For all you manual guys

[zapman29]

for those that dont use program modes, I was wondering is there a base line for apeture, iso, shutterspeed for photos taken?, ie: portratis, scene, action, i mean somtimes you dont know what your going to shoot and me being a novice would be nice to have a baseline of what to set my camera too for the event..

 

[Overread]

I can give you two bits of good advice for this;

1) To find the general settings of a type of photography get some guide books that show the settings under the photo - that will start to give you some idea of how the photographers are shooting. The more you look at the more you can also get a feel for what is important in a tricky situation (ie do they put the emphasis on depth of field or shutter speed for example). The internet is also good for this as well - though I prefer a book as you can refrence it at leasure and quickly

2) Get into aperture priority mode - walking around grabshooting in manual is not easy - one has to have their mind about them to adjust the settings best for the type of shot to take and also the light around them. That takes not only understanding, but practice as well. If you are in aperture priority mode (which most photographers actually sit in for much of the time) you have less to worry about in the shot - you adjust your aperture to get the depth of field and then you can use the exposure compensation to factor in light changes and ISO as well. Its quicker to adjust and the camera can change shutterspeed faster than you can

Save manual mode for when the camera gets it wrong or for a specific case (such an example form my experiences is macro photography with a flash - aperture priority mode I find not the best to work in at times)

 

[roadkill]

I couldn't think of an entire event where I would shoot at one setting. Different shots or series of shots will most likely require adjustments to your aperture, shutter speed, ISO and even white balance. When I started out I would just walk around for a few hours in the afterrnoons and shoot everything, adjusting all of these things and noting the effects. This helped me tremendously. Now not a thought is given to changing any thing thats needed for whatever shot I take. It's second nature.

 

[usayit]

for those that dont use program modes, I was wondering is there a base line for apeture, iso, shutterspeed for photos taken?, ie: portratis, scene, action, i mean somtimes you dont know what your going to shoot and me being a novice would be nice to have a baseline of what to set my camera too for the event..

Very loaded topic that will basically mean someone attempting to explain behavior that has been learned through experience and practice. Kinda like asking a painter what brush or paint they should start with.

In my mind, I think in terms of how I want to present. My thought process begins very simply a selection of aperture as a painter would select a brush:
* do I want the viewer to focus on a subject => choose a subject aperture that includes a shallower DOF. These include portraits. My general starting point is f/5.6.
* Do I want a general "be there" aperture => Street shooters, photojournalists. General flexibility. My general starting point is f/8.
* Do I want to tell a story. => a person working his/her craft. A subject AND their environment. This includes lanscapes. My general starting point is f/11.


This is a very general response....

 

[Mike_E]

Indoors I adjust the aperture to the DOF I need and modify it by how hard the flashes would have to work. I adjust the shutter speed to set the mood with the ambient light in the background. I very rarely shoot indoors without a flash unless I'm snap-shooting.

Outdoors I'm in aperture priority with exposure comp too. Program mode for snap-shooting here as well. Which aperture depends on how what I'm seeing through the viewfinder makes me feel.

I'm snap-shooting anytime being in husband and/or father mode is required to keep my wife from beating me over the head with something. LOLOLOL

 

[Big Mike]

Using manual doens't mean that you pick settings off the top of your head (although some might). You can still utilize the camera's built-in light meter.

As some have mentioned, you don't always have to shoot in any one mode. I use manual almost all of the time that I'm shooting with flash...but I often use E-TTL (auto flash metering). When I'm shooting with ambient light, I'll usually put the camera in Av mode but I'll adjust the EC when needed.

With digital, it's easy to shoot and check the histogram....so you can use that rather than the meter's readings.

Manual mode is best for when you know the settings you want and the light isn't changing. Or for when the lighting would trick the meter. Really, there will be no difference between using manual or using an auto mode and adjusting the exposure with EC. A shot taken at F8, 1/125 and ISO 200...will be the same, whether it's in auto or manual mode.

 

[ksmattfish]

Like several of the above posters I'm usually concerned with DOF first, so I pick an aperture that's appropriate (also considering the effects of focal length and subject distance on DOF). Then I pick a shutter speed based on avoiding camera shake, flash sync, background lighting, etc... Finally I go with the lowest ISO that allows me to get a good exposure with the settings I've chosen. A little more noise because I upped the ISO is much more preferable than camera shake to my eye.

 

[prodigy2k7]

Every situation is different, in some situations, you set the aperture to what you need, then the shutter to suit it, if you need more exposure bump the ISO and fix them... Or you might start with shutter if u want to control or get a specific amount of motion blur...etc

 

[Ejazzle]

wow. i never even think about changing my settings and stuff. i automatically do it now lol. wierd. But every situation is different, once you are comfortable with your camera and have done a lot of trial and error you will get the hang of M "M" stands for "man" real men use "M" lol jk jk

 

[Garbz]

There is such a baseline. The sunny 16 rule. Shoot at 1/ISO at f/16 To expose something sunlit without blowing it out.

 

[Bifurcator]

:thumbup: I wondered how long it would take till that was mentioned.

 

[K_Pugh]

Not sure that's what he's asking. I think he's looking for rough estimates on suitable apertures or shutters speeds for different shots (portraits, action, etc) and not so much about using Manual, or manual metering.

portraits for instance, Aperture Priority, lowest ISO possible @ F4~ with a shutter speed of 1/focal length?

that sort of thing.

If it is manual metering the sunny 16 rule is great, worth looking up on that anyway. I always find myself trying to work out the EV value of scenes when i'm out and about without a camera something to feed the need, eh?

 

[Big Mike]

I always find myself trying to work out the EV value of scenes when i'm out and about without a camera something to feed the need, eh?

I had a photography instructor who said that when he was working, he would go for lunch with his photographer friend, they would 'guess' the ambient light reading and the worst guesser would have to buy lunch (they always had a light meter with them). He said that they could eventually judge the light to within 2 tenths of a stop.

 

[Bifurcator]

Yeah, it's not hard. And I think this seeps into the brain by slow osmosis after paying attention to a few thousand shots - how ever long that takes.

 

[Stogie]

WOW... you talking about alot of variables here. The middle of the road aperture settings would be f8 or f11. Adjust shutter accordingly. Alot has to do with the lens and distance you are from your subject. Ansel had a method he called far and near where he had 2 subjects. One far and one near and both were in focus. I would suggest setting something up in your back yard and just start shooting it starting at your lowest aperture setting and moving up the setting, changing your shutter speed and study the pics to see what you get. Do the opposite, but with your shutter speed.