What does Auto mode actually do?

[Carpetrunner]

The manuals say the camera controls everything... in reality what does that mean?

When I handed my Zf+40f2 to a friend to take a portrait in Auto mode under good outdoor lighting conditions - the image was taken wide open at high shutter and ISO100 - it's as if the camera recognised it was a portrait image and purposefully blurred the background to accentuate the subject.

Is this just a strange coincidence or does Auto mode recognise the type of image? and... what types of image does it recognise?

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

- matthew

 

[skyrunr]

The DOF was likely more a result of the lens and having enough light than being a portrait. Manufacturers don't really share their subject recognition special sauce.

Green/Auto is full auto that adjusts picture control and AF modes.

Program is semi-auto which is a bit more predictable with (generally) fixed picture control and AF modes.

Manual with auto-ISO is getting more and more common here.

You can play with these three modes to see what the camera is doing, and determine why from the scene and results. I use Green/Auto more out of curiosity or a sanity check when I'm having trouble capturing something, but that isn't very often with mirrorless.

Happy shooting!

 

[buildingsights]

The manuals say the camera controls everything... in reality what does that mean?

When I handed my Zf+40f2 to a friend to take a portrait in Auto mode under good outdoor lighting conditions - the image was taken wide open at high shutter and ISO100 - it's as if the camera recognised it was a portrait image and purposefully blurred the background to accentuate the subject.

Is this just a strange coincidence or does Auto mode recognise the type of image? and... what types of image does it recognise?

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

- matthew

i don't have any data on this.. but it is as good as a kodak instamatic, this time round it is more sophisticated? you can choose the focus, and select/change the ISO... it is the camera that selects the speed and f/stop... distance to the subject will influence the look...

but many photographers started with a kodak, then one learned many other things!

who needs a friend when one has a camera!!!

 

[Carpetrunner]

The DOF was likely more a result of the lens and having enough light than being a portrait.

Under the lighting conditions the "P" mode settings would have been f8,1/200,ISO100

Green Auto mode image was taken at f2.8,1/800, ISO200 - the camera has made a decision to go 3 stops way from the baseline, it must have been pretty confident it knew what it was doing.

The focus point is bang on the eye, so it has recognised that the subject is a person and the eye is the optimum focus point.

Manufacturers don't really share their subject recognition special sauce.

I guess this is what I'd like to know.

- matthew

 

[BBMT]

The manuals say the camera controls everything... in reality what does that mean?

When I handed my Zf+40f2 to a friend to take a portrait in Auto mode under good outdoor lighting conditions - the image was taken wide open at high shutter and ISO100 - it's as if the camera recognised it was a portrait image and purposefully blurred the background to accentuate the subject.

Is this just a strange coincidence or does Auto mode recognise the type of image? and... what types of image does it recognise?

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

- matthew

Yes my guess is the camera evaluated the scene and used face detection to determine it was likely a portrait and so exposed the image with a large aperture.

Had it not detected a face, it likely would have closed the aperture for a landscape-friendly depth of field.

You could likely do this experiment yourself with a few minutes and a cooperative friend.

The Z cameras are pretty advanced.

 

[jlsturbo]

No idea. It's the mode I switch to when I hand the camera to someone who has no experience with real cameras.

 

[Bill Ferris]

The manuals say the camera controls everything... in reality what does that mean?

Full Auto is a mode that configures a camera for "point & shoot" use. While the dedicated exposure modes are limited to determining how f-stop and shutter speed are selected (how exposure is determined), full auto not only delegates the two exposure settings to the camera but, in some model cameras, white balance, picture control, and image quality. I'm not sure if the Zf overrides your settings in those when put in full auto but it wouldn't surprise me if it does.

Here's a link to the Zf "Reference Guide" page on full Auto mode: https://onlinemanual.nikonimglib.com/zf/en/taking_photographs_27.html

When I handed my Zf+40f2 to a friend to take a portrait in Auto mode under good outdoor lighting conditions - the image was taken wide open at high shutter and ISO100 - it's as if the camera recognised it was a portrait image and purposefully blurred the background to accentuate the subject.

Is this just a strange coincidence or does Auto mode recognise the type of image? and... what types of image does it recognise?

Had you set ISO to C before handing the camera to your friend? If not, the camera would have been limited to selecting an f-stop and shutter speed combo compatible with the ISO you'd dialed in...presumably 100.

