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 Byberrian Fanman
  
Location: Fuck You
Gender: Male
 |  | Re: Nikon Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 20 on 12/22/2009 9:42 PM >
|  | | | When I first got a dSLR (Nikon D40X), I shot in AUTO mode.. until I realized that it made my pictures suck (I shot in Manual for long exposures and such). I then switched to Program mode most of the time for a couple months. When I got a lens other than the two shi...I mean, kit lenses (a Nikon 50mm f1.8D), I started using Aperture priority mode for quick shots and Manual for everything else, for it allows me to perfectly tweak the exposure to my taste.
As time progressed, I began to use Manual mode a lot more often, and when my 18-55mm kit lens shit the bed, I only had a manual focus Tokina 28-85mm to use. Seeing as Nikon's mid and low range bodies don't meter with manual focus lenses, I had no choice but to use manual mode constantly. Fast-forward to today, a friend is borrowing my AF 50mm for his (along with the rest of his gear) was stolen. So, I no longer have a single AF lens in my bag. The only four lenses I have right now are manual focus Nikkors. I've gotten pretty good with the math and guesstimating the exposures. I set the aperture to the optimum setting for each lens, for f/8 isn't the best setting for every lens.
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logtec
  
Location: Logtec is the UER representative for Scarborough, Ontario.
Gender: Male
Nice head, what's in the bag?
| |  | Re: Nikon Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 21 on 12/22/2009 9:44 PM >
| | | | whats the point of spending that kind of money on a decent camera if all you're going to do is use the auto or a preset mode?
i use manual or aperture priority mostly.
[last edit 12/22/2009 9:48 PM by logtec - edited 1 times]
They say "you can't judge a book by its cover!" I say "YES you can, if the cover has a girl on it with a cock in her mouth, its PORN!" if she's 18 and the cock is black, its GREAT porn! |
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Vic
Location: Toronto
Gender: Male
| | Re: Nikon Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 22 on 12/22/2009 9:52 PM >
| | | | Posted by AggiePhil
I don't see how you guys would shoot on the Manual setting. Other than just doing it by trial and error on each and every shot, how do you know what all combination of settings to use? Are there tables or...what do you go by? It all seems so confusing and I can't seem to find any definitive guide to learn by. 
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The camera still has a meter in it. In Manual mode it will show whether the exposure is "correct" or over/under exposed, and you can still adjust aperture / shutter / ISO to compensate.
Suggestion: Check out the book "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. Excellent explanations of all things related to exposure, with good examples.
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AggiePhil
Location: College Station, TX
Gender: Male
Texas Aggie
| |  | | Re: Nikon Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 23 on 12/22/2009 10:06 PM >
| | | | Posted by grotciv
The camera still has a meter in it. In Manual mode it will show whether the exposure is "correct" or over/under exposed, and you can still adjust aperture / shutter / ISO to compensate. |
I'm not sure how to do that. I'll try to get ahold of Peterson's book. Barnes & Noble wants $10 more for it in the store than it's going for online. Crooks! Thanks.
[last edit 12/22/2009 10:07 PM by AggiePhil - edited 1 times]
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Protios
Location: Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia
Gender: Male
To get where you're going, Remember where you've been
| | Re: Nikon Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 24 on 12/22/2009 10:35 PM >
| | | | The camera curve for me for me got a little easier once I got a grasp on Aperture. Shutter speed, and ISO.
For me, ISO is a no-brainer, it gets locked at 100 unless I don't have a tripod or sturdy surface handy.
Aperture, is a bit trickier, you have to figure out what you want for a depth of field but in most cases I find 5.6 or 8 works pretty well.
Shutter speed, I just keep cranking it up and down while looking at the meter, I generally like to expose for -0.3 to -0.7 as my base shot, and then I usually take +/- 1 bracketed shots so I have variety to choose from when I'm in post.
I'm no pro, I've only been shooting for 6 months, so there's probably lots of flaws in what I just said, but it works for me?
To get where you're going
Remember where you've been |
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AggiePhil
Location: College Station, TX
Gender: Male
Texas Aggie
| | | | Re: Nikon Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 25 on 12/22/2009 10:45 PM >
| | | | Posted by Protios
Shutter speed, I just keep cranking it up and down while looking at the meter, I generally like to expose for -0.3 to -0.7 as my base shot, and then I usually take +/- 1 bracketed shots so I have variety to choose from when I'm in post. |
Any idea where the "meter" shows up at on my D40?
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Shawn W.
