new 70D and off to the Grand Canyon any tips?

[Renob]

Hello all,

got me a shiny new kit from Sam's with the 70D with a 18-55 and 55-250, I'm new to DSLR but not to point and shots so I have been taking pics a long time but always on the auto setting...

will be trying out some of my own setting while at the Canyon if you had to offer one tip for a noob like me what would it be..

Gear:
70D with battery grip.
32gig and 64gig mem
extra batteries
tripod
circular polarizer
Amazon remote
Lowepro LP36505-PWW Photo Sport Pro 30L Camera Backpack

 

[CuriousMike]

10 Shoot in the early morning
20 Shoot in the early evening
30 GOTO 10

 

[EOM]

Hello all,

got me a shiny new kit from Sam's with the 70D with a 18-55 and 55-250, I'm new to DSLR but not to point and shots so I have been taking pics a long time but always on the auto setting...

will be trying out some of my own setting while at the Canyon if you had to offer one tip for a noob like me what would it be..

Gear:
70D with battery grip.
32gig and 64gig mem
extra batteries
tripod
circular polarizer
Amazon remote
Lowepro LP36505-PWW Photo Sport Pro 30L Camera Backpack

For landscapes you'll likely get the most use of the wide end of your 18-55 lens.
You'll also want to make sure the aperture is fairy small, meaning f/8 or f/11 or higher to make sure things are in focus. (You'll need to be in the Av or M mode on the camera to directly control this.) This will in turn cause your exposure time to be higher which if handheld would introduce blur.... enter the tripod and the remote. Use as low ISO as you can stand for the exposure time to avoid grainy images. ISO 200 might be a good first try, but it depends on your actual situation.

Good luck!

 

[purbeast0]

wow had no clue about these amazon remotes. and they are only $10? i will be picking one up very soon. along with a tripod and camera bag.

 

[magomago]

imo if you are just starting i'd learn to enjoy and appreciate the camera on your first trip on auto, and then trying some of the other semi auto settings.
I'd learn to understand how Av Tv work very well - it'll help you moving forward. if you really wanna "figure it out" it all really comes down to exposure, and the SLR will give you exposure control. Once you understand how aperature, shutter, sensitivity work to create an exposure, and how that controls DOF then that is where you'll really see yourself improving based on technique.

 

[NAC]

When I went last summer, I used my 10-18 about half the time. If there ever is a place to go wide, this is it. Spectacular. I rarely used my 55-250, but it was nice to have to capture birds and animals, etc. It is light, so probably worth carrying.

I had one terrific sunset when I was there. I felt like I took a lot of photos during the sunset, but I didn't take enough. Some were terrific, but it was hard for me to keep up with exposure, focus, etc. It goes by so quickly. I know I was also trying to enjoy the moment some, not just take pictures.

As others wrote - the early morning and sunset have the best light.

I never used a tripod and never felt the need, even during the sunset. IS worked well enough. Is that for shots of the family, or just the landscape?

In my opinion, I took too many pictures of the landscape, but not enough of my family in front of the landscape. And not enough of me in front of it. So maybe the tripod would be useful for that purpose, or just ask strangers. Regarding landscape – every viewing spot is spectacular. It blows your mind. But the memorable photographs are of specific things. A squirrel with the canyon in the background. An interesting tree, a person, the zig-zag of the trails. So I recommend taking a breather regularly, and stop taking pictures, and ask yourself what is it that is worth taking pictures of. I need to remind myself that. But keep taking pictures of the people you go with – those are priceless.

 

[EOM]

wow had no clue about these amazon remotes. and they are only $10? i will be picking one up very soon. along with a tripod and camera bag.

Look I to a monopod of as well. They're like 20 bucks and way easier to take around with you. Admittedly not as stable as a tripod, but it's more stable than the tripod that you did't bring because it's too cumbersome!

 

[purbeast0]

Look I to a monopod of as well. They're like 20 bucks and way easier to take around with you. Admittedly not as stable as a tripod, but it's more stable than the tripod that you did't bring because it's too cumbersome!

sorry to hijack the thread, but how are the compact tripods?

something like this has great reviews it seems.

http://www.amazon.com/Pedco-UltraPo...434064834&sr=8-1&keywords=dslr+compact+tripod

and i have an sl1 so it's on the lighter end of dslrs

 

[Aharami]

with a crop, you're gonna want to have a UWA lens with you. The Tokina 11-16 with a marumi 77mm CPL is what I used. Even at 11mm (x1.6) I felt limited at times in the grand canyon, Yea it's that vast. Have fun!

 

[CuriousMike]

In my opinion, I took too many pictures of the landscape, but not enough of my family in front of the landscape. And not enough of me in front of it. So maybe the tripod would be useful for that purpose, or just ask strangers. Regarding landscape – every viewing spot is spectacular. It blows your mind. But the memorable photographs are of specific things. A squirrel with the canyon in the background. An interesting tree, a person, the zig-zag of the trails. So I recommend taking a breather regularly, and stop taking pictures, and ask yourself what is it that is worth taking pictures of. I need to remind myself that. But keep taking pictures of the people you go with – those are priceless.

This is genuinely great information... for all of us.

 

[Spoooon]

This is genuinely great information... for all of us.

Yep. I think we sometimes focus too much on capturing the epic shot that we forget the people around us.

 

[Renob]

thanks all for the info and yes I will be taking many with my wife and I in the shot woot oh and Aharami I will only be taking the gear I listed

 

[zCypher]

Yep. I think we sometimes focus too much on capturing the epic shot that we forget the people around us.

yep, this is basically me. think i need to add a good 1.4 or 1.8 prime for some nice people shots.

if i was doing the canyon i would definitely be shooting with my tokina 11-16 most of the time. but as someone else already pointed out, even at 11mm, could still leave you wanting more. i've noticed this sometimes. it's wide, but i could still use wider!

the kit lens is pretty good all around, i've taken lots of great vacation pictures with mine. it only falls short in low light, which is a total non-issue if you're shooting stationary objects with a tripod. with that, you can capture stunning images even with the kit lens.

i guess my biggest tip would be to become as familiar with the basics as you can before you go. Go out and fiddle with it. Play with the exposure, aperture and ISO and observe the effects they have on your picture as you toggle those settings. If you're shooting with a tripod, use the lowest ISO and smaller aperture like EOM pointed out. It will require you to shoot a longer exposure time. Try capturing a few different exposures if you really like a particular scene, so you have some options to work with in post processing, and have the option to merge them for HDR if you turn out to like that sort of thing.

most importantly, enjoy the crap out of the trip!