What does a beginner photographer need?

If you are thinking of pursuing a career in photography or you are just a new photographer and you want to know what types of camera gear you need and some photography tips as well, we willl look at what you will need to pursue a career and/or hobby in photography. Beginner photographers should be aware that there is important photography equipment that you should have.

Everything starts with having a good beginner camera that is able to take amazing photography and high quality images. The types of cameras could be point and shoot cameras or an entry-level to mid-level DSLR cameras. Some of the best cameras are able to bring out the best in stabilization and low light performance to reproduce each and every megapixel during shooting. There are APS-C cropped sensor options as well as wide angle full frame mirrorless cameras.

Many of these DSLR cameras comes in a camera body only option which means that it is an interchangeable lens camera. Therefore, your camera should be able to perform admirably with multiple types of lenses and often from other manufacturers than the one of your cameras. This is a fantastic versatility. Please bear in mind that when attempting to mount a lens from a manufacturer other than your camera’s mounting system, you will need to purchase a mounting adapter. For example, you can purchase cameras from great camera brands such as Canon like Canon EOS R50 (which we will look at in more depth further on), Nikon, Sony and more.

When a lens is part of the setup of your new camera they are typically a prime lens such as ones found in the Nikon Nikkor Z line, meaning it is an extremely versatile lens that handle any of the daily photography situations you may find yourself in. Try attaching a telephoto lens to your new camera or purchase a camera with one and the same applies to a zoom lens or macro lens. But the bottom line is that you will want a digital camera, DSLR camera and camera lens which may possibly be your first camera, to be of the highest build quality, great battery life, and be able to produce amazing image quality, as part of your photography gear that can handle all types of photography.

There are many other essential items for a beginner photographer to add to their camera gear, which will assist in getting gorgeous exposures. There are reflectors such as, polarizing filters or ND filters. Some of these items would be found in a kit lens bundle when purchasing a camera lens for your new camera. It is important to look for a camera bag that is good for safely and securely carrying all of your camera equipment. Items like memory cards and SD cards, a spare charger and/or extra batteries will help to ensure that you have all the storage and shooting time as possible.

Let’s explore some photography tips, tutorials and camera gear, which as a beginner photographer will come in handy for you.

Photography Tips

First Things to do

1. Get your hands on a good camera, which as previously mentioned could be a point and shoot camera or a full frame mirrorless DSLR camera.

2. Pair this with a new camera lens that fits your photography needs. If you chose a prime lens that would come with a fixed focal length, you might want to grab a zoom lens or telephoto lens depending on what types of photography you might be interested in. These range from general photography, portrait photography, landscape photography and others.

3. Pick up some additional camera gear such as a UV filter that protects the front of your lens from dust and dirt. Or check out some ND filters (or neutral density filters) to reduce the amount of light which hits your camera sensor. This opens so many things that you can do with your lens with that filter, such as creating soft and beautiful backgrounds, and the ND filter allows you to hit long exposures.

4. Try pursing some photography courses which you could complete in person or online which are offered by many different colleges and photography schools. These courses are essential for you to hone your photography skills, so you can quickly advance from beginner to the next level.

Next Steps

1. Your new camera and lens should preferably have top notch autofocus system which caters to beginners and can handle all the camera presets and track your subject for with great accuracy. However, the next step would be to try to shoot in manual mode. This is usually the way professional photographers utilize their DSLR cameras, because it opens all the camera settings for you to manually adjust during your photoshoot. These can be things like you shutter speed, setting you ISO number, white balance and your aperture opening. Shutter speeds are important as they will reflect the amount of light which enters your camera sensor and knowing what type of shutter speed you need for your lighting situation.

2. Try taking your still images in a RAW format. This opens the post processing you can perform on your exposure, giving you more editing options. You can also investigate other post processing software or apps that allow you to edit your photos with a variety of options. These would be photoshop software like Adobe Lightroom.

3. Getting Memory cards for storage of your still photos and videos are a must have for beginners to add to their photography equipment stable. It should be noted that keeping in mind the size and performance rating of the memory card prior to purchase to make certain that it has the right amount of storage you need, has fast read/write speeds and is compatible with your new camera. SD cards are typically rated for 64 GB of storage and higher, which gives you a lot of storage size options. You can purchase a 1TB SD card for a large amount of storage. However, we also recommend getting a spare SD card, as you may need more storage when shooting on the go and this will help protect you if there is a defect or failure in your main memory card. There are SD cards or flash drives from manufacturers like Lexar and SanDisk such as the SanDisk Extreme pro as well, which offer all these alternative storage options including SD card, DUO stick memory cards and more. Just make sure that it will work with your camera, so carefully read the user manual of your new camera for its specs. There is one SD Card slot for a memory card compatible with UHS-I.

