Shooting in manual mode

I think a lot of experienced photographers should be able to get close and have a range of settings that work for sunny, cloudy, indoor low light, indoor bright light etc,. but to get it absolutely spot on every time is something else.
 
ernesto said:
I think a lot of experienced photographers should be able to get close and have a range of settings that work for sunny, cloudy, indoor low light, indoor bright light etc,. but to get it absolutely spot on every time is something else.
Click to expand...

Yeah I'd have a general idea but I think Phil said he can do it within half a stop or something, wasn't it Phil?
 
joescrivens said:
Yeah I'd have a general idea but I think Phil said he can do it within half a stop or something, wasn't it Phil?
Click to expand...

Pretty sure I proved it however much it was and then people were asking me to post a video walking around talking about settings for scenes lol

At that point I thought it wouldn't end anywhere and I had nothing to gain from it...

You can try and make me look stupid though and I'll bite - no probs.
 
Not trying to make you look stupid. As before its a great talent you should be proud to showcase. 9 shots out of 10 bang on is very impressive. No hidden agendas there.
 
joescrivens said:
Not trying to make you look stupid. As before its a great talent you should be proud to showcase. 9 shots out of 10 bang on is very impressive. No hidden agendas there.
Click to expand...

Dunno mate I smell a very big fish!

Anyway, if you do probably best to tell me the shutter used and I'll say what I would have done to get that shutter because that's the way I think.
 
Anyone experienced could do this, but I would ask what the advantage is? I'm pretty certain that after almost 30 years I could get the exposure pretty close with guesswork, but I don't actually try to do that. Why would I when I have a light meter that can get it bang on?

I use an incident meter for when I'm taking outdoor portraits etc. As I use an incident meter, I transfer the settings to the camera in full manual mode.

If I'm "walking around" with a camera, which I rarely do, but I'll use the camera's meter obviously, and then I'll use full manual if I'm taking shots of anything that doesn't move, or I'll drop into either AP or SP depending on what's going on.
 
I think there's a difference between getting it pretty close and getting it spot on 9 times out of 10 though. Credit where it is due David.
 
joescrivens said:
How is taking a test shot and adjusting any different to using a light meter and making your decision?
Click to expand...

Test shot, check histogram etc, adjust, reshoot, goal scored, ball retrieved, kick off under way...

Correct metering mode, trust in said meter, click, ball on foot/crossing line/whatever captured!

Many years ago, I could make a fairly accurate assesment of a scene and guestimate the exposure needed when using Tri-X/HP5 or FP4 - the metering when I used a Pentax S1 was a clip on meter on the pentaprism and not a quick and easy thing to use! Quicker to guestimate and bracket (usually 2 stops either side and let the lattitude of the film and print process take care of the inaccuracy) than meter and set in most cases. These days though, I trust the cameras' meters to get it right. I generally use the spot meter and recompose after the camera's chosen the exposure. Rarely get exposure related rejects - wish I could say the same about composition!
 
I don't think trying to define what manual means is really helping. If I use aperture priority but decide to override the camera and use exp comp then I am at that point taking manual control of the exposure.
 
ernesto said:
I don't think trying to define what manual means is really helping. If I use aperture priority but decide to override the camera and use exp comp then I am at that point taking manual control of the exposure.
Click to expand...

No I don't think that's true. All you are saying is that you want it a bit brighter or a bit darker than what the camera is calculating, you are still relying on the camera to make the initial decision.
 
joescrivens said:
I think there's a difference between getting it pretty close and getting it spot on 9 times out of 10 though. Credit where it is due David.
Click to expand...


Not denying anyone anything :)
 
joescrivens said:
No I don't think that's true. All you are saying is that you want it a bit brighter or a bit darker than what the camera is calculating, you are still relying on the camera to make the initial decision.
Click to expand...

Joe, this is where I believe people wrongly hang the debate on exposure modes rather than metering.

If I pick up my camera and decide that I need to override the meter, I'm in control of the exposure whether PASM. The auto modes are just helping speed up my process, not doing it for me.

OTOH if I pick up the camera and zero the meter with no thought, the camera decided the correct exposure. Again that's true of PASM. So even if I'm dialling in settings, the camera decided.

Many manual shooters are in total control, but they wrongly believe that's because they're shooting M. And they're followed into the debate by people who haven't a clue, believing that M is the key to this and it isn't, metering is the important ingredient. Exposure modes are a red herring.
 
It's really not hard, all manual means is YOU do the changing of the settings. It has nothing to do with thought process or guessing exposure, knowing why you use those settings or even chimping, it just means you change them. No more no less.

Centring the meter just means you don't understand what you're doing (or are shooting a mid grey wall!), doesn't mean you're not working in manual. Just like changing gear in a manual car by a shift light on the rev counter doesn't make the car an auto.

There is no more meaning to manual mode than that. Anyone who thinks it has in any way more meaning than that is deluded. [/thread]
 
Phil V said:
And no appreciation of what your meter is doing, based on this answer?


So you might as well be on one of the semi auto modes, for exactly the same amount of control and half the work.:thinking:

Or even - take control of your metering - use the semi auto modes and be in full control of what you're shooting:thumbs:
Click to expand...

Well thanks ill give it a blast
 
I pretty much always use aperture priority when not using flash. If using flash I *always* use manual without fail.

I have never touched auto or P mode, and rarely ever use shutter priority.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top