What mode do you use most?

Which exposure shooting mode do you use most?

  • Auto

    Votes: 8 3.7%

  • Program

    Votes: 7 3.2%

  • Aperture Priority

    Votes: 131 60.1%

  • Shutter Priority

    Votes: 13 6.0%

  • Manual

    Votes: 57 26.1%

  • Basic zone modes (Portrait, Landscape, etc)

    Votes: 2 0.9%

  • Other

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    218
I never venture away from manual, I did try A once but it never seems to get the sky right (always blown) so simply stick to my own settings now and if it comes out wrong I have only myself to blame.

Blue Max...I never rely on the meter as if I was shooting an aircraft in a bright sky the meter would say 1/1000 and upwards so I just put the shutter to 1/250 for prop aircraft and to compensate set aperture to around f9 so really manual is manual for shots into a bright sky
 
blue max said:
I do think that people who swear by manual are feeling kind of smug that they are controlling the camera. However in reality using AV only lets the camera pick the shutter speed to suit a scene (and you can adjust that by using exposure compensation beforehand).

With using Manual, you are picking the aperture as AV, but then using the internal meter to select an exposure. Not really any different to using AV.

I find that with moving subjects, the manual exposure moves about so much that I lose track of what is correct exposure. If the camera adjusts for the scene I'm pointing at, I can decide beforehand if I need to interfere with it's likely selection.

Manual is nice if you have plenty of time to consider, but again, it's easier to bang off a couple or three and pic the best.

Graham
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I use manual and spot metering. I want ME to evaluate the exposure for the next couple of shots of that scene .. not the camera which would change every time I clicked the shutter , resulting in an unmatched set of prints.
 
Probably 50:50 between Manual and Av. Rarely use Tv, except for action sports. Sometimes use Manual even then. I'm a fan of spot metering too. :)
 
Tricky69 said:
.. not the camera which would change every time I clicked the shutter , resulting in an unmatched set of prints.
Click to expand...

There are obviously occasions where this statement is true :thumbs:

But more when its not :thumbsdown:

:D

DD
 
I dont think I can remeber when my camera was last out of Manual tbh.

Most of my work is in the clubs so I stays there, plus I feel in AV/TV my mkIIn underexposes the image more than I like compaired to my 30D
 
blue max said:
I do think that people who swear by manual are feeling kind of smug that they are controlling the camera. However in reality using AV only lets the camera pick the shutter speed to suit a scene (and you can adjust that by using exposure compensation beforehand).

With using Manual, you are picking the aperture as AV, but then using the internal meter to select an exposure. Not really any different to using AV.

I find that with moving subjects, the manual exposure moves about so much that I lose track of what is correct exposure. If the camera adjusts for the scene I'm pointing at, I can decide beforehand if I need to interfere with it's likely selection.

Manual is nice if you have plenty of time to consider, but again, it's easier to bang off a couple or three and pic the best.

Graham
Click to expand...


Disagree with this IMHO

i shoot football 90% of the time and Manual mode performs best because i know what shutter speed i want and i shoot wide open. I meter off the grass then under expose from that reading to preserve the highlights.

Occasionally i'll use AV when there are slight changes in lighting (say 1/2 to 1 stop) but then you risk loosing shots as the shutter speed drops.

TV can be good but i've only used it once so far using setting given to me by another forum member

so for me Manual is best because its the most suitable mode for what i shoot

I hope this doesn't sound smug :)

Andy
 
DiddyDave said:
There are obviously occasions where this statement is true :thumbs:

But more when its not :thumbsdown:

:D

DD
Click to expand...


as I have nearly always used manual only, I cant say how often it's true ... only that I NEVER get it , because I use maunual :thumbs:

just my personal preference ... everyone is different !

:D

T69
 
Tricky69 said:
as I have nearly always used manual only, I cant say how often it's true ... only that I NEVER get it , because I use maunual :thumbs:

just my personal preference ... everyone is different !

:D

T69
Click to expand...

