Which modes on your camera do you use?

Av almost exclusively, occasionally manual. To be honest I use the dial so infrequently I'd rather just change mode in the menus and use that space for something else.

Agreed most of the modes are marketing nonsense.
 
90% M
10% A

I mainly shoot bands in low light conditions, it's has to be manual anything ese would throw the exposure into a fit
 
Pookeyhead said:
You know this is pointless don't you? What people use will depend on what they shoot. None of this means anything.
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In which case there's actually no need for this forum at all, as everyone already knows everthing. Yes it might be a pointless thread for some but for people that are still learning it might push them to try something different and
learn new techniques by what they read.

Maybe one day we will all know as much as you....
 
P (for perfeshniul...) most of the time, mostly shifted away from the cameras' original choice to the aperture or shutter speed I want and frequently using exposure compensation as well. I'm equally happy using any of the other automated modes and manual when I need to. Don't think I've ever used any of the scene modes on a DSLR but have used them on compacts where they're often the only way to take some sort of control. (For example, Firework mode forces a long exposure and Sport a short one - not full control but more than fully automatic allows.)
 
I find manual to be the easiest to use and seem to spend less time fiddling with buttons.
 
simond11 said:
In which case there's actually no need for this forum at all, as everyone already knows everthing. Yes it might be a pointless thread for some but for people that are still learning it might push them to try something different and
learn new techniques by what they read.

Maybe one day we will all know as much as you....
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Fairish point, however people just stating what modes they use is not actually going to help anyone is it?

I have had no need to use manual but I know how to and I stick to A just because I like to control DoF.
 
ernesto said:
Fairish point, however people just stating what modes they use is not actually going to help anyone is it?

I have had no need to use manual but I know how to and I stick to A just because I like to control DoF.
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And you can't do that in manual :thinking:
 
Neil B said:
And you can't do that in manual :thinking:
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Do you think he doesn't know that?

This type of argumentative post is exactly the reason these threads are pointless.

If anyone has learned anything useful from this thread I'll eat my hat.

What 'mode' people use is as informative as what brand of camera and less useful than what type of camera bag.
 
85% aperture
10% shutter
5% manual

I would like to get to a stage where manual takes the greatest %
 
Neil B said:
And you can't do that in manual :thinking:
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Of course I can do that in manual, I can do anything in manual!

However, if I am only worried about DoF and happy to let the camera choose shutter speed (and even ISO up to a point) then my life is made easier by using a semi auto mode such as A. The automation is actually there to help and in my case it does exactly that.

So the real answer to what mode to use is the best mode for the circumstances and the mode that suits the user. There is no right or wrong and a poll that suggests 90% of people use A 80% of the time doesn't really help anyone does it?
 
AV nearly all the time
nearly always DOF is the most important thing mainly do macro and wildlife :)
For me there is no point using manual as its so easy to quickly vary the exposure compensation on the 7D I need things to be as simple as possible as I sometimes get flustered when things happen quickly
 
jason7579 said:
85% aperture
10% shutter
5% manual

I would like to get to a stage where manual takes the greatest %
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Why?

Genuinely? What difference do you think it'll make?

The exposure mode is irrelevant, your metering method, however is very important. But more important to your images are:
Lighting
Composition
A story.

Which ought to make you realise how completely irrelevant it is to get hung up on camera buttons. Learning how to read and meter a scene will get you the picture, whether you use P or M is irrelevant. Given that with P you can shift the shutter or aperture and use exp comp, or exp lock, where's the lack of control?
 
Phil V said:
Why?

Genuinely? What difference do you think it'll make?

The exposure mode is irrelevant, your metering method, however is very important. But more important to your images are:
Lighting
Composition
A story.

Which ought to make you realise how completely irrelevant it is to get hung up on camera buttons. Learning how to read and meter a scene will get you the picture, whether you use P or M is irrelevant. Given that with P you can shift the shutter or aperture and use exp comp, or exp lock, where's the lack of control?
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you have a good point actually:)

I was out yesterday doing landscapes and Im still learning composition but the when light was right it made all the difference
my hands were freezing and some of the shots I took were in shutter priority as I had moved the dial without realizing but it made very little difference the best shots were when the light and composition was good
 
I thought about this this question and I really don't know the answer. I know that the camera will be in either M, Av or Tv, but I'm b*ggered if I can remember what it ends up in for the shot. I'm usually metering/focussing/recomposing more than thinking about mode - I switch the mode in pretty much the same way that a driver might shift gear, as part of the procedure - and in conjunction with a shutter or aperture adjustment (or even ISO).

