Canon EOS Digital Rebel XSi/450D For Dummies

353 Pages·2008·22.06 MB·English

by  Julie Adair King

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Canon EOS
®
Digital Rebel XSi/450D
FOR
DUMmIES
‰
by Julie Adair King
01_385371-ffirs.qxp 8/8/08 7:54 PM Page i
Canon EOS
®
Digital Rebel XSi/450D
FOR
DUMmIES
‰
by Julie Adair King
http://avaxhome.ws/blogs/ChrisRedfield
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Canon®EOS Digital Rebel XSi/450D For Dummies®
Published by
Wiley Publishing, Inc.
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Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774
www.wiley.com
Copyright © 2008 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
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Library of Congress Control Number: 2008933790
ISBN: 978-0-470-38537-1
Manufactured in the United States of America
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About the Author
Julie Adair Kingis the author of many books about digital photography and
imaging, including the best-selling Digital Photography For Dummies.Her most
recent titles include Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi/400D For Dummies,Digital
Photography Before & After Makeovers,Digital Photo Projects For Dummies,
Julie King’s Everyday Photoshop For Photographers, Julie King’s Everyday
Photoshop Elements, and Shoot Like a Pro!: Digital Photography Techniques.
When not writing, King teaches digital photography at such locations as the
Palm Beach Photographic Centre. A graduate of Purdue University, she
resides in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Author’s Acknowledgments
I am extremely grateful to the team of talented professionals at John Wiley
and Sons for all their efforts in putting together this book. Special thanks go
to my awesome project editor, Kim Darosett, who is the type of editor that all
authors hope for but rarely experience: supportive, skilled, and amazingly
calm in the face of any storm, including my not infrequent freakouts.
I also owe much to the rest of the folks in both the editorial and art depart-
ments, especially Heidi Unger, Rashell Smith, Shelley Lea, Steve Hayes, Andy
Cummings, and Mary Bednarek. Thanks, too, to Jonathan Conrad for provid-
ing the awesome nighttime shot for Chapter 7, and to agent extraordinaire,
Margot Maley Hutchison, for her continuing help and encouragement.
Last but oh, so not least, I am deeply indebted to Canon guru Chuck Westfall
for always answering all my questions, even the silly ones; to Scott Heath at
Synergy Communications for his help with this book and various other pro-
jects; and to technical editor Chuck Pace, whose keen eye and vast experi-
ence set me on the right track whenever I mistakenly thought I should go left.
Thank you, thank you, for sharing your time and your expertise — the book
would not have been the same without it.
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Publisher’s Acknowledgments
We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our online registration form
located at www.dummies.com/register/.
Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:
Acquisitions and Editorial Composition Services
Project Editor:Kim Darosett Project Coordinator: Erin Smith
Executive Editor:Steven Hayes Layout and Graphics: Reuben W. Davis,
Andrea Hornberger
Copy Editor:Heidi Unger
Proofreaders: Jessica Kramer, Shannon Ramsey
Technical Editor:Chuck Pace
Indexer: Slivoskey Indexing Services
Editorial Manager:Leah Cameron
Editorial Assistant:Amanda Foxworth
Sr. Editorial Assistant:Cherie Case
Cartoons:Rich Tennant (www.the5thwave.com)
Publishing and Editorial for Technology Dummies
Richard Swadley,Vice President and Executive Group Publisher
Andy Cummings,Vice President and Publisher
Mary Bednarek,Executive Acquisitions Director
Mary C. Corder,Editorial Director
Publishing for Consumer Dummies
Diane Graves Steele,Vice President and Publisher
Composition Services
Gerry Fahey,Vice President of Production Services
Debbie Stailey,Director of Composition Services
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Contents at a Glance
Introduction.................................................................1
Part I: Fast Track to Super Snaps...................................7
Chapter 1:Getting the Lay of the Land............................................................................9
Chapter 2:Taking Great Pictures, Automatically.........................................................37
Chapter 3:Controlling Picture Quality..........................................................................55
Chapter 4:Monitor Matters: Picture Playback and Live View Shooting...................73
Part II: Taking Creative Control.................................107
Chapter 5:Getting Creative with Exposure and Lighting..........................................109
Chapter 6:Manipulating Focus and Color...................................................................157
Chapter 7:Putting It All Together.................................................................................201
Part III: Working with Picture Files ...........................223
Chapter 8:Downloading, Organizing, and Archiving Your Photos..........................225
Chapter 9:Printing and Sharing Your Photos.............................................................255
Part IV: The Part of Tens...........................................279
Chapter 10:Ten Fast Photo-Editing Tricks..................................................................281
Chapter 11:Ten Special-Purpose Features to Explore on a Rainy Day....................311
Index.......................................................................327
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Table of Contents
Introduction..................................................................1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
A Quick Look at What’s Ahead.......................................................................1
Part I: Fast Track to Super Snaps.........................................................2
Part II: Taking Creative Control.............................................................2
Part III: Working with Picture Files.......................................................3
Part IV: The Part of Tens........................................................................3
Icons and Other Stuff to Note.........................................................................3
About the Software Shown in This Book.......................................................5
Practice, Be Patient, and Have Fun!...............................................................5
Part I: Fast Track to Super Snaps ...................................7
Chapter 1:Getting the Lay of the Land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Getting Comfortable with Your Lens...........................................................10
Attaching a lens....................................................................................10
Removing a lens....................................................................................13
Using an IS (image stabilizer) lens.....................................................13
Focusing and zooming the lens..........................................................14
Adjusting the Viewfinder Focus...................................................................15
Working with Memory Cards........................................................................17
Exploring External Camera Controls...........................................................18
Topside controls...................................................................................19
Back-of-the-body controls...................................................................20
Front-left buttons..................................................................................24
Ordering from Camera Menus......................................................................25
Monitoring Critical Camera Settings............................................................27
Decoding Viewfinder Data.............................................................................29
Reviewing Basic Setup Options....................................................................30
Setup Menu 1........................................................................................31
Setup Menu 2........................................................................................32
Setup Menu 3........................................................................................34
Three more customization options....................................................35
