This is my first question on the Photography stack. So please forgive me if I dont sound too technical.  I have a Nikon D5100 and a 18-50 mm F 1.8 Lens. I enjoy taking pictures of my 13 month old son who is constantly on the move as he just started walking. I usually try to use the Manual mode and set the aperture > F2.5 and shutter speed(usually 1/2 or 1/8) to suit the light. But I usually have a problem when I encounter low light. If I use the lowest F stop, I get blurry images owing to lower shutter speeds (I dont have a tripod yet). I have used the Sport mode with some good results, but I would like to have more control of my images.   My question is, what other modes I can use to remove the bluriness and if having an external flash would help.
56860
I'm a mom who is obsessed with taking photos of my now 2 year old daughter.  I currently have a Nikon j1 which I like, but I find the shutter speed is still a bit slow and when you're trying to take photos of a speedy little girl, I end up with a lot of blurry images.  So I'm looking for a camera with a very fast shutter speed that will allow me to take good photos of a very fast moving child.  Also that can take photos in low light. I've been looking at the canon eos rebel but I'm not sure. Would like it to be able to take videos as well. Any advice?
71844
Say you are using a crop body, and you have both 50mm/1.4 USM and 85mm/1.8 USM lens in your bag. Now, you want to take a portrait where there is adequate light and space, and you have decided to take the shot at f/2.2.   Now I want to know which lens will be good to use to take such a shot, and why.
45777
I find that taking pictures where the subject is in motion (people, pets, toy helicopters) I get a blur where there is movement.  On the other hand I see images of a drop of water in free fall in perfect clarity.  How fast does the shutter need to be to capture action in motion with perfect crisp clarity?  For example I want to catch a dog shaking himself dry after a swim and not get a bury mess but to see the hairs flying and water frozen in the air as it flies off the dogs fur and makes a giant mist around the dog.
101501
I am getting a new Nikon D5100 (with 18-55mm VR Lens Kit). This is going to be my first DSLR. I wanted to get some tips from you guys on how to maintain it in the long term. I am getting a 52mm UV Protector Filter, as I read that it would do well to keep the lens clean.  Are there any precautions I need to take?  I would also appreciate if someone can suggest some reading material (paperback or online).
102148
I've started to experiment with HDR photography and would love to have a few shots of my family rendered via HDR.  There's one problem - my family is human and they move, sometimes a LOT.  How would be the best way to go about photographing them in order to produce the best possible HDR result?  I am using a tripod with my Nikon D90 and the typical RAW shots with +2, 0, -2 EV bracketing.  The results I've had so far often end up with ghosting and other minor details either removed or blurred - what am I doing wrong?
84248
I'm very new to digital photography, so I still haven't gotten the hang of all this exposure and ISO stuff, etc. I have a Canon EOS T3.   My question is how big of a difference does it make using manual settings rather than auto settings for everything? I've taken some pretty nice photos with all auto settings, and I'm not sure if it could have turned out any better using manual settings. I know that there are some people who have been in the game for years upon years, and to them they can notice the difference between photos taken with manual vs auto settings, but for my situation, do you think it really makes a difference? Is my camera smart enough to determine the best settings for me?  Also, lets say manual settings are better (which I'm sure they are, since they give you greater control). How often are you supposed to adjust your settings? Between every shot, considering they are unique shots? Or does it not matter about the object, but rather the lighting environment? So if I'm in a forest at 2:00 PM on a sunny bright day and I take photos for one hour, should I be constantly adjusting my settings between every unique shot to get the best out of it? Or do I usually just find one setting that works for the environment I'm in?
58952
Here are some common shutter speeds you will find on most DSLR cameras:   1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000   As you move from left to right, or as you increase the shutter speed, you are halving the amount of light that hits the sensor. In other words, you are decreasing the amount of light by one stop for each step. So 1/30 is half of 1/15, and 1/60 is half of 1/30. But then you come to 1/125, which is not half of 1/60. Half of 1/60 is 1/120. This is basic math.  So you break the sequence or pattern. But as you continue, it starts to make sense again. So 1/250 is in fact half of 1/125, and 1/500 is in fact half of 1/250, and 1/1000 is in fact half of 1/500, so on and so forth.  So there appear to be two distinct sequences here.   1/15, 1/30, 1/60 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000   Is there a sane reason for this?  I know that people sometimes talk about half stops or even thirds of a full stop. But then what is 1/125 the half stop, or third stop of? If you increase 1/60 by a third you get 1/180. This setting does not exist in the standard sequence. The closest you will get is 1/160. If you increase 1/60 by a half, you get 1/120 and it doesn't exist either.  Is this all arbitrarily set by the camera manufacturers, or is there perhaps some reason and history behind this?
