I am interested in learning the mechanics of using a digital camera. I was hoping to find an online video course or dvd that would show me. My wife has a nikon D300. What I am looking for is the specifics of if I see something I want to shoot, how to get that in the camera at the best way possible. I have been watching camera to print & screen which gives some very good information, but I still don't know what half the stuff they are talking about is. I don't understand histograms, exposure, iso, fstops, etc.
So basically I am looking for a resource that explains what all that stuff is, and most importantly how to use my cameras meter to determine which settings to put on. I want to take the camera out of auto. I want to know how to determine which ISO to use etc. I want to know when to use a flash, and how to set up lighting. How to use a separate light meter.
What I dont want the videos to focus on are the non technical side like what emotion were you trying to convey etc. I would like to focus on that stuff after I understand the technical aspects of using the camera, lighting, metering, exposure, expose to the right, histograms, how to tell if highlights are getting blown out, or the darks are getting clipped, lenses .... all stuff I heard on that camera to print & screen but did not know how they were determining that.
The D300 user manual is not much help, just shows how to change settings, not what they are. Any reccomendations on online video courses? Or possibly a book that would help?