General technique questions from a beginner standpoint

[autre_pensee]

Hello all,

I currently have a SONY bridge HX100V superzoom ( 28-800 I believe).

I like the camera very well, except for the sluggishness, viewfinder, and lack of ability to restrict some settings like iso or shutter speed in auto mode.

In general (understand plenty of light and contrast) situation, I usually use auto mode. But that last draw back I mentioned leads me to use A, S, and M mode in more and more situations.

It usually takes me quite a bit of time to find the right settings and there lies my questions. In the methodology of using manual type modes.

Here is my strategy so far:

1) set framing. Note: I dont have a focal length reading on my camera (that I know of) so I cant use the rule of thumb for shutter speed
2) Set ISO to a minimum

3) Set aperture. For this, I still have a very weak understanding. If its portrait, I will set it to the widest aperture I can (F/2.8 for wide angle, not sure how much my minimum aperture changes wrt FL). For landscape, I will do the opposite (F/8 or whatever my max is). For groups of people, not necessarily posing, then I am usually a bit lost.

4) set shutter speed based on subject and to get enough lighting. I usually try to stay above 1/100 for people. I will venture down to 1/60 for sitting or posing people. I will risk 1/30 for stills.
Note: All of this is handheld.

5) Go back to ISO and get it as low as acceptable to get a satisfyingly bright picture. My camera gets unacceptable results for anything above ISO 800 so I am very limited in that regard.

My understanding though is that assuming constant sensor perceived light (aka compensating for ISO with SS and Aperture), there is no situation where IQ benefits from higher ISO. In other words, unless I am at my shutter speed limit, I will always use ISO100. Is this a correct statement?

Anyway, this takes me a lot of time and I miss quite a few shots, especially when photographing kids moving around where I have to shoot with different lighting and background every time.

Is my process correct? What could be improved?

Also, it is my understanding from what I have read on this forum that DSLR such as the D7000 are not very good for auto mode. Is that true? Can somebody explain why does the sensor being exposed all the time make a difference in auto shot?

Is this true of the scene modes? My HX100 has excellent (IMO) scene modes. Would a DSLR be lacking performance in these as well?

If the above is true, does that mean that a mirror-less interchangeable lens camera such as the sonys perform better in Auto and Scene modes than the corresponding range Nikon and Canon?

Thanks all

 

[KCook]

The steps you laid out are for manual mode. With my Canon I prefer shutter priority, speeds things up a bit. Different brands treat their modes differently, so with a Nikon I might pick some other mode.

My understanding though is that assuming constant sensor perceived light (aka compensating for ISO with SS and Aperture), there is no situation where IQ benefits from higher ISO. In other words, unless I am at my shutter speed limit, I will always use ISO100. Is this a correct statement?

Theoretically this is the case. But for practical purposes, ISO a lot higher than 100 can give results that are good enough. In shutter priority mode I use Auto ISO, that often works out well, even though the ISO may be well above 100.

Lots of topics for one thread!
Kelly Cook

 

[leno]

test and try is the only way to go. take a number of shots with differant settings and then see what the results are once you can compare them. try using A for things that do not move and S for moving things. Let the camera set the other setting to match. try and keep ISO as low as possible.

 

[Tom Axford]

You have asked too many questions for me to try to answer them all, and most of what you have said you do looks pretty sound to me, so instead I will offer one general piece of advice:

For cameras such as yours the crop factor is very approximately 6, so F4 on your camera corresponds to around F24 (i.e. 4 multiplied by 6) on a full-frame camera, and this is about the maximum you want to go to before diffraction starts to significantly degrade the image. The widest aperture of your lens is F2.8 and that will probably change to around F5.6 at the long end of the zoom range. So, even at maximum aperture, at the long end of the zoom the image is already being slightly degraded by diffraction effects and you probably do not want to increase the F number further or you will see even more softening of the image.

The conclusion is that if you set the maximum aperture (minimum F number) for everything , you will not go far wrong. In fact, leaving the camera on Auto the whole time will probably work just as well as if you try and set things yourself. Cameras with larger sensors and faster lenses offer much greater opportunity to set the aperture yourself. On most compacts there is very little room for manoeuvre.