123482
What f/# do you use to photograph people, and why? I know this varies from shot to shot.  Let's suppose that you are photographing either a single person or a couple, that it it outside on a somewhat overcast day. What depth of field do you prefer to use, and why?  What about indoors in a more-controlled setting — what is typically used in studio photography?  What about in other conditions?
43068
I'm trying to get an idea of which Yongnuo flash will fit my requirements. I'd like to have a flash to pair with my SB-900 with TTL support for use both on and off camera (Nikon CLS-compatible). My camera is the Nikon D7000.  Power and flash zooming are not really important to me.  I'd be much happier with answers that let me understand Yongnuo's flash lineup. Thank you in advance!
55706
Under what circumstances would you use aperture priority vs. shutter priority and vice-versa?  I typically don’t use shutter priority (ever) and favor aperture priority to try to get a max aperture with the thinking that I’ll get more light and a better low light shot. But after getting almost all my shots being blurry and the help of a couple questions posted here I learned I should use faster shutter speeds to get clear shots.  What my question boils down to is me trying to get a firmer understanding when to use one over the other, and why.  Thanks all.
43492
I sometimes find I want to photograph a room showing the view outside the window. This is tricky — either  you adjust the shutter speed so that the the window is so bright  you can see no detail, or the room looks very dark and gloomy.    Are there any techniques I can use to get the best photo showing as much as possible of both room and view?   My camera is a Sony Nex3, and for this sort of thing I usually use it with an elderly Pentax-M 1:2.8 / 28mm manual focus lens with an adaptor, although I would be prepared to buy another (cheap manual!) lens.
65931
I took a bunch of photos at my son's martial arts club using a D90 with a 50mm F1.8.  The club is lit with overhead fluorescent lighting, and I was getting some weird results where some shots are "white", others have an "orange cast", and still others are partly white and partly orange in the same shot.  I suspect it has to do with the combination of the frequency of the light flicker and with the camera shutter speed. Here is a sequence of 3 shots that show the problem.  The shots were taken with 1/500s at F2 and ISO-800 and with Auto-WB.  First shot ("white/normal"):    Second shot ("orange cast" at top):   Third shot ("orange cast" at bottom):   These were taken in burst mode within a second of each other.  Can anybody tell me what is going on?  And, how I can avoid this?
21518
I know digital cameras have ISO options, and that ISO is the camera's sensitivity to light, but if you set  higher ISO then you can get a noisy image. I also know there are two other camera options, shutter speed and aperture.   What is the relationship of between them? Is there any equation, or something like that?  For example, if I set the ISO to 640, then how should I set the shutter speed and aperture?
17883
I have been messing around with some Macro Photography using the techniques (and a reversal ring) described in a  by @ My main issue is that I am having a hard time getting the subject into focus. There are times when the center is blurred and the outside is in focus or the center in focus and the outside out of focus. What are ways to get as much of the subject in focus?   I am using a Nikon D5100, I have a 18-55mm kit lens but I find the 55-200mm lens easier to use for shooting.
114988
Why does my D40 have a shutter lag when using the pop-up flash in full manual mode?  There isn't a lag when shooting in any of the auto modes.  I'm shooting in single shot mode.  It is a constant lag between shots.
72731
So I just got this Nikon D3100 Camera.  And I am trying to take a picture using autofocus with the kit lens(18-55mm).    The system is in Auto mode, AF-A, single frame and the lens A-M switch is on "A",  VR is "ON".  When I press shutter half way down, focus confirmation light in lower left corner of viewfinder neither lit nor blinks(hear clicking). When I press the shutter all the way down, the shutter seems locked (hear clicking, but shutter not released).    The manual says the shutter will lock itself if it can't get focus. But the place is well lit and have distinct color and I can easily focus using my old Canon.    The camera works fine in manual focusing, but I can't get it to take picture under auto-focusing.  I wonder is there something wrong with the setting that I don't know or is that I got a lemon?  Thanks
102494
I am thinking of purchasing a  for my Nikon D5000 in order to shoot food and paintings.  Regarding paintings I am unsure how this should be done :   Lighting : pro'lly no flash, static lighting from many angles? Composition : should I center on the painting, a rectangular shooting angle? White balance : I should set the white balance prior to the shot using a [that white round thing]? Other aspects that I'm missing?