Looking at a lens EF-S 17-55mm for people, horses, landscapes, etc.

[Dmrcajun]

I'm looking for a lens for; in church, people ,poising , horses landscape. Someone recommended The EF-S 17-55mm AF. And i'm new to photography. Yes i'm learning to use Manual etc. I bought Rebel T7 KIt. I'm also going to MT. for the 4th of July. 

Question 2. well what i have now be sufficient? For a beginner LOL. Who is hungry to learn....

[ebiggs1 · Accepted solution]

"Yes i'm learning to use Manual etc."

I did DSLR 101 classes for a while and I always discourage full manual for beginners. This is another place where DPP4 can be a big help as you can see what exposure settings were successful. You will begin to see the relationship between light and shutter speed and aperture. I also tell beginners to avoid the Creative Zones on the mode dial.

Selecting one of the semi automatic modes is better. Av, Tv, and the more fully auto P mode. You will learn to select the proper ISO for each scenario. Success is the better teacher and this method leads to success faster and fans the fire to learn more. Photography is a series of baby steps so don't rush it with a lot of terms and functions you don't fully understand right now. Enjoy!

[ebiggs1 · Accepted solution]

"What is DDp 4? "

DPP4 is a Photoshop look alike photo editing software. It is free from Canon and you can d/l it from the web site. It can be as easy to use or as difficult as you want it to be. If you simply use it to u/l photos to your computer it is well wroth the d/l. Did I mention it is free so no good reason to not get it. However, with just a bit of tinkering around in DPP4 you can edit your photos and make some poor shots into very good ones. You can crop the image. You can correct color balance and exposure, sharpen, do lens correction, etc. Usually just simple mouse clicks.

" There is so much to learn that is being thrown at you and all these technical terms that I have to google and look up.!"

I totally hear you, Kido. The problem is most of the sources even the folks on this forum are not teachers. They are accomplished photographers but they are not teachers. They start at a level higher than the beginner. It is always better to start slowly with basic steps that produce success. I also teach music to middle schoolers and we don't start them trying to play a Beethoven symphony. We play Row, Row, Your Boat or Go Tell Aunt Rhody.

Keep in mind probably 80% of all your shots can be done successfully with P mode. The other modes are there for the special situations where P doesn't work for what you want. And full manual is at the bottom of the list.

In your case and most cases the very best is to have a live person to be there with you. This is not unlike teaching music it is always best to have an instructor present. The famous book series Such and Such for Dummies could be a good book to look at. Maybe have a look at Digital SLR Cameras & Photography For Dummies on Amazon.

Or come back here with your questions many of us will happily try to answer them.

EB

[shadowsports]

Greetings,

The EF-S 17-55 is a much higher quality optic over the 18-55 kit lens.  The EF 75-300 is an entry level zoom and would probably be the first lens I'd replace.  The EF-S 55-250 is leaps and bounds better optically and also has IS.  It sounds like you are at the beginning of your journey.  Take your time.  

There's no need to run out and buy a new lens...spend time reading your user guide and learning about the controls.on the camera.  While you learn, it might be helpful to keep notes to log your progress. Make sure to download Canon's DPP for editing.  Shoot in RAW format and start learning. 🙂

[Dmrcajun]

Thank you thats good advice!!! And ill look for the DPP for editing. 

[Dmrcajun]

 i am wondering is DPP is a good software for Mac book Air? if not can you suggest something else?

[jrhoffman75]

---

@Dmrcajun wrote:

 i am wondering is DPP is a good software for Mac book Air? if not can you suggest something else?

---

Answered in your other post.

Yes, it works fine on MacBook Air.

[ebiggs1]

"I bought Rebel T7 KIt."

You did not specify which "kit" you bought. If you got the basic kit, it has one lens included. While it will be all you need to learn photography, the addition of a tele zoom would be nice to have if you did just get the one lens kit. Otherwise if you did get a multi-lens kit you have all you need and don't need to buy any new lenses right now.

It is a great idea to d/l and learn DPP4. In fact DPP4 is more important than any new lens you can buy and it is free.

Post editing is where great photos are made not in the camera.

[Dmrcajun]

I bought the  Rebel T7 it comes with EF 75–3 118–55 mm. When my camera takes a picture, it shows on the back this little scale of black-and-white how high the white goes and the black and I’m not sure what it’s called but I can see that next to my picture how much black and how much white is on the picture picture and I can tell immediately if the picture is too dark if it’s all the way to the left and too light if the scale is all the way to the right! 

[ebiggs1 · Accepted solution]

"Yes i'm learning to use Manual etc."

I did DSLR 101 classes for a while and I always discourage full manual for beginners. This is another place where DPP4 can be a big help as you can see what exposure settings were successful. You will begin to see the relationship between light and shutter speed and aperture. I also tell beginners to avoid the Creative Zones on the mode dial.

Selecting one of the semi automatic modes is better. Av, Tv, and the more fully auto P mode. You will learn to select the proper ISO for each scenario. Success is the better teacher and this method leads to success faster and fans the fire to learn more. Photography is a series of baby steps so don't rush it with a lot of terms and functions you don't fully understand right now. Enjoy!

[Dmrcajun]

Wow, thank you I felt like you really understood where I’m coming from. There is so much to learn that is being thrown at you and all these technical terms that I have to google and look up.!! I’m not even sure what noise is trying to use manual that’s like going straight to the kitchen to work. I’ve never worked in a restaurant before. I do use the Av & Tv mode !! I did go out hiking and take pictures. I take pictures of my cats in the backyard the flowers and the neighborhood.! What is DDp 4? 

[Tintype_18]

I look at the manual for my T7 occasionally. Sometimes I find things that come handy later.