Beginner Full manual

Nostromo

Nostromo

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Dominic
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I've just started shooting in full manual mode, where as before i was using Av or Tv (Canon), i've never used full auto (i didn't see the point of buying a dslr if i wasn't going to try and use it as was intended). I take a shot of what i think the settings should be, view it on the screen to see how it's come out (over or under exposed) then change the settings as needed. I'm getting better at it, but still make stilly mistakes, i forget to check other things like, which AF i'm in or which WB setting i'm iusing (AWB, daylight,cloudy etc) or which metering mode i should be using.
Am i just forgetful or did others have the same problems going to full manual for the first time. I still use Av and Tv as i just can't think fast enough to shoot action shots, horses, dogs etc are my main targets.
This only a hobby for me and have no asperations for it to be anything else. I have a second hand Canon 1100d, not the best i know, but thought i not forking out on expensive kit if i'm never going to be able to use it properly, "all the gear and no idea" comes to mind. If anyone has any tips i would be greatful. Thanks.
 
Manual is fine if the lighting conditions don't change, just keep your eye on the meter too!

Manual has its place, but there is no point in using it just for the sake of it.
There's nowt wrong with aperture or shutter priority.
 
It's not just you, and it's nothing to do with using full manual. I shoot landscape and wildlife and leave my camera on a 'default' setting which I never use, so every time I go out to shoot something I set it for whichever I'm going to do (most of, as sometimes I get the opportunity to shoot wildlife when I'm set up for landscape and vice versa). The number of times I've got a few shots and thought 'I haven't set that' or 'why is this set to .....?' The current favourite is forgetting to set IS/VR on the lens on or off. I'm with you on technique. If it's landscape I use Av/spot metering initially and if it's not quite right switch to manual and adjust (then wonder why it's completely wrong and realise I've not set the same aperture in manual mode). Too much to remember, too small a brain!
I think my WB is set to daylight and there it stays whatever. Right or wrong, it seems to work.
 
kendo1 said:
Manual is fine if the lighting conditions don't change, just keep your eye on the meter too!

Manual has its place, but there is no point in using it just for the sake of it.
There's nowt wrong with aperture or shutter priority.
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I use it just for the sake of it, because it was something I always wanted to do, simple as that :) When I started a couple of years ago I had absolutely no idea about any of it, the exposure triangle meant nothing, , shutter speed, aperture, dof, ISO, over exposure, under exposure.......I could go on :D

2 years on I still get it wrong, just not as often ;) but I still use manual because I still want to, as Dominic said, its a hobby, no more.

Dominic, I'm not familiar with your camera :nikon: but blinkies and learning a bit about histograms have helped me learn a long the way. The main thing about digital, the photos are free, practise, practise and then some more, You tubes good, I struggle to take in books :D, but you can learn loads from there.
 
Nostromo said:
(i didn't see the point of buying a dslr if i wasn't going to try and use it as was intended). .
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So why do you think they have auto on a dslr if it wasn't intended to be used?

Don't fall into the trap of thinking manual is best or manual is the way real photogrpahers do it.....it isn't .. Each mode on your dslr is there for a reason.. If the light is changing on a sunny but cloudy day and your capturing a moment then a semi auto mode is better than manual.. if the light is constant then manual is better.. fully auto is also good if you need to grab something quickly on the fly.. a minute later moment gone..

only a fool would use manual all the time.. Only a fool would use any mode all the time... A good photogrpaher will use whatever mode is best to get a particualr shot :)
 
I still get it wrong (sometimes!) after a few decades.
Modern cameras are petty good at getting the exposure correct.
The AE lock is a useful tool to use, though not so good with a camera mounted on a tripod.
Histograms, I find, are pretty much essential.
 
Thanks for the repies, I maybe didn't make it clear in the origal post that i still prefer the Av/Tv modes but just wanted to start using manual to get to grips with it, it'll help me understand how things work. I'm a practical person, i don't learn very well from books, i have to do something physicaly to find out how it works.
 
Nostromo said:
Thanks for the replies, I maybe didn't make it clear in the original post that i still prefer the Av/Tv modes but just wanted to start using manual to get to grips with it, it'll help me understand how things work.
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That's the right attitude to have :)
Manual mode is not the Holy Grail.
 
