Monobod
'Phantom' of the forum!
Reged: 03/04/2003
Posts: 5992
Loc: Just West of Norwich, Norfolk
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I skimmed through the book when I first got the camera, then read the bits that interested me the most. Now I use it as a reference book, looking up things when I'm not sure.
For me,a paper book is far better than a pdf file on the move, but the pdf can be 'searched' at home on the computer. The K10D book is small enough to pack in the camera bag for holidays, when a quick glance might be needed now and then.
I think reading the book is well worth while. Modern dslr's are complex and to assume one knows it all is to miss something, perhaps.
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David.
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Photos hosted by Flickr.
www.flickr.com/photos/monobod/
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I see the world thro' a viewfinder, but the world watches me via CCTV!
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Footloose
Carpal \'Tunnel
Reged: 11/08/2005
Posts: 3188
Loc: Berkshire based.
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I invariably read them, as there is sure to be something buried deep within one of the camera's sub-menus I haven't spotted, or the descriptor given, needs clarifying.
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Trainee reprobate with a pronounced limp (spelt L .. I .. M .. P.)
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Benchmark
Is it safe?
Reged: 12/07/2005
Posts: 3034
Loc: Sedgefield, Co Durham
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I only ever read the bits that I want/need to.
The manuals for my E1 and G9 are both supplied on disk, and I have never bothered to print them out. I read a few pages of the E1 manual on-screen to find out why the Adobe RGB icon wouldn't stop flashing. I didn't find the answer, but I found the reason when I was playing wiht the menus one night.
I got as as far as the Contents pages in the G9 manual and that was enough to bore me rigid, so I went no further.
Having said that, I did read the manual for my Mamiya, but that is only about six pages long, and TBH it is all so obvious that nobody with more than half an ounce of common sense should need a manual anyway.
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Nigel CRIPN and Bar
Beware of the Dark Slide
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Terrywoodenpic
A whiff of silicon...
Reged: 21/01/2006
Posts: 370
Loc: Saddleworth UK
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In the days of manual cameras I kept them for light reading but never got round to it.
Digital cameras are a different matter. No one of them has quite the same features, nor do you access them in the same way.
I read both the G6 one and the 40D one cover to cover except for the sections about printing from the camera etc. which for me is a never do and never want to do feature. nor do I bother with the "non creative modes" section, I have never used them,nor can I think of a reason to ever want to.
It would be loveley if you could just reprogram them as C4,C5, C6......
Nor have I put any of the canon software on my computer it would just further clutter the place up.
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63 happy photo years from amateur to professional and back to amateur
Edited by Terrywoodenpic (09/06/2008 19:37)
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Bettina
Kein Titel
Reged: 12/02/2004
Posts: 4104
Loc: London
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It depends. If there is a printed manual in the box, I'll flick through it. If the manual is on a CD, I don't.
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Bettina
http://www.vibrantpictures.co.uk
Vibrant Pictures on Flickr
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Benchista
Wich Tyler
Reged: 11/08/2000
Posts: 37888
Loc: Everywhere and nowhere, baby
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Quote:
Digital cameras are a different matter. No one of them has quite the same features, nor do you access them in the same way.
Not really true. The 5D and 30D behave in a very similar way, and neither are that different to the 10D - having read the 10D manual, there was no need to read the 5D one except for the odd specific, and none whatsoever to read the 30D one.
Quote:
Nor have I put any of the canon software on my computer it would just further clutter the place up.
DPP is actually a pretty respectable bit of software - had it been available with the 10D, I certinly wouldn't have bought so many other RAW converters. I see in this week's mag there's actually a letter from a Minolta Dynax 5D user who's using DPP for image processing!
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Nick
www.nbrphoto.com
Light and Shade II - the new blog
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APchris
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 06/05/2006
Posts: 1601
Loc: Lincolnshire
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I tend not to read the manual untill much later when I'm totally flumoxed  I'm just too excited to play with the new toys!!
When I finally got round to opening my camera manual to look up one small annoyance I found the camera could do a whole lot of cool and usefull stuff  Trouble was I'd had the camera for well over a year by then - guess that should teach me to pay more attention to the manual!
BTW, the poll should have a "Yes, eventally" option 
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Chris
Better a bad day on the water than a good day at the office 
My Flickr sets
Edited by APchris (11/06/2008 04:41)
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SqueamishOssifrage
veteran
Reged: 13/09/2006
Posts: 1489
Loc: Ayia Anna, Hub of the Universe
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Quote:
When I finally got round to opening my camera manual to look up one small annoyance I found the camera could do a whole lot of cool and usefull stuff
I read manuals from cover to cover straight away for this very reason. It's less to find out how to do something, more to do with finding out what can be done.
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'You people, you think I know duck nothing; I tell you: I know duck all.'