 
Location: Niagara Falls, NY
Gender: Male
Optimistic Pessimist
| | | | Re: Nikon Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 26 on 12/22/2009 10:53 PM >
| | | | Posted by logtec
whats the point of spending that kind of money on a decent camera if all you're going to do is use the auto or a preset mode? |
That's why I quickly moved away from the auto setting.
Posted by AggiePhil
Any idea where the "meter" shows up at on my D40? |
If the D40 works like the D80 does when it comes to metering, you should be able to see it through your viewfinder when the camera is on. It's an indicator at the bottom, with a minus on the left, a plus on the right, and a zero in the middle.
[last edit 12/22/2009 10:54 PM by Shawn W. - edited 1 times]
What is a rebel? A man who says no. - Albert Camus |
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edsel
Location: Under your skin
| | Re: Nikon Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 27 on 12/22/2009 11:54 PM >
| | | | I use aperture mode for almost all my shots cept for long night shots then I use manual.
www.flickr.com/edsel12 |
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Ogre Battle
Location: Chicago IL
Gender: Male
| | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 28 on 12/23/2009 4:33 PM >
| | | | Posted by AggiePhil
I don't see how you guys would shoot on the Manual setting. Other than just doing it by trial and error on each and every shot, how do you know what all combination of settings to use? Are there tables or...what do you go by? It all seems so confusing and I can't seem to find any definitive guide to learn by. |
That's what the built-in light meter is for. Its not trial and error. You tweak the aperture and shutter speed until the light meter says its good (ie, the needle is centered, it reads zero, or however your camera is set up. See your owners manual).
By the way, in the old days, we did have to go by tables; there were charts on the inside of the film boxes. Let's see, sunny with distinct shadows... 500th @ f5.6 or whatever. Generally, these are based on the old "Sunny 16" rule where the correct exposure in full bright sunlight is 1 over the film speed at f16. For example, on ISO 100 film, the correct exposure in full sun would be 1/100 @ f16 (or 1/200 @ f11, 1/400 @ f8, etc).
With that said, I use Manual a lot outdoors, and Aperture Priority the rest of the time. Indoors, its almost always Aperture Priority unless I need to go to Manual (like if I need the Bulb setting or something).
EDIT - another recommendation for the Bryan Peterson book. I didn't realize it had been mentioned until I made my post and saw this thread already had a Page 2. His book has been updated in recent years with more stuff about Digital which the earlier version didn't have.
[last edit 12/23/2009 4:55 PM by Ogre Battle - edited 1 times]
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Ogre Battle
Location: Chicago IL
Gender: Male
| | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 29 on 12/23/2009 4:44 PM >
| | | | Posted by Protios
For me, ISO is a no-brainer, it gets locked at 100 unless I don't have a tripod or sturdy surface handy.
Aperture, is a bit trickier, you have to figure out what you want for a depth of field but in most cases I find 5.6 or 8 works pretty well.
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I do it the same way as you. I'm almost always at ISO 100 for explorations; if the exposure boils down to 4 seconds at ISO 100 or 1/4 second at ISO 1600 I'll prefer the 100 shot every time since the quality will be much better (and both require a tripod so why not?).
With the aperture, yes, I'll stick with 5.6 or 8 most of the time. And this goes back to the whole Aperture Priority vs. Shutter Priority question. I can keep it on f8 all day and keep an eye on the shutter speed just for reference; sure the speeds will vary a lot but that's what the tripod is for. I don't want to get emotionally attached to a certain shutter speed only to find out later I accidently shot everything wide open all day and have very little depth of field. No thanks.
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willskith
Location: Boston, MA
Gender: Male
| | | | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 30 on 12/23/2009 5:04 PM >
| | | | The dial on my cameras never leave that "M."
grit your teeth in the face of fear. self repression is the true sign of a coward, toss your inhibitions to the wind. |
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makman
Location: Rochester, NY
Gender: Male
I live alone with a criminal
| | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 31 on 12/23/2009 5:29 PM >
| | | | Posted by AggiePhil
I don't see how you guys would shoot on the Manual setting. Other than just doing it by trial and error on each and every shot, how do you know what all combination of settings to use? Are there tables or...what do you go by? It all seems so confusing and I can't seem to find any definitive guide to learn by.
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With regards to M/A/S/P, there's really only two variables: Shutter Speed and Aperture. Longer shutter speeds make things brighter, but if things move while the shutter is open, they can get blurry. Larger aperture (smaller number) makes things brighter, but lowers your depth of field. Shooting in A means you set aperture, and shutter is picked for you. Shooting in S is the opposite. Shooting in M means you set both- since there's really only those two variables (well, there's iso and other stuff, but that's not tied to the shooting mode), a bit of experience can tell you what settings to use for each, and a test shot or two can confirm it.
