Another option you have is to spend the money to get a film scanner capable of handling medium format. Both Nikon and Minolta make such a beast for ~$1700-2000. They scan at 4000 dpi and above, which gives you up to a ~60MP (for 6 x 4.5) scan. Just be prepared to wait a bit. I have the Minolta and I love it.
The best way to learn is to take meticulous notes on every shot you take. I don't think you really learn anything by "chimping". Whether it's digital or slides, you can't learn a thing if you don't correlate the results to your settings. I personally feel that shooting slides is the best way to learn because, unlike digital, the image on the slide IS the final image. With digital, everyone's monitor, camera LCD, and printer are different. You can take a slide to any competent (pro) lab and tell them to make a print look like the slide. There's no misunderstanding between you and the tech whose making your print. With a slide, you've eliminated a whole host of variables that would otherwise affect the final product.
And when I say take notes I mean 1/2 a sheet (or more) of paper. Beyond the shutter speed, aperture, and ISO you need to take notes about how the shot was set up. Where were the lights and what were their power settings? If natural light, what was the time of year, time of day, quality of light, and weather condition? What type, shape, and size reflectors and/or diffusers did you use? What was the lighting ratio between the key light source and the fill. What did your meter tell you and what did you actually do? If you're shooting digital then write down the image size, compression level, sharpness level, color balance, color saturation, and any other settings that have an impact on the image.
With those notes you've got a way to start analyzing shots. You'll start to learn what looks right and what looks off. The notes won't help you much with composition and expression, but it will definately help you with exposure and other technical problems you'll run into. Composition is really about learning how to see. Take a figure drawing class at a local community college or art center. Buy magazines that have the type of imagery you like to make and analyze why you like them. Notice how the model is turned, how the hands are positioned, how the camera was tilted, and how the image was framed (cropped).
At the end of the day, you can learn just as much shooting digitally as you can shooting slides. It is cheaper, but you have more variables to contend with which can be confusing and sometimes overwhelming.
-Chip
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