Attached Link: A first try

Well, not new to 'rosity, but very definitely new to photography! I just got a digital camera for Christmas and am trying to figure the thing out (Olympus Camedia D-150), up till now my photographic experience has consisted of Instamatics and Polaroids, so I obviously have a lot to learn. Hope y'all will put up with my questions and pleas for assistance - and maybe someday I'll be far enough along to offer help to a fresh crop of newbies! :-) Just put two of my first attempts up in the gallery - any comments and suggestions would be greatly appreciated - and thank you in advance for the help and knowledge available here! :-)

Thanks, Alpha! I think you're right and I was just on the edge - in looking more at the manual (as my daughter says, always read the "destructions") I think I should have shot it in the macro mode - I was about the same distance away when I shot the cat (figuratively, of course, LOL) using macro and the focus in that one is much better. This is the first camera I've ever had that gave me any sort of zoom capabilities, while I'm having a wonderful time with it, I've got a lot of figuring out to do....so I expect you'll be seeing a lot of me here! :-)

Hi Sweetwon, great to see you in this forum! Loved the photo of your cat, and the 'thinking' shot was really good for one of your first goes at your digital, even if it wasn't intended, the soft-focus look quite suited the image. Keep on asking questions here, because Alpha, Syyd and the rest of the gang know the biz! (and have fun taking lots of shots with your new camera!)

Great to see you here, I love the "destructions" comment.... Keep posting, hang out in here, its a great bunch of people... Fire away we will all jump in and help with whatever we can! Syyd

Very good first try! :) Welcome here! This is a great plase to hang out! Yes, I think you're right about the macro use. Also, What I do is that I always shoot with the max quality. That leaves me a lot less storing capacity, - but then again it gives me a lot more to "work with" when I'm back home, - photoshopping. In my example below, - the virgin and child, the original file size is almost 3 mg's. The one I posted here is taken down in picture quality (and size), - for faster loading. I still have the original jpg (My Sony's native file format), - but I have a "better" original, saved as a .tiff file. If you use a jpg and save, - open it again, - edit, - save etc... you will end up with a very poor quality. So keep your originals as tiffs. Good shooting, - and congratulations with your new camera! :) Britt

Thanks for the tips - I always save my Poser renders as tiffs, but it hadn't occurred to me to carry it over into the photographs! :-P Now that I've got the Christmas snapshots out of the way, I'm planning to use my "super high quality" as a general rule, since I've got a CDR and a million blank discs, I'm not too concerned about file size, and do want some good quality to work with! BTW, I love your virgin and child, very beautiful image!

Heya, and welcome to the group. ...about the pic, I again agree Alpha, eyes should be sharp. Now, when you have digital, shoot as much as you can, so you will get familiar with your cameras capabilities. Shoot in different distances, different lights, anything you can figure. And many times, photo is just a start. You have PSP, so the fun really starts there. You can explore b&w photography, can correct colors, sharpen pic, blurr pic, adjust contrasts and tweak your pic in unlimited ways, combine Poser and photography. Only limit is your imagination. Fly high, dive deep, and share it with forum, with us. .n

Hi, Sweets! Hope you enjoy it here! The only advice I will add is that as soon as you are taking what you consider to be decent shots, stop using 'Auto' mode all the time and start playing with those camera's manual features! No kidding, it's more fun that you could ever imagine! (",) Mike

Thanks to you all for the very warm welcome, and the wonderful advice and encouragement! I have waited almost 3 years to get a "real" camera that would give me some control over what I was doing and am having a marvelous time with it - I have so many things I want to do ("when I get my camera, I can....." has been my mantra), and then do again, and then redo, and then try this, and that and the other - my imagination truly is the only limit, and since I have a very vivid imagination, I see no limits at all! :-)