How do I get brighter, more vibrant photos?

HookdOnPix · Jun 8, 2014

I don't know how to "get out of auto" yet. I think I had my Nikon D5100 set on the Blossom Scene Mode. And I was using the 18-55mm kit lens. Here's the original:

And here it is with a quick exposure auto-correct using picmonkey.

What I want to know is how to get the corrected version on board so I don't spend so much time editing! UGH!

480sparky · Jun 8, 2014

The image is suffering from motion blur, so it's not sharp to start with.

Overread · Jun 8, 2014

It's time to get out of auto mode then!

Even the auto scene modes are just the same mode but with a weighting (so in macro mode it will try to go for as small an aperture as possible - whilst with sports mode it would aim for the fastest shutter speed it can).

So you've got to start using the camera as a tool, using the resources it has and taking control.

I would strongly recommend getting (buy/library) the book "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. You'll get more depth and information than you will on a forum for this subject.
You might also find the "Digital Photography Book" volumes 1 to 4 by Scot Kelby a good help as well with giving you some starting points for ideas.

As a rough break down to give you some starting ideas here is how I would take that shot;
Note: I'm assuming ambient light only (no flash) and that you've a tripod.

1) I would set the camera to Aperture Priority mode. This mode gives me direct control over the aperture and the ISO whilst the camera balances the shutter speed based upon its internal meter reading of the ambient light.

2) Set the camera on the tripod and compose the photo (if you don't have a tripod you'd just position yourself to take the shot).

3) Considering the range and the likelyhood that I want a nice deep depth of field I would select a small aperture (bigger f number). For this I'd probably start at f8.

4) Now I half press the shutter button to read the light with the camera meter and review the shutter speed.
a) If hand holding I make sure that the shutter speed is at least 1/focal length of the lens I'm using (this is a rough rule of thumb to avoid handshake blur).

b) If on a tripod I'm generally fine, but if there is any light wind I'd err toward more (note that this wind element holds true and overrides the shutter speed for handholding - so if I were using a 50mm lens even though I could get a shot at 1/50sec sharp - with light wind I might want to go to 1/200sec - though really its a case of experimenting)

NOTE remember the aperture we've already set, and the shutter speed is set by the camera, so if the shutter speed isn't fast enough we have to raise the ISO. How high its taken depends, and if the light is low and the ISO has to go very high it might be prudent to raise the aperture (smaller f number) and sacrifice some depth of field so we don't have to go as high with the ISO.

5) With the settings set - the meter needle pointing at the middle and the shot composed - take the shot.

6) Review the shot on the LCD. Enable the "histogram" display in the menu (check manual for how to do this). Now review the histogram - ideally you want the bulk of the graph on the right side as far over as possible, but without the line hitting the far right side and overexposing (you'll get a blinking area on the photo review which is the overexposed aeras of the photo if you have any).

7) If the shot is under exposed (bulk of the histogram graph on the left side) then it might be that the camera's meter is underexposing based on the ambient light its reading. At that point you simply use "exposure compensation" (check manual for how to use this). This then will let you set the camera to under or over expose the photo based on the meter reading.
(note one line/segment of the histogram = one stop of light so you can use that to know by how many stops to adjust the exposure compensation).

8) Retake shot and review again (if needed of course).

By using the aperture priority mode in combination with exposure compensation you gain control of the camera. You're defining the settings to work with and at the same time able to react to the light you've got to work with.

By using the histogram you're also able to easily and accurately review the exposure so that you get it spot on what you need.

Note that when you start at this you will be slow. Practice, experience and more practice will speed things up significantly; plus as you start to take control over the camera you'll find yourself able to envision what you want a shot to look like before you take it; and when you've control over the settings you can set them to get what you creatively want - not what auto gives you.

TamiAz · Jun 8, 2014

Just start practicing in manual mode...What's the worst thing that can happen? You'll have to delete a picture. I read Understanding Exposure by Brian Peterson and I found it very helpful. It's worth learning!!