Someone loves you and wants to nurture your love of photography, so they went out and got you a big ‘Ole SLR for Christmas. You told them how wonderful they are and how much you love it and how you’ re going right out and take the best pictures ever of you r kids and vacations and especially that amazing person who got you such a thoughtful and expensive gift. That gift that you’re afraid to touch because you’ve never used a Real Camera before and it’s SCARY!

Alright Calm down. It’s just a tool. And, like all tools, it has a little bit of a learning curve. But once you’re comfortable, it can become an extension of your body and allow you to do amazing things. If you’ve learned enough to read this blog, you can learn to use your camera. First, let’s get you set up to take some basic pictures.

If you’ve only ever used a cell phone to take snap shots, the first thing you’ll need to get used to is using a viewfinder instead of a LCD display. Your new camera may have a live display on the back, but it drains power quickly, so it’s not the greatest for a long day of shooting. Also: you look like an amateur if you’re holing up your big fancy camera up a foot in front of your face and staring at the 2 inch screen. The viewfinder gives you a better representation of your final picture, let’s you focus (Ha!) on composition and has a ton of information you’ll soon find very useful. Trust me! Get used to looking through the lens and your pictures will automatically improve.
You technically can hold the camera any way you want, but it’s best to learn good shooting techniques from the beginning. It’s much harder to unlearn bad habits than learn good ones. A moving camera makes blurry photos, so a good, steady grip and firm support is important. Use your right hand to hold the camera body by the grip, with your forefinger resting on the shutter button. Support the lens by resting in on your left palm with your thumb and forefinger curled up around the zoom ring.

Now take your first shot! Don’t’ be scared, it’s only pixels, and you can erase it before anyone else sees it. First make sure your mode dial (usually on the top left of your camera – check your user guide) is set to “P”, bring the viewfinder up to your dominant eye (closing the other one helps), frame your shot and gently squeeze the shutter button (on the top right, just under your forefinger).

Cha-chink! You just took a picture! Now wasn’t that easy! Look at the back screen to see how you did. This is called “chimping”, because a group of photographers checking their screens and showing them to each other going “Oooh! Ooh Ooh!” resembles a tribe of chimps sharing some really good bananas.

Now go out and practice using that viewfinder and getting comfortable holding your camera like a pro. Come on back when you’re comfortable with that, and we’ll learn some tips to improve your composition.