[Teqy1]

As you all know I'm very new to all of this and I finally got some time last night to sit down and read my owners manual about how to use manual mode.  So as I was sitting there taking pictures I finally fully understand, or so I thought, what makes the camera tick.  However with me being very analytical I had this question pop into my head this morning as I was getting ready for work.

When working with the ISO, Shutter speed, and Aperature settings is there more than one combination that can give you a good picture?

For example I was sitting on my couch and it was somewhere between 9:00 pm and 9:30 pm so it was dark outside but I had my ceiling fan light on (consisting of 3 60 watt bulbs.)  I then started playing with the settings, only changing one at a time, to get an understanding of what each one does.  Then I started dialing in each one until I had a perfectly exposed picture.

Here are the settings that I Started with after playing for a couple of minutes:
Picture 1
ISO: 1250
Shutter speed: 1/8
Aperature: F5.6
Result: an under exposed picture

From there I changed the ISO setting only:
Picture 2
ISO: 1600
Shutter speed: 1/8
Aperature: F5.6
Result: Still under exposed but better than picture 1

From there I changed the Shutter Speed setting only:
Picture 3
ISO: 1600
Shutter speed: 1/6
Aperature: F5.6
Result: as close to perfectly exposed picture that can be taken

Now back to my question, is there more than one trifecta (don't know how else to explain it) that can produce a perfectly exposed picture for the same light?

If we were to use the example above could I change the ISO to 100, the shutter speed to 1/1000, and the aperature to F3.6 (all random numbers pulled out of my head) and produce the same or like results?

[Mike Hodgson]

I will try and keep this very basic.

ISO is a light sensitivity, acts like how much light is allowed to contact the sensor. The higher ISO the more speed you will be able to generate in combination with shutter and aperture, a faster lens is beneficial, 2.8

Shutter, acts the same way, how time of light is allowed to contact the sensor.

Aperture, acts the same way, how much light is allowed to enter the lens and contact the sensor.
The aperture is a diaphragm, it will be as small as a pin hole to as large as a 50 cent piece. You hear the term open and close the shutter.
Open, amount of light, the more open, the more light, the FASTER the lens, like a 2.8
Close, amount of less light to enter, therefore the slower, more time needed for light to enter. The more depth of field sort to speak, with more in focus. Like a  landscape, f11-f16

Enough here to swallow I think. So, now, the combination of ISO, aperture and shutter do effect the outcome.
By pushing one, it's a stop of light more or less, depends on what you do.

So, somewhere on the board, I have a shutter and aperture scale, find it, and it's a value/bonus to know.
ISO scale
100-200-400-800-1600-3200, each is a stop, plus, the greater the grain/noise

[the_click_chick]

NEW QUESTION:   how many of us use Manual mode, and what percentage do you use it?


Because personally i use manual mode for rare circumstances while out and about, OR when i'm using my studio lights......   other then that i'm normally always in Aperture or shutter priority....


I realize it is great to know how to use the manual mode, but  'TEQY1' are you learning it because you think you need to use that mode alot?


   sorry just curious..

[Teqy1]

Mike - Thanks for that.  I understand what each one does and I think you answered my question, just in a round about way.

Chic - 2 reasons really:
1) because I feel that it will help me understand the fundamentals better/faster.
2) if there are shots that I want to take that I don't necessarily have the pressure of time on me and want a certain look/feel then I will be able to do that.

[Mike Hodgson]

"Just in and around way?" Please tell me more, what would you like explained?

Yes, manual mode is a great way to understand the fundamentals, it is also a way to tell the camera what to do in certain circumstances. I learned photography in the early 80s using a Pentax K1000, BTW, I miss that camera, all manual, B/W. Glad I did.

"S" is great for sports or fast paced action, choose speed, cam chooses aperture.
"A" Aperture priority is great for weddings or events where you need the speed to get what you need without fumbling in Manual mode. Choose the aperture, cam chooses speed.

