Tinkering with a 450D
Discussion
Hi all,
Ihave just purchased the above camera and last weekend I had the opportunity to try it out. I decided to shoot RAW and JPEG at same time to give me options later on. Im glad that I did as I found the images were rather flat on both file formats to be honest on Program AE (RAW + JPEG) and full auto (JPEG). When I say 'flat' I am talking about the colours being dull i.e. the shot being slightly over-exposed.
I do not have the know-how/confidence yet to start 'manually' taking photos i.e. changing ISO/shutter speeds to counter this, but I am surprised that the out-of-the-box full auto settings are not delivering to my expectations! I have since gone and purchased a UV filter, but I have not had the opportunity to test this out.
Is there something I am missing or perhaps a quick-fix I could employ?
Lastly, I really enjoyed tinkering about with the RAW files and got some amazing photos from the software that copmes with the camera - it just seems a pity that I have to 'cheat' to get amazing results, if you know what I mean?!
Thanks
G.
Ihave just purchased the above camera and last weekend I had the opportunity to try it out. I decided to shoot RAW and JPEG at same time to give me options later on. Im glad that I did as I found the images were rather flat on both file formats to be honest on Program AE (RAW + JPEG) and full auto (JPEG). When I say 'flat' I am talking about the colours being dull i.e. the shot being slightly over-exposed.
I do not have the know-how/confidence yet to start 'manually' taking photos i.e. changing ISO/shutter speeds to counter this, but I am surprised that the out-of-the-box full auto settings are not delivering to my expectations! I have since gone and purchased a UV filter, but I have not had the opportunity to test this out.
Is there something I am missing or perhaps a quick-fix I could employ?
Lastly, I really enjoyed tinkering about with the RAW files and got some amazing photos from the software that copmes with the camera - it just seems a pity that I have to 'cheat' to get amazing results, if you know what I mean?!
Thanks
G.
BabyCTR said:
it just seems a pity that I have to 'cheat' to get amazing results
It's called processing 'Amazing results' happen because of image processing, either in the camera or later in a computer. POS cameras pile on loads of contrast, saturation and sharpening to make good 'out of the box' images. DSLRs don't - rather than give you a burger with every variety of ketchup already applied, they give you the plain burger and you decorate as required. Or something!
I think you will see very little difference using a UV filter, but get one anyway. It acts as protection for your lens.
When shooting in jpeg the camera does all the processing for you and so your photos will not be at their best. Most people will shoot in RAW which applies no processing of the image in camera and so the pictures will look a bit flat out of camera and require a bit of tweaking (think of it as processing your film if you like) but will yield the best results.
There is nothing wrong with shooting in Auto (A) mode to start with but you will probably fine that as you become familiar with the camera you will progress to Programme (P) mode which at least allows you to choose different Aperture and Shutter Speed combinations. THen as your confidence grows then you can move to Av or Tv modes. Don't try and learn everything at once, just allow yourself to learn at your own pace.
I use a 350D and it is a great camera. I'm sure you will learn to love your 450D!
When shooting in jpeg the camera does all the processing for you and so your photos will not be at their best. Most people will shoot in RAW which applies no processing of the image in camera and so the pictures will look a bit flat out of camera and require a bit of tweaking (think of it as processing your film if you like) but will yield the best results.
There is nothing wrong with shooting in Auto (A) mode to start with but you will probably fine that as you become familiar with the camera you will progress to Programme (P) mode which at least allows you to choose different Aperture and Shutter Speed combinations. THen as your confidence grows then you can move to Av or Tv modes. Don't try and learn everything at once, just allow yourself to learn at your own pace.
I use a 350D and it is a great camera. I'm sure you will learn to love your 450D!
You can tweak the in camera processing of the jpgs to boost saturation, contrast etc; at least on the 350d you can and I presume the 450d is similar.
I agree with what has been said about RAW processing - you have to think about RAW files as being like developed films. The RAW editor and post processing are like the developing and printing process. A dull and lifeless RAW file can be transformed with some minor processing, but if you are taking hundreds of pictures it gets very tedious.
If you don't want to get into that then stick with the JPGs only and maybe play with the in camera processing.
I agree with what has been said about RAW processing - you have to think about RAW files as being like developed films. The RAW editor and post processing are like the developing and printing process. A dull and lifeless RAW file can be transformed with some minor processing, but if you are taking hundreds of pictures it gets very tedious.
If you don't want to get into that then stick with the JPGs only and maybe play with the in camera processing.
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