The Canon EOS Digital Rebel XS 1000D Companion

The Canon EOS Digital Rebel XS/1000D Companion......Page 14
Preface......Page 18
1. Getting to Know the Rebel XS......Page 22
Snapshot Shooting in Full Auto Mode......Page 29
Autofocus, or "How to Press the Shutter Button"......Page 33
Take the Shot......Page 36
The Viewfinder Status Display......Page 39
The LCD Status Display......Page 42
Viewing Your Images......Page 46
Using Scene Modes......Page 49
Snapshot Tips......Page 57
Don&t Be Afraid to Get in Close......Page 60
Lead Your Subject......Page 62
Remember That Your Knees Can Bend......Page 65
Watch the Background......Page 66
Watch Out for Backlighting......Page 68
Understand Flash Range......Page 71
Cover Your Shot, or "One Shot Is Rarely Enough"......Page 72
2. Anatomy of the Rebel XS......Page 74
Cleaning and Maintenance......Page 81
The Media Card......Page 86
Body Parts......Page 88
Camera Front......Page 90
Camera Sides......Page 92
Camera Back......Page 95
Camera Bottom......Page 98
The Rebel XS Menu System......Page 99
Holding the Camera......Page 106
Feet, Elbows, and Neck......Page 109
The Lens......Page 113
Types of Lenses......Page 119
Lens Controls......Page 120
Lens Care......Page 122
Sensor Cleaning......Page 125
More Full Auto Practice......Page 129
3. Playing Back Images......Page 132
Image Playback......Page 137
Playback Zoom......Page 141
Exiting Playback......Page 144
Viewing Image Thumbnails......Page 146
Viewing Image Info......Page 149
Image Rotation......Page 156
Manual Image Rotation......Page 158
Slideshows in the Field......Page 160
Erasing Images......Page 161
Deleting an Image During Image Playback......Page 163
Deleting All of the Images on the Card......Page 166
Protecting Images......Page 170
4. Image Transfer......Page 173
Card Management......Page 177
Transferring from Your Camera......Page 179
Installing the Canon Software......Page 183
Transferring Images to a Windows Computer......Page 184
Using Adobe Photoshop Elements for Windows......Page 192
Using Adobe Photoshop......Page 195
Transferring Images to a Macintosh Computer......Page 196
Transferring Images Using Canon ImageBrowser......Page 200
Transferring Images Manually Using Windows or the Mac......Page 206
Using the Camera to Select Images for Transfer......Page 208
Organizing Your Images......Page 211
After You&ve Transferred Your Images......Page 214
5. Photography 101......Page 215
Exposure Mechanisms......Page 224
Shutter Speed......Page 228
Aperture......Page 231
Why There Are Two Ways to Control Light......Page 238
How Aperture Choice Affects Your Image......Page 241
Shutter Speed/Aperture Balance......Page 245
Reciprocity......Page 247
Fractional Stops......Page 251
Thinking Again About Full Auto Mode......Page 255
Summing Up......Page 256
6. Program Mode......Page 257
Focusing Revisited......Page 261
When to Manually Choose a Focus Point......Page 266
Focus Modes......Page 267
AI Focus......Page 273
What to Do When Autofocus Doesn&t......Page 275
Manual Focus......Page 281
Getting Creative with Program Shift......Page 285
Handheld Shooting and Shutter Speed......Page 288
Changing the ISO......Page 292
A Real-World ISO Change......Page 297
White Balance......Page 298
Custom White Balance......Page 305
White Balance Shift......Page 310
White Balance Bracketing......Page 313
Drive Mode and the Self-Timer......Page 317
Choosing an Image Size and Format......Page 328
Summing Up Program Mode......Page 335
7. Advanced Exposure......Page 338
Center-Weight Average Metering......Page 346
Metering and Auto ISO......Page 347
What Your Light Meter Actually Meters......Page 349
Exposing So That Black Looks Black......Page 352
Using Exposure Compensation to Over- or Underexpose......Page 356
Controlling Color Tone with Exposure Compensation......Page 361
Using the Histogram......Page 364
Recognizing Contrast in the Histogram......Page 371
The Three-Channel Histogram......Page 375
Using Priority Modes to Control Exposure......Page 378
Shutter Priority......Page 383
Manual Mode......Page 387
Exposure Bracketing......Page 391
Auto Bracketing and Drive Mode......Page 396
Auto Bracketing and Exposure Compensation......Page 397
Scene Modes Revisited......Page 399
Picture Styles......Page 402
Adjusting Predefined Picture Styles......Page 412
Creating a Better Exposure with Fill Flash......Page 416
A Word About Dynamic Range......Page 419
8. Finding and Composing a Photo......Page 421
Give Yourself an Assignment......Page 430
Look at Other Photos......Page 433
Practice......Page 435
How to Make a Photo......Page 436
Photography as Abstraction......Page 441
Working Your Subject......Page 442
Choosing a Camera Position and Focal Length......Page 447
Focal Length and Portraits......Page 451
Composing Your Shot......Page 453
Geometry......Page 458
Repetition......Page 460
The Rule of Thirds......Page 462
Foreground/Background......Page 464
Composing with Light and Dark......Page 469
Less Is More......Page 471
Some, All, or None......Page 474
Art and Craft......Page 476
Practice......Page 477
9. Specialty Shooting......Page 479
Activating Live View......Page 484
Focusing in Live View......Page 486
Autofocusing in Advance......Page 488
Using Autofocus to Focus in Live Mode......Page 489
What You Don&t See in Live View......Page 493
Shooting Panoramas......Page 495
Panoramic Exposure......Page 500
Choosing an Exposure......Page 504
Shooting Panoramic Frames......Page 505
Stitching a Panorama......Page 507
Low-Light Shooting......Page 511
Shooting in Low Light at High ISO......Page 513
Low-Light Techniques......Page 516
Long Exposure Noise......Page 520
Use Mirror Lockup for Long Exposures......Page 521
Aperture Control for Low Light Conditions......Page 523
Shooting Sports or Stage Performances......Page 524
Low-Light White Balance......Page 526
10. Flash Shooting......Page 528
Using the XS&s On-Camera Flash......Page 536
Flash Exposure Compensation......Page 540
Improving Flash Range......Page 543
Red-Eye Reduction......Page 545
Using an External Flash......Page 548
11. Raw Shooting......Page 554
Why Use Raw?......Page 558
Highlight Recovery......Page 560
More Editing Latitude......Page 563
A True Digital Negative......Page 568
Easy Batch Processing......Page 570
Raw Hassles (the Disadvantages)......Page 571
Shooting Raw with the Rebel XS......Page 574
Processing Your Raw Files......Page 577
12. Customizing the XS......Page 579
Organizing My Menu......Page 586
Make My Menu the Default......Page 588
Changing Screen Color......Page 589
Custom Functions......Page 591
Lenses......Page 596
Prime vs. Zoom......Page 602
Some Lens Suggestions......Page 603
Wide Angle......Page 605
Prime......Page 606
Specialty Lenses......Page 607
Evaluating a Lens......Page 608