How to leave the Auto and Program Modes and create better images
Now that Covid is getting behinds us, I seem to find myself at weddings again, not as the shooter, but as a guest. I am always curious what settings the young wedding photographers use to shoot the events, so I always ask. At the last two weddings both photographers told me they’re using the AV Mode which is Aperture Priority. OK, I said.
I thought to myself, if you’re not addressing each image as its own and you’re group editing in Lightroom to save time and money, then OK. If you’re working to create magic and want each image to standout on its own, then it’s not OK. When shooting wedding photography you want to stand out in the area you work and live so you’ll get more work, right? Then why not dial all your settings in for each subject you find yourself working.
Once you begin dialing in your ISO and Color Temperature for what the set and subject calls for, then you can determine what style of Depth of Field you want to create by dialing in your aperture by f-stops and then adjusting your shutter speed for the capture. You dial in the correct Exposure Value by using your lighting meters and or histogram.
If you want to get off the Auto and Program Modes then you need to begin shooting in the Manual Mode ASAP. All professional photographers I know shoot in the Manual Mode and for good reason. In the Manual Mode you’re able to dial in any setting within a couple of minutes by taking test shots of the set and subjects. By shooting RAW files and relying on the Histogram for your light meter, you can then control more of each image and the Depth of Field effect you want to create with so much more latitude than the AV Mode can provide.
Blue Ridge Parkway — Asheville, NC
The trick is… learn to shoot everything in RAW and use the Histogram for the information on the exposure. If you have the right ISO set and the right Color Temperature set, then you’re down to just adjusting the aperture and shutter speeds for the correct exposure value.
Once you begin shooting in the Manual Mode and capturing everything in the RAW then you’ll begin to see a BIG difference in your photography.
I encourage you to begin shooting in the Manual Mode until you know your camera settings intimately. You’ll shoot a lot of test shots in the Manual Mode.
Remember, practice makes perfect!
Now that you can shoot in the Manual Mode you’re halfway there. The other half of photography is postproduction. I personally only use Photoshop to create my images as I want all the latitude I can get to create the best images possible. No matter what software you work in to create your images, just make sure you shoot in the RAW so you can create the best images possible.
Shoot test shots and dial in your image in the Manual Mode for a few days or weeks until it becomes second nature. You’ll soon see the benefits of Manual Mode… and most likely will never go back to Auto or Program Modes. Also, learn all you can about Photoshop and Lightroom as they will produce the second half of your image.
Remember, Capturing the image is 50% of the work and Postproduction is the other 50% of the work. You have to become knowledgeable and efficient in both to create the best images!
You begin shooting in the Manual Mode by simply choosing it. Shoot everything in Manual and work to create better images sooner rather than later. What are you waiting for?
If you need more information on how to shoot in Manual Mode, then check out this webpage for an in-depth teaching course titled; How to Shoot and Master the Manual Mode by Chris Cassels. You’ll be glad you did!
