Really stupid question/observation.

[ronlane]

I shoot in Manual 100% of the time. I need to control everything. I don't like the camera changing things up on me Probably why I use CWB too...control freak.

So you'll be easy to pick out when/if I'm in Austin shooting, huh lol

 

[sashbar]

Automatic and Program modes are annoying when you know what you're doing which is why once you know the controls of the camera you can often leave them behind; I'm not sure what S mode is.

Aperture and Shutter priority are simple - its automatic balancing of the exposure to 0 on the exposure meter (or +- from 0 using exposure compensation) based upon the meter reading. If that's al you're doing in manual mode then the priority modes will do that just as well and faster.

this is not entirely correct.

A and S mode allow you to do the same as Manual, only faster.
In A mode You can set ISO to auto and forget about it. You can limit the minimum shutter speed and forget about it. You will know it will be fast enough not to cause any blur. (If you want bulge you switch to S)
All you need to control is aperture, exposure compensation and you need to get used to AEL - exposure lock. If your camera allows you +\- 3 EC, in most situations you are practically as much in control as in Manual, only faster.

In situations like street shooting you often do not have enough time for Manual. The scene is changing very fast and the light is different all the time.

 

[AlanKlein]

I never considered getting the right exposure as something creative or cool. If manual gets you to proper exposure, great. If Auto gets you there, great. If you want creative cool photos, work on content, lighting, interest, story telling, etc.

 

[greybeard]

stage 1, master your camera
stage 2, master composition
stage 3, master the light

This is only a stage 1 thing.

 

[Tee]

I shoot in manual because often I use a handheld light meter and the readings from the light meter often vary from the in-camera meter. Using manual allows me to dial in the exact reading the light meter tells me to. I think it's important to understand all modes before determining what works for you. That's the difference between "I only shoot in manual because the cool kids on the internet tell me to" and "I shoot in manual because of x,y, & z."

If you go to the B&H videos on YouTube, Joe Bussink gives a great reason why P mode is his choice for shooting weddings. The various modes exist for a reason. Knowing when to use them is generally your first lightbulb moment of grasping the fundamentals of photography.

 

[dennybeall]

Having made my first camera upgrade to a NIKON F with a Photomic Head, a few(?) years ago, I find manual to be a trip down memory lane. It's useful and as I "work" a shot it lets me think about different approaches and compositions. Other times fixed "F" or speed is the right thing to do.
However, I paid some hard earned money for a Nikon camera with features and I want to use them, so I will when it's appropriate. The camera sits in Auto with auto ISO and set for raw just in case I need to grab it and shoot quick. Also a good thing if I need to get Karen (total non photographer) to pick up the camera and get a picture.

 

[greybeard]

Having made my first camera upgrade to a NIKON F with a Photomic Head, a few(?) years ago, I find manual to be a trip down memory lane. It's useful and as I "work" a shot it lets me think about different approaches and compositions. Other times fixed "F" or speed is the right thing to do.
However, I paid some hard earned money for a Nikon camera with features and I want to use them, so I will when it's appropriate. The camera sits in Auto with auto ISO and set for raw just in case I need to grab it and shoot quick. Also a good thing if I need to get Karen (total non photographer) to pick up the camera and get a picture.

Exactly

 

[Ido]

I shoot in A (aperture priority) almost all the time. The last thing I want my camera to control automatically is aperture. But I think that by "not Manual", you don't mean something like P or fully automatic (that dreaded green camera icon), so you probably already knew that.
I usually let the camera pick the ISO automatically, but I always keep an eye on both it and the shutter speed. If I need to freeze motion, I typically resort to simply changing the ISO instead of switching to M (manual). If the camera insists on a fast shutter speed and high ISO when I want to smooth motion or get the most dynamic range that the sensor has to offer (and thanks to the 5-axis in-body image stabilization in my OM-D, I rarely need to worry about camera shake), I just lower the ISO.

There are instances where/when I prefer M, though:

• Shooting for HDR. I hate AE bracketing. I've never liked it. Tim Cooper's method () makes much more sense to me.
• Shooting sports. Here's the thing, I don't really have such a great telephoto lens. It's 75-300mm f/4.8-6.7 in specification (2x crop factor). The zoom range is wonderful (a la Tamron 150-600mm), the aperture is horrible. I rarely shoot sports, or any action for that matter, but when I do, I use M mode. But even then, I use Auto ISO. Yup. I set the aperture to the widest possible, the shutter speed to the slowest one that effectively freezes motion (trial and error to find that), and let the camera choose an ISO - because when shooting dancers, for example, the lighting always changes, so I won't always need the maximum ISO. I configured Auto ISO with the maximum ISO in the native range (not the Extended ISOs) as the upper limit. So if light changes drastically, and it's very dim, I'll get an underexposed image that I can then think what can be done with it. But then, when the light changes drastically the other way around, the camera will automatically choose a lower ISO.
• Astronography. Another thing I do very rarely. Whenever I photograph the night sky, I use M mode, because the camera's built-in light meter doesn't do a good job in this situation. Some cameras might do better; I don't have any experience with flagship DSLRs, but I assume that their meters are better suited for this kind of stuff.

