Innholdsfortegnelse for Canon Beginner's Handbook i Canon Beginner's Handbook

Welcome to the new Canon Beginner’s Handbook, your 196-page guide to using your Canon EOS DSLR. It doesn’t matter if you’re an absolute beginner who’s just bought a new Canon camera or you’re a seasoned enthusiast who needs a refresher course, inside you’ll find all you need to know to really get to grips with your DSLR. With so many seemingly complex controls, menu settings and dials, where do you begin? Over the following pages you’ll discover all the vital camera techniques you need to master, from using the viewfinder and Live View to shooting in fully automatic mode, progressing all the way to using semi-automatic and manual shooting modes, when you’re able to take control of your camera’s settings. There are also 10 free video guides that you’ll find…

01 MENU AND INFO BUTTON Bring up the main menu system by pressing Menu. From here you can access camera, review and tool settings. The Info button (next to Menu) enables you to alter feature display settings. On older models, such as the 550D, you’ll have a Disp button that performs the same function as the Info control. 02 SHUTTER RELEASE To take a photo you need to press the shutter-release button situated on the top panel of the camera at the front. Half pressing it enables you to focus the image and meter the scene. 03 MODE DIAL The mode dial is a key control. It’s where we access all our shooting modes, and how we tell our camera what we want it to control and what we’re going…

01 THE IMAGE Through the finder you can see the scene. The mirror in front of the sensor enables this to happen. When Live View is engaged, the mirror is flipped out of the way, making the viewfinder temporarily unusable. 02 SYMBOLS The symbols on the left-hand side of the screen vary depending on what feature or button is engaged. For example, if you pop the flash then a lightning symbol will appear. In this example the star button on the back of the camera is being held down. 03 CAMERA SETTINGS In the middle of the screen, starting on the left is the shutter speed setting followed by the aperture. We then have the exposure compensation scale in the middle. When the needle is right in the centre of…

Fully automatic mode This is marked on the mode dial by a green rectangle. Fully automatic selects all your camera settings for you. This sounds great, but you’ll come up against limitations. Your camera may not always be accurate, and in low light, the flash will always engage regardless of whether you want it to. Plus, you as the photographer have no creative input to the final result. It’s best to use the fully automatic mode until you get comfortable using your camera, and then progress to the creative modes. No flash mode If you need to be discrete then the no flash mode can be useful. Marked on the mode dial by a lightning symbol with a cross through it, this mode will automatically control all your camera settings…

Switch to program mode To enter program mode, turn the mode dial around to P and frame up the scene. When you half press the shutter-release button, your camera will set both the shutter speed and the aperture, according to how light or dark the scene is. But unlike the fully automatic mode where you can’t alter the camera settings, in program mode you have more options to play with. Alter the exposure values If you’re not happy with the settings your camera selected, you can alter the combination of shutter speed and aperture using the command dial. You’ll notice it changes both the aperture and shutter speed to match the light conditions. Exposure compensation Unlike with the fully automatic mode, in program mode you have the option to alter…

There will be times when you need to control the aperture in a photo to determine how much of the scene you want to keep sharp and how much you want to blur. When this is the case, put your DSLR into the Av mode. Av stands for aperture value, and you’ll find there are certain photography genres that lend themselves to this shooting mode, such as portraiture and still life. This is because you want to keep your main subjects sharp while blurring the background around your subjects to make them stand out. Av is a semi-automatic exposure mode that gives you control over the aperture setting while the camera balances the shutter speed to the ambient light. You can also alter the ISO and exposure compensation setting in…

Beginner models On beginner models, use the main command dial to alter the shutter speed and then hold the plus and minus button while turning the dial to alter the aperture. Alternatively, press the Q button and move the box over the setting you wish to alter, then turn the command dial. Enthusiast and advanced models If you own an advanced or an enthusiast model, you alter the exposure settings slightly differently, because you don’t have the beginner plus/minus button. Instead, use the front command dial to change the shutter speed and the back-panel multi-controller to change the aperture. The exposure meter Once you know how to change the settings, what should you change them to? The aim is to balance the exposure meter (by adjusting the shutter speed, aperture…

