Asked to be a mentor.

Jungli

Jungli

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Team TP,

Got asked recently by a friend to help him, "... get into photography...", he wants to improve from taking phone pics to using a "... proper camera...".

He's loaning a dslr camera off his father in law, and asked me to help him or mentor him in this new hobby.

He's older than I am and has told me he learns better by monkey see, monkey do.

I want him to enjoy it and not get frustrated with too much of the technical aspect, so starting him on full auto and work up from there.

So... what would you do.

Advice, guidance and tips most welcome.
 
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Hmmmmm!

In your shoes I would:-

  1. Have a look and talk through the pictures he has been taking on his phone....
    To see if he has a compositional eye and frames things AOK

  2. Also, ask him what his expectations are in regard to what he hopes having the dSLR will achieve for him

  3. Stating the obvious, does he know that the dSLR images will need to be held on a PC or iPad or similar for sorting out to share with others.
The above should give a picture (no pun intended) as to how to proceed........because as you say you wish to make the experience enjoyable without (too much) frustration :)
 
One of the semi automatic modes rather than full auto would be my suggestion (or, at least, a quick transition once he's used to pressing the button when he sees what he wants to capture.)
 
Jungli said:
Team TP,

Got asked recently by a friend to help him, "... get into photography...", he wants to improve from taking phone pics to using a "... proper camera...".

He's loaning a dslr camera off his father in law, and asked me to help him or mentor him in this new hobby.

He's older than I am and has told me he learns better by monkey see, monkey do.

I want him to enjoy it and not get frustrated with too much of the technical aspect, so starting him on full auto and work up from there.

So... what would you do.

Advice, guidance and tips most welcome.
Click to expand...
Do you know anything about photography yourself?
 
Jungli said:
He's loaning a dslr camera off his father in law ... Advice, guidance and tips most welcome.
Click to expand...
One piece of advice you may find useful is that the word you want is "borrowing" :naughty:

On a serious note: the best way I've found to help is to...
  1. set someone a subject, ideally something they're not interested in
  2. ask them to come back with as many pictures as they can
  3. ask them to go through their pictures and pick the three that they like the most and the three they like the least
  4. sit down with them and discuss those six pictures and get them to think about why things work and why they don't
  5. repeat from 1 several times, giving them technical hints as they discover what they want to improve.
Other methods exist but this has worked for me.
 
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Some good suggestions and yes, getting him off full auto quickly to semi would be the early quick wins.

And then asking about his fave pics and least fave is a good point.

I've gone out and photographed just one thing again and again to sometimes get out of a creative rut, but it can be hard for a beginner as they may not see the value in it.

First goal would be to get a sharp, well focused image off the bat and to repeat this.

Hadn't thought about the 'puter side of things...
 
People have differing aptitudes, so the route in might have to be tailored experimentally. Dunno about full auto - my idea would be to start with aperture priority, at least for stationary subjects, maybe coupled with auto-iso. That can pretty much look after itself thereafter with minimal intervention. It is also an introduction to the processes involved in camera setup (menus & buttons), before any images are taken.

I would then concentrate on achieving active focus (focus points, modes ...), since in a way this is more crucial than exposure.
 
To expand on my point #2 above......

It is the camera that takes the photograph but the photographer that makes the photograph.

In other words, the camera in & of itself will not take better photos than he currently gets from his phone.......so what are his expectations!
 
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Jungli said:
I've gone out and photographed just one thing again and again to sometimes get out of a creative rut, but it can be hard for a beginner as they may not see the value in it.
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Pointless unless he's interested in that 'one thing'.
Find out what he is interested in and he will hit the ground running.
What appeals to him about the subject ... how would he sell it to someone else ... how might others see it ... produce some photos to reflect each option.
 
Jungli said:
getting him off full auto quickly to semi would be the early quick wins.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't go that way, myself. The best rule to stick to is: "let the student guide the teacher". When your friend asks how to use non-auto modes, that's the time to help him do so,
 
gramps said:
Pointless unless he's interested in that 'one thing'.
Find out what he is interested in and he will hit the ground running.
Click to expand...
This ^^^ , particularly since you say he’s ‘older’. It’s often difficult to find what will ‘click’ with new technology, not just cameras, and doing something you are already interested in is often the key that unlocks the door.

Maybe finding some of his phone photographs that he likes (or is dissatisfied with) and ‘improving’ on them?
 
