Getting right settings

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snapsnap

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Dan
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Hi i am quite new to this and have just started using full maual settings. I understand about the f stop shutter speed and iso. But just wanted to ask if i was walking along how do you guys and gals get the right settings and not miss the shot. I have started to take a shot then pay around to i get the right one. But i am just worried about missing a good shot as my settings come out to dark etc..

Thanks In advance
 
Why use manual? I use aperture priority most of the time - never miss a shot.
 
AWP - Using manual force's you to learn your camera inside and out. sanpsnap just wants to learn the camera.

snapsnap, its trail and error but you'll start to get the hang of the "rough" settings you need for the subject your shooting.
 
....but I answered his question! I shot on manual for years - because there was no choice.
 
awp said:
Why use manual? I use aperture priority most of the time - never miss a shot.
Click to expand...

I'm inclined to agree with this. Using Ap. priority and spot metering/exposure hold on the CFn button is a far quicker way to accurately get exactly the exposure you need . Faffing around scrolling dials to set exposure is time wasted in which you can easily miss a shot.
Manual mode is pretty much exclusively used when I am shooting with flashes
 
I tried using Av mode but whenever I did so and then switched to manual and adjusted the settings my results were always better. So I always shoot in manual now.

For me it's just practice, the more shots you take the more you learn what kind of settings worked in different situations and you start to get a better sense of what settings you will need before you take the shot, then I always take a test shot and have a quick look at the results and based on what is showing on my lcd on the image and the histogram I make a calculated adjustment of what I need next.

practice practice practice!
 
I keep it at 1/125, f4, iso 640 as my walkabout settings. Then just adjust the shutter speed as i need to. If I go below 1/50 then the iso gets boosted.

If you are really stuck then there is no shame in going in semi auto or even full to get the shot.
 
You can turn "Auto ISO" off without having to go into manual mode.
 
snapsnap, dont get bogged down with "auto"

aperture priority and shutter priority are there to help you, not take over.

use them to your advantage and then anaylise the data from these results.

it works for me. also, having control of just one setting at a time, gives you a baseline to work from.

get out there and enjoy it and post up some pics :)
 
set for overall conditions and bracket
or use another mode
i only use manual when i do panorama and controlled lighting shots where i may move the camera around to compose but want the exposure to remain constant

this of course...:)...goes for outdoor shooting where light values are constant and you wan the same range of tones
 
I mostly use a combination of Av and Tv for the majority of my shots. I only switch to manual if I know the particualr scene will not be metered correctly by the cmaera, or I am trying to achieve a particular effect.
 
I get that people should understand how to use manual etc. But why use it all the time? That's why we have light meters in our cameras surely? Otherwise, why bother buying digital at all? Just my thoughts :)
 
There isn't anything wrong with any of the auto modes, if that's what you're happy using. The beauty of full manual control is simple - control. You are not leaving any exposure decisions to the camera, it being a pre programmed tool with no artistic ability whatsoever. It's not hard to see what exposure the built in meter suggests and then pick your settings based on that information, once you understand how each of the settings affect your exposure.

The semi auto modes are good for learning, and they come into their own for certain uses, but that isn't what the OP was asking.

I'm just pointing out that the OP wanted to know how you know what settings to use when shooting manual, he didn't ask what mode is best to shoot in :shrug:
 
Nothing macho about going manual - it just takes a lot of experience to use it successfully.
 
aligibbs said:
I get that people should understand how to use manual etc. But why use it all the time? That's why we have light meters in our cameras surely? Otherwise, why bother buying digital at all? Just my thoughts :)
Click to expand...

Most people don't choose digital because of the light meters. It's all the other advantages because of the digital world we live in
 
awp said:
Why use manual? I use aperture priority most of the time - never miss a shot.
Click to expand...

Try going from dark tree background to blue sky to bright sun, camera has no chance.

I have mucked up so many shots from trusting AV
 
If I am out on walkabout then it will be either Av or Tv but when the camera is on the tripod and i have plenty of time to set the camera up I use M

I think it all depends on what you are shooting as to what to use, shooting birds or people on a walkabout I doubt unless really experienced and know your camera like the backof your hand M will not work, taking pics of flowers or something still then M could be well effective as you would have alot more time to get the shot right.

Spike
 
If you're just wandering around outside, take a metre reading off the pavement when you set out, job done until the light changes. With a bit of experience you'll be able to spot changes in the light and adjust pretty accurately without thinking about it.

ruvor said:
I'm inclined to agree with this. Using Ap. priority and spot metering/exposure hold on the CFn button is a far quicker way to accurately get exactly the exposure you need . Faffing around scrolling dials to set exposure is time wasted in which you can easily miss a shot.
Manual mode is pretty much exclusively used when I am shooting with flashes
Click to expand...

But then you can miss a shot because you have to lock exposure then recompose.
 
Jayst84 said:
If you're just wandering around outside, take a metre reading off the pavement when you set out, job done until the light changes. With a bit of experience you'll be able to spot changes in the light and adjust pretty accurately without thinking about it.
Click to expand...

Ste Manns said:
Still discussing the virtues of the different modes, rather than how to meter :bang:
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I thought that pretty much covered it.

Care to expand on your answer then if you don't think the OPs question has been answered?

