Canon SX20IS or Panasonic FZ-35?

[joolz]

I will, Sarah Joyce. Thank you.

I meant it when I said in my first post that I'm not a good enough photographer to even consider a dSLR but I bought one anyway. Now I'm almost too scared to use it. I've taken a few shots (just in Auto mode) around my place. I'm waiting until I can get a day off to take the camera out and find some decent sights to photograph. I've read the manual but need to read it again - at least twice more! - so it'll sink in. I know I need to play with the settings but this is all so new to me.

It's scary but exciting.

[speaklightly]

joolz-

Yes, I can recall when I purchased my first DSLR camera that I had some of those same feelings. Rather than the "Auto Mode," please give some serious consideration to using the "P" or Programed Auto Mode. That will give you much more flexibility. It works just like the Auto Mode but now you can mke changes and see what effect those changes make in your images.

Learning is adventure. Enjoy the experience.

Sarah Joyce

[joolz]

Thanks for the suggestion, Sarah Joyce. The "P" mode sounds like a good compromise at this point. Not too adventurous for my level of inexperience!

[AlexMonro]

Another suggestion. Try to take pictures as often as you can. I nearly wrote "as many pictures as you can", but you don't want to be just machine gunning in burst mode - each shot needs thought as to the composition.

At first, most of your pictures will probably be rubbish, but with luck, you'll have a few good ones. Look at them, think about what makes them good. Show them to friends and family, post them here and elsewhere asking for comments. Be prepared for harsh criticism, but hopefully you'll get some constructive comments too.

Get hold of some photography books, both displaying pictures and teaching techniques, and try to put in to practice what's shown. Don't be afraid to experiment.

There used to be a saying that a photographer took 1000 rolls of film (36,000 exposures) to learn the craft. So practice as much as you can.

[joolz]

Good advice, AlexMonro. I'm trying to find a spare day to go out and take photos of interesting views, people etc. I've taken a few around the house - NOT interesting at all! I agree that most will indeed be rubbish but that's the beauty of digital. You can see that they're rubbish a lot sooner than that seemingly interminable wait for film to be processed and if they are rubbish - well, they're a lot easier to dispose of as well.

I'll be back when I've taken some pictures and I'll probably also need advice on how to post them.