Posted this over on PurePhoto for it’s 100th post. I thought I would just answer a few questions from our viewers. No fireworks…just something simple that reminds me of why we started PurePhoto. Our primary goal for PurePhoto when it started was to help educate consumers on how to use their cameras more effectively and give them access to the top professional grade services available. Now obviously that dream has grown significantly larger with more amazing things to come. At the core of it all, though, we love photography and want to help return it to its glory days where people didn’t struggle to use their camera and they could get quality prints to hang in their homes. We are pleased with our success – tens of thousands have signed up and are learning and printing every day but we have much more to do to fulfill our vision. We are working on many exciting new projects and will roll some of them out over the next few months. If you haven’t checked out PurePhoto Collections we also have amazing art from photographers all over the world. There is even a contest running through the end of September to win $500 in art.
Now for some Q&A….
Question #1 from Rich in Florida: I know this is probably a loaded question, but can you recommend a digital SLR camera for a novice who wants a better quality picture than the small, cheap point and shoot cameras. I was looking at some pictures I just took of my daughter and they just aren’t as clear as I would like. I’m not looking to make this a major hobby for me, just something that would be a step up in quality. I’m thinking of spending somewhere between $600 to $800 or if you said its worth to get something that costs $1000, I would consider that too. I’m not looking to break the bank. Thanks for your help and time.
Rich, thanks for writing in and no it’s not a loaded question. While there are many possible answers to questions depending on who you ask, the rules are the same. The first thing to consider is the quality of the camera and resulting image you are looking for. If you just want to take nicer pictures than a point and shoot and want the camera to be a little faster than there is no need to break the bank. If you think it might become more of a passion for you then you may want to consider spending a little more and getting some nicer lenses. We recommend Canon and Nikon because you will get the highest quality and best value for your money. I personally believe that you should spend a little more than $1000 so that you have a camera you can grow into. You may not think you want or need much but once you have a DSLR and see how much better your images are you will get more into it. Many people lose interest due to the quality they are getting from their P&S cameras. Once you have a better camera, learn more about how to use it and then use a better printing service you may be amazed at how much you enjoy shooting.
My top Canon pick below $1000: Canon Rebel T2i
My top Nikon pick below $1000: Nikon D5000
My top Canon Pick above $1000: Canon 50D
My top Nikon Pick above $1000: Nikon D90
Question #2 from Heidi in California: So here is my question. I have a cannon rebel camera and I want to get a close up lens. I know nothing about this and want to know what you suggest.
The first questions I ask people is what they mean by “close-up” lens. Do you want to zoom into the action (i.e. telephoto) or do you actually want a close-up lens (i.e. macro) My guess is that Heidi means she is looking for a telephoto lens so she can get closer to the action without moving. Generally, to be effective, you want something in the 70-200mm range or 70-300mm range. The things you need to be careful of when buying these varying range lenses are the lowest f.stop and the weight.
By lowest f.stop I mean that these lenses have ranges on them. It might be f3.5 when it is at 70mm but f5.6 @ 200mm. What that means to you is that when you are zoomed out to 200mm the lowest f.stop you can use is f5.6 and you will need a lot of light. If you are outdoors at a sporting event then fine. But what if you are at a ballet recital? It’s not going to be great for you. Always buy the lowest f.stop range you can afford!
Now on the off chance Heidi means macro that is another ball game. Macro lenses have a focusing ratio of 1:1. 1 to 1 means that you can be the same distance as your lens away from the subject. For example if you had a 100mm lens you could be 100mm’s away from the object you are photographing. I will put my recommendations for both types of lenses down below.
So here are the Nikon and Canon recommendations:
Telephoto:
Canon:
inexpensive – Canon 75-300mm
higher grade – Canon 70-200mm f2.8L
Nikon:
inexpensive – Nikon 55-200mm
higher grade – Nikon 70-200 f2.8
Macro:
Canon:
inexpensive: Canon 100mm Macro
higher grade: Canon 100mm Macro w/ IS
Nikon:
inexpensive: Nikon 60mm f2.8
higher grade: Nikon 105mm f2.8 w/ VR
Question #3 from Alexandra in Chicago: I keep taking pictures and just store them on my computer. It’s so overwhelming to me. I want to do something with them but now there are just too many to choose from and I don’t know how to get through them, what to choose, how to choose, etc. I feel like they may just be there forever!
Alexandra, it’s a great question and actually one I get a lot! I recently did a post on this on our blog and you can find it here: Edit In vs. Edit Out. Now, editing is just half the battle; once you have learned to edit than your job will be much easier. However, you still need to do something with them. There are two ways to go about this: one has a cost associated with it but it is much easier. If you put all your favorites in a folder and print 4×6′s of them it makes it easier to start the process of “what.”
The 4×6 process: I lay them all out in fromt of me on the dining room table and start to group them. I write down on separate scraps of paper what I might do with them. I then group them near the scrap of paper into albums, piles for larger reprints, piles for framing, etc. Now I have which images I am going to use AND what I am going to do with them. As an added bonus, I have some 4×6′s to give to the grandparents!
The electronic process: The other way is to do this electronically, which is cheaper but sometimes harder to see the vision clearly. In your PurePhoto account you can open another edit window and “create a new gallery.” Then drag images from your left window (library/gallery) into the new folder on the right one. In no time at all, you will have all your “Do Something With” images in one place. You can repeat the process by putting the “Do Something With” folder on the left and adding them to sub galleries on the right.” One of your galleries will probably be a print gallery and you can just order those right on PurePhoto and cross it off your list!
Watch this quick video on “The electronic process” to learn how to edit using PurePhoto.
[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]
Further Reading:
Q&A Session
Photoshop Tip : Removing Dark Circles Under the Eyes (Part 1 of 3)
Quick Tip : Setting your LCD Brightness and Reading a Histogram
Video on using Photoshop to convert to Black and White
20:03 
Photographer of the Week: 