The only time that I almost exclusively use a mode is when I have my flash on - then I shoot manual.
 
Av 90%
M 10%

Manual when using lighting and landscapes
 
Phil V said:
Why?

Genuinely? What difference do you think it'll make?

The exposure mode is irrelevant, your metering method, however is very important. But more important to your images are:
Lighting
Composition
A story.

Which ought to make you realise how completely irrelevant it is to get hung up on camera buttons. Learning how to read and meter a scene will get you the picture, whether you use P or M is irrelevant. Given that with P you can shift the shutter or aperture and use exp comp, or exp lock, where's the lack of control?
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Spot on.
 
Manual 100%
always shoot in Raw

I was limited to 100% manual for many years as I had a 300d second hand, the flash pop up was broken and If I use any other than manual it throws up error 99......that me for past 5 years. I am glad it did as I learn so much from my mistake and of course missed so many good photo opportunity as well
 
100% manual for me, not sure why, just never bothered with the other modes.
Camera was on manual when I took it out the box and basically just left it there.
 
15% Aperture Priority
50% Shutter Priority
35% Manual

Maybe I don't use manual enough.
 
Aperture 95%
Shutter ~2.5%
Manual, full auto ~2.5%
 
I only ever use manual for stills. I've never seen the point of the other modes, as you can see the metering through the viewfinder anyway so it's very hard to make a mistake.

When I first got my 500D, I was in Creative Auto for around a year, then went to manual, and stuck with that since the 60D.

Cheers,

Sid.
 
Phil V said:
Why?

Genuinely? What difference do you think it'll make?

The exposure mode is irrelevant, your metering method, however is very important. But more important to your images are:
Lighting
Composition
A story.

Which ought to make you realise how completely irrelevant it is to get hung up on camera buttons. Learning how to read and meter a scene will get you the picture, whether you use P or M is irrelevant. Given that with P you can shift the shutter or aperture and use exp comp, or exp lock, where's the lack of control?
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Still learning and lots to learn, including which setting to use in each situation. Something I've learnt today, from your comment, is that instead of believing manual will give me more control I should learn more about the scene I am viewing. Then I can make an informed decision on which mode to use. I also have a great deal to learn about lighting and composition to get a story from my images, these are the main areas I am trying to improve on right now.
 
jason7579 said:
...

I would like to get to a stage where manual takes the greatest %
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But you see it makes no difference...
jason7579 said:
Still learning and lots to learn, including which setting to use in each situation. Something I've learnt today, from your comment, is that instead of believing manual will give me more control I should learn more about the scene I am viewing. Then I can make an informed decision on which mode to use. I also have a great deal to learn about lighting and composition to get a story from my images, these are the main areas I am trying to improve on right now.
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A shot taken at f4, 1/250, iso 200 will be identical whether shot in PAS or M. Whether its correctly exposed or a mile out, it'll be identical. That's why I believe it's barmy to care about the mode.

As far as exposure is concerned, the important part is to understand your meter, to see a scene and judge whether your meter will get it right, so that you can decide to;
Use a different metering pattern
Use exposure compensation
Use exposure lock

Of course, if you are shooting lots of shots in the same light, where the different subjects will fool the meter, Manual will make it easier to shoot (as long as you don't chase the meter).

Whereas, shooting similar subjects in changing light is easier in a semi or fully auto mode (as long as you're satisfied that the reflectance is correctly understood).

But you could still use another mode and get the same photos, so there's no 'wrong'.

But that's neither covered in the OPs question or in all the other answers. It's as daft a question as all those people who see a great picture and ask 'what settings'. The settings are rarely relevant (the only exception would be capturing movement and even then you need an understanding of the subject speed, shutter speed is only half the story).
 
Sidney said:
I only ever use manual for stills. I've never seen the point of the other modes
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.......are you being serious, if so you must not have taken many photos in different applications, or this a point to say if one uses semi auto modes they are inferior??

Although yes you can see the metering through the VF, you have to register it, change your settings, this can take a couple of seconds for dexterous individual, how do you expect to fair under gig conditions when lights are changing in frequency, colour and intensity left right and center for example?