Credited to Michael Curtiz by David Niven
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Done&rundleCams
Senior Member
Reged: 20/12/2001
Posts: 16755
Loc: Vancouver, BC
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I usually read a bit of the manual if I don't know the answer
to a question or can't figure out something for a customer 
so, consequently, I do quite a bit of ( a little bit of) reading
Cheers,
Jack
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Life is a Photo-op
MY BLOG: www.nakedmanonawire.blogspot.com
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ermintrude
Hinkypuff
Reged: 30/06/2003
Posts: 12550
Loc: London, UK
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Interestingly (or not ) I read the entire manual for my new breadmaker in the park t'other day, but Ive hardly flicked through the nikon manual in all the years Ive owned it 
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Cuthbert
enthusiast
Reged: 10/09/2007
Posts: 233
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Quote:
I read manuals from cover to cover straight away for this very reason. It's less to find out how to do something, more to do with finding out what can be done.
If I'm interesting in buying something, I'll often download the manuals first to see exactly what features are available and how easy it is to do certain things.
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Simon
My flickr galleries at http://www.flickr.com/photos/sis-exposures/
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Matt_Hunt
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 07/11/2005
Posts: 2283
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Like Cuthbert, I browsed the D300 manual before buying to see if really did what I wanted, how I wanted and then when it came out of the box, worked through the camera as I wanted to work it, with the manual beside me.
I've read the manual about 3 times now to make sure I am not missing something and God forbid I do not become one of these people who asks 'why is my Nikon showing an FEE error message' or 'where is the video mode'....
Some manuals, like the F80's, need reading because certain sections do not trip off the page happily, but I think they're still worth reading.
My 2 pence... 
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/reactivefilm/
My Blog
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Brendan
member
Reged: 27/01/2006
Posts: 116
Loc: Birmingham UK
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Nikon D3 ----- 440 page manual - essential reading!
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Brendan Delaney
brendandelaneyphotography.com
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Learning
Ethelred the Ill-Named
Reged: 26/09/2006
Posts: 2341
Loc: Nottingham
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I read the manual, downloaded off the internet, before I buy the camera.
No internet manual then no sale.
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Mugshot
journeyman
Reged: 08/01/2006
Posts: 66
Loc: U.K.
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For any piece of equipment I intend to buy I try to read the instructions and specifications on -line first and download them , if it meets with my needs,if I buy it I read them twice before trying to operate it.
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Ben.
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IvorETower
Little Buttercup
Reged: 15/11/2006
Posts: 1760
Loc: Camberley, Surrey
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I always read the manuals, cover to cover. Sometimes you discover hidden functions or quick ways of changing settings.
And curse those manufacturers who put manuals on a CD rather than including a printed version with the camera
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Too many cameras, too many lenses.......
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TimF
Senior Member
Reged: 30/07/2001
Posts: 16481
Loc: Herts/Beds border
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Oh for the days when manuals were only about a dozen pages (including a goodly number of large pictures) eh!
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Tim BSRIPN
You see something happening and you bang away at it. Either you get what you saw or you get something else--and whichever is better you print. - Garry Winogrand
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Learning
Ethelred the Ill-Named
Reged: 26/09/2006
Posts: 2341
Loc: Nottingham
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Quote:
Oh for the days when manuals were only about a dozen pages (including a goodly number of large pictures) eh!
Those were the days when you only had three things to adjust plus the self timer or multiple exposure to set.
There was also no need to read the manual except for the multiple exposure which I never used anyway. All cameras were the same. No trouble at all moving from a Pentax Spotmatic to Nikon FMn2. Fortuneately I never owned a Leica. I think I would have had to read a manual to get film into that thing.
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TimF
Senior Member
Reged: 30/07/2001
Posts: 16481
Loc: Herts/Beds border
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Quote:
Fortuneately I never owned a Leica. I think I would have had to read a manual to get film into that thing.
I find it easier than loading a contemporary manual SLR funnily enough. 
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Tim BSRIPN
You see something happening and you bang away at it. Either you get what you saw or you get something else--and whichever is better you print. - Garry Winogrand
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Nod
Carpal \'Tunnel
Reged: 08/04/2006
Posts: 4335
Loc: Devon, UK.
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After a skim through it online (well, downloaded as a PDF) before purchase of a new camera, when it's finally "open the box" time, the battery goes on charge and the manmual gets started. Over the next few days (or weeks), the manual sits by the karzi and gets digested slowly. Once I've read it through, the manual gets carried in the kit bag until I can't remember when I last looked at it, at which point it gets put on the shelf - generally to be got off the shelf next time the camera gets used because I've forgotten how to access a particular feature!
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MATWSIJ.....
To avoid being offended, please insert apropriate smiley.
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