The sensor in your camera is where your images are recorded, before they are sent to be processed, and finally stored on your memory card. It’s a vitally important part of your camera, and sensors from compact cameras right the way to DSLRs come in all different sizes. Canon produces two types of camera sensors in their DSLR range. These are APS-C and full frame. Full frame, as you expect, is larger in size compared to the APS-C sensor. All the DSLRs in the current Canon Professional range and the EOS 6D from the enthusiast range have a full-frame sensor. Everything else has an APS-C. It’s important to understand the difference between the two because it affects the field of view and the focal length of your lens. But how,…

Your Canon DSLR has three focus settings: One Shot, AI Servo and AI Focus. Each comes in handy for shooting alternative genres. For example, if you were trying to shoot a stunt bike in action, you’d need a different AF setting than if you were framing up a wide angled shot of a building. Your Canon camera is able to track moving subjects with the AI Servo setting. Adjusting the settings at the right time will make the difference between taking noteworthy images or average snaps. Turn the page to find out more……

01 ENGAGE LIVE VIEW Press the Live View button on the back panel to engage the feature. You’ll hear your camera click. This is the mirror inside the camera flipping up out of the way of the sensor, making the optical viewfinder temporarily unusable. 02 COMPOSE THE IMAGE You’ll find it much easier to compose your image if you engage the grid line feature. Head into the main camera menu to select it. Most photographers use the thirds grid because it can help when composing a shot. 03 MAIN IMAGE On the screen we can see live what’s in front of the camera’s lens. The image on the screen will adjust with the ambient light settings, so we can see what’s going on. When we adjust camera settings it will…

Why check the sharpness? When out on location you should always check to see if the main focal point of your image is sharp. That way before you even get back to your computer you know that you’ve bagged a winner! Checking the main focal point is something you should get used to doing, and it doesn’t take long to do. There’s no excuse! Zoom in To get started press play on the back panel to bring up your images you’ve just shot. This camera has two buttons that will let us zoom in and out of the screen. On this model they’re here at the top right-hand side of the back panel, and yours should be somewhere similar. Press the magnify button to start zooming in. Move around Once…

When you take a photo your DSLR measures the light in the scene and then produces results based on how the light falls and what camera settings you or your camera has selected. Every DSLR has a metering system to measure the light, but you don’t necessarily always want to keep the metering mode on the same setting. You have four options on a Canon DSLR. These are Evaluative, Partial, Spot and Center weighted average. You’ll find that each is useful in different situations. To access the metering modes, look for the eye-shaped icon on the camera body, or press Q and select from the LCD screen. Then use the command dial to flick between the settings. FREE ON FILESILO When you see this graphic there’s a video on FileSilo…

Single shot The first setting on the list is Single Shot, which you’ll use the majority of the time. Your camera will take one photo when you press the shutter release. To take another shot, release your finger from the shutter, then press down again. Your camera will meter the scene and refocus. Self-timer continuous There’s also an option called Self Timer Continuous. With this mode you can key in how many images you want your camera to shoot once the shutter is triggered. Most models are capable of firing between two and ten shots in this mode. Self-timer There’s also the Self Timer setting in the Drive mode menu, which is good for taking a self portrait or for those group shots where you need to run in! You…

ISO controls the sensitivity of the DSLR’s sensor to the light, and is the third element of the ‘exposure triangle’ along with shutter speed and aperture. We use low ISO settings when we’re shooting in bright light, and we increase the setting the more the light drops. This is basically so we can keep the shutter speed at a fast enough setting. If you’re shooting with your camera attached to a tripod, and a slow shutter speed setting isn’t an issue, keep the ISO as low as possible. Only increase the ISO when you need to adjust your other camera settings. ISO is a key feature on your DSLR, and one you need to fully understand to take better photographs. Turn the page to find out more……

