Digital Photography Class or book

I am fairly new at photography and would like to know if there is a good book (easy) or online class to help me learn about f/stops and apertures. That is so confusing to me! I want to learn how to use my camera without using the automatic mode!
Thanks

http://www.cliffshade.com/dpfwiw/ is a good place to start, though you might also browse internet.com for a photo site.

Basically, f/stops are a ratio of the size of the lens and the aperture. So if you have an f/2 the shutter is open 1/2 the diameter of the lens. f/16 means the shutter is open 1/16th of the diameter of the lens.

Generally, the larger the opening or aperture, the smaller the "circle of confusion" and thus the more shallow the depth of field. But this also relates to the actual size of the lens. 35mm lenses are different than medium format (which is obviously larger) and of course digital (which is smaller).

So f/4 in a consumer camera, like the Canon G1 that I use, is comparable to a f/22 in a 35mm, and this relates to the actual size--not the 35mm equivalent. Equivalent is 34-102mm, but actual is 7-21mm. The smaller the lens, the smaller the opening, or aperture, and therefore the greater the depth of field.

Good luck,

ms

kwood said:

I am fairly new at photography and would like to know if there is a
good book (easy) or online class to help me learn about f/stops and
apertures. That is so confusing to me! I want to learn how to use
my camera without using the automatic mode!
Thanks

Click to expand...

Here's a couple of good online 'courses':
From Agfa:

http://www.agfanet.com/en/cafe/photocourse/classiccourse/i.php3

ShortCourses:

http://www.shortcourses.com

Have Fun! Shoot a LOT of pictures - the best way to learn!

Bill

You might try:
http://www.diynet.com/
In the search, put in Digital cameras.

kwood said:

I am fairly new at photography and would like to know if there is a
good book (easy) or online class to help me learn about f/stops and
apertures. That is so confusing to me! I want to learn how to use
my camera without using the automatic mode!
Thanks

Click to expand...

--StacyJay

Here's an excellent online book:

http://www.photocourse.com/

kwood said:

I am fairly new at photography and would like to know if there is a
good book (easy) or online class to help me learn about f/stops and
apertures. That is so confusing to me! I want to learn how to use
my camera without using the automatic mode!
Thanks

Click to expand...

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1010&message=2182224

check this link -- has an extensive list of resources

A personal recommendation to you is the National Geographic Photography Field Guide. It is an excellent book!

Gene Wilburn said:

kwood said:

I am fairly new at photography and would like to know if there is a
good book (easy) or online class to help me learn about f/stops and
apertures. That is so confusing to me! I want to learn how to use
my camera without using the automatic mode!
Thanks

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

--Keep on shooting!Lisa

I found your f/stop info very helpful. Where did you get this information. I have tried to find a comparison sheet that would show both the digital lens and the 35mm f/stop equivalent. I currently have the Olympus C4040 which has a range of 1.8 to 10. I am new to digital photography so I was a bit disapointed that I would not be able to have the same range as 35mm lenses. You always see the lens equivalence but I have never seen an aperature comparison. If you know of any internet site that would have more detailed information on this, please let me know.

Dianne

[email protected] said:

So f/4 in a consumer camera, like the Canon G1 that I use, is
comparable to a f/22 in a 35mm, and this relates to the actual
size--not the 35mm equivalent. Equivalent is 34-102mm, but actual
is 7-21mm. The smaller the lens, the smaller the opening, or
aperture, and therefore the greater the depth of field.

Good luck,

ms

kwood said:

I am fairly new at photography and would like to know if there is a
good book (easy) or online class to help me learn about f/stops and
apertures. That is so confusing to me! I want to learn how to use
my camera without using the automatic mode!
Thanks

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

Here's a good site where you can try different f-stop and shutter speed combinations and see the resulting effect on the picture.

http://www.88.com/exposure/simcam.htm

This site also has an interesting tutorial, although I've not worked through the whole course. I suspect that working though it will give a pretty good understanding of aperture/shutter speed relationships.
--More people are caused by accidents than are killed by them.