Why shouldn't I use auto-mode?

[tsabary]

my real question was a bit too long for the headline..! What I mean to ask, is if I'm not looking for DOF or need a long or short exposure time, is there a real reason for me not to use auto mode..?

 

[JacaRanda]

No not at all. There is a reason they put it on the camera. It's your camera, use it how you want to use it.

 

[Gary A.]

It is okay to use Auto even if your priorities are DOF or shutter. But when aren't you thinking of DOF and/or shutter speed when taking a photo.

 

[ronlane]

The answer would be no. However, it opens up a lot of other questions. Like, why wouldn't you want to control at least one of the variables? Why use a dslr, a p&s would be lighter and cheaper?

 

[sm4him]

There are real reasons to not use auto mode, at times. Whether they are reasons that would matter to YOU, only you can answer.

As Jaca says, it's on the camera for a reason--so that those who desire to do so can simply actuate the shutter and get a (probably) decent picture.

Auto-mode is just that. It's automatic. The camera does all the thinking for you. And if the results are acceptable to you, then go for it!

But let's say you're shooting a picture of your kid/grandkid/niece or nephew; they're sitting on a bench in the shade. And it's really quite shady. But all around that area, it's bright; beautiful sunshiny day at 2 p.m.
In manual, you could meter on the child and make sure they are correctly exposed. In auto, the camera may very well pick an exposure based on the "overall" reading between the light and dark areas of the picture, and the child ends up underexposed.

 

[astroNikon]

In Auto mode the camera might force you to use the flash
or make the shutter speed too slow (which happens alot) which will then give you fuzzy (movement) photos
or focus on the wrong object
or use the wrong metering which will give a subject heavy shadowing from stuff like a backlight

and a wide variety of other issues that could cause a photo to not be 100%
It all depends upon how critical you are of the photo you are taking and how much control you want over the ever changing variables that you would not have control over in Auto mode.

 

[astroNikon]

When I first got my d7000 I used auto mode
but the flash popping up on bright days was annoying. I started wearing a baseball hat which I used the bill to keep the flash from popping up. After all, who needs a flash in bright daylight ???

Then I learned the SCENE modes. This made the camera not think totally, and provided better photos. It was like telling the camera what you were taking a picture of.

Then I started learning MANUAL mode more for landscape (sunrise and sunset) stuff and my pictures had much better colors, et all .. you can control the shutter which affects how much deep colors (or brighter) you could have.

Then there's aperture, shutter, etc which you can control not so much. But i use manual most of hte time and set my aperture and shutter and let ISO be auto for some more simplicity. And my photos are worlds better than when I started. IMHO

 

[Derrel]

If you shoot in an auto mode, you immediately lose the right to wear one of those cool, "I Shoot in M-mode" t-shirts. If you shoot in an auto mode, you also will not earn membership in the exclusive "Manual exposure is for accomplished shooters" society.

If you shoot in auto mode, you lose the option to embellish stories of your photo triumphs with this little gem, "So, as the __________ approached the ________, I was in manual mode, so I knew the shot would be friggin' perfect!"

As you can see, shooting in an auto mode can be very harmful. There is anecdotal evidence that shooting too much in auto mode might lead to impotence or other forms of sexual dysfunction, along with hypertension, and in some cases, baldness.

 

[Gary A.]

I'm losing my hair.

 

[tsabary]

If you shoot in an auto mode, you immediately lose the right to wear one of those cool, "I Shoot in M-mode" t-shirts. If you shoot in an auto mode, you also will not earn membership in the exclusive "Manual exposure is for accomplished shooters" society.

If you shoot in auto mode, you lose the option to embellish stories of your photo triumphs with this little gem, "So, as the __________ approached the ________, I was in manual mode, so I knew the shot would be friggin' perfect!"

As you can see, shooting in an auto mode can be very harmful. There is anecdotal evidence that shooting too much in auto mode might lead to impotence or other forms of sexual dysfunction, along with hypertension, and in some cases, baldness.

Lol it does sound pretty scary, I think I would like to keep my hair.


I think maybe I should have been more clear. In many situations I do find a reason and use A mode or S mode (not as much manual, maybe I'll feel more comfortable using it as time passes). The reason this question bothered me, is because I've just came back from Cuba and did a lot of street photography and portraits and didn't feel like I was really losing much if any by using Auto mode in these scenes.

 

[runnah]

Making a big deal about what mode you use is for beginners who feel like its a badge of honor to twist that knob to "M mode" and advanced users who are insecure about themselves and want a superficial way to make themselves seem better than others.

The normal folks just use whatever setting will get the best result.

 

[MichaelHenson]

Making a big deal about what mode you use is for beginners who feel like its a badge of honor to twist that knob to "M mode" and advanced users who are insecure about themselves and want a superficial way to make themselves seem better than others.

The normal folks just use whatever setting will get the best result.

This...I jumped directly into the "manual mode bandwagon" within a couple DAYS of purchasing my DLSR and it wasn't until I spent a decent amount of time trolling around on TPF that I began to realize the ridiculousness of that "manual only" approach. Now, I'm learning to decide which setting will give me the photos I want. Granted, I still really LOVE the amount of control that manual mode gives me, but due to my newbie-ness it slows me down a bit. Recently, I'm using Shutter and Aperture priority modes depending on the setting and going into manual if I'm struggling to get the final result I'm looking for...

So, basically, only you can answer this question. If you are getting the quality of photo you want out of Auto, then stick with it. If at any point you feel dissatisfied with a photo and find yourself wishing, "Man, I wish ____ was better/different, etc.," then start exploring the other options you have at your disposal.

 

[KmH]

Which 'auto' mode are you referring to.
There is the green box auto where the camera does everything except remove the lens cap and point itself.
There is P (Program) auto mode.
There is Aperture Priority auto mode. (Nikon A mode, Canon Av mode)
There is Shutter Priority auto mode. (Nikon S mode, Canon Tv mode)

Some of us older guys learned how to do photography before there were any auto modes (or auto focus).
For me shooting using Manual mode requires less conscious thought than using one of the auto modes.
But I do use P, A and S mode when it is advantageous to.

 

[Derrel]

A better question to ask for a productive discussion would be, "WHEN SHOULD I use one of the several different auto modes my camera offers and how,exactly, should I set the camera up to make the best exposures in that type of situation?" That would lead to a productive discussion that might really help some people. Because there ARE a lot of scenarios where Manual mode, match-diode, fixed-ISO shooting is not the best way to shoot. I can think of fifteen or twenty scenarios where Manual mode is guaranteed to be worse than one of the auto modes.

A really good example is an outdoor panning sequence, where a subject will move through different lighting conditions. In that case Shutter priority auto is a good choice, since maintaining the specific shutter speed is the critical variable to control. If the subject will be going from light to dark or dark to light conditions, very rapidly, like hydroplane boats or race cars or even race horses on a track where the last turn is in blinding sunlight and then the straight is in the shadow of the stadium, having the camera in an AUTO mode can actually make it possible to get the right exposure and not lose very,very valuable time dicking around moving the control dials through an 18- to 21-click rotation of six or seven EV values difference in exposure...

 

[480sparky41 40]

[QUOTE="KmH, post: 3359430, member: 40798"............Some of us older guys learned how to do photography before there were any auto modes (or auto focus).........[/QUOTE]

Or Auto ASA........... today called ISO.

Or Auto white balance.