Just so you know where I'm coming from, I have a Canon EOS 20D, with 1785mm f/45.6 (came with the body), 70200mm f/2.8 IS, and 1022mm f/3.54.5 (bought here on MacRumors) lenses. I'm not a professional photographer, but am very passionate about taking pictures and improving my skills. For example, this (northern) summer I will be going on a photography course/tour in the Australian outback, and am very much looking forward to it.
The impression that you've given so far of yourself, Evan, is that you don't know all that much about the more technical aspects of digital photography. You know 'I want my photos to look like this', but you don't really know how technically to achieve the effects you're after. You've found photos you like on Flickr, and have looked at the bodies used to take those photos. That's fine as far as it goes, but you should understandas others have variously pointed outthat the specifications of a camera aren't what make the photo. The well-worn adage goes 'it's not the camera that takes the photo, it's the photographer!', and while I have got slightly sick of hearing that, nevertheless it remains true.
I'm not going to discourage you from your quest to get an SLR. However, I would encourage you to learn as much as possible about the technical facets of (digital) photography, both in-camera (effective exposure, creative framing, shake, filters, flashboth on- and off-camera) and post-processing (the advantages of shooting raw over JPEG, creative effects in Photoshop, perhaps whether Aperture or Lightroom are suitable for you, etc.). By doing proper research into photography rather than just into equipment, you'll be in a far better position to appreciate how to achieve what you want to do.
I am gathering a library of photography books. One that I would really recommend to you is Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson (currently $14.97 USD on Amazon). That book is very clearly written, and is quite extensive on theory and practice, both basic and slightly more advanced. You say it'll be a while before you buy any equipment. My recommendation is that you buy this book and read it now, so that you begin to get an idea of photographic technique, rather than continuing to think, 'I'll buy a really good (read: expensive) camera and will propter hoc take really good photographs'.
I hope this sounds reasonable. I'm not trying to 'rain on your parade' or to discourage you, but rather to dissuade you from jumping into the wild world of photography without appreciating what you will and won't be able to do.
Of course, for the moment, I would recommend that you carry on using your point-and-shoot in any and all situations, experiment with framing, play with software, see what you can achieve as things currently stand.
The impression that you've given so far of yourself, Evan, is that you don't know all that much about the more technical aspects of digital photography. You know 'I want my photos to look like this', but you don't really know how technically to achieve the effects you're after. You've found photos you like on Flickr, and have looked at the bodies used to take those photos. That's fine as far as it goes, but you should understandas others have variously pointed outthat the specifications of a camera aren't what make the photo. The well-worn adage goes 'it's not the camera that takes the photo, it's the photographer!', and while I have got slightly sick of hearing that, nevertheless it remains true.
I'm not going to discourage you from your quest to get an SLR. However, I would encourage you to learn as much as possible about the technical facets of (digital) photography, both in-camera (effective exposure, creative framing, shake, filters, flashboth on- and off-camera) and post-processing (the advantages of shooting raw over JPEG, creative effects in Photoshop, perhaps whether Aperture or Lightroom are suitable for you, etc.). By doing proper research into photography rather than just into equipment, you'll be in a far better position to appreciate how to achieve what you want to do.
I am gathering a library of photography books. One that I would really recommend to you is Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson (currently $14.97 USD on Amazon). That book is very clearly written, and is quite extensive on theory and practice, both basic and slightly more advanced. You say it'll be a while before you buy any equipment. My recommendation is that you buy this book and read it now, so that you begin to get an idea of photographic technique, rather than continuing to think, 'I'll buy a really good (read: expensive) camera and will propter hoc take really good photographs'.
I hope this sounds reasonable. I'm not trying to 'rain on your parade' or to discourage you, but rather to dissuade you from jumping into the wild world of photography without appreciating what you will and won't be able to do.
Of course, for the moment, I would recommend that you carry on using your point-and-shoot in any and all situations, experiment with framing, play with software, see what you can achieve as things currently stand.
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