Canon R100 Kit Lens in Melbourne's Laneways, First Time Off Auto
Janet had a Canon R100 with the 18-45mm kit lens and had never shot in manual mode. Three hours later she was dialling in her own settings in Melbourne's street art laneways.
The Setup: Canon R100 + 18-45mm Kit Lens
Janet brought a Canon R100 with the Canon RF-S 18-45mm f/4.5-6.3 kit lens. Canon's cheapest mirrorless body with the standard kit zoom.
The R100 with the kit lens is completely fine for learning manual mode. It has full manual controls, and that's all the course needs.
1/60s, f/7.1, ISO 100. Janet reviewing her shot with the street art behind her.
What We Covered: Shutter Speed, Aperture, and ISO
The course introduces one setting at a time. Shutter speed first, with aperture and ISO locked. A fast shutter freezes movement, a slow one lets it blur. Seeing the result on the LCD after each change makes the connection between the dial and the photo immediate.
Aperture on the 18-45mm kit lens is actually a good learning tool. It has a variable aperture, meaning it shifts from f/4.5 to f/6.3 as you zoom in. On a more expensive lens that stays constant, but on this one you can watch the number change as you twist the zoom ring. The kit lens makes the relationship between zoom and aperture visible in a way that a fixed-aperture lens doesn't.
ISO is the last piece. The R100 gets noticeably grainy past ISO 800, which is actually useful when learning. On a full-frame camera the grain is so subtle it's easy to miss. On the R100 it's obvious, making the trade-off between brightness and noise clear. That kind of visible feedback is what makes manual mode click.
Janet framing a mural in one of Melbourne's CBD laneways. Full manual mode, Canon R100 + 18-45mm kit lens.
The Westin Reflection
This shot uses the glass entrance of The Westin Melbourne as a reflective surface. The course route through Melbourne CBD passes plenty of glass, metal, and water that work for this kind of framing.
The Westin Melbourne entrance. Glass facades like this are all over the CBD.
1/80s, f/8.0, ISO 200. Full manual. Melbourne CBD laneways.
Full Manual Mode on a Kit Lens
The second LCD shot above shows 1/80s, f/8.0, ISO 200. All three settings chosen manually. That's the goal of the course: getting comfortable choosing shutter speed, aperture, and ISO together based on the light and the subject.
The R100 with the kit lens handled the full 3 hours without any issues. To take those RAW files further, the Adobe Lightroom course covers everything from importing to exporting.
The Canon R100 for Beginners
The R100 is Canon's cheapest mirrorless. It uses the same RF lens mount as Canon's top-end bodies, so the glass upgrades later without switching systems. The kit lens has full manual controls, variable aperture that shifts visibly as you zoom, and it's light enough to carry for 3 hours.
If you haven't bought a camera yet, check our beginner camera guide. The R100 is covered in more detail there.
Quick Answers
Do I need an expensive camera for the course?
No. Janet did the entire course on a Canon R100 with the kit lens that comes in the box. The variable aperture on the kit lens actually makes it easier to understand what aperture does because you can watch it change as you zoom. Any camera with manual controls works.
Is the Canon R100 good enough to learn on?
More than good enough. It has full manual controls, an RF lens mount you can grow into, and it's light enough to carry for 3 hours without getting tired. The grain at high ISO is more obvious than on pricier cameras, but that actually helps when you're learning what ISO does.
How does the course work?
3 hours walking Melbourne CBD with Daniel Bilsborough. You learn shutter speed, aperture, and ISO one at a time, practicing each one on the street until it makes sense before adding the next. $499, max 2 students. You bring your camera, any brand.
What the Course Covers
- Shutter speed controls motion: fast freezes, slow blurs
- Aperture controls background blur, and on a kit lens it shifts when you zoom
- ISO adds brightness but the grain gets obvious on the R100 past 800
- Combining all three settings to expose a shot manually
- Using reflections, light, and framing in Melbourne CBD
Janet's R100 with the kit lens was more than enough for the whole session. The course works with any camera that has manual controls. Or read about Joseph's session with a Canon R8 or Ron's session with a Sony A7CR for a different camera, same result.
Your Turn
The DSLR & Mirrorless Express Photography Course runs every Saturday in Melbourne CBD. Max 2 students. $499. Check our photography tips for beginners if you want a head start before you come.