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Complete beginner "my first camera is the Q" help and tips please


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"Most of the things you can do with Lightroom, for retouching often Photoshop Elements is more convenient. A fantastic tool is the Nik Filter collection which is provided by Google as a free download and works as plug-in for LR and PSE."

 

 

Yes, the NIK filter is terrific. And, it is free.

Rob

Edited by ropo54
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I was wondering what would be a good all round recommend suitable SD card for the Q, in terms of speed etc?

 

Thank you 

The Q uses UHS-I SD cards so the best in that category would be something like this, which is what I use. You can get a UHS-II SD card and still use it although the Q will not be able to take advantage of its write speed at 260 MB/s, vs 90 MB/s which is the Q's max. That being said, if you remove the SD card from the camera and plug it in via a compatible card reader you can transfer photos at 300 MB/s, unlike a UHS-I card which can only do 95 MB/s. I'm planning on picking up a UHS-II card soon.

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One thing not touched on: it's best not to think of the Q as a 28mm Leica camera with free 35mm and 50mm lenses thrown in! The 35mm menu crop still produces a decent sized file and in LR you can shift the precomposed area around over the full size RAW file and recompose/crop. With the current software you can have manual focus with/without centre magnification, and you might prefer focusing the whole frame. However the autofocus is so good that you can virtually rely on it full-time. As for IQ with that 1.7 lens – wow! A great camera and significantly less heavy to lug around than the Ms, although I do think the grip is a great help, and not much trouble to unscrew to access the battery/card compartments.

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In terms of setting the Q to full AF, so it becomes a point and shoot for fast street shots, what would be the ideal settings I am asking as I wondered if it is better to keep on PSAM setting or to now and agin use just pain AF setting just to get an idea of what the camera can actual do without using any settings.

 

I would be keen to know what other setting I should change before setting to full AF.

 

Thanks

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Most other settings will effect composition or exposure.   They will have little effect on focus.

 

For focus you can select manual or auto.  See page 174 (or there abouts) of the manual for the various settings available when using autofocus.  For manual focus you have the option to have the camera zoom when turning the focus ring and you can also  enable focus peaking.

 

Put the camera on auto aperture, auto speed, and auto iso.  Now with everything pertaining to exposure automated concentrate on playing with the various focus combinations.   The goal is to find out what works for you.   Ignore aspects of the test images you take except focus.   After you get comfortable and find out what focus you like in various picture taking conditions you'll be able to move on to playing with other settings.

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Thanks thats very helpful, I am going to explore taking images using the auto focus, with ISO, auto statue and auto speed. then take some test photos.

 

Then will experiment using all settings to auto as you suggested, but using manual focus and focus peaking to assist me, and then compare. the camera zoom in manual is helpful, and I have found this works well, I suppose auto is great if your taking many shots fast, and you can take some shots in continuous mode and some will be in focus and some will not.

 

The image quality though even in my very amateur hands is great, am so pleased with my Q.

 

Cheers

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A a 28mm lens without the proper software for cropping can be a problem; it does have its limitations.  The same is true regarding software. With proper software, the Leica Q with its 28mm lens can be dazzling.

 

You may want to consider an Adobe product, like Lightroom and Photoshop, in conjunction with ON1 Photo 10. Rarely, do I end up with a photo that does not incorporate  Lightroom and ON1 Photo 10. ON1 Photo 10 can provide stunningly beautiful finishes quite easily.  Check it out. Good luck. 

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My thought for someone 'just getting started' would be to just use your camera as much as you can, every day just take a picture of *something*, *anything*, to stay familiar with it & to learn a little more about how it works under every circumstance.

 

I've fallen into a terrible habit of using my iPhone for this kind of casual / day-to-day photography and have "been saving my Q for best" - a consequence is every time I pick it up I have to think about it a little first & it's not yet instinctive in my hands.  Try using your camera (not just a Q, any camera) every day in every way and you'll always be ready and continually be learning - how does it work best indoors, outdoors, at night, at noon, for sunset, with kids / dogs / cars? etc etc.

 

I learned on an Olympus film SLR in 80's and had to wait (and pay heavily) for my feedback 7x5 prints a week later, so taking 200 digital photos in a day (and deleting nearly all of them) is such a joy by comparison & must be accelerating the learning curve.

 

 

Have fun.

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You know, I really think the Q is not a beginner camera. I recommend a totally manual camera so you learn the basics first. What I would do is, for a good long while, leave the exposure and aperture dial of the Q off "A", and do not use auto ISO. Whether you also choose to use autofocus or not, may not matter. You will learn a lot more quickly about basic photography this way. And practice a lot.

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You know, I really think the Q is not a beginner camera. I recommend a totally manual camera so you learn the basics first. What I would do is, for a good long while, leave the exposure and aperture dial of the Q off "A", and do not use auto ISO. Whether you also choose to use autofocus or not, may not matter. You will learn a lot more quickly about basic photography this way. And practice a lot.

+1. Excellent suggestion.

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my first attempt at meat, using only natural light, operated the camera in manual, trying to capture the meat in all its glory

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Edited by Bongo
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