Access the camera’s Picture Styles To find the Picture Style setting you have a couple of options. First head into the main menu and under the red camera settings section find Picture Style. Press Set to select and then navigate through the options. Alternatively, press the shortcut button on the back panel of your camera. The icon looks like small rectangles in a circle formation. The Auto Picture Style Not every Canon DSLR includes this option but some do. Auto works as you would expect. It makes selections on what it thinks are the correct settings (other than applying the monochrome style) for the conditions. It’s great for those just starting out who want the camera to make the creative decisions. The Portrait Picture Style The Portrait Picture Style setting…

Engage the flash To pop the flash, press the lightning symbol button. You can manually activate it in any of the creative shooting modes (P, Av, Tv, or M). It’s worth noting that it will automatically engage in low light in the fully automatic and scene modes (apart from the no flash option). Fill flash It’s easy to think that on a sunny day you don’t need extra light, but you’d be wrong. It’s the perfect time to pop some flash into the shadows created by the harsh sunlight. In the inset shot, notice the unflattering shadows across the face. If you simply pop the flash you can see how it’s lifted the face and removed the ugly distractions. Built-in flash settings Your Canon camera has a few handy options…

How to access Bulb Depending on your camera model there are two different ways to access the Bulb mode. On some camera models it’s accessed through the mode dial under B. On other models it’s in the manual setting. To find it you have to first engage manual, then turn the command dial right down past thirty seconds to BULB. Experiment with exposures It’s a bit of trial and error to get the exposure time right. So as a starting point try opening the shutter for one minute. Review the result and increase or reduce the exposure time as necessary. Remember that if the image is too light, you’ve over-exposed it, and you need less time. If it’s too dark then it’s under-exposed, and you need to increase the exposure…

Every photographer likes to use different camera settings, and control their DSLRs in ways they feel comfortable. You can adjust many of the preset default options that your DSLR has set for you. It’s best to get to grips with the basic layout and features of your Canon DSLR before you do this. That way you’ll already be familiar with your camera and the style of shooting you want to undertake. For example, if you’re a landscape photographer then you’re going to want to set your camera up very differently to a sports photographer or a portrait photographer. Over the next few pages we’re going to show you some of the more popular custom settings and the necessary steps you need to take to make these alterations. We’re also going…

Pictures where the main subject isn’t sharp are often completely worthless – and for this reason focusing is one of the most crucial controls on your digital SLR. A lens can only focus precisely at one distance at a time, so it needs to lock onto the correct part of the frame or your subject may appear blurred. Fortunately, thanks to depth of field (a phenomenon that we will look at in greater detail next lesson, beginning on page 164), a range of distances in your image can often actually appear to be in focus. All the same, your EOS provides a range of different systems that allow to get the main part of your image sharp – as well as a number of checks for you to ensure that…

The number of shooting modes that you have available will depend on the model of EOS SLR that you own. Some, such as ‘CA’, are only found on recent models, whilst the full-auto ‘Basic Zone’ options represented by pictograms are not found on high-end models like the EOS 5D or 7D. These are the 550D’s options:…

Your digital camera does a lot more work to turn what you see in the viewfinder into a finished image than you probably give it credit for. The lens creates an image on the SLR’s CMOS sensor – which ends up being recorded in digital form on the memory card that you slot into your EOS, that much may be obvious. But in between these two stages a lot of processing steps have to take place inside the camera. Understanding a little of what goes on deep inside your Canon’s circuitry will not only help you understand what an amazingly sophisticated piece of kit you have – but can also explain some of the many options that you have to play with. The first thing to appreciate is that your…