Chapter 2:Taking Great Pictures, Automatically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
Getting Good Point-and-Shoot Results........................................................38
Using Flash in Automatic Exposure Modes................................................43
Exploring Your Automatic Options..............................................................44
Full Auto mode......................................................................................45
Automatic scene modes (a.k.a. Image Zone modes).......................46
Changing the Drive Mode..............................................................................53
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Canon EOS Digital Rebel XSi/450D For Dummies
Chapter 3:Controlling Picture Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
Diagnosing Quality Problems.......................................................................56
Decoding the Quality Options......................................................................58
Considering Resolution: Large, Medium, or Small?...................................60
Pixels and print quality........................................................................62
Pixels and screen display size............................................................62
Pixels and file size................................................................................64
Resolution recommendations.............................................................64
Understanding File Type (JPEG or Raw).....................................................66
JPEG: The imaging (and Web) standard ...........................................67
Raw (CR2): The purist’s choice..........................................................69
My take: Choose Fine or Raw..............................................................71
Chapter 4:Monitor Matters: Picture Playback and
Live View Shooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73
Disabling and Adjusting Instant Review......................................................74
Viewing Images in Playback Mode...............................................................75
Jumping through images.....................................................................76
Viewing multiple images at a time......................................................77
Rotating vertical pictures....................................................................78
Zooming in for a closer view...............................................................80
Viewing Picture Data......................................................................................82
Basic information modes.....................................................................82
Shooting Information display.............................................................84
Understanding Histogram display mode...........................................88
Deleting Photos..............................................................................................91
Erasing single images...........................................................................91
Erasing all images on your memory card..........................................92
Erasing selected images......................................................................93
Protecting Photos..........................................................................................95
Using Your Monitor as a Viewfinder............................................................96
Enabling Live View...............................................................................99
Taking a shot in Live View mode......................................................100
Customizing the Live View display..................................................103
Part II: Taking Creative Control..................................107
Chapter 5:Getting Creative with Exposure and Lighting . . . . . . . . . .109
Kicking Your Camera into Advanced Gear................................................110
Introducing the Exposure Trio: Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO........111
Understanding exposure-setting side effects.................................113
Doing the exposure balancing act....................................................118
Monitoring Exposure Settings....................................................................120
Choosing an Exposure Metering Mode.....................................................124
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Table of Contents
Setting ISO, f-stop, and Shutter Speed.......................................................127
Controlling ISO....................................................................................127
Adjusting aperture and shutter speed.............................................129
Overriding Autoexposure Results with Exposure Compensation.........133
Holding on to Highlights.............................................................................136
Disabling Auto Lighting Optimization.......................................................139
Locking Autoexposure Settings..................................................................140
Bracketing Exposures Automatically.........................................................142
Using Flash in Advanced Exposure Modes...............................................145
Understanding your camera’s approach to flash...........................145
Adjusting flash power with flash exposure compensation...........149
Locking the flash exposure...............................................................151
Exploring more flash options............................................................152
Using an external flash unit...............................................................154
Chapter 6:Manipulating Focus and Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157
Reviewing Focus Basics...............................................................................158
Adjusting Autofocus Performance.............................................................160
Selecting an autofocus point.............................................................160
Changing the AF (autofocus) mode.................................................163
Autofocusing in Live View Mode................................................................164
Enabling Live View autofocusing......................................................165
Live View autofocus option 1: Quick mode.....................................166
Live View autofocus option 2: Live mode.......................................168
Manipulating Depth of Field........................................................................169
Using A-DEP mode..............................................................................176
Checking depth of field......................................................................177
Controlling Color..........................................................................................178
Correcting colors with white balance..............................................178
Changing the white balance setting.................................................180
Creating a custom white balance setting........................................182
Fine-tuning white balance settings...................................................184
Bracketing shots with white balance...............................................187
Choosing a Color Space: sRGB vs. Adobe RGB........................................190
Exploring Picture Styles..............................................................................191
Assessing the Picture Styles.............................................................192
Setting the Picture Style....................................................................194
Customizing Picture Styles................................................................197
Creating your own Picture Style.......................................................199
Chapter 7:Putting It All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .201
Recapping Basic Picture Settings...............................................................202
Setting Up for Specific Scenes....................................................................205
Shooting still portraits.......................................................................205
Capturing action.................................................................................210
Capturing scenic vistas.....................................................................214
Capturing dynamic close-ups...........................................................217
Coping with Special Situations...................................................................219