If he's new to 'proper cameras' then the first thing to do is show him what everything on the camera does. I'm guessing he already knows what he wants to photograph or he wouldn't want to move on from his phone.

Maybe stick it in Program mode to start with to take as much thinking about settings away as possible but retain some control.Most importantly keeping shutter speeds high enough to prevent blurry images. Sharp pictures are important when starting out as they are the first sign that the 'proper camera' really is better than a phone camera. I've seen lots of photos spolied by too slow a shutter speed from people who have bought a 'proper camera' to get better pictures.

Once he's confident using the camera you can start to get technical with the aperture and shutter speed guff, and the composition nonsense.

K.I.S.S.
 
gramps said:
Pointless unless he's interested in that 'one thing'.
Find out what he is interested in and he will hit the ground running.
What appeals to him about the subject ... how would he sell it to someone else ... how might others see it ... produce some photos to reflect each option.
Click to expand...
Sorry should have made myself clear, I've done that sometimes to force me to get creative.

I wouldn't do that to him, yes, absolutely photograph what you like it's a good motivator.

Agree also get sharp photos first as that is a general expectation for beginners they want to see something better than phone.

P mode and Av mode are good places to start to get him thinking.

Exposure triangle is a good shout too.
 
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Any merit in deconstructing a photo he likes and showing him how to do this, appreciate equipment and lighting limitations?
 
Jungli said:
Any merit in deconstructing a photo he likes and showing him how to do this, appreciate equipment and lighting limitations?
Click to expand...
In my opinion - no.

That's the point of letting him go out, take a lot of pictures and then choose the 3 he likes most and the 3 he likes the least. It's a process of supporting him as he finds what he wants and never a process of telling him what you think he should want.
 
Jungli said:
Any merit in deconstructing a photo he likes and showing him how to do this, appreciate equipment and lighting limitations?
Click to expand...
I don’t think there’s any entirely right or wrong way in general — sorry, that’s not very helpful ;(.
 
sphexx said:
I don’t think there’s any entirely right or wrong way in general — sorry, that’s not very helpful ;(.
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True and it's for him to decide what he likes or doesn't.

He's keen as I've already had a text off him this morning.

So build on that enthusiasm.
 
I think there are two aspects... the mechanics of using the camera, and then the photographic eye.

It sounds like he is keen to use a DSLR camera, so I'd be inclined to start with the exposure triangle too. Getting the right amount of light is a good starting point.
 
Jungli said:
True and it's for him to decide what he likes or doesn't.

He's keen as I've already had a text off him this morning.

So build on that enthusiasm.
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It sound like a case of finding out what he wants of you (and the camera) and nurturing him along..................but being conscious of managing his expectations whilst allowing him & free full scope for his enthusiasm to develop :)
 
I recently did this with a daughter-in-law, but we started with her cell phone.

1. Getting her to learn where to place subjects in the Sunlight, so you can see their faces. (She had a tendency to want the Sun behind them)
2. Using the built-in flash to light their faces when she does want the Sun behind them.
3. Appreciating early morning and evening photo times when the Sun is low in the sky.
4. Appreciating overcast days and it's even lighting.
5. Understanding where to position the most important part of the photo when it's being taken (Rule of Thirds - but I hate rules, so don't call it that)
6. Learning to look at a possible shot, before the shot, and learning what camera position would produce the best shot of that scene or person. Then, taking the photos from each position to look at later to understand which is best.

I think she is going to need a repeat of some of this. She is a bit too set in her ways.

She will be using one of my DSLRs after she learns all of this well, but illness has delayed class #2 . We will also be starting in "Auto" mode, then trying different settings, and only moving on to the next when the first is understood.

Charley
 
That's great, @CharleyL it's different learning rates, styles for everyone. Being set in our ways is something we all need to be mindful of.
 
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Bebop said:
I think there are two aspects... the mechanics of using the camera, and then the photographic eye.
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For some genres, there's a third aspect - the timing of the shot. That's pretty much all the genres with people in, for a start.
 
Pound Coin said:
For some genres, there's a third aspect - the timing of the shot. That's pretty much all the genres with people in, for a start.
Click to expand...
True, perhaps I'd be better saying the mechanics of it and the art of it, and I'd consider the timing to be part of the art of it.
 
I like to separate them, lots of times I've had well composed, well exposed shots, just taken at the wrong time!
 
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