Are There Any Simple Answers

[Lukka'sma]

Not looking for tech talk, just simple to understand info. I am the first to admit I have never had any photography courses and little experience in taking pics, but could someone please help me to set this camera for the best still shots in outdoor sunlight. Mainly scenery
I need a simple ex. of what aspect ratio is. I have a choice of 4:3 3:2 16:9. Where should I set it?
Same for pic size, 7M 5M 3M 2M 1M 0.3M? Which one to set at?
Shutter 1/8- 1/4- 1/2- 1-. Which one?
Pict. Mode, I can set to 30fps/VGA 10fps/VGA 30fps/QVGA 10fps/QVGA I don't know which to select here either.
Any help would be great, and I understand that it can get very indepth when talking photography, but if you can keep it as simple as possible I would appreciate it. I will take a course down the road, but just don't have the time at the moment.

[marko]

Some are easy questions some are hard.

Here goes. ...If you want to print an image at some point in the future choose 7M (megs) if you only want it for the web, choose .3 (megs)

as for aspect ratio....best advice take a shot at all 3 and check out the difference for yourself..ultimately it's a matter of taste...16:9 will yield a more panoramic (very wide)image. I believe that 3:2 will give you conventional sized proportions to make 6x4 inch prints easily.

for shutter - there MUST be other choices like 1/60 or 1/125...choose one of those if you must choose. Otherwise I would set the camera on automatic though...let the camera do its thing by keeping it on its DEFAULT settings if you don't want to get technical...to set the camera on automatic...you'll need to play with the camera modes probably on some dial or in the camera's menu...or read a bit of the manual...every camera is different.

pict mode 30fps/VGA 10fps/VGA 30fps/QVGA 10fps/QVGA has to do with video in your camera....

Hope that helps a wee bit.

Marko


Not looking for tech talk, just simple to understand info. I am the first to admit I have never had any photography courses and little experience in taking pics, but could someone please help me to set this camera for the best still shots in outdoor sunlight. Mainly scenery
I need a simple ex. of what aspect ratio is. I have a choice of 4:3 3:2 16:9. Where should I set it?
Same for pic size, 7M 5M 3M 2M 1M 0.3M? Which one to set at?
Shutter 1/8- 1/4- 1/2- 1-. Which one?
Pict. Mode, I can set to 30fps/VGA 10fps/VGA 30fps/QVGA 10fps/QVGA I don't know which to select here either.
Any help would be great, and I understand that it can get very indepth when talking photography, but if you can keep it as simple as possible I would appreciate it. I will take a course down the road, but just don't have the time at the moment.

[jadams007]

Originally Posted by Lukka'sma

Not looking for tech talk, just simple to understand info. I am the first to admit I have never had any photography courses and little experience in taking pics, but could someone please help me to set this camera for the best still shots in outdoor sunlight. Mainly scenery
I need a simple ex. of what aspect ratio is. I have a choice of 4:3 3:2 16:9. Where should I set it?
Same for pic size, 7M 5M 3M 2M 1M 0.3M? Which one to set at?
Shutter 1/8- 1/4- 1/2- 1-. Which one?
Pict. Mode, I can set to 30fps/VGA 10fps/VGA 30fps/QVGA 10fps/QVGA I don't know which to select here either.
Any help would be great, and I understand that it can get very indepth when talking photography, but if you can keep it as simple as possible I would appreciate it. I will take a course down the road, but just don't have the time at the moment.

For aspect ratio I would plan ahead on what print sizes you may want. If you're looking for 5x7 and 8x10, i'd go with the 4:3. if you're wanting a panoramic image, i'd go with the 16:9. For pic size, I would shoot highest possible, you always can size down, but never size up without losing quality of the image. as for shutter, those are slow settings meaning you don't have a lot of light. There average person can handhold a camera at 1/60 or 1/30 without motion blur. I usually like 1/125 when shooting animals because they move fast. You can also do what is called bracketing, taking same image over and over and each time changing settings by 1 or 2 stops. A stop is the change in exposure, ie. from 1/4 to 1/8. as for fps, i would try each one and compare results. practicing is the key. that way you know what you need when its time to get serious. I think you should take course too, you'd have lots of fun if you love photography.