(Photography basics)
Most people who want to learn manual mode in-camera struggle with where to start. And rightly so.
There is so much information on the internet that it can get overwhelming. There is no dearth of articles and Youtube videos of Photographers explaining how to get started – and also subtly promoting their own Photography courses, products, or services.
And in the ocean of information on this topic, we are adding another blog post. However, I will try to be honest with the information we share to help you make the right decision.
Shooting in manual mode at first can be exhausting and confusing! And reading numerous articles and blogs to understand what manual mode is can lead you to utter disappointment. You need to master manual mode if you want to use semi-automatic modes. You know, we can totally feel you because a year or two back, we were in the same situation. But do you want to find out how we mastered using the manual mode?
So, let’s start!
First things first, do not expect a miracle! Do not expect that you are going to master the art of using manual mode in a day or two! Believe us, you won’t. It will take at least a month to understand manual mode, and you’ll continuously learn new setting options every day after that.
To start with basics you’ll get three very much important but complicated options in the beginning if you do not know about them but really simple options if you have knowledge about them and they are –
- SHUTTER SPEED
- APERTURE
- ISO
These three options, collectively, are the first thing you need to deal with to make your photo perfectly exposed. Mismatching these settings can lead to underexposed or overexposed pictures. One can click underexposed or overexposed images according to the situation. Let’s know more about these settings and how they work!
SHUTTER SPEED –
Shutter speed is the left-most option in manual mode in most cameras. It allows the duration of time for the light to enter the sensor. It is measured in seconds as well as fractions of seconds. A fast shutter speed such as 1/1000 will make you help in freezing the moment whereas a low shutter speed such as 30 will help you freeze the motion. Here are the examples for the same –
APERTURE –
An aperture is the opening in the lens that allows the amount of light that will enter the camera to the sensor and is measured in f-number. If the f-number is large, the area in focus or the depth of field will be wide, and if the f-number is small, the depth of field will be less. For example, if the aperture is f4, the area in focus would be less and if the aperture is f11, the area in focus would be more. To summarize, a small f-number (f-2.8, 4,5.6) gives you a good background blur and a big f-number (f-11, 16, 22,) makes sure everything is in focus.
ISO –
ISO stands for International Organization for Standardization is the measurement of the sensitivity of the light falling on the camera. The higher the ISO, the more the light reaching to the sensor. But, with higher ISO comes the noise that makes the image hazy and unclear. It is advised to use the base ISO that is 100 in most situations if possible.
Therefore, you don’t always have to use manual mode. You can also switch to semi-automatic modes such as aperture priority, aperture priority, and program mode, but you will have to master the manual mode in order to use any of the above-mentioned modes.
This information can be overwhelming at first but with practice, everyone can master the exposure triangle.
To know more about the functioning of the exposure triangle, that is, shutter speed, aperture, and ISO thoroughly, read our next blog, which shares the detailed knowledge about the functioning of these settings, and follow us on Instagram at @THELIGHTSCRAFT, where we will be sharing photography tips, behind-the-scenes, tricks, and tips to get better at photography. Do follow us and be the photographer you always wanted to be.
https://www.instagram.com/thelightscraft/
THANK YOU!