# Super Excited!!



## Lisablueeyes (Dec 9, 2012)

Hi All,
  I'm a newbie to thedslr world.. Santa came early for me. I just received the Canon T3I!! WootwootI'm so excited to starting using it... As a newbie its a little overwhelming...So I have the manual in hand and sitting back doing a little reading! Any advicefor me would be great.

Thanks,
Lisa


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## thetrue (Dec 9, 2012)

Read that manual. Four times. Then read it again. Then take a ton of photos, put them on TPF to learn what isn't working, read the manual again, take more pictures and keep learning.  Welcome to TPF!


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## spang1mw (Dec 9, 2012)

Welcome!
My advice would be to go out and shoot as much as possible and to enjoy it! Every time try to learn something new or try a different function with your camera!


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## tagan (Dec 9, 2012)

Congrats on the camera!  I am in the same boat as you - I recently purchased a new DSLR and was a bit overwhelmed at first.  My suggestions are to read the manual as you are, buy a more detailed book on your camera (Canon T3i for Dummies or similar), and start shooting!  Become familiar with your camera and all of the functions it has.  Look at the pictures you shoot and see if there are any glaring issues (objects out of focus, under/over exposed, etc) and work on fixing those.  Post photos on these forums and get some critique from the other users here.  It definitely helps to have more eyes look at your photos

Also, if you are into reading, I would recommend picking up some books on digital photography and on photography in general.  I have been reading "The Digital Photography Book" (Parts 1 through 4) by Scott Kelby as well as "Understanding Composition" by Bryan Peterson.  They are both great reads and they definitely help things "click". 

Enjoy the new camera!


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## jaomul (Dec 9, 2012)

enjoy


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## Derrel (Dec 9, 2012)

Sweet!!! New d-slr!!!!!!!!!


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## bunny99123 (Dec 9, 2012)

Buy a book especially for your camera, because the manual just covers an outline of what you need to know.  Be amazed what you learn your camera can do when you read a book about it.  So, happy for you!  I got my camera last year!  Read, practice, read, practice......


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## IByte (Dec 9, 2012)

I would look into Magic Lantern series.  The manual that comes with the camera is like watching death-by Powerpoint lol.  Welcome aboard btw.


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## boborone (Dec 9, 2012)

Shooting with the Canon Rebel T3i (600D and Kiss X5) | Video Tutorial from lynda.com


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## TamiAz (Dec 9, 2012)

Congratulations...My advice is to read, practice, read, practice, read, practice and read some more then practice some more!!


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## pgriz (Dec 10, 2012)

Some things won't make any sense until you've got a little first-hand experience.  So effective learning is an iterative process:  learn the basics (where the on-switch is, where to put the batteries, how to look at the pictures you took, where the bathroom is...)  then go back to the manual and read the next few pages, shoot a bunch more, read the manual a bit more...  often after some weeks or months of practice, you start at the beginning, and discover that you missed/glossed over a lot of useful information.  That's normal.  Once you have the basic mechanics figured out, you can start focusing on the fun stuff - composing, looking for neat stuff, etc.  And each time you get into a new (well, new to you) area, it helps to get additional info from places like this forum, from specialized books, and from community courses that are often offered.  Joining a photo club can really jump-start your progression, especially if they have mentoring sessions and workshops, but be prepared to work at these as usually the people doing them are very experienced enthusiasts.  Also remember that new lenses (or other gear for that matter), while fun, won't magically make your images incredible, so save your pennies for equipment purchases that are truly adding to your capabilities, when you get there.  Photography can be an expensive hobby.


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## mishele (Dec 10, 2012)

Lisablueeyes said:


> Any advicefor me would be great.
> Thanks,
> Lisa


Wait til after Christmas to go Pro and start charging. :thumbup:
Kidding aside, congrats on the new camera! HAVE FUN!!


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## CP1 (Dec 11, 2012)

congrats! go out and have fun with it! my #1 piece of advice is to get familiar with all of the controls, and learn to shoot in manual mode only!!


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## Lisablueeyes (Dec 11, 2012)

CP1 said:


> congrats! go out and have fun with it! my #1 piece of advice is to get familiar with all of the controls, and learn to shoot in manual mode only!!



Hmmm shoot in manual only... LOL I'm afraid of my camera!! I'll be taking it out this weekend to test it out!


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## JordanD (Dec 15, 2012)

use manual mode to start off it will make your future easier!


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## Steve5D (Dec 16, 2012)

spang1mw said:


> Welcome!
> My advice would be to go out and shoot as much as possible and to enjoy it! Every time try to learn something new or try a different function with your camera!



I can't think of any better advice than that.

When I was learning Photoshop, I went to a friend, who's a Photoshop savant, and asked him for help. He asked me what I already knew how to do, an I told him. He said "Okay, tomorrow, learn something new. Teach yourself how to do something, and then practice it until you've got it down cold. Thn teach yourself another new thing".

It was the bet advice I've ever received.

Just apply that to learning your camera...


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## KmH (Dec 16, 2012)

If you don't study your camera user's manual, the camera likely has features, functions, and capabilities you will never know are available for you to use.


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## TheKenTurner (Dec 16, 2012)

Hmm. I thought the T3i would become a forgotten camera because it's between the T2i, 60D, and T4i. But I keep heating about people buying them, which makes me happy! Have fun with your new camera, it can do AMAZING things.

-Ken Turner


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