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Category: Problems with Images

Photography Question 

Shelley Ohrani
 

Nikon D7100 Manual Settings


 
  Henry
Henry
Nikon D7100 50mm

Shelley Ohrani

 
  Big Sur
Big Sur
Nikon D7100 18-140mm

Shelley Ohrani

 
  Bixby Bridge
Bixby Bridge
Nikon D7100 18-140mm

Shelley Ohrani

 
 
Hello everyone!!

I am a new user of the Nikon D7100. With never having a "super professional" camera before, I'm a bit overwhelmed with everything that comes along with this camera. I take pictures and practice and still don't feel fully confident in my photos.... Ive been practicing in "manual" but I feel like there is so much I'm unaware of regarding settings that I'm finding myself not wanting to pick it up. Does anyone have ANY suggestions on manual settings? :) I love photography and it's been my hobby for a long time and I just want to master my camera like all other photographers out there! What settings should I be shooting in? Is it my lenses that I'm using? I have 3 lenses 55-300mm, 18-140mm and a 22-1.8mm. Is there a more professional lens that I should invest in or could I get better results with just changing my manual settings?

Thanks for the help guys! I really appreciate it! :)


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October 24, 2015

 
- Harriet Feagin

BetterPhoto Member
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  I use Canon so I am sitting across the isle from you but after looking at your photos I would recommend a good polarizer and lots of practice. This is not to say that your photos are not good, because they are lovely. Also always look at the histogram to see if you are exposing correctly. I like lenses at least 3.5 or below and especially like 2.8 lenses. Sometimes the ultra zoom lenses are not as sharp. I always use AV (I don't know what this is for Nikon) and use F 8 to F 11. Occasionally I will shoot in manual mode but have found that AV works fine. Use a tripod when you can. Other than this, I don't know what to tell you. Great equipment is a big factor but the one who presses the shutter button is the biggest factor. Does a great cook need top of the line pots and pans to be a great cook? No. And someone who never cooks or does not know how to cook will not do any better with the world's best pots and pans. Oh, and I did not even touch upon post processing.... What you do afterwards on the computer will make a whole lot of difference. It all takes time.


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October 25, 2015

 
- Usman M. Bajwa

BetterPhoto Member
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  Hi, I am using the same camera and even after using it for almost a year now, many of its features I haven't yet touched/tried. These days the plethora of features in cameras of such type could easily overwhelm. I would suggest you to go through the manual that came with the camera and start practicing the features that you would like to try out. Please also note, apart form having a decent camera at disposal you also would like to get better lenses and must know at least the basic processing of images through software editing. For a quick review on the camera you may want to check out the below link. Happy learning and shooting.

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d7100.htm

UB.


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October 25, 2015

 

Cindy Koller
  I also shoot Nikon, but a D800. I agree with Usman that the fact is that there are tons of things on these cameras that are 'nice to have', and there are users for everything, but the vast majority of the stuff most folks just do not use.

As Usman stated, the most important thing, other than understanding the basics of manual photography (i.e. aperture, shutter, ISO), you are going to get the biggest bang for your buck now by taking those photos and getting a good photo editing software such as photoshop and/or lightroom and tweaking them.

As for a Polorizer, my experience is that most of the professional photographers I have travelled with no longer advise using a polarizer except under extreme conditions. This is again because you can duplicate what a polarizer did with a good editing tool, and they are expensive and degrade both Fstops and lens quality. But, that is up to you.


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October 28, 2015

 
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