Does anyone find themselves using the "Program" mode alot or is it just me?

It depends which camera I´m using actually

With the film cameras (EOS 5), I only use aperture priority or manual.

but with the semi-compact digital it´s too fiddly to change aperture or shutter speed, therefore I usually use P with compensation according to hi or lo key lighting etc. It works.
 
i'd say i use manual mode pretty much 100% of the time, ever since i bought my dSLR... i guess i always felt like using it on any other mode would be wasting its capabilities and whatnot... (not saying it IS, thats just sort of what i felt) but i guess i'm glad i did that because now I know how to use my camera well and adjust all the settings for the situation and stuff... and i havent really fully understood what the other modes do , and i like having full control over everything
 
Hmmm, i mostly use manual mode on my Minolta SRT102/202 film cameras - it's the ONLY mode available!!!! ;-) On my dSLR, a Minolta Dynax 7D, i primarily use manual as well, though if i'm shooting snap-shot type photos, i've started to use the P mode for convenience.

As i'm sitting here, i'm realizing that i've failed to use my camera to it's potential b/c i can use aperture mode to get compelling DOF, but still have a convenient, flexible setup. Duh!!!!

fm
 
Shutter priority, because it's difficult to change the aperture on a pinhole camera. :mrgreen:

In all seriousness, though, when I started becoming serious about photography I used full manual almost exclusively. When I upgraded my EOS body and main lens, I began using Av a lot. I found that I was more comfortable with the Av mode than I'd previously been, and using the 50/1.4, I became much more keenly aware of the effect aperture has on DOF. Also, my general comfort level with exposure has gone up.

Using my older AE-1P, I still use full manual exclusively. It has program mode and, I believe Av and Tv, but I find that it's just easier for me to shoot in manual with it. Besides having failed to read the manual thoroughly, I think it has mostly to do with the fact that I don't have the aperture and shutter settings displayed in the viewfinder. I have to look at the shutter speed knob and the aperture ring anyway.
 
when shooting trackside I have to shoot full manual because I'm constantly fiddling with settings - even more so if it's like the last couple of races I've been to where the sun kept ducking in and out of the clouds. But around the pits I'll stick with program mode mostly because I usually don't have the luxury of my subject being willing or able to hold a pose while I guesstimate settings, shoot, check result, tweak a setting and try again, rinse and repeat. For that I'm rather fond of a one-shot-one-kill strategy.
 
60% aperture priority (almost always with exposure corrections)
30% manual
9.5% shutter priority (almost always with exposure corrections)
0.5% bulb for exposures beyond 30 seconds

nothing else
 
I'd say I use Av 60% of the time, 20% Tv, 15% Manual, 5% Program.
 
Boy, do I feel like a slacker... After hearing so many of you that use apeture priority, I am going to force myself to do the same which will hopefully force myself to also be more creative. Thanks again for the feedback. I think this forum is probably the best one I have found that provides very constructive help. Thanks again!
 
...ahhh...I wouldn't worry about that...I've only been using Program mode so far, because the camera is so new to me and I have to get used to it...I do plan to start experimenting with the A, S and M modes as I get more comfortable...and as I get more ideas...
 

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