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KIPAX said:
only a fool would use manual all the time...
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I had put it down to being a control freak but, on reflection, I probably am just a fool. I still have no plans to change though.
 
The other thing to consider is that the image on the back of the camera is a jpeg that the camera thinks is the best way to look at it. Changing the settings so that it looks right on the screen is not necessarily the way to get the best file to work on back on the computer. If you are using RAW (and if you want to work with manual I would suggest you do), then use the histogram as well to make sure you get the best RAW file to work on. It isn't necessarily the one that looks best on the camera.

Edit: Also if you use RAW it won't matter which WB you use as it can be corrected.
 
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Bythesea said:
Edit: Also if you use RAW it won't matter which WB you use as it can be corrected.
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In other words... take a bad picture but take it in RAW and fix later :(

or learn how to set WB pr shot maybe?
 
I am not sure but I am guessing portrait photogrpahers only use manual.. they are not fools of course :)
 
KIPAX said:
In other words... take a bad picture but take it in RAW and fix later :(

or learn how to set WB pr shot maybe?
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That's not what I am saying. If you shoot jpeg then yes - if you shoot raw it doesn't matter what you set, the RAW file saves what hits the sensor without being changed.
 
I've been shooting RAW for ages but only just set my cameras to auto WB so it puts the image on the camera screen "In the ballpark"
By selecting the WB in RAW software i'm not correcting an error, I'm just saving that particular choice 'till a more convenient time.
 
I don't see how setting the WB in raw is correcting an error as all you're doing is setting a WB that's different to what the engineer at Canon (or whoever) thought it should be. In my arrogance I sometimes think that I know better. Silly me :D but then it is my picture so I'll set the WB how I want :D
 
Nostromo said:
Thanks for the repies, I maybe didn't make it clear in the origal post that i still prefer the Av/Tv modes but just wanted to start using manual to get to grips with it, it'll help me understand how things work. I'm a practical person, i don't learn very well from books, i have to do something physicaly to find out how it works.
Click to expand...

What you need to learn is metering. All the modes do is work off the same meter reading, So if the 'correct' exposure measured by the meter is 1/500 f8, and you shoot AV and choose f2.8 your shutter speed chosen by the camera will be 1/1000 at f2.8, if you choose F16 your shutter speed will be 1/250. If you shoot TV and want a 1/2000 shutter speed and you only have a kit lens, you'll have to raise your ISO, If you shoot Manual and have selected any of those parameters, then the results will be identical.

But what if that meter reading was badly measured (ie a snow scene or a landscape with a lot of sky)? Shooting Manual/AV/TV or even full auto won't give you the right exposure. Understanding what your meter is reading and the results will get you there though. Whether that's by using Manual (as someone said earlier - great if the conditions are consistent) by using exposure lock or by using exposure compensation, it doesn't matter which, but that's where you are taking control. Not just by twiddling the mode dial, that'll teach you nothing by itself.
 
Beautifully put, Phil
You're getting good at this answer :)
 
Phil V said:
What you need to learn is metering. All the modes do is work off the same meter reading, So if the 'correct' exposure measured by the meter is 1/500 f8, and you shoot AV and choose f2.8 your shutter speed chosen by the camera will be 1/1000 at f2.8, if you choose F16 your shutter speed will be 1/250.
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While I totally agree with the rest of your post, are you sure about these figures Phil?
 
My view on this is that you shouldn't look on it as 'manual', rather 'fixed exposure'.

Learn when fixed exposure is required and then use manual then (which will inevitably mean using the meter in the camera which is what is making the decisions in the auto modes anyway).
 
Bythesea said:
While I totally agree with the rest of your post, are you sure about these figures Phil?
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I think he was getting carried away on another thread. Just a typo.
 
It is rather fun to go out with a hand held light meter and your camera set to manual every thing, to get an almost film like experience. Takes me back 75 years to when I started taking pictures with an adjustable camera.

However it is never necessary to do so.
Set the camera in TV or AV and take advantage of such aides as you like..you can always step in when you see a problem, that the camera can not forsee.
 
Thanks again for all the replies, I hope the replies don't only help me, but others that read this post. I will take on board all that has been said. I'm now off to go and learn about metering, as this seems to be quite important in how the camera makes its decisions. Thanks again everyone.
 
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