Eeeek - I have a new Digital Camera

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Bev - 11 Jan 2005 23:08 GMT

I am scared!!! I have this new monster that I need to master. In
about a month we are going away to the South Island of New Zealand for
two weeks where we will record all the beauty of mountains and bush
etc. There is a bewildering array of manuals, cords, cards, batteries
and I am assured by the smooth young salesman that 'it'll be a
breeze'. DH has already flung up his hands and left me to it - mind
you, he has probablems with the microwave!!

The monster is a Panasonic DMC FZ3GN and is going to bite me any
minute. It has zoom lens and does little video clips, sigh. I'm
scared, I tell you. I used to have problems finding the button on the
old camera (which DH lost in Alaska)
Oh, and this one is supposed to be movement proof - no blurred shots
with this baby (I just don't believe it). I have also bought a proper
container for it with a padlock to fasten it around the neck of DH!!!!

Oh well, enough of this shilly shallying I am off to read the manual.
B & C & FSP prepare yourselves for a photo onslaught.

Bev

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Cats aren't clean, they're just covered with cat spit.

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Magic Mood Jeep? - 11 Jan 2005 23:50 GMT

> I am scared!!! I have this new monster that I need to master. In
> about a month we are going away to the South Island of New Zealand for
[quoted text clipped - 18 lines]
> --
> Cats aren't clean, they're just covered with cat spit.

Congrats on the new DigiCam! I'm sure you'll learn *most* of the functions
before your vaca. Heck, we've had a Canon EOS 10D for over a year, and I'm
still using the 'standard, it-does-everything-for-you' mode ;)

The plus side is that it's digital, so you won't be wasting tons of film
learning how to use it. Pic doesn't come out... that delete button comes in
mighty handy.

--?
The ONE and ONLY
lefthanded-pathetic-paranoid-psychotic-sarcastic-wiseass-ditzy
former-blonde in Bloomington! (And proud of it, too)? email me at
nalee1964 (at) insightbb (dot) com
http://community.webshots.com/user/mgcmdjeep

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Yoj - 12 Jan 2005 00:46 GMT

> > I am scared!!! I have this new monster that I need to master. In
> > about a month we are going away to the South Island of New Zealand for
[quoted text clipped - 33 lines]
> nalee1964 (at) insightbb (dot) com
> http://community.webshots.com/user/mgcmdjeep

That's a good point! You can take practice photos around the house, just to
see what happens when you try different things. Then you can either delete
them or save them for insurance records.

Congratulations! I'm sure you'll love it once you master it, and I'll bet
you find it isn't as complicated as you think. You can start with just
regular pictures, which should be simple. Then learn how to use the zoom.
Video clips are nice, but they'd be way down my list.

I've never been able to read a manual straight through. I just find the
part that talks about the specific thing I want to do, and practice that
until it comes naturally.

Joy

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Christine Burel - 12 Jan 2005 02:09 GMT

Be brave, Bev ;o)! I'm sure looking forward to those piccies!
Christine

> I am scared!!! I have this new monster that I need to master. In
> about a month we are going away to the South Island of New Zealand for
[quoted text clipped - 16 lines]
>
> Bev

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EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque) - 12 Jan 2005 04:23 GMT

> I am scared!!! I have this new monster that I need to master. In
> about a month we are going away to the South Island of New Zealand for
[quoted text clipped - 14 lines]
> Oh well, enough of this shilly shallying I am off to read the manual.
> B & C & FSP prepare yourselves for a photo onslaught.

Good luck, Bev! Mine is a Sony Cybershot DSC-P71 (if that
tells anyone anything). I still haven't managed to decipher
the booklet, even though it is in reasonable English, not
"Janglish". I'm still kicking myself because I didn't have
it set so the screen showed when the memory stick was full,
and half my pictures from Vienna, last December, just aren't
there! (And I KNEW it had to be getting full, and had a
nice, new, totally EMPTY one along, to use when I had filled
the first one!)

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badwilson - 13 Jan 2005 04:09 GMT

> > I am scared!!! I have this new monster that I need to master. In
> > about a month we are going away to the South Island of New Zealand for
[quoted text clipped - 24 lines]
> nice, new, totally EMPTY one along, to use when I had filled
> the first one!)

There's got to be something else wrong, Evelyn. Digital cameras won't
keep taking pictures once the memory stick is full. They just can't.
A message will appear saying that it's full and no more pictures can
be taken. I really doubt that it would just let you keep clicking
even though it was full.
--
Britta
Sandpaper kisses, a cuddle and a purr. I have an alarm clock that's
covered in fur!
Check out pictures of Vino at:
http://photos.yahoo.com/badwilson click on the Vino album

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EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque) - 14 Jan 2005 06:38 GMT

> There's got to be something else wrong, Evelyn. Digital cameras won't
> keep taking pictures once the memory stick is full. They just can't.
> A message will appear saying that it's full and no more pictures can
> be taken. I really doubt that it would just let you keep clicking
> even though it was full.