However, if you have the time, tell the camera what to do

Q. and A.
80% Manual

[Teqy1]

Mike - sorry I read it fast and was very confused, I just slowed down and read it until I had understood what you meant.  You did answer it correctly.

I didn't have coffee in the system yet.  doh!


So that leads me to my next question:
Are there any preferences to handle certain light applications or is it all judged by the end result?  Translation: If the quality of the photo is good who cares what the settings are?

[Mike Hodgson]

W/B is a factor, white balance.
Exposure is a main factor
High ISO, make sure exposure is not under, nail the exposure.

Outdoor? Sunny F16 Rule is a very good start
Indoors, meter in camera, flash may pop up.

Shoot RAW, you'll love it.

[Ginnypenny]

Mike I think that was a great explanation.  I am glad you tackled it.

NEW QUESTION:   how many of us use Manual mode, and what percentage do you use it?

I use manual for studio lights which is lately most of my work.  However, I don't use it for anything else.  I use aperture priority a lot.  I also use P mode and dial my exposure compensation dial up and down depending on what I am shooting.  With a lot of practice I have gotten pretty good at knowing what my camera is going to do and how to outsmart it.  For example, I know when shooting a wedding dress my camera will underexpose and I dial in compensation, the groom and his black tux are going to fool my camera the other way.  The other thing I do is zoom in on the brides face, use it kinda like a grey card and set my camera to expose everything the same from that setting.

Everyone has their own way of doing things.  I am not a control freak and weddings make you work fast, that's why I use auto settings a lot.  Studio work is different, and every photographer is different.

[Aqualuna]

I'm pretty new to DSLR photography (less than 3 months), but I'll see if i can answer you this in an easy to understand way...

iso, aperture and shutter speed all affect the exposure.

When you want to get the right exposure you can play with all those parameters to get the right exposure. The way its affected is like this:

higher iso, bigger aperture, slower shutter speed = more exposure
lower iso, smaller aperture, faster shutter speed = less exposure

So lets suppose this ISO 100, F/2.8, 1/100s produces a photo with the right exposure.

If you change only 1 of any of those 3 parameters, you will get a subexposed or overexposed photo. So what you need to do if you dont like those parameters, is to change 2 or 3 of them to compensate.

For instance, ISO 200, F/2.8, 1/200s would compensante the hgher ISO with a faster shutter speed...

The reason you want to play with aperture and shutters speed is to get differnt effects... aperture is used to change depth of field... the more aperture the narrow the DOF, shutter speed is used to freeze or cause motion blur... ISO can be thought as a light amplifier only... the higher the ISO, the more noise you get....

btw wikipedia has some good articles on all those topics...

[Ed Farmer]

When I was teaching this stuff (or trying to!) I used the follow to explain exposure . . . it didn't always sink in . . .

Consider: 

ISO is a bucket, but the higher the ISO, the smaller the bucket.  The lower the ISO, the bigger the bucket.

Aperture is the valve on your garden hose.  This the more you open this valve, the faster the water flows.  But, you can't shut it off completely.

Shutter speed is the hand valve at the end of the hose.  This valve is either open or closed, there is no middle opening.

Proper exposure is your ISO bucket full of water.  If the bucket overflows, you have over-exposure.  If the bucket is not quite full, you have under exposure.

So, you have a few choices: 

You can open the valve all the way.  If you do this, when you open the hand valve the bucket will fill quickly and you will have shut the hand valve very soon after you open it or the bucket will over flow.

This is like using a large aperture and short shutter speed.

You could also leave the valve partially closed so that the water flows more slowely.  If you do this, you will have to leave the hand valve open longer to fill the bucket.

This is like using a smaller aperture and long shutter speed.

There are all sorts of combinations of valve settings and hand valve times that will just fill the bucket.  Any of those will result in the same exposre.