If the ISO dial was set to C when you handed the camera over, the minimum shutter speed you'd selected may have influenced that choice of exposure setting by the camera. The reference guide doesn't mention if putting the camera in full auto mode also goes under the hood to override a minimum shutter speed setting to make that, auto, as well. It is a possibility.

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

I haven't found a section in the reference guide that does a deep dive into full auto. You can explore some of this on your own. For instance, rotate the mode dial to manual. Dial in a shutter speed and ISO 200. Select an f-stop. Next, go into the menu and select a raw format in image quality, a specific Kelvin temperature white balance and make picture control settings choices other than the defaults.

Next, put the camera in full auto mode. Check the settings in the EVF. Do shutter speed and f-stop change as you point the camera around the room to frame areas with different lighting? If shutter speed isn't adjusting, does it start doing so if you rotate the dial to T? How about ISO? If you rotate the ISO dial to C, does it start adjusting to different light levels in the room?

Go into the menus and check the picture settings. Image quality and white balance should be indicated in the EVF display. Have they changed?

 

[Carpetrunner]

Had you set ISO to C before handing the camera to your friend?

Yes, ISO was in C, but I think that Auto(green) on the mode switch will over-ride and set Auto ISO anyway, and auto everything else.

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

I haven't found a section in the reference guide that does a deep dive into full auto. You can explore some of this on your own.

I will have a go at this over the next few days - although the weather is not great here at the moment.

The basic question is; how far will my Zf in Auto(green) mode go to emulate the actions of an experienced photographer?

My current thinking is that for subjects that the Zf can detect with high confidence (people, animal, vehicle, aeroplane), and for lenses that it knows well, Auto(green) mode will adjust the DOF within the available constraints (exposure, lens focal length, f-stop) to accentuate that detected subject.

I already have an existance proof(n=1) for "people" with the 40f2. Auto(green) mode shot f2.8,1/800, ISO200 rather than say a baseline of f8,1/200, ISO100 a shift of 4 stops to narrow the DOF for the detected subject.

My first experiment will be to see if the Zf would be more conservative for a slower lens - I will compare my 40f2 with the 26f2.8 on a Auto(green) mode and P mode for portrait.

It could be interesting to see if the Zf is more conservative for subjects that it has lower confidence - say subject detected but not eye detection, I'd expect less stops from the nominal baseline.

I'm very interested in what Auto(green) mode does for landscape/street where no subject is detected. Will it just stick to the P mode values? or maybe narrow the f-stop to give greater DOF?

or animals detected with a long focal length lens where a faster shutter would be required.

- matthew

 

[Tim G]

Had you set ISO to C before handing the camera to your friend?

Yes, ISO was in C, but I think that Auto(green) on the mode switch will over-ride and set Auto ISO anyway, and auto everything else.

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

I haven't found a section in the reference guide that does a deep dive into full auto. You can explore some of this on your own.

I will have a go at this over the next few days - although the weather is not great here at the moment.

The basic question is; how far will my Zf in Auto(green) mode go to emulate the actions of an experienced photographer?

My current thinking is that for subjects that the Zf can detect with high confidence (people, animal, vehicle, aeroplane), and for lenses that it knows well, Auto(green) mode will adjust the DOF within the available constraints (exposure, lens focal length, f-stop) to accentuate that detected subject.

I already have an existance proof(n=1) for "people" with the 40f2. Auto(green) mode shot f2.8,1/800, ISO200 rather than say a baseline of f8,1/200, ISO100 a shift of 4 stops to narrow the DOF for the detected subject.

My first experiment will be to see if the Zf would be more conservative for a slower lens - I will compare my 40f2 with the 26f2.8 on a Auto(green) mode and P mode for portrait.

It could be interesting to see if the Zf is more conservative for subjects that it has lower confidence - say subject detected but not eye detection, I'd expect less stops from the nominal baseline.

I'm very interested in what Auto(green) mode does for landscape/street where no subject is detected. Will it just stick to the P mode values? or maybe narrow the f-stop to give greater DOF?

or animals detected with a long focal length lens where a faster shutter would be required.

