I usually keep it around f/5.6 or higher for real estate shots, so focus is ok. Like I said before, most of my still shooting is interior real estate shots using strobes. Usually, I have to cover for a bright window, so shutter goes to 250 and f/5.6 to 7.3 and two YN 560 guns at 1/2 aimed at the ceiling. The camera is on a tripod. I just stand behind it or off to the side, holding my arms up to the ceiling, and fire using a radio control taped to one of the guns. Adjustments are made using f/stop and flashgun power. However, I shoot RAW, so it really doesn't matter. RAW gives you like 13 stops of latitude, but, I like to get the shot pretty visible for editing in PS CS5 RAW.

I love shooting landscapes, though they usually are outside and inside shots of buildings. My favorite lens is a Sigma 10-20mm. I just set it at 10mm hyperfocal at about 4 feet and forget it. Everything from 2 feet to infinity is in focus. Because I use the 7D with cropped sensor, the end result is about 16mm, wide enough that I have to make sure my feet are not in the picture. Ha!

I'm a filmmaker guy who jumped on the HDSLR Canon 7D, 5D bandwagon a couple years ago to make movies using all the great lenses available on these still/movie cameras. If you are shooting movies in 24p then you have to lock shutter at 50. If you want a shallow DOF then you have to keep aperture open at around f/2.8. So, all that leaves is ISO and added light. You can't put ISO on auto unless it's a static shot. If you pan from bright to dark you don't want the viewer to see the camera adjust. So, I guess that's why I think manual. I love shooting stills and the experience has taught me a lot about how to use the 7D for movie making.

Uhh, I was just pointing out that wide dynamic range situations like with a bright window in the shot work best in manual mode. You have to keep the shutter speed at 250 to catch all of the flash. Guess you could go shutter priority, but my guess is the camera will open the f/stop all the way. This is really all about how to shoot using manual strobes. If you are using manual strobes, I think you have to go manual all the way.

I shoot real estate pictures part time working with up to 5 strobes placed to light adjacent rooms, stairwells, and hallways; so, I always shoot in manual mode. When you shoot specialty items you can't just let the camera "light" the room for you. Same goes when you have a bright window in the shot. You have to crank the shutter up to the camera flash sync max which is usually 250 then flood the room with the right amount of strobe to fill in the interior shadows. I always bounce the strobes off the ceiling except when I have a dark wall deep in the background. If I can't hide a flash back there somewhere, I light that by adding a snooted strobe that shoots a kind of flashlight beam that does not hit the ceiling or overlight the foreground. Of course, I only shoot RAW!