When you want to compose a photo there are two ways to do this on your Canon DSLR. First, you can look through the viewfinder, or option two, engage the Live View feature and see the scene on the LCD screen instead. Each method comes in handy in different shooting scenarios. Most photographers find the optical viewfinder to be much more useful for a couple of reasons. First, in bright light distracting reflections can make the LCD screen hard to view. But more importantly it’s easier to keep the camera steady by holding it up to your eye rather than right out in front of you. Turn the page to find out more……

Close-up mode When shooting subject matter at close range, switch to the close-up mode. There are many subjects that work well for this type of photography. They include flowers, small fruit (like in the image above), and abstracts of household objects. Portrait mode When you want to take a portrait put your camera into the portrait mode. With this setting, your camera will blur out the background and adjust the tones in the means image to smooth the skin and enhance the hair. Like with all the scene modes, you can fine tune the mode option. To do this, press the Q button and use the back panel multi controller to navigate the settings. press the set button to select. Sports mode If you want to capture the moment, the…

If you want to shoot a moving subject, the best shooting mode to use is shutter-priority mode, or Tv as it’s marked on the mode dial. Tv stands for Time value, and this mode is perfect for when you want to control the shutter speed setting of your camera, but you want your camera to balance the aperture automatically. The shutter speed defines the length of time the sensor will be exposed. It’s measured in seconds or fractions of seconds. If it’s a long shutter speed, such as one second, it will be written as 1”. If it’s a fast shutter speed then it will look like a fraction, such as 1/1000 sec. We’ll explain all you need to know over the page… FREE ON FILESILO When you see this…

What is aperture? The aperture is the bladed circle mechanism that controls how much light enters through the lens. Photographers control the aperture using f-stop settings, which enables you to let in more or less light depending on what you’re shooting. This controls how much of the scene is sharp. Your lens will have minimum and maximum f-stop settings. These typically range from f/3.5 to f/32, although many go wider or narrower than this. Shallow depth of field If you hear photographers use the expression ‘shallow depth of field,’ they are talking about blurring out parts of the image while keeping one part sharp and in focus. This creates a dreamy and stylised effect that many photographers love to use. To do this you need to set your aperture to…

There will come a time when you decide to buy an additional lens for your camera to increase your creative options. For the beginner it can seem daunting when you start shopping around for a new lens. But it’s not as tricky as you may first think. There are only really a few considerations you need to take into account when purchasing a lens. These are: the cost (as a general rule, you should spend as much as you can afford), the focal length (how wide or how zoomed you need it to be), and the minimum and maximum aperture range (how sharp or blurred you want your pictures to be). Canon produces two types of lenses, which are EF and EF-S. EF lenses are marked with a red dot,…

Switch to autofocus To use the autofocus you need to switch your lens to the AF setting. Once engaged, your camera will do all of the focusing for you. Lock the focus Look through the viewfinder and half press the shutter-release button. The point or points of the image that are in focus will highlight in red. Your camera will also make a beep sound. The focus grid Your camera’s focusing system is made of a grid of points. How many depends on your camera model. Canon DSLRs in the pro range have a 61-point grid. This means there are 61 points on the screen to choose from. Many of the beginner models have a 9-point grid, like the example here. To access the full autofocus selection, press the grid…

Access the settings To access the autofocus settings press the AF button on the back panel, or press Q and bring up the menu on the LCD screen. On more advanced models such as the 7D, there’s an assigned AF/Drive button on the top panel. To access, press and navigate through to the selected option. One shot ‘One Shot’ is best for shooting stationary subjects, such as still lifes, landscapes and architecture. Basically, if it doesn’t move, put it into One Shot. Your focus points with this setting won’t track any movement. AI Focus AI Focus is a mixture of AI Servo and One Shot. It’s handy when shooting a mixture of static and moving subjects, such as at a wedding. In this mode the camera automatically switches between One…

