Help Please! I Need All Photo Buffs Out There In Mylotland To Come to My Rescue!

Sorry Opal, I'm the WRONG person to be telling you how to use your camera!!! I bought mine for myself over 2 years ago & I still can't get a decent picture out of it!!! AAARRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!! The one thing I might suggest is to NOT use any of the specialty features at first. When I first got mine I used the Zoom feature on almost everything. Of course I didn't get a decent picture...not even the ones out of the airplane window. I was just sure those were going to be good, but they weren't. The BEST thing about it is you don't have to worry about buying film & paying to get them developed just to find out they are NO good. You can take them & look at them & delete the ones you don't like. Actually, that sounds so easy, I might pull my camera back out & start learning all over again!!!

It's very difficult to give lessons in photography as I believe it is an art, and with all arts, it is something you learn more and more about by actually doing it. I would say to look at a scene in front of you whether it be a person a landscape or some object. Imagine how nice it would look in a frame to yourself. Ask yourself if you would like it hanging on your wall. If yes get it into the frame of your camera and take it. If you just want to put it on line, then choose a lower pixel setting. For printing, use a higher pixel setting. After taking the shot, ask yourself how attractive it is. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I believe this applies to photography also. Very difficult to explain but sometimes other people can see the beauty also, and then you will know that you have taken a good photo. Hope this helps.. - Derek

The best advice to a newcomer with a camera is to take as many photos as you can until you're comfortable with using it..and then look them over and see which ones turn out good,and which are not so good...You have a number of advantages over a film camera with a digital one,in that any that don't turn out the way you expect can be instantly reviewed on the screen or deleted,so you tend to end up with more good quality photos,and you don't need to send them away for developing and printing..unless of course,You are prepared to use an online printing service..if you have a colour or photo printer already,all you will need is a connector cable to transfer the photos to the computer so you can free up the camera memory,print the photos on paper,or email them to those you'd like to share them with..or post them on Mylot and earn some with your new hobby!

The site that I am about to post, I post because it says "You got the camera you wanted now learn how to use it"... http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=10551&categoryId=16161&langId=-1&storeId=10151 I hope that this helps. I am not camera buff either, but I figured going right to the source would help a bit. What exactly is it your having trouble with, the functions or just taking an awesome picture?

I only have one suggestion.. since each camera is different.. and I don't have the one you have.. Have you tried reading the manual.. They really do help.. LOL Start with the easy stuff. How to take a picture. How to upload the photos to your computer.. There may be a Disk you need to put in to install before you can upload. I'm Just Sayin'.. reading the manual worked for me. :-)

That's great! I'm so excited that you have a camera and we can all get to see pictures of you and your cats! My best advice to you would be practice, practice and more practice. That's how I learned how to use mine. Talk to you later.

I'm right there with you, Opal... I got a Pentax digital for Christmas. Gotta read that manual! I was going to read it on the bus to my cousin's Christmas day, but wouldn't you know it, I forgot to take it with me.

Since I don't have one I can't help but I can't wait to see pictures of you....and Star and Luna! I bet you are sooooo excited to get a good camera! Woo Hoo!

What a nice present! I should follow my own advice better but my first tip is READ the Manual!!! LOL, I have not ever actually finished reading the manual on my Canon PowerShot, but someday I will as I want to learn how to do time exposure shots so I can capture the lights on next year's Christmas trees! The second tip is just to take your new camera everywhere and have FUN. The third tip, and this should have been first, is to put a leash on the camera (lanyard ring + cord?) so that it doesn't get dropped or missplaced. Again, congratulations on having received a fine gift!

I'm pretty sure your camera is a point-and-shoot, so you should be familiar with it in no time. All settings are set to automatic unlike a DSLR where everything is set to manual. Point, and shoot.. that's the trick.

Hi Opal, Maybe I can help you, but your request was not specific so I'm confused where to start. Perhaps it's better you ask me one by one about what you do not understand yet so my explanation will be more focused. Usually, in the packaging there is a complete hand book and application CD (For Sony Cyber Shot 8.1)