snipershot

Are there some suggestions help me transition to full manual? I am comfortable shooting aperture mode in good light, but I want to do more. Thanks in advance!

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

Get and read "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson

northsidejoe Loc: pittsburgh

May i suggest going to you tube there is a mountain of information to assist you using manual mode hope this helps saying hello from Pittsburgh.
Welcome to the forum post pictures ask questions and most of all have fun.

Old Timer Loc: Greenfield, In.

One of the best ways is to look at the settings, aperture, ISO, and shutter speed taken in similar conditions and use the settings to set up your manual mode. It does not take to long before you start to get the hang of it know where to start and then adjust to your needs as you progress. Remember when you make a change to one setting it effects the other two. I do not use manual on a regular basis, but do use it on night shooting and especially the moon shots. Some times on macro also. Just practice.

Diverhank

I do hope that you are not going down the path of those who use full manual as a badge of honor...I've seen quite a few of those. One I know who insists on not even using the camera metering system...rather he depends on the f/16, 1/100, ISO 100 rule for bright sunlight and goes from there. Whatever for, I don't know.

The idea should be you use whatever mode that will, one, make it easy on you and, two, get you the kind of pictures you want. If those two require you to use full manual then that's what you will do.

My suggestion would be: (can be used as a combo)

1. Use Live View with Simulation Enabled. In full manual, you will quickly see the effect of each setting on the picture that you will take. Turn off Live View once you get the idea because Live View is slow and eats batteries.

2. Take full advantage of the camera metering. Camera metering can be seen on Live view or through the view finder. Use it and adjust your exposure to compensate for it's shortcomings (like getting fooled in bright/dark background in relation to your subject).

3. I find that M mode is just as easy as A (Av) or S (Tv) mode...use the camera metering but compensate for exposure as needed.

4. Don't be afraid of using Auto ISO in cases where background exposure is changing too rapidly (like shooting sports, airshows or birds in flight)

MtnMan Loc: ID

I suspect you mean manual exposure and that you still intend autofocus. Many of us on UHH grew up with full manual on SLRs so see it as a step backwards. But we are comfortable using it if a situation demands.

I am more inclined to use autoISO for autoexposure when I need to set both the f-stop and shutter speed. No need to get my thumb in the loop.

But if you feel that need use spot metering, set the spot on the brightest higlight in your image, and adjust your settings to put the meter at +2 EV. Or set the spot on a pastel such as grass, the sky or your hand in bright sun, and set to drive the the meter to +1 EV. Then chimp your result.

Just Fred Loc: Darwin's Waiting Room

This.

Without pulling out my copy, I think in it he covers the "sunny sixteen" rule, which is a great starting point for using manual mode. If you aren't familiar with it, it says on a sunny day set aperture to f/16 and shutter speed to the [reciprocal of the] ISO film speed [or ISO setting] for a subject in direct sunlight."

For example, if I'm using ISO 100, I set my aperture to f/16 and my shutter speed to 1/100 (or the closest, which on my camera is 1/125).

You can then go up or down with aperture as long as you also adjust the shutter speed accordingly. Open the aperture two steps (to f/8), you then need to adjust the shutter speed by two stops (e.g. 1/500).

Using the sunny sixteen rule as a guide, you can also then adjust for subjects not in direct sunlight (f/11 and 1/125 for slight overcast, f/8 and 1/125 for overcast, etc.). Just remember the photographic triangle (shutter, aperture, "film" speed) and you can pretty much get very close to "proper" exposure values for any shot. Then, you can get creative...

BebuLamar

Learn how to determine exposure using the built in meter, hand held meter or sunny 16 rule.
Don't read the book "Understanding Exposure".
Don't care about the Triangle.

JPL

Get a mirrorless camera with focus preview and histogram in the viewfinder. Get some manual lenses. Google manual photography on the internet. Practice a lot.!!

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

I use manual exposure about 90% of the time.

What I do is expose for important highlights. By that I mean expose as much as possible without overexposing - blowing out - the highlights.

I use the camera's spot meter function, find the highlight I still want to retain detail in, (or something similar in reflectance), and set my camera one stop brighter than the meter's recommendation. This way you always have your highlights covered.

I shoot raw exclusively to allow me to have the most adjustment latitude and to retain the best image quality. I shoot mostly birds and landscape personally, but I will use the same approach for just about all of my photography which runs the gamut from macro botanical shoots to team sports and events/weddings.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Interesting article -
http://www.thephoblographer.com/2015/04/18/the-phoblographer-explains-the-only-time-you-actually-need-to-use-manual-mode/

How to -
http://www.beachcamera.com/blog/photography-101-how-do-i-start-shooting-in-manual-mode/
http://clickitupanotch.com/2010/09/shooting-in-manual-the-basics/
https://digital-photography-school.com/getting-off-auto-manual-aperture-and-shutter-priority-modes-explained/

Also check YouTube.

avemal Loc: BALTIMORE

Try this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fX253QiA2_w

avemal Loc: BALTIMORE

bull drink water Loc: pontiac mi.

as you can see anything but the "sunny sixteen" rule is meter assist mode with tweaking. which ever you use will require trial and error shots before you get the hang of it.

wteffey Loc: Ocala, FL USA

I have enough trouble with composition, focus and timing to worry too much about exposure, which is primarily an exercise in math anyway. I like to set my lens for maximum sharpness, rarely wide open, but after that I let my cameras take care of the rest of the math. They usually do a pretty good job, but I do monitor ISO and shutter to make sure things don't get too crazy. ISO less than 400, shutter 125 or higher and I am free to concentrate on what my cameras don't do well. Maybe when I master composition, focus and timing will I second guess the camera on exposure.