 

[pixelless]

The steps you laid out are for manual mode. With my Canon I prefer shutter priority, speeds things up a bit. Different brands treat their modes differently, so with a Nikon I might pick some other mode.

My understanding though is that assuming constant sensor perceived light (aka compensating for ISO with SS and Aperture), there is no situation where IQ benefits from higher ISO. In other words, unless I am at my shutter speed limit, I will always use ISO100. Is this a correct statement?

Theoretically this is the case. But for practical purposes, ISO a lot higher than 100 can give results that are good enough. In shutter priority mode I use Auto ISO, that often works out well, even though the ISO may be well above 100.

Lots of topics for one thread!
Kelly Cook

Another thing to consider when thinking about ISO, is flash photography. You can adjust the ISO so that you have more (or less) of the background exposed. The lower the ISO, less background will show (expose), the higher the ISO (less flash power), more background will show...

 

[autre_pensee]

So If you are photographing kids in relatively slow motion you will use S?

test and try is the only way to go. take a number of shots with differant settings and then see what the results are once you can compare them. try using A for things that do not move and S for moving things. Let the camera set the other setting to match. try and keep ISO as low as possible.

 

[autre_pensee]

Thanks all for your answers.

I just get very underwhelmed sometimes by the pictures I take and thats why I am trying to get more efficient at taking them.

Should I not bother as much with composition for people photography and do composition/cropping in PP?

Also, to my last question, is auto mode really at a disadvantage on a DSLR? If so, why is that?

 

[KCook]

Underwhelming pictures are most often due to underwhelming subjects and / or underwhelming lighting. Neither of which have much to do with camera capabilities or controls. Links to tips on these basic topics -

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/8366339635/photo-tip-five-for-five

http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/tip/1138/10-quick-and-easy-tips-to-improve-your-photography/

http://www.picturecorrect.com/tips/common-digital-photography-mistakes/

http://thediscerningphotographer.com/2009/07/09/photographic-lighting/

DSLR are at a disadvantage for auto shooting because their in-camera processing is not aggressive. So the results can look more dull than what you would expect straight out of a non-DSLR. Experienced DSLR photographers remedy this by post processing the images, many casual shooters want nothing to do with photo editing.

Kelly

 

[autre_pensee]

I had to read up a little more to understand what you meant.
Thank you for that insight.

You have asked too many questions for me to try to answer them all, and most of what you have said you do looks pretty sound to me, so instead I will offer one general piece of advice:

For cameras such as yours the crop factor is very approximately 6, so F4 on your camera corresponds to around F24 (i.e. 4 multiplied by 6) on a full-frame camera, and this is about the maximum you want to go to before diffraction starts to significantly degrade the image. The widest aperture of your lens is F2.8 and that will probably change to around F5.6 at the long end of the zoom range. So, even at maximum aperture, at the long end of the zoom the image is already being slightly degraded by diffraction effects and you probably do not want to increase the F number further or you will see even more softening of the image.

The conclusion is that if you set the maximum aperture (minimum F number) for everything , you will not go far wrong. In fact, leaving the camera on Auto the whole time will probably work just as well as if you try and set things yourself. Cameras with larger sensors and faster lenses offer much greater opportunity to set the aperture yourself. On most compacts there is very little room for manoeuvre.

 

[autre_pensee]

Hello Kelly,

Thanks for the tips and your time.

I have read many of these before. And noticed somewhat of an improvement but not quite as much as I'd like. (Although granted i dont go specifically during the golden hours at every location I want to shoot)

As for people photography, if its candid, then its underwhelming because I often miss the expression I try to capture or I capture it with the wrong settings and it will look out of focus, bad lighting, etc......

If its posed, then people sometimes get tired of waiting for me to take the right shot....

I will read up again with hopes for improvement.

