Beginner - Struggling with photos, Rebel T7

[robotiger]

Hi!

I just received a camera for my birthday, a Rebel t7. I've never had a professional camera before, just my phone and a "Coolpix" as a kid.

I found that when I started up the camera I couldn't take photos, so I started searching these forums & others for answers but am struggling to find a workable answer. Here's circumstances I've tried already:

-switching from AF to MF; I CAN take photos this way but would prefer not to manually focus

-tried turning focus dial all the way from one end to the other in MF then switching to AF; no success

-tried switching from One Shot to AI Servo, no difference

-tried AF in Program AE mode, it did work but not well-- ie, I could successfully take a photo, but it was difficult and took multiple tries, or was blurry

-Scene Intelligent Auto, Portrait, and other "basic zone" modes I could not take pictures in unless using manual focus

-viewfinder vs live did not make a difference

The purpose of the camera was for me to take photos of animals, so having a completely still subject and waiting a long time to focus is the opposite of what I need, and ideally I can take photos of those subjects without having to quickly manually adjust. The camera is brand new, brand new SD card in it with nothing on it, all factory settings to start with when these issues were occurring. If anyone can help me that would be great! I am very much a beginner and confused why this is happening after trying so many things listed in the forums.

[robotiger]

Thank you for your response! This seemed to work decently well, just have to figure out how to take photos in situations less than extremely sunny. I appreciate your help!

[Tintype_18]

When I started into photography, pre-T7, I bought a book that was written especially for me...Digital Photography for Dummies. When I bought the T7, I had a rough idea of what to do. I downloaded the manual on my laptop and Android for reference. I have taken the camera, turned it on and browsed through the manual to familiarize myself with the different things that the camera can do and how they affect the outcome of a photo. FWIW, the camera is a lot smarter than me.

[ebiggs1]

" FWIW, the camera is a lot smarter than me."

This is a smart man!  😁 I see it all the time. New folks buy books, read reviews and watch Youtube, etc., to the extreme. Problem, often times they start to overthink it even though it is a simple situation. KISS is a good idea. When it is easy to do let it be easy to do. 

[BurnUnit]

Do you have any filters on the lens? If so, try removing them and see if it helps.

Did you format the new SD card in the camera? Is it full sized or Micro SD card? While you're at it, make sure to set the clock and calendar as well.

[Tronhard]

In all but the most extreme conditions a modern camera will achieve focus, but what will challenge it is lack of contrast or something with a sharp edge to focus on.  Your camera will generally try to get the right exposure for the conditions, thus it should be able to focus when that is achieved.

The camera sensor looks to make most tones (i.e. level of brightness) what is called 18% grey - about the same level of brightness as grass.  Generally that is enough to give you enough light to find something to focus on.  Definitely look at the videos suggested to you - sooner rather than later.  If your library has access via it's on-line catalogue, look for an item called LinkeIn Learning.  It's a link to a website absolutely full of videos on a wide range of subject, but with a huge range of professionally-produced training series on almost every aspect of photography and at every level.  Going via your library gives you free access, otherwise it's by paid subscription.