[Ambrakam]

I've always wanted to get into photography, so today I ordered a Panasonic FZ-20 off of Amazon. Should get it later this week and then I'll post some beginner shots

[fedelwet]

Just two beginner shots in macro mode. This is actually my first digital camera ever and I just got in the mail today. I can't wait until there is light out so I can really unleash this camera outdoors These pictures weren't meant to showoff my 'skill', I'm just having fun so any advice would be great.

My headphones w/ dirty carpet:


Doorknob:

[HarryMet]

nice pics to start off with, now maybe think of getting your self a tripod and use a longer exposure so that you do not need to resort to a flash!

[Caregrasy]

nice pics to start off with, now maybe think of getting your self a tripod and use a longer exposure so that you do not need to resort to a flash!

lol thats when the fun starts, 5 minutes after getting a camera he gets already new parts advised. Personally I would just try and stay away of these long exposure shots untill you feel the time is good for a tripod.

The FZ-20 is a more then excellent camera to start with since it has great amature options combined with a lot of professional options. Good choice!

[Toossehew]

nice pics to start off with, now maybe think of getting your self a tripod and use a longer exposure so that you do not need to resort to a flash!

or get a dedicated flash
FZ20 has a flash hotshoe for that purpose

[indentKew]

Spent about 30 minutes in my backyard when I woke up [yes]









Starting to get the hang of it. Some of those shots were taken in automatic, but then I started to only use the manual focus ring which is badass. I'm really enjoying photography so far [thumbup] They could have came out better, though I'm still impressed.

[illiniastibly]

gettin there just need to practice your composition......... check out that site to get your started

http://www.silverlight.co.uk/tutoria...se/thirds.html

[agrismhig]

GAH. I really, really do not understand why some cameras have the color saturation set so horribly high by default. Completely ruins the photographs.[cursing]

(see if there's a saturation setting in your camera...it needs to be bumped down a notch or two).

EDIT: Ah, noticed that it's a Lumix...my dad's Lumix had the exact same problem. Must be a Panasonic thing.

[CealialactBek]

GAH. I really, really do not understand why some cameras have the color saturation set so horribly high by default. Completely ruins the photographs.[cursing]

(see if there's a saturation setting in your camera...it needs to be bumped down a notch or two).

EDIT: Ah, noticed that it's a Lumix...my dad's Lumix had the exact same problem. Must be a Panasonic thing.

There is a picture adjust menu where you can adjust the contrast, sharpness, saturation and noise reduction. What would you recommend me to try out first? They are all set at default, which is "Standard", and can be set to "Low" or "High".

Took some more pictures, though I'd like some feedback on one certain picture:



When I look at it, it makes me want to squint as if my vision is going blurry. What can I try to reduce that?

EDIT: BTW, on some of my pictures I put them through Photoshop and do some auto-contrast and what not, should I not do that? lol.

[Shemker394]

There is a picture adjust menu where you can adjust the contrast, sharpness, saturation and noise reduction. What would you recommend me to try out first? They are all set at default, which is "Standard", and can be set to "Low" or "High".

Took some more pictures, though I'd like some feedback on one certain picture:



When I look at it, it makes me want to squint as if my vision is going blurry. What can I try to reduce that?

EDIT: BTW, on some of my pictures I put them through Photoshop and do some auto-contrast and what not, should I not do that? lol.

First off, do not do any of the "auto" features in Photoshop. Rarely do they "fix" your photo, and most of the time they'll just screw it up worse. If you want to adjust anything, it's best to just adjust it directly.

If I were you, I'd set your saturation to LOW. You don't want the colors in your photos to look like a cartoon. That's what I had to do to my dad's Lumix. His was oversharpening a lot, too, but I can't tell if yours is without looking at the full-sized image.


Also, the auto white balance on my dad's Lumix does not really work. If you leave it set on auto white balance, the majority of your photos are probably going to have incorrect colors. Either set the white balance yourself using one of the presets, or calibrate it using a piece of paper or a gray card.

Finally, in your last landscape photo, it looks like your focal point is not correct. Ideally, for that shot, you'd want to set your focus to the hyperfocal distance, but that can be a little though to determine (you could just set your focus to infinity and use a small aperture and you should be okay).

[kabelshik]

Very cool, that was alot of good information. I changed the saturation to low and the autowhite balance to some white paper and I already notice a difference just by taking pictures in my room.

I really want to get a tripod now I was just testing the difference between holding the camera in my hand and having it sit on the table, I couldn't even get the font I was shooting to come out clear. Though when it sat on the table and I pressed the shutter without shaking it, it came out nearly perfect.

Good times. I'm beginning to get really addicted to photography, I'm actually going to take a couple classes this fall.