Being able to shoot and review is the beauty of digital technology. Seeing what you’ve just captured straight away is one of the massive benefits of using a digital camera. Like many features on your Canon DSLR, there’s more to this playback option than simply being able to look at your images on the screen. You also have the option to do a bunch of other things such as protecting your images and rotating them. There’s even an option to watch them in a slide show display. Turn the page to find out more… FREE ON FILESILO When you see this graphic there’s a video on FileSilo See page 194 for more…

It’s very useful to be aware of the alternative choices we have when it comes to metering, because choosing the right metering mode is the key to making correct exposures. However, it’s worth noting that for the majority of the time, you’ll keep it set to the Evaluative metering mode. This is the mode your Canon DSLR is set to by default. If you want to lock the exposure settings, you need to press the star button at the top right-hand corner of the back panel. You can then re-frame the shot and shoot with your saved exposure settings. If, however, you don’t want to shoot with these settings, press the grid symbol next to it and carry on. 1 Evaluative The first on the list, and the one you’ll use…

You may think that the colours you can see are what you’re going to capture in your camera. This isn’t always the case, however. Unlike your eye, which can compensate for colour casts, your camera can only record what is actually there. For this reason your DSLR has a white balance setting. For the majority of the time we recommend that you keep your camera on the automatic white balance setting, and only change it if your camera struggles to capture the correct colours. To alter the white balance you must be in one of the creative shooting modes, namely program, aperture priority, shutter priority or manual. The colour temperature chart Photographers measure light temperature in degrees Kelvin. Here are the main settings and the temperature they output… What is…

How to adjust the ISO There are a couple of ways to adjust the ISO on your DSLR. You can either look for an ISO button on the top panel of the camera or use the Q button and navigate to the setting on the LCD screen. A typical range will start at ISO100 and will go up to ISO6400 or 12800. Low ISO shooting When shooting in daylight you’ll want to keep the ISO setting as low as possible. On your Canon camera the optimum ISO setting is 100. When shooting at this setting your camera will produce the highest quality results possible. If you’re taking photos on an overcast day, you may need to push the ISO up to 400 to compensate for the lack of light. High…

The Landscape Picture Style The Landscape Picture Style boosts the sharpness in the scene to ensure the image is sharp from front to back. The blues and greens in the image are also enhanced to enrich the final result. When shooting in the Landscape scene mode (find it on the mode dial), this Picture Style setting is automatically applied. The Faithful Picture Style Like the Neutral setting, the Faithful Picture Style is best used if you want more control post shoot. The image out of the camera will appear flat, and compared to the Standard setting the sharpness is reduced to give you a clean file to work with. Good for those who like to be in control! Tweak the Picture Styles You can further alter the Picture Style setting…

Bracket exposing is when you take several shots of the scene at different exposure values so you can blend them together at the editing stage. It’s a useful trick in high-contrast lighting, because it means you can get a correctly exposed image of the shadows, highlights and midtones all in one. The technique works best when shooting landscapes or a still-life subject, and in order for it to work you need to mount your camera on a tripod so that your camera stays in exactly the same position. As you’ve probably guessed, your Canon DSLR has a great feature for helping us to do this. It’s called AEB, Auto Exposure Bracket. Turn the page to follow our step-by-step guide so you can try this technique out for yourself. Of course,…

1 HDR HDR stands for high dynamic range, and is a popular technique with landscape photographers. The feature works by taking three images in succession of the same scene. It’s exposing for the highlights, midtones and shadows. The camera then processes these three images into one final result. It’s great when faced with a high-contrast scene. The Canon cameras that have an HDR mode include the Canon 5D MK III and 6D. The 650D and the 700D include a HDR Backlight Control feature. It’s also worth noting that you can create the HDR effect in Canon’s free DPP software. It’s best to use a tripod when shooting three different exposures of the same scene so that the images match up. 2 Wi-Fi and remote shooting One of the latest Canon DSLR…

