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Photography Question 

Ford
 

Just signed up, anyone here using the 20D


There are so many functions, but the pros always say to shoot on Manual. Does that mean the shot wont be creative
Steve


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June 07, 2005

 
- Gregory LaGrange

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  no, just don't want to get into the thinking of automatic means you can set it and forget it. want to be aware of what you're shooting and how to shoot it.

Auto really means that the camera will do it's best and TRY to get a picture to come out right. Dosen't mean it automatically will.


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June 07, 2005

 

anonymous
  Yep, go manual whenever you can, but if you are at a "party" for example, then just switch to auto so you can have fun and get some photos at the same time (just an example).


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June 07, 2005

 

Christopher A. Vedros
  There's nothing wrong with letting your camera do some of the work for you.

The "creative" part is knowing when to believe what your camera meter is saying, and when to override it . . .

Knowing when to select a specific aperture to get more or less depth of field . . .

Knowing when to select a specific shutter speed to freeze or to blur motion . . .

Bryan Peterson's book "Understanding Exposure" is all about adjusting your settings to achieve the most creative exposure. That's my second plug for his book so far tonight. I should be getting a commission, or something. ;-)


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June 07, 2005

 
- Gregory LaGrange

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  never said anything wrong.


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June 07, 2005

 

Ford
  wow, I never expected an answer that fast. Thanks all
Next queation is about to post


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June 08, 2005

 

Dan P. Brodt
  I just took a betterphoto.com Intro to Digital Photography-Geo Schaum course for my 20D. Very nice course... Both the Basic and Creative Modes of your/our 20D are examined with assignments..


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June 08, 2005

 

Kerry L. Walker
  Gregory is correct, as usual. You might be surprised to find out that most pros don't ALWAYS shoot in manual. Aperature priority and shutter priority automation are also creative modes. You are setting one or the other to create a picture the way you want it to turn out and are relying on the camera to set the other variable. Yes, it is sometime necessary to switch to manual when you know the camera (meter) is wrong, such as a backlit scene. Full Program mode is not considered creative because you are relying on the camera to do everything except press the shutter.


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June 08, 2005

 

Christopher A. Vedros
  I wasn't disagreeing with you, Gregory. I agree with what you said, especially the part about "be aware of what you're shooting and how to shoot it".

What I was getting at is that a lot of new photographers hear pros say that you should shoot on manual, but without really knowing why. If you switch to manual, and then adjust your settings to get the meter to line up, you're not really much better off than using full auto, if you don't know why you're using those settings.

As you pointed out, and I tried to expand on, there's more to it than just switching to manual.


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June 08, 2005

 

Ford
  but If Im using a handheld meter (which Im sure were made better than the in camera one) shouldn't I shoot manual accordingly. Ive read that the camera is (stupid), so that means if I rely on the camera at all except under certain bulbs then it won't come out like I want. Shouldn't you know the shutter speed you want and the DOP depending on the light situation


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June 08, 2005

 

Ford
  but If Im using a handheld meter (which Im sure were made better than the in camera one) shouldn't I shoot manual accordingly. Ive read that the camera is (stupid), so that means if I rely on the camera at all except under certain bulbs then it won't come out like I want. Shouldn't you know the shutter speed you want and the DOP depending on the light situation. Then there is the 18% gray also to factor in


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June 08, 2005

 

Kerry L. Walker
  Your handheld meter is just as dumb as the one in the camera. Both are reading 18% gray. Check an exposure using both the handheld meter and the camera meter to see if they are reading the same. One or the other or both could be off or they could agree. yes, you should know the shutter speed you want, or the aperature. Either way, you have to have the shutter speed and aperature match up with the lighting available.


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June 08, 2005

 

Ford
  hey Kerry, I did some test shots and the shutter speed was way high (in camera meter). 640 Then I used my light meter and it was 500. Also did a program mode f11 at 640 and light meter f11 at 500. The one shot at the light meter looked nicer (better colors)


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June 08, 2005

 
- Gregory LaGrange

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  It's not that one meter is dumb and the other isn't, the way they read is different. The sun shines on two things, one black and one white, side by side the same. Hand meters measure the light that's shining on it. Two things, one black and one white, reflect light back differently. Camera meter measures how much light is coming back off it. If there's a balanced mixture of high to low reflective things, camera meter will come to an accurate exposure. If there's a dominance of one, camera meter will come to an exposure that's shifted away from accurate.


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June 08, 2005

 

Christopher A. Vedros
  That's true, Gregory. A lot of times I'll say that there's no real difference between a handheld meter and your camera's meter, forgetting that the handheld meter can also be used to measure incident light, not just reflected light.


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June 08, 2005

 

Kerry L. Walker
  True, there is a difference if you are comparing a reflected meter reading with an incident reading. Could be a big difference. As Gregory explained, the incident reading would be more accurate.


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June 08, 2005

 

Ford
  well Ive done three test so far and the handheld lightmeter still takes the cake. Id have to say that the incamera light meter might read to much. I will try a 18% grey card test next


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June 10, 2005

 
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