So you never shoot something that changes exposure, even by a 1/3 of a stop while you're shooting it? Cos if it did, and you didn't adjust, your matched prints wouldn't be matched would they

Auto in most cases will adjust quicker than you can in manual mode - and if you're making those adjustments anyway, why not just use an auto setting :shrug:

Anyway, forget the arguments either way - it's cool if it works however you do it :)

DD
 
Rovers_Andy said:
Disagree with this IMHO

i shoot football 90% of the time and Manual mode performs best because i know what shutter speed i want and i shoot wide open. I meter off the grass then under expose from that reading to preserve the highlights.

Occasionally i'll use AV when there are slight changes in lighting (say 1/2 to 1 stop) but then you risk loosing shots as the shutter speed drops.

TV can be good but i've only used it once so far using setting given to me by another forum member

so for me Manual is best because its the most suitable mode for what i shoot

I hope this doesn't sound smug :)

Andy
Click to expand...

No, not smug at all. If you master your camera, all power to you.

In that instance, how on earth do you meter for a player who runs from dark shadow to bright sunshine? I know I will get a shot in one of the auto modes (hate that name because you choose on of the variables). And with raw, you can certainly fine tune the exposure somewhat.

Perhaps it's just a case of stick with what you use and get used to it.

Graham
 
Dangermouse1964 said:
Blue Max...I never rely on the meter as if I was shooting an aircraft in a bright sky the meter would say 1/1000 and upwards so I just put the shutter to 1/250 for prop aircraft and to compensate set aperture to around f9 so really manual is manual for shots into a bright sky
Click to expand...

So, you guess at the exposure?

I would dial-in some exposure compensation and chimp to get a good idea of the correct exposure anyway in that situation.

Guess another example of knowing how to use what is your preferred choice.

All methods would produce a result (if you have the experience to predict where the camera needs a bit of guidance).

Graham
 
blue max said:
No, not smug at all. If you master your camera, all power to you.

In that instance, how on earth do you meter for a player who runs from dark shadow to bright sunshine? I know I will get a shot in one of the auto modes (hate that name because you choose on of the variables). And with raw, you can certainly fine tune the exposure somewhat.

Perhaps it's just a case of stick with what you use and get used to it.

Graham
Click to expand...

I hate the use of the term "Auto modes" as well. I use A most of the time and the only thing the camera does is select the shutter speed. I choose the aperture, ISO, white balance and I can even adjust the shutter speed with exposure compensation.
 
blue max said:
No, not smug at all. If you master your camera, all power to you.

In that instance, how on earth do you meter for a player who runs from dark shadow to bright sunshine? I know I will get a shot in one of the auto modes (hate that name because you choose on of the variables). And with raw, you can certainly fine tune the exposure somewhat.

Perhaps it's just a case of stick with what you use and get used to it.

Graham
Click to expand...

Ahhh yes this is the worst situation for me when shooting sports.

In this case i would use TV and then in the custom functions i set aperture value range to from f/2.8 to f/2.8 (if that makes sense) which forces the camera to stay shooting wide open. Because im in TV the shutter speed stays constant so the only thing that can change is ISO. i should say though that this is still theory for me as i haven't had chance to test it properly and there are a few downsides to it.

Before i knew i about the handy features in the custom functions i would have stayed in Manual and tried to adjust ISO on the fly. (having take a shot in the shade and also in the brighter area) its a PITA though, and in this situation i would never use AV purely because the shutter speed would drop too low. if i was shooting at 1/640th in the brighter areas the shade is likely to be giving readings of 1/320 or less which on the 400mm is unusable for me on a monopod.


I was going to add something else but my minds gone blank......will come back to it later if i remember

Andy
 
blue max said:
So, you guess at the exposure?

I would dial-in some exposure compensation and chimp to get a good idea of the correct exposure anyway in that situation.

Guess another example of knowing how to use what is your preferred choice.

All methods would produce a result (if you have the experience to predict where the camera needs a bit of guidance).

Graham
Click to expand...


No I never guess, I know my camera and what settings are needed for a shot its easy once you have put some time and effort in and learned how to use it
 
Manual. All the time. Every Time.

Occasionally when doing aerial photos - i.e. from the side door of a Lynx, I'll shoot S and set 500th sec or higher...and only then because I'll be shooting JPEG-High and doing auto-PP on them...
 
I tend to use M and I try to avoid the auto modes as I will not learn anything
 
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