Well, it did, believe me! Maybe I have that somehow set
wrong, too? (There are sixty-seven pictures, and it shows
the capacity of the stick as sixty-seven, also - on the new
one, too.)

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badwilson - 14 Jan 2005 08:40 GMT

> > There's got to be something else wrong, Evelyn. Digital cameras won't
> > keep taking pictures once the memory stick is full. They just can't.
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> the capacity of the stick as sixty-seven, also - on the new
> one, too.)

Sometimes the memory sticks can malfunction. I've noticed it on
several digital cameras that I've had. What usually fixes it is after
you download all the pictures off it onto your computer, go to the
menu options and "format" the memory card. It will delete all the
pictures and somehow start with a clean slate so you don't get any
glitches. I format mine after everytime I download my pics now and
have had no further problems.
--
Britta
Sandpaper kisses, a cuddle and a purr. I have an alarm clock that's
covered in fur!
Check out pictures of Vino at:
http://photos.yahoo.com/badwilson click on the Vino album

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Julie Cook - 12 Jan 2005 05:44 GMT

> I am scared!!! I have this new monster that I need to master. In
> about a month we are going away to the South Island of New Zealand for
[quoted text clipped - 16 lines]
>
> Bev

Bev,

I have the Panasonic DMC FZ10. Comparing the two cameras it appears
they are very similar although it looks like yours can shoot closer to
the subject than I can. Do not be afraid. It is a very easy camera to
learn to use. That said, it is a very difficult camera to master. At
least to my limited knowledge. I can never get the white balance right.
I'm thinking of taking a photography class during Winter sessions at the
community learning centers. There are features I'll never learn - not
to mention the manual focus features if I don't get some help.

Good luck with the Beast. I can assure you that it won't bite very hard.
I agree with you that the 'anti-shake' feature is a bit of a stretch.
I enjoy shooting birds and stray cats so I use the digital zoom
frequently and I can't hold the camera steady enough when I zoom out
that far. But then your camera is lighter than mine so that may not be
a problem.

Have fun and I'm looking forward to pictures of B & C and FSP...and
maybe even one or two of Diablo.

Julie

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Sandra - 12 Jan 2005 08:04 GMT

Just point it and shoot! chances are it is set up on auto to start with.Get
those pics in!
sandra

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Marina - 12 Jan 2005 13:42 GMT

> I am scared!!!

Take heart, Bev! And get those pics of B&C&FSP online soon!

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Marina, Frank and Nikki
marina (dot) kurten (at) pp (dot) inet (dot) fi
Pics at http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/frankiennikki/
and http://community.webshots.com/user/frankiennikki

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Bev - 12 Jan 2005 18:18 GMT

> > I am scared!!!
>
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> Pics at http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/frankiennikki/
> and http://community.webshots.com/user/frankiennikki

Update. I have charged the battery, inserted the card and am ready to
go. The fat book of instructions looks diabolical.
It reminds of the video. I have several friends who have never
mastered video machines. Why? Because of the obscure instruction
books. Hope this one is better. Today I will set out on a road of
photo discovery. The cats are lined up, photogenic and beautiful;
there are huge lilies in the garden, waiting to be photographed. And
guess what, I have all these clever people here who belong to mensa - on
tap to help me :) Hmmmmm zoom lens, sigh.

Bev

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Cats aren't clean, they're just covered with cat spit.

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polonca12000 - 12 Jan 2005 21:51 GMT

Very much looking forward to lots of pics of your kitties!
Best wishes,

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Polonca & Soncek

> I am scared!!! I have this new monster that I need to master. In
> about a month we are going away to the South Island of New Zealand for
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> breeze'. DH has already flung up his hands and left me to it - mind
> you, he has probablems with the microwave!!

<snip

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badwilson - 13 Jan 2005 04:07 GMT

Ohhh, you got a nice one! 12x optical zoom is excellent. Especially
for outdoor nature photography. You will get some excellent pics of
the South Island and I'm looking forward to seeing them.
We have the Olympus C-750 and it has 10x optical zoom. It's awesome.
When we were in Margaret River, Australia in July, I could stand at
the side of the road and zoom into a group of kangaroos or emus
grazing about 100m away and the picture would have one kangaroo taking
up the whole frame. Woo hoo! And nobody got scared off by me trying
to get too close.
--
Britta
Sandpaper kisses, a cuddle and a purr. I have an alarm clock that's
covered in fur!
Check out pictures of Vino at:
http://photos.yahoo.com/badwilson click on the Vino album

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