I Can’t Stress Enough, Get To Know Your Camera

I am a happy photographer. Over the weekend I purchased a new camera. My first new one since 2006. I know, I know. How can that be? Well, I’ve been shooting solely with my Canon 30D since ’06 and to be honest, it just works. With different lenses and learning the in’s and out’s of the camera it worked well for me. It slowly but surely became an extension of my brain. It did what I wanted when I wanted in the way I wanted. I loved that camera. It was my first DSLR and I shot my second wedding with that camera. I started my photography business with that camera. It’s a great camera but a photographer should always have a backup and should always be shooting on the best that they can afford. To be honest 8.2mp just wasn’t cutting it anymore. So, enter stage left, my Canon 60D.

I compared the 60D to the 7D and did a lot of late night pondering as to which I should invest in. I’m not at the point that I need a 5D yet and the 7D while great for what I do, didn’t have some of the feature that I wanted that the 60D. I went with the 60 for a few reasons not least of which is the swivel mounted LCD screen. That little option will come in handy more times than not and so I made my purchase. It doesn’t hurt that the 2011 is as good if not better than the specs on the 2006 5D when I first bought my camera. Everything gets better with age.

Now, 5 years is a good bit of time to go between upgrades and as I said before, my 30D literally became an extension of my brain. I know that camera’s functions backwards and forwards. I can literally make setting adjustments with my eyes closed. I grabbed my new 60D and was hoping that it wouldn’t be that much different from my old friend but boy was I wrong. Canon gave the 60D a much larger LCD screen and thus had to move and consolidate some of the buttons. Some of the buttons that I use on a steady basis were now nowhere to be found and not easily identifiable. Most of the functions are now set in the LCD screen menu which is a big difference from before. Thus the relearning begins.

I went on a debut photo session with my photographer friend to get used to my camera. I cannot stress this enough folks, you have to learn your cameras functions and the only way to do that is practice. I was lost today. I’m glad that it wasn’t one of my paying clients because in Texas’s 107 degree heat it would have been torture being out there while I was trying to figure this thing out. It won’t take long to get the functions down but it is going to take time. I plan to take this little baby out quite a few times before I actually have to do an event. Having the camera be a natural extension of your thought process is a necessity for your business to thrive. You need to be able to make adjustments and calculations on the fly and you can’t do that if you don’t know your camera. You client will get annoyed with you for having to wait. These are not seasoned models used to being at the discretion of the photographer. These are normal everyday people that expect professionalism and a quick shoot. You need to be able to deliver that and to do that you need to get to know your camera. Read your manuals, check out B&N or whatever bookstore you like and check out books that are specific to your model. The internet has loads of free information on your product line all it takes is you putting in the effort to find the information, learn the information, and then apply it to your shoots.

Feel free to share your experiences with me. I’d be glad to know I’m not the only one in this boat!

Till next time, Happy Shooting!