Well, like, I don't know where to begin, man.

My advice is that before you lay out 500 bucks on a expensive camera, you need to look at what you want to do with photography. If you want hassle-free snaps of your friends, many of the point-and-shoot (P&S) cameras on the market will do fine, and buying an expensive SLR will be, quite simply, a waste of your money. It never amazes me how many people can spend thousands of dollars on camera gear just to take the same pictures that they could have taken with a $99 P&S. I mean, if you're going to spend all that money on gear, then why not use it at the limits of its performance? On the other hand, P&S cameras have their advantages over SLRs, such as size and convenience; and some pros use them when being unobtrusive is an advantage.

I personally own two P&S cameras; there are just some times when you don't want to lug all that stuff around with you.

So maybe I want to do a little more than just use a P&S. What's the next step up?

OK, so you want to do a little more with your camera than take pictures of your friends at parties. Then you have really examine what you want to do and how you want to do it. If, like many people, you want a camera system that is more versatile than a P&S and produces technically better images but with similar ease-of-use, then probably a 35mm SLR with an "auto" or "program" mode would be good for you.

Often, "auto" modes aren't really fully automatic; they're what's called "aperture-priority." What this means is that the user sets the size of the diaphragm in the lens, and the camera automatically sets the shutter speed to get a technically correct exposure. "Program" modes automatically set both the lens aperture and the shutter speed, while "shutter-priority" mode lets the photographer set the shutter speed while the camera picks the proper lens opening. There are many different sorts of Program modes; they just use different criteria for determining which shutter speeds and apertures to use for any given exposure. For example, a "sports" mode would try to set the fastest possible shutter speed to freeze action, while a "landscape" mode would set the smallest possible lens aperture to maximize depth-of-field.

A good selection of lenses might include a fast 50mm and a 80-200mm zoom, or, if you aren't planning on shooting in low light, a 28-80mm zoom and an 70-210mm zoom. If you really want convenience, you might want to try a 28-200mm zoom, though as a result of trying to squeeze such a large zoom range into a useable package, these tend to have some drawbacks; these include being very slow and having longish minimum focussing distances.

There are several very good but inexpensive cameras that will fit the bill, including the Pentax MZ-M and the Minolta X-370n.

Well, what if I want to really learn about photography?

Well, if you really want to learn about photography, then my advice is to

• get an all-manual camera -- one that works even when the batteries are taken out
• look at the kind of photographs that interest you and try to figure out how and why they work
• take a class in photography
• practice, practice, practice

I'll take these one at a time. First: Why an all-manual camera?

The answer is disconcertingly simple. People learn faster on them. Why? Well, there are four reasons:

• Because they make mistakes. And people learn from their mistakes. I've had several photographs ruined because of exposure errors on my part. But I don't make those mistakes anymore. I make other mistakes, but that's another story.
• Because it makes you think about exposure. With a camera that has an 'Auto' mode, it's all too easy just to flip the switch to 'Auto' and turn your brain off. I know. I've done it. With a manual camera, you have to think about the exposure on every shot.
• All-manual cameras, because of their lack of electronics, tend to be more rugged than more technologically advanced cameras. The reliability of the original Nikon F is the stuff of legend; speaking from personal experience, my K1000 has gone through some pretty hairy moments (i.e. being smashed against volcanic boulders on Java) but still works like new.
• And finally, if you start out with an all-manual camera, then you'll have a reliable backup when your GeeWhiz-9000 craps out on you while you're on assignment (this has happened to me—naturally, your primary body will only break down the one time you don't take your backup).

There are a number of cameras currently manufactured that fit the bill. New all-manual, low-cost 35mm SLRs include, but are not limited to: the Olympus OM2000; the Nikon FM10; and the Yashica FX-3 Super 2000. There's also the used market, where a number of excellent cameras are available at a substantial discount to new models: Nikkormats, Nikon Fs, Canon F1s, Pentax Spotmatics, Pentax MXs, Mamyiaflexes, Pentax K1000s, etc...

I also tend to be catholic when it comes to lens selection for beginning photographers. Start with the standard 50mm lens, then add a wide-angle (24-28mm) and a medium telephoto (105-135mm). Stick with fixed-focal-length lenses, also known as prime lenses. Don't use zooms.

There are three reasons why I don't recommend the use of zooms for beginners.

1. Learning how to frame an image is one of the most important things that a photographer can learn, and the use of zooms isn't conducive to developing discipline in learning that.
2. Because if you move beyond the 35mm format, which most professional photographers (excluding photojournalists, street photographers, and sports photographers) end up doing sooner or later, then you'll be pretty much stuck with prime lenses. And, as far as I know, there are no zooms available for large-format work. So you might as well develop the skills from the start.
3. Virtually every zoom changes focal length as it's focused. Not by much, admittedly, but it's there.

There are some people who think that this sort of list is Luddite in nature. I prefer to think of it as a fundamental approach, a sort of back-to-basics. And there's one more reason to avoid labor-saving devices when learning how to become a photographer: the more you think about a shot, the better it will be. Messing around with shutter speeds, f-stops, and framing the subject without a zoom lens gives you the time to think about it, and lets you internalize some of the process.

Sometimes people don't want to learn about f-stops and shutter speeds. That's like trying to learn how to paint without learning about brushes and paints. It's like trying to be a chef without learning about knife technique. Shutter speed and f-stops are the primary tools availible to a photographer in manipulating their image in the camera.

Why should I look at pictures of other photographers?

Well, one reason is so that you can identify what sort of photography you want to do. To be honest, there are about as many different kinds of photography as there are photographers. The great photographers all developed their own distinct styles; to the trained eye, a Ritts is as different from an Adams as a van Gogh is from a da Vinci.

The point, then, is to learn how the photographers you admire put their work together, to learn how to emulate it, and then to develop your own style. It sounds simple, doesn't it?

From a more practical standpoint, though, learning what sort of photography you like and want to do will also determine the nature of the equipment you use. If you want to do landscape photography, you'll probably end up using a large-format camera. For studio portraiture or stock photography, probably some sort of medium-format system. Photojournalists favor 35mm SLRs almost exclusively, while fine-art photographers use whatever lets them express themselves best (that they can afford).

Classes: What about natural talent?

Natural talent is all well and fine... but even geniuses need guidance. Taking a class will do several things:

• it will give you the technical background that you'll need. You'll learn (or you should learn) about things like f-stops, shutter speeds, film speeds, pushing & pulling film, development, enlarging, printing, and the like.
• you'll get to see the the work of other people in the class, and hopefully, you'll be able to swap ideas and techniques.
• You'll get solid feedback from the instructor, who should be able help you refine and define your work. Admittedly, there are some instructors out there who wouldn't know good photography if it came up and bit them on the butt, but they tend to be very much in the minority.

The key, though, is to get in an environment where you do nothing but think about photography (if only for two or three hours a week).

Look at it this way: you wouldn't try to learn how to play a musical instrument (like, say, the clarinet) without taking lessons, would you?

Practice, practice, practice... that one's fairly self-evident. But what sort of film should I use?

I would recommend starting with slide film. With slide film, mistakes in exposure show up right on the slide -- with print film (particularly color print film), exposure errors are often covered up in the printing process. While I personally prefer Kodachrome, I wouldn't recommend it for a beginner because of the long processing time. E-6 process film like Ektachrome or any of the Fujichrome films can be processed same-day in every large city (and many no-so-large cities), while Kodachrome is almost always has to be sent to a lab out of town.

If you want to shoot black and white, then I'd have to suggest starting with Kodak Tri-X or Ilford HP5+. Classic choices, both.

October 13, 2002