Careful when giving advice to beginners

[AndyB]

You need to consider how serious you are about learning then, expecting forum members to 'spoonfeed' you will result in no compounded learning taking place and I suspect a few hacked of forum members.

I accept the point you make here but what you need to remember is different people learn in different ways. What works for you might not be effective for someone else. That doesn't make either of them wrong but each much understand the difference and accept it

 

[drodd]

Well done to the Mods and other members who are in agreement.

I am a newbie here (althought the amount of chatting I have done since inception seems to be promoting me up the ranks )

It is so comforting to know that their are peeps like the Mods, taking care of us vulnerable newbies Thanks!

This is something posted to my memory bank, and I will bear this in mind if I get flack from another (which I hope won't happen).

I have only been with TP for a short time (although it feels like forever already as I have had so much fun and gained so much advice, and even formed some very valuable friendships, not to mention purchasing my first dslr!)

I love this forum and it has become a very valuable part of my day!

Looking forward to many more days of happy TP'ing

Dawn
(quite chatty) hahaha

 

[Holden Caulfield]

I accept the point you make here but what you need to remember is different people learn in different ways

Yes in teaching we call it 'differentiation' the point I am making is that tutorials do not have to be from a book there are some very good youtube videos, camera clubs and collegies that provide good solid instruction.

I have seen quite a few college learners on these forums trying to get other forum members to do their homework , one even wanted help with her degree!!!

To put it another way , when you have somone asking 'what does ISO mean?' what is realy being asked is I am to lazy to google it ,let some forum member tell me.

Perhaps the next time we see the question 'what is ISO' perhaps the best collective response may be 'google what is ISO' , it may save us a lot of time

 

[blert596]

Its not an open and shut case really is it? There's no definitive answer to the question.

I've read up about ISo/SS/Aperture on various threads here, on other forums, and through pages of google searches.

If I still didn't understand it the purely out of respect I would ask the question more specifically, stating that I had at least tried to dig a bit myself. 2 weeks ago I had no idea what any of these terms meant. Now, through this site, and others I have a good "technical" understanding of them all.

However, that doesnt mean I know how and when to use them, so I would still be asking questions about them in the beginners forum.

An example is DOF. I understand the settings involved and how it changes, but I really don't know wht settings, when composing a shot, depending on multiple variables, I should "almost automatically" be thinking of setting.

I realise the DOF depends on many variables (I spent an hour shootin our cat on different settings trying to get my head round it ), let alone trying to get my head round deciding what settings to do on a different lens to get the same effect.

the whole of photography is very personal and subjective. And wildly variable depending on kit/lighting/scene/action etc. So there's always gonna be questions that others find annoyingly basic/repeated.

But surely thats the great thing about a beginners forum. I have learnt a lot more from following 3 or 4 different peoples answers to the exact same question asked by different people. As opposed to a simple black and white answer from one person, that I didnt understand.

Beginners forums are a great place. The answer that really irritates me the most is "search is your friend". Search when you dont really know the forum, or your subject 100% is not always easy and can be very frustrating.

If people are bothered to type that answer then they should (IMO) at least follow it up with an example link. Or don't bother at all.

just my take on things on what is a very good site.

 

[drodd]

Hi Billy, you are talking about stuff I haven't even got to yet, lol, so I hope I get a good response when I finally get going here (that is once I get my cam this week) because after that there is going to be lots of posting and I just hope that I am not going to get negative response.

Afterall, I view this forum as one where we can learn from those who have more experience! Unfortunately, as in any situation, there are those who seem too loose perspective of where they originate from and tend to get 'big headed about it all', which is very sad!

But they are hopefuly far few and I am hoping that the majority of members (experienced and novice) here will be helpful and open minded (and even more so not beyond themselves).

Afterall, I think the most experienced photographer would still go down on bended knee to learn from a fellow photographer (no matter how great or advanced they may be)!!!

And that is what I hope to achieve from by being part of this forum.

Good Luck

Dawn

 

[Holden Caulfield]

earch when you dont really know the forum, or your subject 100% is not always easy and can be very frustrating.

So how do you know that what you are being told by forum members is acurate?

Most of what was reffered to in your thread was actually very easy to find and very concise via an internet search.

I suspect that this part of the forum will become like a ghost town as members get fed up with answering questions repatedly or not answer very simple questions that can easely be found with with thoughtfull web search.

One classic example is the constant question that get asked in the Canon Lens section In Dpreview ' which is better 24-105 zoom or the 24-70 L the question has been asked so much than anyone asking gets eaither satcastic replys on the lines of do a web search or h hyperlink to the same question answered.

