Which mode to use on my Dslr camera

 

Which mode to use on my Dslr camera

Which mode to use on my Dslr camera

There are the following main modes on the Dslr camera

Aperture priority:

This is perhaps the most useful mode on the Dslr camera. Here we chose an aperture value, and the camera calculates the shutter speed. The camera calculates a shutter speed as it would be 18% grey color in brightness. If we want brighter or darker we need to modify the settings of the camera. What does it mean. If we have an average scene (not too bright, not too dark) the camera makes the settings properly. In some cases this setting is not accurate:
Too bright:

Snow
Sky
beach without trees

Too dark:
forest,
shadows,
badly lit building inside

Too adjust this we make an exposure compensation:
Most cameras has this function usually maked with a rectangle with +- sign on it. Here we see a line with +- adjustments, some camera allows +-2EV, others +-3EV, others +-5EV. Mostly for natural look we don’t need more than 1.5 EV adjustments. The steps are either 1/3rds or 1/2 steps, some camera allow to change the steps as we like.

For brighter scenes we use positive values +1/3 +1/2 +1
For darker scenes we use negative values -1 -1/2 -1/3

To give two examples:
1. We make a picture at a scene covered with snow, no trees or any dark scenes there. If we let the camera make a normal picture, it will be 18% grey not like we saw but darker, if we want to make the picture we use an exposure compensation of +1EV. It is not defined that +1EV, we experiment how bright we want the picture to be. Perhaps +3/4 perhaps +1 1/3.
2. We want to make a nice pictures in a deep forest many trees, quite dark there everywhere. We make the picture without adjusting anything and we observer the picture is just too bright, the trees looks quite light. We use an exposure compensation of -1 EV.

It is best can be learned by experimenting. Try to achieve the look for the photo you want in terms of brightness/darkness.

There is one another thing to speak about: burning out the picture. What does it mean? If we apply +exposure compensation many times we end up burning up the picture especially with Canon cameras, which means the sky will be white with no colours. This happen because the camera cannot handle the bright and dark parts on the same image. On same pictures it is no problem(dark bird against sky, no other way to have details of the bird instead of black shadow), but if it is a problem(landscapes for example, half scene burned out is not good) needs to apply less compensation or even too use – compensation value some time if the scene is too bright, no matter of brightness. This means our camera cannot capture the scene as it is, just in a darker version, which we can try to make it brighter in postprocessing with software.

Shutter priority:

Shutter speed guide: 1/500-1/8000s very high shutter speeds to freezy action, but for this is bright sunlight or high ISO settings required
1/400-125s can freey slow motion
1/30-1/10s slower shutter speeds can perhaps be handholdable, the 1/10s more with the stabilizer
1/5s-1s not really handholdable, blurred pictures
1s-several hours, artistic landscapes astrophotography

Here we give a value of shutter speed, and the camera calculates aperture. When is it useful. Lazy mode. In dark room I know I can achieve relatively sharp shots at 1/30s (example). I set the aperture to 1/30s and use the camera as a point and shoot. If there is more light there will be smaller apertures used, is less light, brighter.
Another example wildlife in lazy mode. I know I need at least 1/1000 sec for sharp shots with a long 400-600mm lens.

Manual Mode

Here we need to adjust anything. It is easy to make an under or overexposed wrong image in this mode. I only use this mode if I want longer exposure night shoot with bulb mode() because it is only possible in this mode.

Program mode

This is an automatic point-and-shoot mode the camera calculates the shutter speed and aperture as well. We can adjust exposure compensation, white balance, etc.

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