Doug Sahlin - Canon EOS Rebel Sl1/100d for Dummies

Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D For Dummies

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Copyright 2013 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

Published simultaneously in Canada

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2013941602

ISBN 978-1-118-75367-5 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-118-75430-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-75423-8 (ebk)

Manufactured in the United States of America

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Introduction

Y our Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D is the latest and greatest digital camera on the market, sporting a stunning 18-megapixel capture, Live View, high-definition video, and much more. All this technology might be a bit daunting, though, especially if this is your first digital SLR (single lens reflex) camera. If youve used a digital camera before, youre probably accustomed to basic shooting modes like Portrait, Sports, Landscape, and so on. Those are still there for your convenience. But with the SL1/100D, youve also graduated to the big leagues with all the manual settings and shooting tweaks you could ever want. If youre moving to Digital Land from a 35mm film camera background, most of this will be second nature to you.

All you have to do is practice and have fun in the process to master the power you hold in your hands. And thats where I come into the picture. Ive been using Canon dSLRs since the EOS 10D model debuted, and Ive learned a lot about Canon digital cameras since then. In addition to the SL1/100D Im using to write this book, I also own an EOS 5D MKII and EOS 7D, which have a lot of the features found on your SL1/100D.

My simple goal in this book is to show you how to become one with your camera. I dont get overly technical in this book, even though your camera is very technical. I also do my best to keep it lively. So if you want to master your SL1/100D, you have the right book in your hands.

Note: If youre curious why your camera name isnt SL1/100D, like shown here, its because Canon has an international presence. The U.S. name for the camera is the EOS Rebel SL1, and in other parts of the world, its the EOS 100D. To keep life simple, I just refer to the model as SL1/100D.

About This Book

If you find the buttons and menus on your shiny new SL1/100D a tad intimidating, this book is for you. In the chapters of this book, I take you from novice point-and-shoot photographer, or experienced 35mm camera user, to one who can use all the bells and whistles this dSLR camera offers. Youll find information about virtually every menu and button on your camera, as well as when to use them, and what settings to use for specific picture-taking situations. I also show you how to use the software that ships with your camera.

To make life easier, this book uses several conventions to help you identify pertinent information in other words, stuff you should know.

Terms or words that you might be unfamiliar with in the context of photography, I have italicized and I also define these.

Numbered steps that you need to follow and characters you need to type are set in bold.

Margin art is used to identify camera buttons. When you see one of these icons, it shows you which button to press or tap, or dial to rotate.

The SL1/100D menu has pretty little icons for each tab but no text to describe what each tab does. I name the tabs to make things easier for you, dear reader, and for my editor and me. Youll find a table with tab names in .

The main controller on the back of the camera has four integral navigational keys, like what youre probably familiar with from using a TV or DVD player remote control. Envision a circular button with N, S, E, and W compass points; N is up, S is down, E is right, W is left. These are cross keys (Canons name), and they surround the Set button. Sometimes you press them up or down to access a menu command, sometimes left or right, sometimes up only, and so on. They can be solo or combined and will be different for different cases. For example, picture a scenario where Cancel is highlighted as the default option for erasing an image, and OK is the other option. You can press only the right cross key to highlight OK, or press Set to cancel the erase.