Ste Manns said:
... It's not hard to see what exposure the built in meter suggests and then pick your settings based on that information, once you understand how each of the settings affect your exposure...
Click to expand...

The OP said they understand what the settings do but have to play around to get the correct exposure, your answer doesn't offer him any help really does it, if you want to get picky like that.. ;)
 
I shoot in manual 99% of the time to keep absolute control of exposure parameters. The only time I come out of manual are for quick fire situations where lighting changes rapidly... i.e. street photography. But I also don't reel off many pictures on a day out or store many after the initial cull back at home, so maybe I'm the odd one out here.
 
Jayst84 said:
I thought that pretty much covered it.

Care to expand on your answer then if you don't think the OPs question has been answered?



The OP said they understand what the settings do but have to play around to get the correct exposure, your answer doesn't offer him any help really does it, if you want to get picky like that.. ;)
Click to expand...

Wasn't referring to your answer actually :) Nor was I getting "picky" I just didn't understand where all these 'I shoot in X mode' answers came from when the guy wants to know how we know what settings to use in manual mode :shrug:
 
Thanks for the replies, I asked as i am taking photos of birds and when they fly i am not getting the wings in good shot. This is using auto. So i guess i have to play with the shutter speed so it captures the wings and not blurs them. I will have a play with semi for now and this i am sure will get me learning.

Many thanks
 
Hi snapsnap

1. Put your camera on M
2. Choose what aperture you want for desired effect
3. Select your shutter speed required for the shot
4. Leave above settings alone and now just change you ISO to get your desired result.

Next, learn how to change your ISO settings for a quick, correct exposure, then that's it, just change your ISO when needed, very quick and surefire, AV will change your shutter speed for you, more that likely not to what you need.

Works for BIF, street candid's, rugby, just about anything after a little practice.
 
awp said:
Why use manual? I use aperture priority most of the time - never miss a shot.
Click to expand...

That's about it!

You also need to understand that your camera's meter reads everything as if it were a shade of grey. (18% grey actually) You need to recognise where the scene you are looking at differs from that, and how to adapt the meter reading in those situations to get a good exposure.

For example, in snow, your meter "thinks" snow is grey, so you need to let more light in (overexpose) to let the snow go white - about 1 to 2 stops more light depending on what proportion of the scene is actually white.

When you have a very dark scene which you want to keep dark, you need to let LESS light in, so you underexpose. Experience will tell you how much to underexpose.

Your camera probably has an exposure compensation dial somewhere - that's what you use to adjust the amount of light coming in.

You can also use auto-bracketing, to give yourself a choice of exposures. I still use it after 30 years.....

Oh, I see you're doing birds in flight....not so easy then. I suggest you might want to use shutter priority and a high ISO to stop movement, and use the same principle as above. I still wouldn't use manual!
 
I don't think there is harm in a little wing blur, but you can get that even at 1/1000. If you want to eliminate it completely then you either need to time your shots for a moment of lower motion - either when gliding or at the top or bottom of the wing stroke, or use a much faster shutter spped - 1/2000 or more.

Here is a shot at 1/1000. I do not think that wing blur spoils the image. Indeed I think it adds to the sense of motion and enhances the image....

20100131_110718_3070_LR.jpg
 
I don't think it is a dust spot. This was taken in the same session at the same aperture....

20100131_114829_3524_LR.jpg


But I will check. :)

Oops - more dust spots ;)

20100131_121448_3664_LR.jpg
 
Jayst84 said:
If you're just wandering around outside, take a metre reading off the pavement when you set out, job done until the light changes.
Click to expand...

I've tried this for birds in flight and it's worked relatively well. Take a few images and check the histogram to see all is ok and you're good to go, just remember to check it again periodically, it's quite annoying when you get carried away and have forgotten!
 
PerfectSpeed said:
It's 1/250 faster, that might have knocked it out of the shot :shrug:
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Not from that first shot, not a chance. If you double the shutter speed you will halve the amount of blur, which would still be very visible in that shot. I would have needed at least 1/4000 to get anywhere close to making the blur disappear.

For example, if the visible blur was 10 pixels wide at 1/1000 the blur would still be 5 pixels wide at 1/2000 and 2.5 pixels wide at 1/4000, so still visible even then.

Bumping up from 1/1000 to 1/1250 wouldn't scratch the surface of the "problem".

The reason the second shot is clean is because the bird was gliding and I panned with it perfectly (or perfectly enough). It's not because I was at 1/1250.
 
PerfectSpeed said:
Hi snapsnap

1. Put your camera on M
2. Choose what aperture you want for desired effect
3. Select your shutter speed required for the shot
4. Leave above settings alone and now just change you ISO to get your desired result.

Next, learn how to change your ISO settings for a quick, correct exposure, then that's it, just change your ISO when needed, very quick and surefire, AV will change your shutter speed for you, more that likely not to what you need.

Works for BIF, street candid's, rugby, just about anything after a little practice.
Click to expand...

This is the approach when you are after a particular depth of field and shutter speed and are happy to sacrifice picture quality to achieve it.

There are other approaches... for static and well lit subjects where depth of field and quality important, you adjust shutter speed and retain aperture and ISO i.e. portraits, landscapes etc
 
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