So I've started taking some photos again, for the first time in ages really. Ever since the unfinishable wedding album from hell. But that's neither here nor there. I've decided to try a 365 project. I doubt I'll manage a photo a day, but at least it's something to aim for.
However I've become highly dissatisfied with my level of technical skill behind the camera. Getting the settings right more than anything. Besides the obvious advice of more practice, what resources would you recommend? Any tips that help(ed) you?
please and thank you.
shoot entirely in manual mode for a week.
Really pay attention to your meter, and take notes so you can compare your impressions and expectations, with what you actually get in the file (if digital) or the negative
F8
Originally posted by: mclarkson F8
thaanks.
Shot a bit in manual yesterday. I'm already starting to remember how a camera works.
I guess I'll just read the technical discussion thread a bit. 
Honestly - pretend it's not a digital camera for a little bit. Turn off the back review, and really pay attention to what you are doing. It'll come back.
Slow down. Use your meter. Take notes. I second R_D's suggestion of shooting in manual, slowing down to be certain to use and mentally contextualize your info from the meter.
If you ever find yourself in a situation where you want to fire off a high volume of motor driven shots in a short period of time while using a setting that allows the camera to select both aperture and shutter speed simultaneously... fight the urge.
Settings that control aperture and shutter speed and exposure compensation independantly have their uses in educating yourself as well as in the real world, but make sure you're engaging in the process so you understand why the camera is doing what it's doing in it's part of the exposure decision making process.
Work slowly making photographs. Don't take pictures.
Get an incident or spot meter and practice judging exposure.
I'm assuming you're having problems with exposure. Would that be a correct assumption?
Find or direct good light on interesting subjects, use an extremely critical eye for composition, and carefully expose using the tools you're armed with at that moment.
"Light - Science and Magic" is a good book to check out.
The old man is right to some degree. When working fast anyway.
Sometimes it's just a matter of f8 and being there.
"Work slowly making photographs. Don't take pictures."
THIS
Also, try doing stuff you don't normally do.
Try some studio shots of all sorts of different things. Make still life portraits out of things you find lying around but make them interesting not because of the objects but because of how you shoot them. Try shooting in different light conditions. You like shooting people, so think of how you can shoot them in different ways than you normally do. If you like portraits, get in close and treat them like landscapes. That kind of thing. Make a point of taking an interesting photo every 5 minutes while out on a walk in a boring part of town. Go to a cool place and just take photos all afternoon.
Practice metering by guess. Bracket manually. Take notes. Shoot from the hip. Use a tripod.
Just take lots of shots, keep track of what you're doing, and keep it varied - your work will improve quickly.
I guess what I have most trouble with is writing everything down. SO BORING!
I know, I should take my vitamins and I'll be a better photographer for it. :P Still, just paying attention to settings and remembering what they mean beyond numbers on the screen is helping. Actually documenting it will be good.
Yesterday while shooting I realized why my last photos had all been so grainy... I'l left the ISO really high. I felt like the biggest idiot in the world. However it'll be a while before I forget that again.
Part of the graff collection that is our garage:
:thumbsup:
I agree with RG, that shooting full manual is the quickest way to learn exactly what your setting changes are doing (unlike him, I use digital and don't write anything down, I just look at the LCD.)
A few tidbits that were turning points for me...
inferior optics/consumer zooms make your job much, much harder than it would be if you had nice, fast glass. Modern consumer glass is like a dirty window that you've just cleaned with Windex, but pro glass is like you took the window away completely.
High enough Shutter-speed is key to sharpness (which affects clarity, depth and other things IMHO). I was looking at killer shots one day (pros) and noticed they weren't at all afraid of using high ISO where I wouldn't have thought it was needed. I also noticed their shutter speeds were higher. When I started favoring high shutterspeed over low ISO, I started to get sharp clean shots every time.
really read your manual over and over. Most likely your camera is capable of great things. You need to understand this tool completely and try to master every function.
^ you asked for "technical" advice. In my experience, that means you LIKE what you are shooting and your composition, but you are unhappy with the technical quality of the photograph. I would look to your glass as the culprit. Just my .02