AI Servo sensitivity In some of the enthusiast and advanced Canon DSLR models you can change how sensitive the AI Servo tracking feature is. AI Servo should be used when photographing moving subjects, because it gives you the best chance of keeping your subjects sharp. Turn it up to fast to make it more sensitive or back down to slow to make it less. Display AF points If you own a more advanced model then you can define whether you want to see all the AF points or just the one selected through the viewfinder. You’ll find this option in the custom menu section under the Autofocus/Drive setting. To see the full AF grid, change Display all AF points to Enable or back to Disable to show just one point.…

The shutter in your EOS controls how long the sensor is exposed to the light. It uses a pair of ‘curtains’ or blinds. One opens to start the exposure, and the other is closed to end it. At slower speeds, both curtains are both open for some of the exposure. At faster speeds (any speed above the ‘flash sync speed’ – 1/200 sec on most EOS models), the second curtain closes the opening as the first is still opening – so the sensor is effectively exposed to the light through a moving slit.…

Measuring the brightness of the scene you are photographing is a crucial part of getting the right exposure for your pictures. In the previous few lessons of SLR College, we have looked at shutter speeds, apertures and exposure modes – but even before these can be set or chosen you need to measure the brightness of the scene. This is where the exposure meter comes in. Your EOS DSLR has a built-in meter, of course – and you would be forgiven for thinking that its task was straightforward. But, unfortunately, it is not simply a matter of taking a single reading. For starters, the brightness of the scene can vary enormously across the picture – the sky will usually be much lighter than the foreground, for example – so some…

There is a time and a place for flash. It will often kill the atmosphere at a party, so is best avoided. But conversely can be the essential ingredient for a successful shot – in daylight or in the dark. The secret to success is to use the built-in flash on most EOS SLRs with caution. The key to getting good results is often a matter of exposure – ensuring you use settings that make the flash look as natural as possible. Using flash adds an extra complication to the usual problems of exposure. You not only have to judiciously choose the shutter speed and the aperture and set the ISO to suit the occasion, the flash power must also be fed simultaneously into the exposure equation. A flashgun provides…

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The viewfinder The viewfinder enables you to see the scene in front of the lens. To use it, bring it up to one eye and close the other. This masks out distracting elements, enabling you to frame up your shot. The viewfinder also includes information regarding your camera settings. Turn over the page to find out what everything is. The dioptre To check your viewfinder screen is in focus you can adjust the dioptre. This will come in handy for those who wear glasses. The dioptre is a small plus and minus dial that you adjust manually. At this stage we’re not worried about taking a photo, but simply seeing if the screen inside the finder is in focus. To make sure it’s pin sharp check the text at the…

When you first start using a DSLR, it can be a little overwhelming. Not only do you need to consider what subject matter you’re shooting, you also may feel bombarded by the number of technical camera settings available and not understand what each one does. For this exact reason, Canon includes loads of beginner-friendly modes that take control of the technical camera settings for you. This includes the fully automatic mode and a range of scene modes. Over the next six pages we’ll take a closer look at them all in action, and see just what they do, and where you’ll come up against their limitations. FREE ON FILESILO When you see this graphic there’s a video on FileSilo See page 194 for more…

To improve your photography you need to start taking control of your DSLR, but don’t worry – it’s not half as daunting as it first sounds. To enter the program mode, simply turn the mode dial around to P. In program mode your camera automatically controls the shutter speed and aperture settings. But it also has a few other tricks it can perform. Turn the page to find out more……

Freeze the moment If you want to freeze fast-paced action then you need to set your DSLR to a fast shutter speed. On the Canon EOS 700D and many of the beginner models the fastest speed you can pick is 1/4000 sec. This means the shutter will be open for one four thousandth of a second. This is fast enough to freeze anything that’s moving in the scene. Adjust the shutter speed To alter the shutter speed you need to turn the command dial on the top panel of your DSLR. To make it slower, turn the dial left; to make it faster, turn it right. If you have a beginner model then you can see the shutter speed setting through the viewfinder and on the back LCD screen, on…