- matthew

I’ll probably be roasted for this but I use Auto/Green mode with 3d tracking + auto subject detection saved to C1 quite frequently (Z6iii). From my experience I believe the camera has scene recognition of some sort built into auto mode (with my Sony RX100 in auto it shows the icon for the scene it has recognised eg mountain icon or face icon etc). Obviously the camera can’t get it right all the time or know what the photographer’s intent was but for general snaps it’s not bad. But most of the time I’m in A or M.

 

[Bill Ferris]

Had you set ISO to C before handing the camera to your friend?

Yes, ISO was in C, but I think that Auto(green) on the mode switch will over-ride and set Auto ISO anyway, and auto everything else.

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

I haven't found a section in the reference guide that does a deep dive into full auto. You can explore some of this on your own.

I will have a go at this over the next few days - although the weather is not great here at the moment.

The basic question is; how far will my Zf in Auto(green) mode go to emulate the actions of an experienced photographer?

That's a decision each photographer needs to make for themselves.

My current thinking is that for subjects that the Zf can detect with high confidence (people, animal, vehicle, aeroplane), and for lenses that it knows well, Auto(green) mode will adjust the DOF within the available constraints (exposure, lens focal length, f-stop) to accentuate that detected subject.

I already have an existance proof(n=1) for "people" with the 40f2. Auto(green) mode shot f2.8,1/800, ISO200 rather than say a baseline of f8,1/200, ISO100 a shift of 4 stops to narrow the DOF for the detected subject.

My first experiment will be to see if the Zf would be more conservative for a slower lens - I will compare my 40f2 with the 26f2.8 on a Auto(green) mode and P mode for portrait.

It could be interesting to see if the Zf is more conservative for subjects that it has lower confidence - say subject detected but not eye detection, I'd expect less stops from the nominal baseline.

I'm very interested in what Auto(green) mode does for landscape/street where no subject is detected. Will it just stick to the P mode values? or maybe narrow the f-stop to give greater DOF?

or animals detected with a long focal length lens where a faster shutter would be required.

Good luck with your tests.

 

[Rene Gr]

The manuals say the camera controls everything... in reality what does that mean?

When I handed my Zf+40f2 to a friend to take a portrait in Auto mode under good outdoor lighting conditions - the image was taken wide open at high shutter and ISO100 - it's as if the camera recognised it was a portrait image and purposefully blurred the background to accentuate the subject.

Is this just a strange coincidence or does Auto mode recognise the type of image? and... what types of image does it recognise?

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

- matthew

It is, unfortunately, kept a secret. And it might be different between each Z camera. You will need to experiment a bit to find out.

On my Z5, AUTO selects open apertures and high ISOs to keep the shutter speed low. Probably, the reason is to avoid complaints about blurry pictures as much as possible.

I recommend it to beginners for a start, or someone who wants to use the camera as P&S. For more options, they could add a flash.

When handing the camera to a stranger, I need to enable the shutter AF again. For some, the tap to shoot feature on the display is the way to go.

 

[Satyaa]

I don't use a Z camera, but I have some thoughts based on multiple cameras I have used.

Most cameras can do scene detection in auto mode today. Some are sophisticated and others are basic. Some of them call it 'Intelligent' auto mode or Auto+ mode. In fact, some cameras show an icon in the EVF as to what scene they have detected (like portrait, landscape, macro, etc.). My old Panasonic compact zoom did that 8 years ago.

Zf does have Nikon's latest processor with AI-based AF. So, I expect it to recognize the scene.

As for emulating an experienced photographer, I wouldn't expect that of any camera. A camera will only go by its algorithm, while an experienced photographer will likely handle the same scene with variations.

I suspect that the auto mode could get monotonous if I am shooting similar scenes all the time.

--
See my profile (About me) for gear and my posting policy.

 

[WPMChan]

The manuals say the camera controls everything... in reality what does that mean?

When I handed my Zf+40f2 to a friend to take a portrait in Auto mode under good outdoor lighting conditions - the image was taken wide open at high shutter and ISO100 - it's as if the camera recognised it was a portrait image and purposefully blurred the background to accentuate the subject.

Is this just a strange coincidence or does Auto mode recognise the type of image? and... what types of image does it recognise?

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

- matthew

I have been using AUTO mode regularly in all my Nikon cameras. Nikon never explains what AUTO will do and it varies between DSLR and Mirrorless, and also if the camera has auto pop-up built-in flash or not.