Underwhelming pictures are most often due to underwhelming subjects and / or underwhelming lighting. Neither of which have much to do with camera capabilities or controls. Links to tips on these basic topics -

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/8366339635/photo-tip-five-for-five

http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/tip/1138/10-quick-and-easy-tips-to-improve-your-photography/

http://www.picturecorrect.com/tips/common-digital-photography-mistakes/

http://thediscerningphotographer.com/2009/07/09/photographic-lighting/

DSLR are at a disadvantage for auto shooting because their in-camera processing is not aggressive. So the results can look more dull than what you would expect straight out of a non-DSLR. Experienced DSLR photographers remedy this by post processing the images, many casual shooters want nothing to do with photo editing.

Kelly

 

[trekkeruss]

Here is my strategy so far:

I would add one step at the beginning, and one at the end. Set white balance. Then, if not using auto WB, reset back to it just in case you forget for the next time you shoot.

 

[KCook]

I hardly ever shoot in the golden hour. There is a lot more to lighting than the golden hour.

Outdoors in daylight your camera's Portrait scene setting should work Ok. No need to fuss with PASM settings if you are in a hurry. Indoors can be more complicated, a whole lot more complicated (unless your camera has a hot shoe for a TTL speedlight). Post links to a few of your problem shots, with EXIF info, and we will try to advise on solutions. The tricky part is that even when the perfect camera settings are known, which of the PASM modes will get you to those settings the quickest cannot be predicted. You will have to make your own trials to determine that.

Kelly

 

[autre_pensee]

Hi Kelly,
Sorry for the delayed answer.

I tried to choose carefully among my disappointing pictures so that I would summarize properly my issues.

This first picture shows how I have issues with focusing. I do have a manual focus option on my camera, but I dont believe there is a way to zoom in on the focusing area and I always have trouble telling if my subject is in focus or not. So I end up always using multi point auto focus most of the time. I also use a automatic metering mode (80% of the time). I am not quick enough to use the flexible spot auto-focus ...





These next two pictures represent beautiful scenes in urban areas and I cant quite capture all the colors in the scene. I dont remember if I used auto or not.









This last picture shows my inability to beautifully capture human subjects. I am usually not fast enough to get subject nicely sharp and lit. In this picture I ended up using ISO 400. I believe I was in A. Not using flash. I could have gone up to 600-800 ISO, thus reducing a bit the shake but not sure how much that would have helped.





Those are the best typical examples I could find showing my issues.

Thank you again for your help.

I hardly ever shoot in the golden hour. There is a lot more to lighting than the golden hour.

Outdoors in daylight your camera's Portrait scene setting should work Ok. No need to fuss with PASM settings if you are in a hurry. Indoors can be more complicated, a whole lot more complicated (unless your camera has a hot shoe for a TTL speedlight). Post links to a few of your problem shots, with EXIF info, and we will try to advise on solutions. The tricky part is that even when the perfect camera settings are known, which of the PASM modes will get you to those settings the quickest cannot be predicted. You will have to make your own trials to determine that.

Kelly

 

[KCook]

Focus for closeups can be tricky with any camera. I would have expected the Center focus option to get the focus for the first and last shots better. You may need to just practice more with Center focus.

The color saturation for the two landscapes can be boosted with the Vivid option in the camera. A DSLR shooter would do that after the fact when editing the picture on his computer. You can do the same thing with an editor on JPG images.

The last indoor shot is also slightly underexposed. Likely due to the influence of the white ceiling. Spot metering should fix that. In any event, this exposure error is small enough that you should be able to correct it in editing. Of course the missed focus on the child's face cannot be edited away. Indoor shooting in mixed light, such as your example, is always tricky. Do not expect miracles. At least not until you have had the time to study up on lighting a lot more. This is not a camera issue, DSLR shooters deal with the same problem.

Kelly

 

[cedy]

Auto mode is a terrible thing as your letting the camera make all the decisions. Why even own a camera if it does all the work? It decides what you'll like? Hardly, and you'll never learn how to shoot. Cameras are very stupid devices, would you let a toaster raise your family? Yea, I know its different. lol

 

[autre_pensee]

Kelly,

Ok I will try to use center focus and spot metering more for portraits and close ups. Unfortunately those are not available to me in Auto Mode, but hey I guess thats how one learns

Where would you say the focus point is on the last picture? I cant see it... All I see is a soft picture.