The manual exposure mode enables you to decide the appropriate aperture, shutter speed and ISO for a given scene. Photographers tend to use it when shooting under controlled lighting conditions, such as when shooting in a studio environment. The manual mode may seem a bit daunting when you’re starting out, and it also takes a bit of practice, but if you can understand how the shutter speed, aperture and ISO work together, then you’re well on your way to getting better results.…

Switch to manual points Letting your DSLR select the focus point for you won’t always guarantee the best results, so the first step in taking more control is to set the focus point manually. To bring up the menu option, press the grid button in the top right-hand corner of your DSLR. By default it will be set to the Automatic selection. To alter this you need to turn the command dial one stop. It will now be in the Manual selection screen. Select a point Once you’re in the Manual selection screen you can move the main focus point around the grid. You can do this in a couple of ways. First, if you keep turning the command dial it will move it around the grid and then back…

Using the Live View feature to compose an image will work better in some shooting scenarios than others. In this lesson we’re going to run through the dos and dont’s of when to engage Live View and when it’s best to avoid it. To bring Live View into action you first need to press the button. This should be on the back panel of your camera. Once engaged you have the option to alter the display setup. Press the Info or Display button to do this. You also have option to adjust the Live View features in your camera’s main menu. Under the red camera settings tab (last in the red section) you’ll notice the icon looks slightly different (it shows the back of the camera). These are all of…

Deleting an image You have the option to delete images as you review them. There’s a rubbish bin button on the back panel for this job. When pressed, a warning message will appear. To complete the task, highlight the Erase option and press Set. You can also delete multiple images by accessing the Erase images option in the Playback menu. Be careful not to go overboard when it comes to deleting images, however, because you’ll get a much more accurate result when looking at your images on a computer screen. Playing images back To review the images on the memory card, press the play button. Now you can alter the layout of the screen by pressing the Info or Display button. You can decide whether you want the screen to…

The exposure compensation meter is an extremely useful feature on your Canon DSLR. You can use it when shooting in the P mode, Av mode and Tv mode. These are the semi-automatic shooting modes, which enable you to control some aspects of your camera settings to determine exposure. Cameras aren’t infallible, and they may not get the exposure settings spot-on all of the time, so for this reason we can add or take away light using the exposure compensation feature. We do this in stops of light. Actually, the exposure compensation function is broken down into thirds of a stop of light. Each time you nudge it up or down the scale, that’s a third of a stop. A full stop is indicated by the numbers on the scale. How…

Capturing the moment isn’t easy, especially if you’re photographing some sort of high-speed sporting event. To increase your chances of getting a good image, you can change the drive mode on your DSLR to fire off a succession of shots. We call this a burst sequence. The drive mode button on your Canon camera is marked by a stack of boxes, and is on the back panel. If you have a more advanced model, the button may be on the top panel of your DSLR. Turn the page to find out more… FREE ON FILESILO When you see this graphic there’s a video on FileSilo See page 194 for more…

Custom white balance The custom white balance setting is useful when you’re shooting under a consistent light source such as in a studio. To use the custom setting, first take a photo of something white under the ambient light. This could be a piece of paper or card. Then press the Menu button and in the camera settings select Custom White balance. It will then use that image to work out the white balance temperature setting of the scene. This will then be assigned to the Custom setting in the white balance menu. Auto white balance The WB menu has eight options to choose from, and the first in the list is Auto White Balance. This is because for the majority of the time, this is the one you’ll use…

A Picture Style is an image effect applied in the camera that enhances the final image. Essentially, it works by adjusting a few different aspects, such as the sharpness, saturation, and contrast to create different renderings. The Picture Style is applied directly to the JPEG image, but if you’re shooting in raw, you can preview the effect in-camera. It’s worth noting that the effects won’t be saved in the raw file unless you open the file in Canon’s free Digital Photo Professional software. Then the Picture Style setting will be recognised and applied. Turn the page to find out what Picture Style settings are available……