To further complicate the issue, some cameras also have Scene modes. "Auto Scene Mode" which behaves similarly to AUTO, but would take the scene into consideration.

For cameras without scene mode, I understand Scene Recognition is built in with AUTO mode.

For your Zf, it will be mirrorless without built-in flash and without scene mode, which I believe to be very similar to my D780.

What AUTO will first do when you first half press the shutter release, is to use multiple Area Focus to look for any "subjects", if it finds one, it will focus on that subject. For camera with face recognition, AUTO will focus on the nearest or the brightest face. You can see where the focus box goes.

Interestingly, if you half press the shutter release several times, the Camera will take those as you want to change the focus point. It will start changing the focus point with every half press. You can half press as many time as you like, until you are happy with the focus point selection.

As far as I understand, Nikon AUTO always uses Matrix metering and auto ISO. So matrix metering will base on the focus point chosen, and auto ISO will determine the best ISO setting and shutter speed, very similar to what you would get on P mode with Matrix metering.

Also, AUTO mode will default to AF-A, it will use AF-S when the subject is stationary, and AF-C if your subject moves.

AUTO mode works well for me, with D40x, D5100, Coolpix A, A1000, D5600 and now the D780.

How it works does vary from camera to camera. D40x doesn't have face recognition, AUTO will just pick the closest "subject".

D40x, D5100 and D5600 have auto pop-up flash, flash will pop up automatically to keep the ISO lower when using AUTO.

 

[BasilG]

The DOF was likely more a result of the lens and having enough light than being a portrait.

Under the lighting conditions the "P" mode settings would have been f8,1/200,ISO100

Green Auto mode image was taken at f2.8,1/800, ISO200 - the camera has made a decision to go 3 stops way from the baseline, it must have been pretty confident it knew what it was doing.

The focus point is bang on the eye, so it has recognised that the subject is a person and the eye is the optimum focus point.

Manufacturers don't really share their subject recognition special sauce.

I guess this is what I'd like to know.

Nikon cameras have been using scene recognition to support exposure metering for a long time. I do not remember which was the first of my cameras that had it. D300? D610? Probably one of these. At the time, Nikon said their algorithm was trained on a library of images. It sounds a bit like machine learning, but probably was initially quite primitive, as this was way before the current AI/ML craze. It would make sense for them to have improved that to incorporate things like eye-AF if the camera detects a human subject (maybe using auto-area AF with all subject modes on or something along those lines). Overall, this is unsurprising, but it is nice to know that it works as well as you experienced.

 

[chambeshi]

The DOF was likely more a result of the lens and having enough light than being a portrait.

Under the lighting conditions the "P" mode settings would have been f8,1/200,ISO100

Green Auto mode image was taken at f2.8,1/800, ISO200 - the camera has made a decision to go 3 stops way from the baseline, it must have been pretty confident it knew what it was doing.

The focus point is bang on the eye, so it has recognised that the subject is a person and the eye is the optimum focus point.

Manufacturers don't really share their subject recognition special sauce.

I guess this is what I'd like to know.

Nikon cameras have been using scene recognition to support exposure metering for a long time. I do not remember which was the first of my cameras that had it. D300? D610? Probably one of these. At the time, Nikon said their algorithm was trained on a library of images. It sounds a bit like machine learning, but probably was initially quite primitive, as this was way before the current AI/ML craze. It would make sense for them to have improved that to incorporate things like eye-AF if the camera detects a human subject (maybe using auto-area AF with all subject modes on or something along those lines). Overall, this is unsurprising, but it is nice to know that it works as well as you experienced.

Automated scene recognition began with the Nikon FA in 1983, to support matrix-metering, based on a big database of different scenes, which a large research team had developed over the previous 6 years :

https://imaging.nikon.com/imaging/information/chronicle/cousins14-e/

Nikon developed it further with subsequent film SLRs and the D1 was the first camera with Integrated control of metering, white balance and tone compensation.

https://imaging.nikon.com/imaging/information/products_history/1990/

More recently, AI with Deep-Learning has become a primary arena of R&D across Nikon's divisions, especially Imaging. So R&D is advancing scene recognition into a different level of performance, particularly with realtime video cameras in industry

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/65891755

Anyway, the first version Nikon Scene Recognition System was released in the D3 and D300 in 2007

http://183.181.162.36/about/technology/life/imaging/scene/index.htm

 

[olyflyer]

The DOF was likely more a result of the lens and having enough light than being a portrait.

