Choosing the Appropriate Shooting Mode - Part 2

Creative/Semi-automatic Shooting Modes

"The Jeepney" 

Baguio City, Philippines

The first part introduces you to the different shooting modes available in digital cameras, where the most simple and basic mode is the AUTO.  In this mode, the camera does automatically all the necessary settings needed to properly capture the subject.  By analyzing  the light condition, the camera automatically adjusts the
shutter speed and aperture values (and ISO in some cameras) in order to get the "proper exposure".  The process of determining  the exposure is called "metering" and there are generally three metering methods that you can select on your  camera, which I will be explained in the later blog post.

"Proper exposure" can be interpreted from two perspectives -- from the camera's perspective and from the photographer's perspective.  If you shoot in AUTO or in any of the automatic modes (portrait, landscape, macro, action, night portrait), you will always get a "proper exposure" (from the camera's perspective) but may not always be acceptable from the photographer's perspective.   

In situations where the camera cannot achieve the "proper exposure" the photographer wanted, the photographer must make the exposure adjustment him/herself.   There are several ways to adjust exposure, which are most often only possible in either creative/semi-automatic or manual shooting modes.   Let me first lay down the most common creative/semi-automatic modes -- "Program (P)", "Shutter Priority (S or Tv)" and "Aperture Priority (A or Av)".   Perhaps after learning these shooting modes, you may want to bid farewell to the AUTO mode.

Program Mode (P)

A better alternative to AUTO is the P-mode.  P-mode behaves the same way as AUTO except that it allows you to override some settings such as shutter speed, aperture, ISO and flash. 

Setting your camera to P-mode is fine, especially if you are taking shots in a hurry and merely want to capture the moment.  By using one of the other semi-automatic shooting modes though will give you more exposure control while at the same time allows you to produce more creative and better quality photographs.

Shutter Priority Mode (S or Tv)

Shutter Priority shooting mode or S-mode (other cameras use the symbol "Tv" for Time Value) lets you set the shutter speed manually and the camera will correspondingly choose the appropriate aperture to obtain the proper exposure.  ISO can be set at a fixed value or you can let the camera select from a range of values if set to Auto ISO.

As mentioned in the "Exposure" blog post, other than controlling exposure, shutter speed can also be used to produce creative photos.  Use S-mode if you want to control over the resulting image of a moving subject.  There are essentially two styles of portraying a moving subject.  First, you may freeze the action or movement of the subject by having a fast shutter speed (usually at least 1/125s).   Second, you may apply a blur effect that creates a sense of motion by having a slow shutter speed (usually 1/30s or slower).  A slower shutter speed can possibly enhance the motion effect of water fountains waterfalls, rivers, waves, etc.
  

Fast shutter speed at 1/1000s freezes the motion 

of the clown on stilt and the man walking behind.

The photo of "The Jeepney" above was taken using S-mode at a slow shutter speed of 1/25s.  A technique called "panning" was applied in this photo making the background blurred, thus creating a sense of motion. 

Aperture Priority Mode (A or Av)

Aperture Priority shooting mode or A-mode (other cameras use Av) lets you manually adjust the aperture while the camera selects the appropriate shutter speed to obtain a proper exposure.   ISO can be set at a fixed value or you can let the camera select from a range of values if set to Auto ISO.

Other than controlling exposure, aperture also controls the "depth of field" in a photograph.  "Depth of field" or DOF refers to the area of focus/sharpness in an image.  DOF may also be defined as a range of elements in a photo that are in focus.  

DOF is said to be "deep" if much of the area in the frame looks sharp.  To attain a deep DOF, set the aperture to a high f-number (small aperture size) like f/16.  Small aperture is normally used when shooting landscapes because foreground up to background must be sharp and in-focus.

 Deep DOF at aperture f/11.  Foreground timbers, middle ground 

bushes and the background building are equally sharp.

When much of the frame looks blurred and only the main subject is in focus, the DOF is said to be "shallow".  Widen the aperture size by setting the aperture value to a lower f-number like f/4 to obtain a shallow DOF.  For shooting portraits, large aperture size is commonly applied. 

Shallow DOF at aperture f/5.6.  Foreground flower is much 

sharper than the background flower.

These creative/semi-automatic shooting modes, particularly S and A, give you more control on the outcome of your photo but requires a lot of practice for you to get familiar with the different settings. The next time you use your camera, forget the AUTO mode and switch to these other modes.  Remember,  P-mode is for automatic exposure with some degree of overriding control, S-mode is for capturing moving subject, and A-mode is for controlling the depth of field.  

NOTE:  P, S and A modes are commonly present in dSLRs but may not be available in some point and shoot cameras.

Below is an example on how to take picture using one of the creative/semi-automatic shooting modes. You may want to follow the steps enumerated as your exercise.

1.  First step is to identify your objective.  Let's say you want to capture your subject in the foreground as sharp as possible while the middle and background are all blurred, similar to the flower photo above.

2.  Determine the appropriate shooting mode.  Our example calls for aperture priority mode because you want to control the depth of field.  Therefore the shooting mode dial should be set to A or Av.

3.  Referring to the objective, adjust the aperture value accordingly.  Because you want a sharp foreground subject while leaving the middle and background blurred, set the aperture to its lowest allowable f-number (largest aperture size), e.g. f/5.6, f/4 or lower.  This effect is what we call shallow depth of field.

4.  Get closer to the subject to obtain a nice shallow depth of field effect.

5.  Focus on the subject (preferably set your camera to autofocus, and I suggest you read the user's manual's section on "focusing").   Pressing the camera's shutter release button halfway will automatically focus on the subject.

6.  Once focus is set, press the shutter release button fully.   Congratulations, you have successfully captured an image depicting shallow depth of field!   More often than not, you will obtain a pretty decent exposure.

Next, try shooting any moving subject and freeze it in your photo.

Till next post and keep on shooting!