Of course in the case of filling a bucket, all of the combinations are equal.  In terms of exposure, all setting combinations are also equal, but not all settings will produce the same image.  For example:

Let's say that you are photographing your children playing football.  You set your camera to ISO 400 and the camera to 250/f4.  The image is properly exposed (just say that it is!)  So, you do some math and realize that 125/f5.6 gives you the same exposure and try that.  Hey!  What do you know?  It works great!  You got the same image and the same exposure.  Now you are full of confidence.  So, you jump to 4,f32! 

Wait a minute . . . that's the same exposure (and the image will be properly exposed!) but I can't see any of the players!  In fact, I can't even tell the grass from the sky!

We all know what happened so, I am not going to take this part any farther.

So, what exposure mode I use?  What do I recommend?  It depends on what I am doing.

Over the years, I have learned to trust the meters in my Nikon cameras very much.  Therefore, I use them and let them make many decisions for me.  For most of my photography (and really for most of anyone's photography) the normal range of shutter speeds, from about 30 to 500 or 1000, will all produce pretty much the same image.  They are usually fast enough to avoid camera shake or subject movement.  Slower speeds introduce both of those problems but can be used for creative effect.  Faster shutter speeds can produce some strange results.  The wheels of a moving car or bicycle can be frozen in place making for an odd looking image.  In fact, one of the old Minolta 35mm bodies featured a top shutterspeed of 1/12,000 of second.  But, photographs at this speed froze the blades of a helicoptor roter in flight.  Now, there is a strange image!  Also, at higher speeds we are not able to use flash, so it has to factor in there as well.  Of course, high speed photography has a place in both artistic and scientific photography.  Sometime both together . . . take a look at the work of Harold Edgerton.

So, the normal range of shutterspeeds are usually all pretty much the same.  Can the same be said of apertures?  The answer to that is NO!  Aperture affects the optical performance of the lens in use.  (This isn't really true, but go along for now!)  Wide apertures (small numbers) produce a narrow depth of field.  My 300f2.8 has something like 1 cm of DOF at 10 feet.  Very difficult to work with unless you have a small, stationary subject.  Not really usful for general portraiture!  Stop it down to f8 or move back to a longer shooting distance and this can be used very creatively.

Does ISO effect the look of an image?  Well, to keep it simple the answer is YES.  My D200 is great at 100-400.  There is some noise at 800, but the images are still very, very, usable.  At 1600 or above the noise starts to become intrusive, but can still be used to effect.

So, for the most part, shutter speed doesn't effect the look of your image.  Aperture does at pretty much any setting.  ISO does if you go to the extreme.  How do I use this to determine how I shoot?  Well, I set the ISO based on the situation.  For the most part, outdoors at 100 and indoors at 400 or 800.  Aperture does effect the image, so I want to select the aperture to be used.  I can do this in manual or AP (Aperture Priority).  Since the shutterspeed doesn't effect the image, I don't want to have to worry about it.  In manual, I do have to worry about shutter speed . . . that leaves me in aperture for the vast majority of my work.  I will often shoot in manual when working a wedding reception because I don't want lights and other things in the background to effect my exposures in the darkened room.  Of course I also shoot manual when working only by flash.

So, that's my story . . .

Ed

[Mike Hodgson]

Ed, I'm having a coffee whilst reading your story, 

Great read, BTW   

[Ed Farmer]

BTW:  Just as an afterthought . . . This is also why I prefer fast lenses over Nikon's VR lenses or Canon's IS lenses. 

These lenses allow you to use longer shutter speeds in low light.  But, you sacrifice the risk of subject movement and you give up the options of shallow DOF.  I expect that they have a place, but not in my bag . . .

Ed

[Benji]

I shoot manual for everything but candids and snapshots.  The camera is just a dumb machine. I know exactly what I want and the only way to get exactly what I want is to set the camera where I want it set, not where the camera thinks I want it set. :-)

Ben

[BobEdens]

I'm with Ben. I usually put the camera on aperture priority at f3.5 or so when its in the bag so I can grab and shoot but I use manual for every shot that I took more than 3 seconds to compose.

[Aqualuna]

I only use M when camera can't guess the values for correct exposure... otherwise I use either A or S...