Eos R100 settings - Outdoor dog photos

[putnamm]

Hello. I'm entirely new to photography and bought my first-ever "real" camera (i.e. not my phone) yesterday. I bought the Eos R100 with rf-s 18-45mm lens and also the EF-S 55-250mm F4-5.6 is STM lens. I am a bird hunter and dog trialer, and I will be using this camera outdoors to take pictures of dogs hunting and competing in trials. Most shots will be relatively still, but some will be active (with birds flushing/flying, dogs chasing birds, etc.).

I'm watching a variety of YouTube videos, etc. to better understand the settings that I need. But I thought I would ask here if anyone can recommend what settings would be most effective on this camera for this purpose. Since I'm also new to photography, if you are able to explain why you recommend the settings that would also be helpful.

Thanks,

Mark

[Tintype_18]

Did you download the manual? Loads of information there. It's hard to recommend specific settings as conditions will vary from lighting, distance from subject, etc. I like to experiment with my T7 by shooting several shots with different settings and compare the outcome.

[putnamm]

Hi. Thanks for your reply. I started reading through the manual last night. (I just got the camera yesterday.) I think my understanding of settings for stills/portraits is good, based on some sample images that I took. I'm more concerned about changing settings quickly for evolving action shots.

[stevet1]

Mark,

If you want to shoot action shots, One of your first considerations will be, do you want to freeze the action, or allow some motion blur in your subject? Higher shutter speeds will allow you to freeze the motion. As you increase your speed, your aperture will widen to allow more light and will isolate your subject, with more of your background blurring.

If you want action, one thing you can do is put your camera in Tv or shutter speed priority. The camera will pick your aperture for you. This way, you can choose a shutter speed of say 1/250ths of a second. If you decide 1/250ths isn't fast enough, you can quickly change it to 1/500ths. If 1/500ths isn't fast enough, you can quickly change it to 1/000ths or any other speed you want.

I'd strongly encourage you to download a copy of your manual in pdf format. By using the search functions in a pdf reader like Adobe Acrobat, you can search for answers to specific questions. It will make your life a whole lot easier.

Steve Thomas

[putnamm]

This is very helpful. Thanks, Steve.

[March411]

Hey Mark, welcome to the forum.

YouTube can greatly reduce your learning curve and give specific information when you are trying to overcome challenges. There is also a deep catalog of some simple hints and tips. Left you a couple links below.

• R100 Settings 
• R100 Tutorials

[Waddizzle]

Welcome to the Canon Community.  

Settings advice?  Settings that work for all shots?  There’s only one setting for that, the Auto setting on the Shooting Mode dial. 

What you asked simply doesn’t exist.  If it did, then the camera would not have the option to adjust settings.  

The key to adjusting settings is understanding what they mean and do.   Just like how all cars pretty much work the same way, the same is true about cameras.  

This is possible because all cameras follow a basic set of operating principles.  Here’s a video that describes the basic principles of photography.  

https://youtu.be/5vu8ZVlSSqs?si=KU3SlTLggGoG5Olg 

[Ron888]

Hi Mark.Sorry you're going to feel like you're thrown in the deep end of the pool with this 😄.Cameras have a vast number of settings so i'll keep things as simple as possible.
I only recently got back into photography.I found reading the manual a nightmare of complexity.Watching youtube videos is a much better plan.Then when you get to something you dont understand- google it.Not only will that give you a quick answer,it often shows the exact page in the owners manual to jump to. so.much.easier

Some hints for your particular situation:
For portrait type shots you'll need eye detection focus turned on.As a rule human and animal photography works best when the closest eye is in focus.Note that dosent mean you have to focus on the closest person/animal,just that of your chosen subject.
Portraiture usually (but not always) works best with a blurry background.For that you'll need a large lens aperture or use a longer lens.Note larger apertures have small numbers and small apertures have big numbers.
It's best to keep portraiture between about 30mm and 90mm.Any shorter and faces start to distort.Much longer and everything looks flat and boring.
Of course if you're including the surrounding landscape with a portrait,do anything you like😄.I'm joking but it's almost true.
For action shots you'll absolutely need focus tracking turned on,eye or face detection set and a high frame rate.Don't be surprised if many shots are out of focus.Action photography with cheaper cameras is very hit and miss.In fact even top end models can struggle.
Shooting something coming towards you is hardest.Shooting something moving across the frame is easiest.