Need help with macro shot...

[r3dline]

Hey folks, I just got my new 300D in last night and didn't really get to mess with it until this morning. Well anyway, this is my first camera...ever. So I'm a COMPLETE NEWBIE. Needless to say, this thing has so many buttons and settings...I didn't know where to begin (and was completely lost). I have read through the manual, and it did help quite a bit. But I'm still stuck on this whole auto focus thing...

I took this close-up shot outside my apartment door, looking down the outside wall. I was TRYING to see if I could get the brick in focus, while keeping the rest of the hallway in focus...but as you can see, I failed miserably. Since, I really don't know exactly what settings to use, I set the mode dial to "A-DEP" and tried that, assuming it would automatically adjust the depth of field. Guess I was wrong. So anyway, enough rambling. How can I get the entire frame in focus? Or can I?

[awkwards]

It looks like the problem is depth of field. Try setting your aperture smaller (to a higher f number, that is). This will give you more depth of field. But then you'll have to increase your exposure time. Doing a shot like this can be tricky if you want to get much depth. You won't ever get all of the wall in focus from this close up unless you go with a very wide angle, and that might not be the shot you're looking for.

If none of this makes sense, that's OK, and that's understandable if this is your first camera and you're brand new to photography. As you go, you'll learn about all this stuff, but it helps to have a basic reference or starting point. I usually find this in books that I can carry around with me and read before I conk out at night.

To help you learn some of the basic photographic concepts, I highly, highly recommend Michael Langford's Basic Photography, one of the later editions. It's a famous book by a famous (now deceased) author. It's a great reference and has excellent information about depth of field, light, and exposure, and all the foundational principles of photography. You may even find a copy in your local used book store.

You'll have to weed out some of the stuff that's specific only to film, but it's still worth reading the whole thing cover to cover.

Most important of all, just have fun and try everything!! (It's not like you're going to run out of film!) You've got a fantastic camera, and I'm sure it will serve you well for a long time.