Manual mode 1000D nifty 50

[mudshake]

Thanks for laying out the welcome mat everyone. Since I posted initially I've had another go at manual even going so far as making up a chart and adding comments to the different settings I've listed. Outdoors is not TOO much of a problem but I struggle with indoor shooting. The kit lenses are all but useless indoors and have been relegated to the bottom of my bag leaving me with my nifty fifty.
Herein lies the problem. MANUAL MODE DOES NOT WORK FOR ME INDOORS. I invariably revert back to the trusty AV mode and set it to F/2.8 and the WB on auto, bump up the ISO and let the shutter do it's thing but my shots still come out disappointing (you know the ones : orange, bluish tinge etc. etc.) The other WB settings have little or no effect. To try and compensate I have one of those white cards and try to custom the WB. Sometimes it works and sometimes not.
Ideally I'd love to post some of these images for you all to see and make comment but I must confess I haven't a clue as to how to go about it. As for post editing - all I have is the canon program that came with the camera and it I took me ages to figure that out. No photoshop, lightroom or the like. And shooting in RAW - that just plain scares me.
So, am I beyond help?

[wmphoto]

http://www.ausphotography.net.au/for...ad.php?t=24290 this might be a good start for you, it sounds like your trying to do too many things without understanding the basics. There is nothing wrong with the "kit" lenses and there are plenty of photos on this forum to prove that. Playing with white cards and custom WB isn't going to help if your settings are wrong. The Canon software isn't bad for processing images and correcting some of those exposure problems. Be patient and get the basics right first.

[mudshake]

Warren,
I've taken a couple of days to think about what you said and you're absolutely right. I AM trying to do too much too soon. I can only blame it on desperation and this overwhelming desire to take 'perfect photos' now and not later. It's pretty clear that after owning this camera for a mere 4 months, I should still be taking baby steps instead of leaping ahead blindly. So after much deliberation I have decided to suck it up and take your advice, forget about manual mode for now and concentrate on getting 'back to basics'. I guess a thankyou is in order so thankyou.

[wmphoto]

I think we're all guilty of it. The beauty of digital though is you can still practice and not waste money on developing film. Still use manual mode (occassionally) but only change one thing at a time and see how it alters the photo. After a while you should be able to put everything together. I am by no means an expert but just know what mistakes I made (and still make). Good luck and let's see some photos in the CC section so people can give you advice and start pointing you in the right direction.

[rwg717]

Warren,
I've taken a couple of days to think about what you said and you're absolutely right. I AM trying to do too much too soon. I can only blame it on desperation and this overwhelming desire to take 'perfect photos' now and not later. It's pretty clear that after owning this camera for a mere 4 months, I should still be taking baby steps instead of leaping ahead blindly. So after much deliberation I have decided to suck it up and take your advice, forget about manual mode for now and concentrate on getting 'back to basics'. I guess a thankyou is in order so thankyou.

I think you have made the right decision here, if you have been using Av mode, keep going with that, you DON'T REALLY NEED to use Manual mode, I almost never do and I've been shooting with Canon, Nikon and Pentax cameras for years.

People who use Manual mode generally only do so because they are trying to force a camera to do something it doesn't want to do, and generally these shooters have a very special reason for doing so!! The only advice I would give is to always set your aperture and always set your ISO (preferably 100) and let the rest float. If you aren't getting the results then start fiddling with apertures or ISO, but not both at the same time.
Richard

[mudshake]

Relief is what I'm feeling at the moment. Relief that the pressure is off and I don't have to persist with that damn manual mode as others (not from this forum) have advised. The idea of telling the camera what you want it to do and having total control rather than the other way round sounded good in theory but I guess that you have to have the experience and know what to tell it otherwise it's a totally pointless exercise. I found that out the hard way.