There will be times when the ambient light isn’t strong enough to light your subject, and when this is the case you should use your pop-up flash. However, it has the tendency to ruin the atmosphere, and in all honesty it isn’t a miracle worker! Professional photographers use external flashguns or studio lights to illuminate their subjects, because the pop-up flash is limited in what it can do and how far it can fire. However, there are times when it will come to the rescue, and you’ll be surprised at the few tricks it has hidden away! Turn the page to see our top flash tips so you know when to use it, and when it’s best to avoid it.…

When shooting in the manual exposure mode you can only keep the camera’s shutter open for a maximum of 30 seconds. For this reason your camera includes a Bulb mode feature, which enables you to manually control the shutter opening and closing. This means that it’s possible in the middle of the night to keep the camera’s shutter open for hours on end! You set the aperture and the ISO, and you then time the duration of the shutter. There are many different types of subject matter that lend themselves to this technique. For example, at night you can try light painting using torches, or if you like our example pictured here, you can open the shutter to capture the clouds moving across the sky and the movement of the…

1 What is firmware? A firmware installation can update many features and camera settings, from fixing bugs to generally making your camera perform better. Updating the firmware is easy, and it’s free, but there are a few necessary steps to take before you begin. So let’s get started. 2 Download the software Go to the Canon website at www.canon.co.uk and select your camera model by going to Products and Solutions>EOS Digital SLR and Compact System cameras. Once you’ve found your camera model, click the Support & Download link on the right-hand side of the page. Click Firmware, then download the right version for your computer. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Accept & Download. 3 Extract firmware Once the file is downloaded you’ll need to extract it otherwise your camera…

Welcome to the Canon SLR College – a complete 13-part series that, over the following pages, builds into a comprehensive beginners’ guide to how your digital SLR works, and how to get the most from it. In our first lesson we’re going to explain everything you need to know about focal length. A major benefit of using a DSLR is that you can choose from a variety of lenses suited to particular photographic situations, and the main determining factor in picking a certain lens is its focal length. Focal length is measured in millimetres, with 35-50mm roughly equalling your field of vision. Lenses with focal lengths of less than 35mm are known as wide-angle lenses and enable you to fit more into your scene, so are good for landscape shots.…

Altering the aperture is one of the photographer’s most potent weapons, but this apparently simple control can lead to confusion. The exact setting used can create varied – and seemingly contradictory – effects. And then there is the peculiar number scale used – the numbers themselves appear randomly generated, and arranged in the wrong order! First and foremost, the aperture is a simple hole – an opening that can be varied in size, so as to control the amount of light reaching the camera sensor. Used in conjunction with shutter speed (the length of time the sensor is exposed to light), the aperture lets you match the exposure to the brightness of the scene. The wider the hole, the more light that is let in – helping you to compensate…

For those new to DSLRs, ‘white balance’ can be the one control that is completely new to them. The focusing modes, ISO setting, exposure options, drive facilities – and so on – are much the same as those found on the film SLRs that many of us once used. Up until the arrival of digital cameras, white balance would only have been familiar to those who delved into the advanced settings of a video camcorder. White balance, or WB, is necessary because light does not just vary in brightness, but also in colour. Each light source has its own individual colour or ‘colour temperature’ – which as you move through the visible spectrum can vary from red to blue. Human vision is very good at compensating for this, so that…

Back in the days before digital, film came in a variety of different speeds. The ‘faster’ the film, the more sensitive it was to light – allowing you to use faster shutter speeds than with ‘slower’ film. Using these higher-sensitivity film emulsions was useful for moving subjects – and particularly so in low light. This film speed was measured using a number of different scales – with two of the best known, the American ASA and German DIN scales, eventually being brought together to give us the standardised ISO system. Digital cameras, of course, do not use film – but the same ISO scale is now used to measure the camera’s sensitivity to light. Although the camera’s imaging chip cannot be changed to suit the subject (unlike film), its sensitivity…