Is manual mode overrated?

[Overread]

If auto gave me the exposure every time, i wouldn't need manual...but it don't.

very seldom does it give you the correct exposure. auto is always a compromise over quality

I don't agree.
There are many times where I have shot in manual and auto ... and encountered that auto was what I thought the manual exposure should be.
The Matrix metering algorithms are getting smarter.

Not all shots require manual intervention ... I am actually tired of hearing that you cannot take the best shot with the camera in control.

You realise the meter in auto is the very same meter used for manual mode - with the difference that in manual mode you have the option to change how the meter itself reads the scene (as you also get in the priority modes). All auto is doing is setting your aperture, shutter speed and ISO for you based on what the meter reads and on the criteria that the camera designers have put into place for auto mode to take into account.

It sounds more like you don't fully understand how aperture and shutter speed apply to the appearance of your photos and that as a result you find yourself in situations where auto is giving you a look that you prefer, but that you don't fully understand which parts (aperture value and shutter speed primarily) are contributing to the look of the photo. This is partly an understanding of theory and also partly a real world experience factor - the more you shoot the better you get at predicting what the look will be with certain settings in a given scene.

 

[dxqcanada]

Yes I do understand.
The light meter is the same, the calculation of the exposure using a combination of shutter speed and aperture may or may not be different than the one that I calculated in my head.

Hmm, actually I do understand about Aperture, Shutter Speed, light sensitivity of the medium, exposure latitude ... and their affect on the image ... so my statement is not totally uneducated.

All I am saying is that these new cameras have come a long way from the Center Weight metered cameras of old.

Ah, but isn't the image that I prefer not the best one ... even if it is shot in Auto Exposure ??

 

[PASM]

I agree..The more i used levels,curves the more it shows the necessity to get the best exposure possible. like you already say..the data's got to be there. The idea that it's ok to shoot sloppy in RAW isn't good.

Fixing it all in photoshop gives me more control than manual mode ever could.

shows how little you actually know and understand. PS can not ever bring out detail lost on a poor shot, it can only work with the information given

 

[Overread]

All I am saying is that these new cameras have come a long way from the Center Weight metered cameras of old.

Ah, but isn't the image that I prefer not the best one ... even if it is shot in Auto Exposure ??

Aye indeed those points are true and the camera automatic controls are indeed far more advanced than they were before and in many situations green auto mode can deliver what a person needs in a photo.

However when someone turns to me and says that auto mode is often giving them better results (ie shots that they want) than regular modes (full manual; aperture priority; shutter priority) then I come to think that its not so much that auto mode has gotten better, but that the person still isn't quite sure how to control the camera itself = or at least not quite able to both predict what the shot will look like based on the settings and also make up their own mind about how to creatively expose the scene before them (this last part leading them to favour a 3rd party input over their own experiments - in this case that of the choice of auto mode)

 

[Overread]

I agree..The more i used levels,curves the more it shows the necessity to get the best exposure possible. Just as you say..the data's got to be there. The idea that it's ok to shoot sloppy in RAW isn't helpful.

Fixing it all in photoshop gives me more control than manual mode ever could.

shows how little you actually know and understand. PS can not ever bring out detail lost on a poor shot, it can only work with the information given

I think Michigan left out the sarcastic font in that post

 

[table1349]

speaking of manual transmissions, I cant find a single truck built today equipped with one... wtf?

No offense there usayit, but..................... Well Duh.... you live in New Jersey. :lmao:

Come to Kansas. We may not have much in the way of excitement or night life compared to New Jersey, but we got's lots of auto dealers with manual transmission trucks on their lots. :mrgreen:

 

[o hey tyler]

I agree..The more i used levels,curves the more it shows the necessity to get the best exposure possible. Just as you say..the data's got to be there. The idea that it's ok to shoot sloppy in RAW isn't helpful.

shows how little you actually know and understand. PS can not ever bring out detail lost on a poor shot, it can only work with the information given

I think Michigan left out the sarcastic font in that post

This is the sarcastic font. Good ol' comic sans in large type face.