That's it.

By the way, I use Mac OS X. Not Linux, but still not Windows. So I guess I win.

 

[GWAC]

I shoot in manual because I like to have full override control of my camera at all times. In shutter priority, you have control over the exposure time and the ability to stop motion. In aperture priority, you have full control over the depth of field. P mode might as well be auto mode with a few manual control tweaks, such as ability to set and maintain a specific ISO.

I shoot manual almost 100% of the time because my brain automatically goes through the steps of properly exposing the image and depicting the scene how I want it, and I may make an adjustment that wouldn't be the way the cameras algorithm set would have chosen to do it. I don't shoot in auto or scene modes because, well, a D800 doesn't have auto or scene modes.

PS - The in TTL light meter is not always right. In fact, I have found it to be more often wrong, than right.

 

[D7K]

Anytime I am around other photographers I casually position my camera so they can see my dial in the M position. When they notice, I give them a wink and a nod, then gently cup their buttocks.

:lmao:

 

[manaheim]

Zombie thread.
Fairly fresh, but still long dead.

 

[Britanica]

Hipster shooters. lol I never understood that either. People do that with everything though, not just cameras. Right now it is "cool" to be "different" so a lot of people are doing things they don't even understand to stand out more, all while blending deeper into the trendy cesspool.

 

[pgriz]

Zombie thread.
Fairly fresh, but still long dead.

Don't youi guys/gals get arrayed with the appropriate tools, like silver bullets and wooden stakes, when you get anointed moderators???

 

[e.rose]

I see a lot of people shooting in manual just so they can say "hey look at how cool I am, I shoot in manual!" Kinda like people that struggle with Linux just so they can say they don't use Windows

But I do have a real question about this. If you're going to shoot in manual and tweak your settings to get your on-camera light meter right in the middle at the "standard exposure" mark, then why shoot in manual? Am I missing something? I'd really like to understand why people do it. If your goal is to get a standard exposure then why not shoot in one of the other modes?

Because I don't tweak my settings to get my on-camera light meter in the middle at the "standard exposure" mark.

I tweak my settings to get my on-camera light meter to whatever exposure mark is appropriate for what I'm metering... Which is very often, NOT in the center.

And if you think people only shoot in manual to say "look how cool I am", you need to learn you some mo' schtuff.

 

[ristretto]

Am I missing something?

Yes: the satisfaction of knowing light without using a light meter, applying the 'Sunny 16 Rule' in lighting situations for your desired choice of shutter-speed and aperture, from dazzling sunshine, to dark, gloomy interiors of buildings.

With digital cameras, particularly older/earlier ones, you can work out the camera's true ISO for its base sensitivity. With old Nikon DSLRs like the D1/D100 era '200 ISO on the camera' equates more accurately to an ISO/ASA rating of 80-100. ISO/ASA 200 equates more accurately to ISO 400-500 on the camera - depending on whether the scene is lit by direct daylight or whether there is only low ambient or artificial interior light. You get to know a digital camera's sensor capability in this way and compensate for it.

I calculate Sunny 16 in my mind always in terms of a baseline 200ASA and 1/200th second shutter speed. So I judge ambient lighting in terms of 'f-stop': f22, f16, f11, f8..down to the theoretical 'f1' and beyond into imaginary '-f1', '-f1.4' etc. You can practise this in your mind anywhere you go, without a camera: I'm in a darkened room partially lit by distant window light, thirty minutes after sunset, and I estimate the light is three to four stops below f1 (at 200asa, 1/200th second). So I compute the shutter speed for say f4 (max aperture or desired DOF of my lens), and camera 1600ISO, (~'800' ASA in actuality). With a lot of experimenting and practise it becomes reliable and you can always bracket exposures.

Its empowering also to learn how to fill and bounce flash manually, (learn to use your flash's 'guide number', learn to judge distances, learn how materials on and near the light path absorb and reflect the light from your flash, and how filters additionally reduce light - 'filter factor').