the camera to best advantage certainly wouldn't make me want to belittle those who are struggling. Yes, a DSLR is just a camera and a lot of people are happy using one in the same way as a point and shoot - they should be free to do so if they want. They should also be free to ask questions if they want to do more.

Check out Ansel Adam's "The Camera" from your local library.

"IT'S A CAMERA!, NO?"

 

Yep. But "camera" can mean a lot of different things. There's SLR, RF, MF, AF, "point-and-shoot", "folder", "pinhole", 4x5, 8x10, "Holga", "645", "120", "viewfinder", "box", 6x6 (AKA 2 1/4 x 2 1/4) and dozens, hundreds, thousands of "etc."

SLR is an acronym that's outlived it's usefulness, but hangs on. I think at the outset, "single lens reflex" was a description to set this class of camera apart from the equally prevalent "twin lens reflex". Both still exist, but the slr really caught on with it's interchangeable lens, while the tlr languished. The tlr's main current advantage is the larger film format, I think.

How has the "SLR" acronym outlived its usefulness? How else would we differentiate between an SLR, a camera with an LCD viewfinder, a camera with just an LCD display and no viewfinder, and a camera with an optical viewfinder separate from its lens?