Belt and braces stuff for a true novice!!

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BoNidel

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Well, I took the plunge and treat myself to an entry level DSLR, I went for a Canon EOS 1000D in the end, partly because of the price, and partly because I have the offer of a loan of a few lenses, so I have come in at the lower end so as not to break the bank, and allow me a few quid spare for a decent memory card and a decent case to keep it all in.

Now for the nitty gritty of the matter, I'm hoping (weather permitting) to take my new purchase on it's maiden outing at the weekend, my daughter is in a dance school, and she has competition on Saturday, and I've become a kind of the unofficially official photographer for the whole school!!

I've managed well enough over the last couple of years with a Sony Cybershot compact, and usually achieved results that satisfy evrybody, but I have developed the urge to move onwards and upwards ever so slightly, and it is to this end that I seek all and any advice available, because I'd like to make the best of this opportunity that I can.

So, what I'm asking for is some advice on how I should be looking to set my camera up, I've got it working, and I've snapped a few shots of the kids with the default settings, and I'm happy enough with them, but when I come to photograph this dance competition on Saturday things will be slightly different.

For a start, it's outdoors (hence the weather dependancy) and obviously, as it's a dance competition, there will be a lot of movement, and there are a loy of really bright colours and reflective materials (should it be sunny that is) and I'm looking for some tips to try and get me the best results possible in these conditions.

I can try and post up a couple of sample shots, to show the kind of things I will be aiming to take if it is at all helpful. I'll be shooting with an 18-55mm lens kit, the standard lens that came with the camera.

I realise that differing light conditions may dictate different settings, but I'm looking for settings first and foremost to deal with shots that will contain a fair bit of movement.

Thanks in advance for all and any advice that anybody can offer.
 
Basically just keep on messing around I'd say, and read around. You say theres gonna be some fast moving, well then to avoid motion blur use the Tv setting and put it up to 1/100 of a second or faster, then take some photos and look at them, and if need be adjust the exposure compensation according to whether the photo appears to be too bright or too dark. If your gonna go a bit creative instead, slow down the shutter speed for the motion trails of kids running around etc. just keep changing things thinking, 'ooo i wonder what that will do' worked (hopefully) for me :)
 
If its going to be your first proper shot in the world of SLR photography, given the nature of the event you may want to shoot in full auto mode until you are 100% confident with the camera.
That said, if you are feeling a little creative then Av (aperture priority) and Tv (Shutter priority) modes will be your friend.

Few other things to bear in mind, set your white balance in line with the conditions you are shooting in i.e. sunny, cloudy, tungsten, flash etc.
Depending on the speed the kids move at and how much they move will dictate whether you have your camera set too AI focus or AI servo.
Finally, if your in Av mode, watch your depth of field. Fast shutter speed means shallow depth of field (unless you increase your ISO to compensate a higher F number, which may or may not be appropriate to you.

Other than that just shoot loads of photo's, try not to worry about the settings to much.
 
I shot a Taekwondo event at the weekend (my first I might add , so i'm no expert) I had to use shutter speeds of 1/250 1/300 and quicker to freeze the action ,

how dancing compares to taekwondo regarding speed of movement i'm not sure , but if you're outdoors with plenty of light then high shutter speeds should be achievable

one thing i would advise is to keep checking on your LCD panel and zooming in on shots you have taken to make sure the motion is frozen and not blurred
 
If you were always happy with the results from your compact, take that and take a few photos with it as this is your first real use. I am 100% certain your 1000D can take better pictures than it, and in a couple of weeks you wouldn't consider going to the compact, but the last thing you want is to come home and find pictures you aren't happy with. As the thread title says - belt and braces.

Beyond that...

Take as many shots as you can before you go - especially outside in similar light and play with it - play with different modes, read the manual, try different settings and get it as close to ideal as you can. Get your daughter to practice outside maybe?
 
not pro by any means, but you may want to use a flash to help freeze the motion and use as fill light if its outdoors.
 
i've used that camera, you should be ok to boost the iso anything up to iso 800 if you are (REALLY) struggling with light conditions, but remember, don't just do this anyway - always keep the iso as low as possible.

I would use AV mode and open it up to full aperture to get a bit of background separation and then just adjust iso to suit the light. You probably want 1/150s and faster to freeze the dancing
 
Thanks folks, I appreciate the input, I guess I'll be spending as much time as I can between now and then snapping away to see what I can achieve, without trying to be too clever.

I think the advice to take the compact and snap a few just in case is a great idea, I planned taking it, but I doubt I would have gotten it out once I had the new SLR in my hands, lol.

I've done a little bit of reading up today, and thankfully I'm not too bamboozled by the advice as I feared I might be!!!

I just have to pray that the weather is kind now........

Thanks again.
 
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