 

[table1349]

I agree..The more i used levels,curves the more it shows the necessity to get the best exposure possible. Just as you say..the data's got to be there. The idea that it's ok to shoot sloppy in RAW isn't helpful.

I think Michigan left out the sarcastic font in that post

This is the sarcastic font. Good ol' comic sans in large type face.

 

[o hey tyler]

You sir, have clearly not used Comic Sans enough. The font you displayed is not a web safe font, therefore cannot be used to spread sarcasm like good ol' MS Comic Sans in a large type.

 

[MichiganFarts]

Fixing it all in photoshop gives me more control than manual mode ever could.

shows how little you actually know and understand. PS can not ever bring out detail lost on a poor shot, it can only work with the information given

You just got outed for using auto modes, while you're foolishly preaching manual mode man...I think my take on photoshop, sarcastic or not, is the least of your concerns. You're basically, a hoax!

 

[dxqcanada]

All I am saying is that these new cameras have come a long way from the Center Weight metered cameras of old.

Ah, but isn't the image that I prefer not the best one ... even if it is shot in Auto Exposure ??

Aye indeed those points are true and the camera automatic controls are indeed far more advanced than they were before and in many situations green auto mode can deliver what a person needs in a photo.

However when someone turns to me and says that auto mode is often giving them better results (ie shots that they want) than regular modes (full manual; aperture priority; shutter priority) then I come to think that its not so much that auto mode has gotten better, but that the person still isn't quite sure how to control the camera itself = or at least not quite able to both predict what the shot will look like based on the settings and also make up their own mind about how to creatively expose the scene before them (this last part leading them to favour a 3rd party input over their own experiments - in this case that of the choice of auto mode)

Ah, now I realize where you are coming from.
Ok, I was just told (by my wife) that what I wrote was not what I meant to say ... it appears I have lost the capability of explaining in written form.

 

[chito beach]

very seldom does it give you the correct exposure. auto is always a compromise over quality

I don't agree.
There are many times where I have shot in manual and auto ... and encountered that auto was what I thought the manual exposure should be.
The Matrix metering algorithms are getting smarter.

Not all shots require manual intervention ... I am actually tired of hearing that you cannot take the best shot with the camera in control.

You realise the meter in auto is the very same meter used for manual mode - with the difference that in manual mode you have the option to change how the meter itself reads the scene (as you also get in the priority modes). All auto is doing is setting your aperture, shutter speed and ISO for you based on what the meter reads and on the criteria that the camera designers have put into place for auto mode to take into account.

It sounds more like you don't fully understand how aperture and shutter speed apply to the appearance of your photos and that as a result you find yourself in situations where auto is giving you a look that you prefer, but that you don't fully understand which parts (aperture value and shutter speed primarily) are contributing to the look of the photo. This is partly an understanding of theory and also partly a real world experience factor - the more you shoot the better you get at predicting what the look will be with certain settings in a given scene.

I understand and dont rely on the in camera metering but from experience of setting in manual and a separate meter

 

[chito beach]

Fixing it all in photoshop gives me more control than manual mode ever could.

shows how little you actually know and understand. PS can not ever bring out detail lost on a poor shot, it can only work with the information given

You just got outed for using auto modes, while you're foolishly preaching manual mode man...I think my take on photoshop, sarcastic or not, is the least of your concerns. You're basically, a hoax!

What ever that gibberish was meant to say. I shoot manual nearly all the time except for when I shoot at 10 shots per second which does not allow for any manual input, that is not used often

 

[Dmitri]

speaking of manual transmissions, I cant find a single truck built today equipped with one... wtf?

Toyota Tacoma, baby!!

 

[Dmitri]

You sir, have clearly not used Comic Sans enough. The font you displayed is not a web safe font, therefore cannot be used to spread sarcasm like good ol' MS Comic Sans in a large type.

It's also nice and BBBIIGGGG!