It you want a pretty good guide, I highly recommend http://berniecode....ography/beginners/ Goes over a lot of the main settings and the tradeoffs associated with each.
Be careful, not safe.
"Urbex- so much fun that it should be illegal." |
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Life by the Drop
Location: US- Florida
Gender: Male
I'm fuzzy on the whole good-bad thing
| | | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 32 on 12/23/2009 5:42 PM >
| | | | I typically use Aperture Priority if I'm using a camera that actually has that.
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trent
I'm Trent! Get Bent!
Location: Drainwhale hunting
Gender: Male
Not on UER anymore.
| | | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 33 on 12/23/2009 6:44 PM >
| | | | I'll use Auto for outdoors unless it it comes out horrible or I want to do something specific with the DoF that auto isn't doing.
In abandonments, I'll go Manual and this thread makes me want to try some more with Aperture priority which I've never really used.
In drains, definitely manual. For me, metering sucks because a lot of my light is painted after the exposure begins not before the shot when metering is done. I'm not great, but I've done it enough to roughly guess ISO/Shutter/Aperture combos with minimal tweaking. BUT since I've just unexpectedly ended up with a set of battery powered fluorescent lights, I might be able to do some more natural looking setups so I can actually use the light meter before releasing the shutter resulting in less shots and better battery life.
He who rules the underground, rules the city above.
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AggiePhil
Location: College Station, TX
Gender: Male
Texas Aggie
| | | | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 34 on 12/24/2009 4:12 AM >
| | | | I just got done doing some experimentation with Manual mode in the living room of my house. Not bad! One thing I did notice though was that unless I used the flash, the color of the shots were really yellow. Is this due to a setting that I need to tweak or...? I mean...I can easily correct this in post (or with a flash), but I'm wondering what's causing it. Thanks.
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rob.i.am
 
Gender: Male
Carpe noctum
| | | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 35 on 12/24/2009 4:14 AM >
| | | | Posted by AggiePhil
I just got done doing some experimentation with Manual mode in the living room of my house. Not bad! One thing I did notice though was that unless I used the flash, the color of the shots were really yellow. Is this due to a setting that I need to tweak or...? I mean...I can easily correct this in post (or with a flash), but I'm wondering what's causing it. Thanks.
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You could change your white balance to "incandescent" or something similar.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rob666/ |
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Shawn W.
Location: Niagara Falls, NY
Gender: Male
Optimistic Pessimist
| | | | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 36 on 12/24/2009 9:44 AM >
| | | | Posted by rob666
You could change your white balance to "incandescent" or something similar. |
That told him how to solve it, but not what caused it. 
Phil, normal light bulbs give off a yellowish light. Most people don't notice that, but it can be very noticeable in photos.
What is a rebel? A man who says no. - Albert Camus |
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Mornixuur
Location: Netherlands
Gender: Male
Yeah, Well, You Know, That's Just Like, Your Opinion, Man...
| | | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 37 on 12/24/2009 1:48 PM >
| | | | Mostly A & S here. Unless i have to do something tricky and switch to M.
http://www.mornixuur.nl/ |
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seicer
Location: New York
Gender: Male
| | | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 38 on 12/24/2009 2:12 PM >
| | | | Posted by Shawn W.
Manual all the way. |
If you really want to know how to operate a SLR properly, go manual for exposure all the way and learn from your mistakes. Books will never teach what you will learn in the field.
That said, I can't remember the last time I had it in any other mode other than full-manual. It's been many years. I didn't even know until very recently that I could switch modes (to A, S, and P) on the Nikon D3!
[last edit 12/24/2009 2:12 PM by seicer - edited 1 times]
Abandoned |
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bouncewiggle
Location: Johnson City, TN
Gender: Female
| | | | Re: Nikon Daytime Exposure Mode Selector Knob--M/A/S/P or AUTO?
<Reply # 39 on 12/25/2009 8:22 PM >
| | | | i leave mine on manual almost all the time. i usually get really confused why i can't make the adjustments i want and then realize that while in my bag the dial has moved, so i put it back on M and everything is beautiful once again. usually i don't have autofocus on either, unless it's for wildlife stuff. then autofocus is a must since i'm usually continually shooting and don't have time to focus (because my eyes are apparently crap through a viewfinder and it takes me forever).
"bouncewiggle, now more entertaining than Jell-O" |
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