Also, given that my minimum aperture is 2.8 and my crop factor is 6. would you say its not important for now, as I learn to be faster in taking a shot, to focus on the eye, but rather focus on any point in the face, recompose and shoot? Would that be enough ?

Also, as I lock my focus by pressing half way on the shutter release, does that lock exposure as well?

Lastly: (and again, thank you for your answers and patience)

• when should I use vivid?
• Should I ever bother trying to adjust WB before the shot? I always leave it in auto

Thank you!

Focus for closeups can be tricky with any camera. I would have expected the Center focus option to get the focus for the first and last shots better. You may need to just practice more with Center focus.

The color saturation for the two landscapes can be boosted with the Vivid option in the camera. A DSLR shooter would do that after the fact when editing the picture on his computer. You can do the same thing with an editor on JPG images.

The last indoor shot is also slightly underexposed. Likely due to the influence of the white ceiling. Spot metering should fix that. In any event, this exposure error is small enough that you should be able to correct it in editing. Of course the missed focus on the child's face cannot be edited away. Indoor shooting in mixed light, such as your example, is always tricky. Do not expect miracles. At least not until you have had the time to study up on lighting a lot more. This is not a camera issue, DSLR shooters deal with the same problem.

Kelly

 

[KCook]

"Program mode" will both set everything for you, and give you access to the camera's more advanced controls like Spot metering. Links to more topics touching on Program mode -

http://lifehacker.com/323605/master-your-dslr-camera-part-1-program-mode

http://www.shortcourses.com/use/using1-7.html

http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/program-aperture-shutter-priority-manual-exposure.html

http://www.photographytalk.com/forum/beginner-photography-forum/148686

In the last shot the face of the lady is in a little better focus than the child. Everything looks slightly "mushy" (hope that makes sense?) because of the small sensor of your Sony camera. More professional (and expensive!) cameras have larger sensors, which give a more crisp look to the their image. You could improve how this picture looks with a photo editor, especially the more advanced editors that have tricks like "unsharp mask".

"Center focus and recompose" is a popular technique. In even less time you could center focus and shoot (forget the recompose part). This works if you set the zoom wide enough to get the whole scene in, even when the focus target is off-center. Then crop for the framing you wanted later.

Yes, the half press of the shutter sets both exposure and focus, unless you have already set one of these on manual.

You can use Vivid in the camera when shooting landscapes. However do not use the Vivid setting for portraits, it will mess up the skin tones. Advanced shooters do not use Vivid in the camera, as they can do the same thing with more precision later with a photo editor.

For a beginner Auto WB is better than making a bad guess. When you have time to learn all about WB, then worry about it. I use Auto WB a lot with my DSLR.

Kelly

 

[autre_pensee]

Thank you Kelly!

I will try using the P mode instead of auto with custom focus and meter mode, especially for mixed indoor conditions.


Last question (I promise )

I have what I would say is a basic to low intermediate understanding of exposure settings (ISO, shutter speed and aperture, and how they create the exposure triangle).

Is it worth the time to go through one of these two books and if yes, which one of the two would you recommend?

http://www.amazon.com/Exposure-From-Snapshots-Great-Shots/dp/0321741293/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1347836255&sr=8-4&keywords=exposure

http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Exposure-3rd-Edition-Photographs/dp/0817439390/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347836255&sr=8-1&keywords=exposure

Thanks again to all of you for your time and knowledge sharing!

 

[KCook]

My "book phase" was a half century ago, so I'm clueless on current books. Though I have seen the Peterson book praised on many sites.

Lots of web sites on photography try to explain exposure, a sampling -

http://learningdslr.com/2011/10/back-to-basics-episode-3-exposure-and-camera-modes/

http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/camera-exposure.htm

http://mansurovs.com/iso-shutter-speed-and-aperture-for-beginners

http://blog.snapsort.com/2011/11/28/understanding-exposure/

Kelly