Start · Module 1Technique · 7 min

Tour your camera

Lesson 2 of 12

MODULE 1 ROADMAP

The short version

This is a hands-on treasure hunt around your camera. You will find the controls that matter, learn what each one does and try it once. Ten relaxed minutes now saves a lot of fumbling later.

Grab your camera, take the lens cap off and keep the manual handy. Every brand puts its buttons in different places and gives them different names, so the two photos below are a map, not a rulebook. If your camera is a phone, a compact or a bridge camera, some items will not apply; that is completely normal, just skip them.

A mirrorless camera seen from directly above with a 35mm lens pointing up the frame, showing the shutter button with its power switch, the mode dial, a red record button, the hot shoe, the focal plane mark and a control dial — **Figure 1.** One camera seen from above, numbered. Your camera will have most of these somewhere, but the positions and names vary by brand and model, so match each one to yours.

The tour, step by step

Power and battery. Find the on/off control: a switch, a collar around the shutter button or a button. Open the battery and card doors (on some cameras they share one door) and note which way each goes in.
The shutter button. On almost every camera it has two stages. Press halfway and the camera focuses and measures the light; press all the way to take the picture. Practise the half-press ten times. It feels odd for about a day, then it is yours for life.
The mode control. A dial or a menu setting that decides who chooses the exposure, you or the camera. Leave it on Auto or P (program) for now; Module 3 explains every option.
Dials and wheels. Most cameras have at least one dial or wheel for changing settings. Turn each one and watch what changes on the screen.
The viewfinder, if you have one. Look through it. If the writing inside looks fuzzy, turn the little dioptre wheel or lever beside it until the writing is crisp. That adjusts the view for your eyes, not the photo’s focus.
The rear screen and display button. Press the display button (often marked DISP or INFO, names vary by brand) to step through the screen layouts. Pick one that shows your settings and a grid.
Playback. Press the playback button (the triangle symbol), zoom right in on a picture to check sharpness, and learn how to delete one frame.
Moving the focus point. Find how your camera moves the focus point: a joystick, a four-way pad, a wheel or the touch screen. Module 10 goes deeper.
The lens. Find the zoom ring (if it zooms) and the focus ring. If your lens has switches, such as autofocus or stabilisation, set it to autofocus for now.

The back of a mirrorless camera held in a right hand, showing the viewfinder eyecup, a MENU button, a custom button marked C3, an AF/MF and AEL lever, an Fn button, a control wheel, a playback button and the rear screen showing a live view of autumn leaves with 1/160, F4.0 and ISO AUTO along the bottom — **Figure 2.** The same kind of camera from behind. Button names and positions vary by brand, so use this as a treasure map, not a rulebook.

Starting settings

Setting	Set it to	Why
Date, time, time zone	Local and correct	Sorts your pictures and matches your phone photos
Copyright or owner name (if offered)	Your name	Saved inside every picture file
Grid display	On	Helps keep horizons level
Picture review	About 2 seconds	A quick check without slowing you down
Screen brightness	Standard or middle	A very bright screen makes dark photos look fine

Image quality has its own module (Module 4), and so does holding the camera steady (Module 2).

Go deeper

Experienced shooters often rearrange the controls around how they work. Three common changes: back-button focus, which moves autofocus from the half-press to a separate button on the back (where your camera allows it), so focusing and taking the picture become separate actions; custom buttons, where you give the settings you change most, such as ISO, their own button; and saved set-ups, which some cameras store in custom positions you recall in one move (Module 75). Change one thing at a time, live with it for a week, and write each change down so you can rebuild it after a reset or firmware update.

Finn tip: If you change something and get lost, look for a reset option in the menu. Write down your date, time and name settings first, because a reset can wipe them.

A mirrorless camera with a white 70-200 mm zoom lens, photographed from directly above on a dark background, showing the power lever, hot shoe, mode dial and shutter button

Key takeaways

The shutter button has two stages: half-press to focus and measure, full press to shoot.
Dials and buttons do different jobs in different modes, so watch the screen as you turn them.
Every brand names and places its controls differently; your manual is the final word.

Try it now · 10 minutes

Draw a quick sketch of your camera’s top and back. Label every control you found today in your own words and tuck it in your bag. Any control you could not name? Look it up tonight and add it. Treasure hunt complete.