Shooting modes!

[delko]

Hi All. Im from South Africa. I recently got a canon 60d. And im battling with the different modes. First question:Is it wise to shoot in full manual? I recently bought a lens and the guy at the shop says i must put the cam on auto see what the cam gives for exposure and f stop and put that information in the manual mode for beter photos quality ect. So i started shooting in manual choosing f stop and shutterspeed. I ending up almost never getting the right exposure.ussualy took 3 shot of different exposure and none were perfect. can i pro photographer compete against a cameras auto in good light? I know low light is another game... So here is my summary of what i figured out as when to use what modes. Apperature priority- when you need to specify apperature landscare(f 22 ) backround blur (f3.5) Shutter priority-When you know the shutterspeed like shooting at 60 when light is limited or panning . Full auto-BAsicly basic photos .very limited.cant change to fast shopoting cant change to al servo. Full Manual - Sport mode-taking sport photos but limited.cant change apperature No-flash mode - when you want to shoot low light without flash popping up shutterspeed 50. I still need some comments. Do i uderstand the modes corectly? When must i use full auto? When must i use full manual? I just feel like such a rookie... I triedstaying away from exposure compensationand only using it with the popup flash to limit the white bright effect.... WHAT MODES DO YOU USE? I like playing with f stop it open the world. wHAT DO YOU FIND WORKING THE BEST? Please help me to learn my 60D even better. Chao

 

[dots]

Hi delko!

First question:Is it wise to shoot in full manual?

It can be. Full Manual mode gives you full control. In Manual mode, the camera will not make any decisions for you so you have to know what aperture (f stop) you want to use, which shutterspeed to use. You can change either shutterspeed or aperture f stop number to make the light meter indicator correct for exposure. If the picture still looks too bright or too dark you can adjust shutterspeed or aperture so the light meter reads a bit high or low.


The 'scene' modes are really just shortcuts that have been included on your camera dial for convenience.

Av - Aperture Priority is a semi-automatic mode where you set the aperture (f stop) you want and the camera figures out the right shutterspeed. So, again, if the picture looks too bright or too dark, you can only adjust the f stop to change the look of the picture when using Av.

Tv - Shutter Priority is similar ..You set the shutterspeed and the camera decides aperture. Picture too bright or too dark using Tv, then you can only change shutterspeed.

ISO is the sensitivity. It is a third way of controlling how your camera responds to bright light or low light.

Manual mode allows you complete control over all three. You can control light with f stop (which also changes the focus of background), you can control it with shutterspeed (which also freezes or blurs motion), you can control it with ISO..

I recently bought a lens and the guy at the shop says i must put the cam on auto see what the cam gives for exposure and f stop and put that information in the manual mode for beter photos quality ect.

Well it may be a way of getting to know settings for situations and style of pictures but it won't give better pictures. It will give just the same pictures if you copy the values. It may give you worse pictures if the lighting suddenly changes while you are repeating them manually.


If you are making just general pictures (not fast action) try the Av aperture priority mode. This is like 'half-way' to using the full manual mode. You really only have to worry about aperture (f stop) in this mode. How you want the background focus (the Depth of Field) to look. If you cannot get the Depth of Field (DOF) to look as you would like it because the light is too dark or too bright you can raise or lower the ISO most times to allow your camera more or less sensitivity.

 

[dots]

Another thing to check..Put your 60D light metering into Evaluative mode. This is easy to use to begin with generally. It meters the light from the whole situation. The other metering modes - center-wieght or spot only use a smaller bit of the scene to measure light. That may give you a meter reading that is not right for the whole picture.

 

[delko]

HI Guys.

Thank you.
I like apperature priority.

I have used full manual up to now,never full auto.

So I think the lack of experience is the cause of poorly exposed photos.

I think i should try apperature priority before trying to shoot ful manual again....

Any hints on how to master the exposure triangle?

 

[EchoingWhisper]

Read a book or an article in the Internet, you'll find valuable information.

 

[PJL]

I personally use program (P) mode mostly, since you can still control aperture and shutter speed, as well as set exposure compensation. If you shoot in a semi-auto mode, you can use your rear wheel to adjust overall exposure levels if you don't like the results you're getting with your camera's metering system.

 

[Fowler]

I'm still learning about this but I can tell you what my experience with my canons (XTi 400D and XSi 450D) has taught me over the last 5 years.
1) If you are shooting something that requires you to take the picture immediately - use the auto mode.
2) if you are shooting something where you can choose the settings in advance (without missing the shot) then choose the settings semi-manually.
i.e. choose TV is it is a moving target , choose P if it is not moving and leave ISO on auto.
3) If you have a lot of time to take the shot then choose the specific settings that you think will work.

While learning - try and take auto and manual settings shots of the same object and when you download them to your computer compare the settings recorded in the picture information when the shots were taken. And also compare the quality of the shots. I find you learn a lot by doing this.

For sports shots use the TV setting.
I normally shoot birds in flight or motion, usually at different distances, I allways use TV and this type of shooting is very similar to sports shooting.
However for these types of pictures the TV setting allows you to adjust the other settings but then adjusts them to give priority to the speed setting.
If you have daylight on the target then use something in the 1/800 (not very bright) to 1/1250 range (bright daylight) to get reasonable shots.

 

[EIngerson]

Use all of them. I learned a ton by ruining photos. LOL. There are a lot of experienced people on this board. They can tell you anything you want to know. Sometimes that hurts more than helps. Go out and shoot more and see the effects of the setting changes and find the mode YOU like. It's a digital camera so you're not going to go broke trying new things. Have fun!

 

[delko]

What is your guy oppinion o ELI ( exposure level indicator) when shooting in daylight? Can i use it to get the best exposure?I know it wont work in low light conditions

 

[2WheelPhoto]

I'm still learning about this but I can tell you what my experience with my canons (XTi 400D and XSi 450D) has taught me over the last 5 years.
1) If you are shooting something that requires you to take the picture immediately - use the auto mode.
2) if you are shooting something where you can choose the settings in advance (without missing the shot) then choose the settings semi-manually.
i.e. choose TV is it is a moving target , choose P if it is not moving leave ISO on auto.
3) If you have a lot of time to take the shot then choose the specific settings that you think will work.

While learning - try and take auto and manual settings shots of the same object and when you download them to your computer compare the settings recorded in the picture information when the shots were taken. And also compare the quality of the shots. I find you learn a lot by doing this.

For sports shots use the TV setting.
I normally shoot birds in flight or motion, usually at different distances, I allways use TV and this type of shooting is very similar to sports shooting.
However for these types of pictures the TV setting allows you to adjust the other settings but then adjusts them to give priority to the speed setting.
If you have daylight on the target then use something in the 1/800 (not very bright) to 1/1250 range (bright daylight) to get reasonable shots.