But to answer the OPs question:

A: 90%
S: 5%
M: 5%
Auto ISO: 5%
 
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einaroh said:
80% Aperture
10% Shutter
10% Manual
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95% aperture priority regardless of subject or lighting (CLS)...
4% manual with auto ISO
1% full manual
I avoid S (TV)...I don't like the way Nikon's "think" in S mode.

If I stayed stationary or worked under constant lighting the numbers would probably be significantly different.
 
Phil Young said:
.......are you being serious, if so you must not have taken many photos in different applications, or this a point to say if one uses semi auto modes they are inferior??... how do you expect to fair under gig conditions when lights are changing?
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Simple, I don't shoot concerts! :) I certainly don't think that if anyone uses Semi-Auto, or even Auto modes modes they are inferior, but I find that with portraits I often have both a maximum aperture and a minimum shutter speed, and then I can change the ISO to suit.

Also, when I am shooting children and they are running around into different rooms, I can think to myself "right, I need to bring the exposure up a stop, what to I want to sacrifice, aperture or shutter speed?" And with a few turns of a control wheel, I can have my new setting selected.

I hope this helps, it's a shame that you get so upset by the answer someone gives on a Photography Forum.

Sid.
 
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Sidney said:
Also, when I am shooting children and they are running around into different rooms, I can think to myself "right, I need to bring the exposure up a stop, what to I want to sacrifice, aperture or shutter speed?" And with a few turns of a control wheel, I can have my new setting selected.
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This is what I do for speed but just use A as I can decide what to sacrifice with turn of just one dial as Aperture and Shutter are linked when in P, A or S anyway.

When automation is there in life I tend to use it unless it doesn't do what I want it to. With ability to set max ISO and todays metering ability (which generally gets it right) I am happy with the automation offered.
 
redsnappa said:
So by your reckoning sports photographers will choose the sports auto mode, landscape photographers will select the scenic auto mode on the dial and fashion photographers will use the portrait auto mode. I should have realised that before wasting everyone's time by starting this thread, silly me.
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It is not advisable to use "sports/action" mode when shooting some sports.

For motor racing it is the last thing you want to do because you may get results like this (frozen) - you may as well be shooting parked cars.

#1 Sports/action mode.

20100501-IMG_9059 by dicktay2000, on Flickr

#2 Basically the smae location and on the same day.
Here I shooting with the shutter speed set to show some motion in the wheels. The background is a little bit more blurred than usual as I was also tracking the car whilst shooting.


David Wheatley, 1964 Mini Cooper S by dicktay2000, on Flickr

--------------------------

Keep in mind, camera dependant, some of the "scene" modes may not let you shoot RAW.

I use Shutter priority, Aperture (possibly with some exposure compensation dialed in) priority and manual modes depending on the lighting and what I am trying to achieve.
 
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Phil V said:
But you see it makes no difference...

A shot taken at...
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Thanks Phil, it's helpful comments like this that I think make this forum the place it is. I've seen time and time again someone making a statement and a bunch of replies disagreeing but not putting forwards anything to help. For a complete novice (such as myself) to be told I don't agree because x, y and z can really help make me think about what I am doing and how to improve. Right now I'm off to search for info on metering...
 
Usually Manual or Aperture, although in the evenings I get tired so sometimes use the scene modes, although older camera bodies do not have scene modes, when I used to do weddings id use the camera on P mode..
 
Av/C1 (Have them set up the same except C1 is AI Servo and High speed shooting, Av is single shot & focus) 60%

Tv/C2 - same as Av/C1 in regards focus and shooting setup. 30%

Manuel - 10%
 
Redsnappa said:
It surprising how much manual mode is used. You also have to wonder why camera manufacturers add those picture scene mode to cameras that are aimed at serious photographers.
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Phil V said:
Those modes aren't put there for photographers, they're there for people buying cameras who have no idea how to use them.

The manufacturers know why they put those modes on. And it has nothing at all to do with photography, just marketing.
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100% spot on.

We often forget that Nikon, Canon, et al don't make cameras and lenses so we can take great photos they make them to make money. No other reason ... it's called business.

As to the OP and what modes do I shoot in? I'm not telling you as it means nothing unless you're stood next to me at the time and asking why I'm doing what I'm doing.
 
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