[paolo g]

Hi
I just got a K10D on Saturday and was wondering if you had a top 5 tips that would be good for someone new to this camera to know.

Thanks, Paul

[lbam]

need more info pretty please...
how long you been shooting etc..

[pasipasi]

Get some cheap manual prime lenses from ebay, for example M 50/1.7.

[Mike Bokeh]

I would suggest:

1.) Reading the owner's manual thoroughly, and several times. This applies to any new camera. There's a lot of good info in there that some of us overlook.
2.) Decide on which type of photos you like to to take most (action, portraits, still life) and concentrate on getting good at one category at a time, rather than trying to master them all at once.
3.) Try using a tripod. A tripod will slow you down a lot, but it will force you to really see your subject, and compose a better picture. Tripods aren't practical for every shot, but you may find that you like the results they give when you have the time to set one up.

I can only think of these three tips right now.

By the way, I don't own a K10D, but rather a K100D.

Good luck with your new camera.

Mike

[Canada_Rockies]

The first thing I would recommend is to select one lens and one focal length. Go out for a whole day using only that. Review carefully the results. Go out again and try to correct what you did not like. When you have that focal length "mastered", do the same with another.

First, get the framing and angles and close/far settled in your mind. Note that an image is different when taken from close up at 18mm and again, with the same subject size at 55mm. Notice the effects on the background.

Once you have some idea of how YOU like things framed, then you can play with exposure modes to get the colours and contrast that you like.

Shoot lots. Then shoot more. I have a cubic meter of slides and negatives - and those are only the ones I kept. I've been doing as I suggest above for a long time - since about 1957 (with a Yashica 35 rangefinder), and I got my K10D and DA lenses late last year. I am still playing with the new lenses, and learning how my old lenses react to the new body. The framing is different now.

It's a lot less expensive to shoot off 244 images (4 Gb of K10D raw) and look at them on my screen than it used to be when we bought film and developed and printed the results, and a lot less time consuming than hiding out in a chemical filled darkroom.

First of all, though, you should enjoy your photography. Have fun with your camera.

[Ole]

Hi
I just got a K10D on Saturday and was wondering if you had a top 5 tips that would be good for someone new to this camera to know.

Thanks, Paul

If you shoot JPG and want to minimize postprocessing: Set sharpness and contrast to +2.

[vizjerei]

Well I am no expert, but I will try my best here to list some:

1. Don't you Green Mode, that's for P&S. It is a DSLR.

2. Read the manual! (very important)

3. Set the custom setting to best fit you, yes there are tons to choose from.

4. Learn how to use the Bracketing and Multi-exposure

5. I keep my Auto ISO in the 100-400 range, but try some test shooting at dark and see what ISO range you want to use.

[leadbelly]

Don't forget to remove the lens cap!!! A lot of newbies make this mistake, and even some pros every once in awhile!

[Canada_Rockies]

Don't forget to remove the lens cap!!! A lot of newbies make this mistake, and even some pros every once in awhile!

That's why sometimes it is night out at noon when I look through my SLR viewfinder! Thanks, Leadbelly!

[Mark Castleman]

1) Read the Manual
2) Buy the Magic Lantern guide (the Other Manual) and read it too
3) Decide what settings you will want most often and set them up for the USER mode
4) Crank up the color saturation +1 and the sharpness +2
5) Electrons are cheap. Take lots of pictures. Find your mistakes and try not to make them again.

[Wheatfield]

Hi
I just got a K10D on Saturday and was wondering if you had a top 5 tips that would be good for someone new to this camera to know.

Thanks, Paul

Always wear clean underwear.

[paolo g]

need more info pretty please...
how long you been shooting etc..

Hi

I've just starting taking photography a bit more seriously this year. I did used to own a Olympus OM10 many years ago but with purchasing a digital Sony P&S camera a few years back I got into taking a lot more snaps.

Now it's time to move on from snaps and since February I have been using a Fuji S6500fd (bridge camera) mainly in aperture priority mode and for the last couple of months I have been looking at getting a DSLR. When I saw that my local camera shop was selling refurb K10Ds for £350 with a years warranty I did a bit of investigating and realised that there is nothing on the market as good as the that. I think the Nikon D60 is a bit more and it's not as good. I spoke to someone who owns a K10D and had a look on the net and decided to get one.

With the Fuji I have been shooting mainly in RAW and sorting the photos out initially in the Fuji software and recently in ACR. I wouldn't say I'm an expert in Photoshop and just like photography I have a lot to learn.

Thanks, Paul

[paolo g]

Get some cheap manual prime lenses from ebay, for example M 50/1.7.

Yes. I have seen that the 50mm lens is quite cheap. I take it that the quality is still quite good? I currently just have the standard 18-55mm but I think I will get to learn how to use the camera a bit better before thinking of a new camera.

Thanks, Paul

[KjetilH]

50 mm isn't a very useful focal length on DSLRs, but they are so cheap that you should own one, for the sake of using it to understand your camera, and your possibilities.
Having just one focal length makes you think more, and get creative.

The quality? Outstanding. Build is as good as a new, expensive lens from the Limited series. The optics are also really good.

It is wise to think a little before buying another lens, though, but the prime is useful for learning.

[bombo]

50 mm isn't a very useful focal length on DSLRs,...

Would you please elaborate? I am a newbie myself