This is my last comment on the subject , I will continue to support thoughtfull questions posted on other areas of the forum but will not contibute on this area as I beleive that 'lazy posterws will try to get forum members to 'think' for them.

To make my point will refer to this comment regarding ISO :-

Its not an open and shut case really is it? There's no definitive answer to the question.

Yes their is it is a scentific fact with only one answer

 

[david1701]

Afterall, I think the most experienced photographer would still go down on bended knee to learn from a fellow photographer (no matter how great or advanced they may be)!!!

only the better ones

So how do you know that what you are being told by forum members is acurate?

I suspect that this part of the forum will become like a ghost town as members get fed up with answering questions repatedly or not answer very simple questions that can easely be found with with thoughtfull web search.

One classic example is the constant question that get asked in the Canon Lens section In Dpreview ' which is better 24-105 zoom or the 24-70 L the question has been asked so much than anyone asking gets eaither satcastic replys on the lines of do a web search or h hyperlink to the same question answered.

You don't individually, but a consensus suggests truth. It also makes a great basis for learning and experimentation.

If it does it will be closed and discarded, I don't think it will but either way its worthy of experimentation (and I guess the admin think so too seeing as they made it)

well talk photography is a better forum than dpreview, so it won't here

 

[drodd]

hmmm, I must say that is the one thing that I think (as a newbie) is lacking here, a sort of search querie. There have been times when I wanted to search for a particular subject or topic, but don't know how to find it without sifting through loads of threads! Maybe something for the mods/develepers to consider, a 'quick search'!!!!

 

[Splog]

This is my last comment on the subject , I will continue to support thoughtfull questions posted on other areas of the forum but will not contibute on this area as I beleive that 'lazy posterws will try to get forum members to 'think' for them.

Hi Should I buy Nikon or Canon lenses for my Olympus camera?

 

[Holden Caulfield]

but a consensus suggests truth

I thought that imperical evidence suggest truth,:rules:

 

[Holden Caulfield]

Hi Should I buy Nikon or Canon lenses for my Olympus camera?

Yes almost certainly

 

[akr]

hmmm, I must say that is the one thing that I think (as a newbie) is lacking here, a sort of search querie. There have been times when I wanted to search for a particular subject or topic, but don't know how to find it without sifting through loads of threads! Maybe something for the mods/develepers to consider, a 'quick search'!!!!

Have a read of this - there is a search function or you can try the google search through this site for words with 3 letters or less http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=196127

Don't be afraid to ask though, plenty of people willing to help on this forum

 

[Dogfish_magnet]

hmmm, I must say that is the one thing that I think (as a newbie) is lacking here, a sort of search querie. There have been times when I wanted to search for a particular subject or topic, but don't know how to find it without sifting through loads of threads! Maybe something for the mods/develepers to consider, a 'quick search'!!!!

You could always read the sticky at the top of this very forum.

 

[david1701]

hmmm, I must say that is the one thing that I think (as a newbie) is lacking here, a sort of search querie. There have been times when I wanted to search for a particular subject or topic, but don't know how to find it without sifting through loads of threads! Maybe something for the mods/develepers to consider, a 'quick search'!!!!

also look up and you can use the built in search (which is a bit pants)

 

[drodd]

Thanks, tried that, but not got me far, but I persevere

 

[david1701]

Thanks, tried that, but not got me far, but I persevere

like I say its pants, a quirk of vb coded forums

tried the google one?

they drop silly money on the maths that powers the search so tend to be a little better (though I've never tried subsearching with it before)

 

[akr]

I suspect that this part of the forum will become like a ghost town as members get fed up with answering questions repatedly or not answer very simple questions that can easely be found with with thoughtfull web search.

Whilst I suspect this will be partially true and some members will cease answering 'simple questions' as you call them, some will continue to, and others who were originally asking will now be able to answer in turn as they have gained experienced.

On a personal note I remember when I first started and how helpful forums were in explaining simple things which, when you start with an overload of information can be a bit daunting. I read the manual, read some books, did some searches but just having people explain it makes all the difference to some bits. I know enjoy being able to help on some bits, and hope in the future to be able to pass on to others some of what I've learned. That's why this form is so good IMHO.

 

[akr]

Thanks, tried that, but not got me far, but I persevere

not sure if you meant the google bit, that always works fairly well for me, here's the example from the other thread

Another way is to go to google and type the following in the search box:

site:talkphotography.co.uk

then add a space and what you want to search for - no minimum number of characters

site:talkphotography.co.uk 7D and ISO


would search for threads containing 7D AND iso