4. Ensure that you are getting a new camera of the highest build quality, preferably with a tilting LCD screen.  You can then view your subject in great clarity without having to take your eyes off the camera and be distracted by other goings on at the site of your photoshoot.

5. Also ensure that your new camera has good IBIS or In-Body-Stabilization, for a smooth and blur free handheld shooting experience. If, you want to take the extra step grab a tripod which will ensure even smoother exposures and allow you to rotate your camera to get the field of view you need for your photo.

6. Look into purchasing your own lighting setup as your knowledge and proficiency in photography advances. There are many different types of lighting options which you will learn more about when taking the crucial photography courses you need. You will likely see options such as Studio Lights, Strobe Lights, Work Lights and Umbrellas that cater to every photography environment you may encounter, like harsh and low light shooting conditions. Having the proper lighting setup will alleviate any of these worries.

7. Getting the right camera gear like a camera bag can hold your point and shoot or DSLR camera safely and with easy access during travel. These should be comfortable and versatile camera bags that may even be able to hold your laptop or notebook as well. Then you can attach your camera to your computer and use the post processing software while traveling or shooting a Vlog on the go.
   
   

Connectivity Availability

Our Camera Recommendation

A tremendous camera for beginners and nicely priced for its included features and specs is the Canon EOS R50 Mirrorless Camera. Being a camera body only means it is an interchangeable lens camera and you will have to purchase your camera lens separately, which is great as you can get lens you want such as a prime lens, zoom lens, telephoto lenses and others to mount onto your camera.

General Image Specs and Features

You won’t find the specs and features of this inexpensive RF mount camera at this price point better than the EOS R50.

It extremely lightweight and easily portable as the camera body weighs less than one pound with the battery and SD card installed.

This camera utilizes and RF mount and is compatible with lens from Canon’s RF lens group (including RF-S lenses). If you are using a mounting adapter like the EF-EOS R, you can attach Canon EF or EF-S lenses (excluding EF-M lenses). You can get a mounting adapter to attach lenses from other manufacturers as well. Please refer to the user manual for compatibility.

Due to its 24.2 effective megapixel capturing, wide-angle recording is phenomenal. There is Canon’s DIGIC X (Digital Imaging Integrated Circuit) image processor powering the camera, giving it the performance and noise and gradation reduction that you need for a sharp and clear exposure.

This is an APS-C cropped image sensor is good for long range zooming. This also helps you get a better Bokeh effect than found on smartphones, and the oversampling of 6K footage to an uncropped 4K movie mode able to record at up to 30FPS for a beautiful high-resolution exposure.

Besides the aforementioned 4K video recording of video at 30 FPS capability, there is also FHD or Full HD recording at a resolutions of 1920 x 1080 up to a blazing fast 120FPS refresh rate. (please refer to your user manual for your model). There is also continuous video recording for up to 1 hour, giving you the right set-up for if you are Vlogging.

You can record still images in the following supported formats: JPEG (.JPG), HEIF (.HIF), RAW, C-RAW (.CR3); Movies: ALL-I (Time-lapse video only), IPB (Light). Being able to record in the RAW format will give you more post processing options than JPEG.

The 3.0-inch LCD monitor screen with an aspect ratio of 3:2 which has approximately 1.62 million dots and 100% vertical or horizontal coverage is such a nice feature to have. The LCD is touchscreen for choosing settings such as AF Point selection; Touch AF; Touch Shutter; Menu selection; Quick Control Menu; Magnified View; Volume Touch Sounds. This really enhances the ease of use of the camera. Also included is a gorgeous OLED color electronic viewfinder or EVF which is 0.5-inch, and has approximately 3.69 million dots and coverage of approximately 100% of your shooting scene and subject.

Connections and Software

Wi-Fi enables access to the 2.4 Ghz network for long range photography from your router, and bluetooth 4.2. for seamless connections with peripheral devices.

USB control of the camera can be done on either a Windows or Mac computer via the Canon Camera Connect EOS utility software. You can also upload your final exposures to your social media page to share with your online followers with this software. This software will also allow you to livestream your Vlog directly to apps like Zoom and Skype and others. So, make sure you download this software to your PC.

Besides the USB-C port there is a micro-HDMI output/input to connect to your computer, phone, tablet, monitor, TV or compatible device. The USB is 3.2 generation for the fastest communication with your paired device. Additionally, there is a 3.5 mm headphone jack for stereo recording.

Conclusion

In closing we believe that if you are a beginner photographer, you should try and utilize the provided photography tips and tutorials and the recommended camera and photography equipment. Doing so should help you quickly advance your photography skills out of the beginner stage and get your new photography career or hobby to the next level as you advance your photography skills.

Happy photographing!