Under the lighting conditions the "P" mode settings would have been f8,1/200,ISO100

Why? That's not a rule or a brick wall. It could have just as well been f5.6, 1/400s and ISO100, or any other combination which works, like the one the camera chose.

 

[olyflyer]

The manuals say the camera controls everything... in reality what does that mean?

When I handed my Zf+40f2 to a friend to take a portrait in Auto mode under good outdoor lighting conditions - the image was taken wide open at high shutter and ISO100 - it's as if the camera recognised it was a portrait image and purposefully blurred the background to accentuate the subject.

Is this just a strange coincidence or does Auto mode recognise the type of image? and... what types of image does it recognise?

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

- matthew

Yes my guess is the camera evaluated the scene and used face detection to determine it was likely a portrait and so exposed the image with a large aperture.

Had it not detected a face, it likely would have closed the aperture for a landscape-friendly depth of field.

Exactly. I mean, face recognition is not exactly rocket science today, especially since the camera recognised the eyes, it actually knows the distance between the eyes, so it knows there is a face near the camera, so it must be a portrait. This works as long as you are not interested in the background, but it does not work if you want to have the scenery in the image as well, since that would require stopping down.

 

[Carpetrunner]

earlier I wrote...

Yes, ISO was in C, but I think that Auto(green) on the mode switch will over-ride and set Auto ISO anyway,

That isn't quite correct for the Zf, when in Auto(green) mode and the ISO dial is NOT set to C, the ISO used for the shot is the ISO dial position. (unless Auto ISO is set)

In Auto(green) mode the Exposure comp dial also works as expected.

In Auto(green) mode the Shutter speed dial does not appear to change anything, unless it is set to 1/3 step, then the shutter speed command wheel does change the esposure.

In Auto(green) mode the Aperture command wheel does change the exposure.

So maybe Auto(gree) mode is not foolproof?

- matthew

 

[SGA]

I find Auto mode (and Program mode) useful for the experienced photographer who wants to let the camera make a few more decisions than it normally does. It is useless for turning the camera into a P&S for handing to someone else.

The biggest problem for me with Auto mode is that it does not reset the shutter button to perform focusing. Since I use BBF, they won't know to, or likely be able to, press the AF-ON button. So the picture will almost always be out of focus.

On the Zf, Auto mode also lies - it allows for the dials and/or command dials to override its "auto-ness". So if I've been using the dials to shoot and simply hand the camera to my wife in Auto mode, it's not really in Auto mode. It's some weird hybrid mode with a picture control set (based on unknown rules according to this thread), WB set to A1, ISO either Auto or not depending on how I left it, same with f-stop and exposure compensation.

I want an Auto mode with really sets up the camera for someone to point it and press the shutter button. Auto ISO, Matrix metering, VR On, Aperture and Shutter Speed according to the Program mode schedule, Auto WB, it intelligently pick a Picture Control if it likes, single shot, Auto Area focusing with Auto Subject Detection. Some minimal information EVF/LCD display so as not to confuse the user. And the shutter button locks exposure and focus on a half-press!

 

[sirhawkeye64]

The manuals say the camera controls everything... in reality what does that mean?

When I handed my Zf+40f2 to a friend to take a portrait in Auto mode under good outdoor lighting conditions - the image was taken wide open at high shutter and ISO100 - it's as if the camera recognised it was a portrait image and purposefully blurred the background to accentuate the subject.

Is this just a strange coincidence or does Auto mode recognise the type of image? and... what types of image does it recognise?

Does anyone have a reference for a detailed explanation of Auto mode?

- matthew

Pretty much auto mode (as in the mode dial "Auto") will take care of the exposure settings for you (ISO, aperture and shutter speed). If we're talking auto AF (not Auto Area AF necessarily, but just fully automatic AF) the camera will select the focus point for you.

The camera does have a some reference (maybe a database) that it uses (from what I know) to "recognize" scenes (i think there was a document somewhere that describes how this works, but Nikon programs their cameras from some thousands of images so it can identify the best settings to use for Auto mode, they may not be the most creative, but they are usually pretty accurate, although often times images end up appearing bland as a result.