JimBart Loc: Western Michigan

I am trying to transition to shooting in Manual and need some assistance.

Currently I am shooting a Nikon 7100 and have been comfortable using Auto ISO or fixed ISO in conjunction with aperture and shutter priority. Now I want to transition to shooting in manual but also want to know if I am doing this right when I look in the viewfinder. This is the primary reason I need your help

The way I understand this is, is I can set my own ISO to whatever I want or use Auto ISO. I then set my related shutter speed and corresponding aperture. Finally I look at the corresponding exposure meter in the view finder and adjust either ISO, aperture, or shutter speed so that the exposure reading is at " 0 ".

Example....Shooting birds whether in flight or on a nest on a bright day would necessitate an ISO of around 200 or Auto ISO, a high shutter release (500 or higher if in flight), can be lower if on a nest, and an aperture between 4.5 …16 depending on depth of field. An alternative would be to use Auto ISO also. Final adjustments would then be made to shutter speed or aperture to bring the exposure to " 0 " in the viewfinder. If it is not at " 0 " the resulting picture will be either under or over exposed.

Is this correct or am I looking at this totally wrong -----the reason I ask for help

Thanks to each of you!

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

Avoiding overexposure of important highlights - "blowing them out" - where you want to retain detail is more important than getting the exposure to "0". Turning out the highlight warning in the display options is one good way to determine if the highlights are being overexposed. Another way is to view the images histogram. I typically shoot birds at 1/1000 sec, F8 and ISO 800-1600. F8 is the sharpest aperture for my bird shooting lens. In deep shadow under the forest canopy on an overcast day, I will use ISO 3200. I don't use AutoISO.

The "0" setting is fine for scenes with average contrast, but a bird that has both dark and light plumage is a bit more difficult. I use the spot meter function on my camera and target the white or light feathers for meter readings, and generally add 1 to 2 stops additional exposure, which is easy enough if I am shooting manual.

Bunkershot Loc: Central Florida

You are pretty much correct. For birds in flight you should be around 1/2000 shutter speed. If you are in auto- ISO that shutter speed will drive the ISO pretty high. High f/stops will do the same thing. My preference is to set all three manually. Welcome to MANUAL, you won't be disappointed.

Cany143 Loc: SE Utah

Most of what you wrote is accurate enough, but there are two points that might need further consideration. Please bear in mind that both points can be seen in a variety of ways.

The first point I'd make is with regard to using Auto ISO. Yes, you can certainly opt to do so, but being one of the three prime variables of exposure, allowing the ISO to 'float' variously as a result of fluctuations in lighting conditions means --to me, at any rate-- that you're no longer in full and conscious manual control of your exposure since automation is to some extent in control. That's not to detract from the many times when Auto ISO isn't useful, or even preferable, but its something to consider.

The second point has to do with reading the exposure itself. Adjusting shutter speed or aperture such that "0" is what you see in your viewfinder is dependent on a variety of factors, the more important of those being what metering pattern (spot, average, or matrix) you may be using, and more importantly, what the subject is and in what sort of light its in. For example, adjusting for "0" if shooting a dark bird in a dark tree, its best to recognize that the meter is reading that set of dark circumstances as being a neutral 18% gray, where in reality --if you intended to record the scene naturally-- you'd want to underexpose by a stop or two to avoid overexposure. Similiarly, in a light -on- light situation, adjusting for "0" will render the highlights gray rather than white, so increasing exposure a stop or two --lower shutter speed or wider aperture, while ISO remains constant-- would result in a more accurate rendering. Using exposure compensation in either of these scenarios would be the better way to go. (For my part, I'm so accustomed to reading/metering the range of light in a scene with a 1 degree spotmeter, and deciding where I want to 'place' each of values in a Zone System sort of way, that its become sort of second nature, even while just using my camera's metering system.)

Granted, there are plenty of other ways at looking at the above, and those will all be 'right' for the individual who is accustomed to them and under the conditions they shoot.

rwilson1942 Loc: Houston, TX

I agree, I don't care for auto ISO and if you are going to use the exposure that the camera gives you, you might as well not be shooting manual.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Let me make a suggestion that might “ease” you into manual. There are 3 variables involved that you have control over - ISO, shutter speed and aperture. Why not start with varying one or two of those variables instead of all three? Here are my thoughts. In my opinion, the highest priority of the three depends on what you’re shooting. 1) Landscapes or portraits where depth of field is important, but the subject is more or less stationary: aperture or control of DOF is paramount. Or (2) action shots where the subject is moving or you need to control for camera shake: shutter speed is priority (blurred shots are useless unless intended). In my opinion (and this depends on the camera’s capabilities), ISO is secondary. Noisey shots may be cleaned up with SW and are still usable, but blurry or out of focus shots due to limited DOF are useless. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use the lowest reasonable ISO to minimize noise, it just means there are higher priorities than noise.

So given the above, let’s consider two scenarios. (1) you’re shooting a landscape or a portrait with good lighting and minimal subject movement, so DOF is primary and low noise is a secondary priority. Set the ISO low - maybe 100-200, put the camera on aperture priority and pick the aperture you need for the DOF you want - deep for the landscape and shallow for the portrait, and let the camera pick the shutter speed. You are now controlling two variables and using the camera’s intelligence to pick the 3rd for proper exposure. If this doesn’t result in what you need, then you can vary the ISO, but the aperture is the highest priority.

(2) you’re shooting an action shot where the subject is moving. Freezing the motion is the highest priority. Pick a little higher ISO - maybe 400. Then pick a shutter speed necessary to freeze the motion - anywhere from 1/125-1/200 for casual motion to 1/500-1/1000 for fast moving sports and shoot shutter priority - let the camera pick the aperture. Now here comes the hard part. After your initial settings, look at the aperture the camera has set (or the shutter speed in example 1 above). If it isn’t what you need, you may need to adjust the ISO - it’s always a trade off.

Finally, you may want to move to the next step - you pick the shutter speed to freeze the motion and the aperture to get the DOF you need and let the camera pick the ISO (auto ISO). Some people like myself and others use this combination regularly because we know our cameras perform well at high ISO, but if it doesn’t then you may choose to take the final step and set all three variables manually using the experience you have obtained with the previous exercises. Remember it’s always a trade-off with those three variables - change one, and for the same exposure, you’ll need to change one of the other two. But don't let The “I shoot full manual” all the time mantra keep you from using the full capabilities of your camera, especially in changing light conditions - the camera can change the exposure faster than you can evaluate the condition and make the change.

Good luck!

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

That is one way of doing it, but there are a lot of times when you don't want the exposure set to 0, that's why shooting in manual is so nice, it gives you the results that YOU want!
Shooting in auto, the camera always tries to adjust the parameters so the exposure ends up in 0, but a lot/most of times that's not desired. Its the same when shooting, say in aperture mode, one has always to tweak it manually to get the desired results. If I shoot, say in aperture mode and I step outside, I know instantly if the meter is going to be fooled by the scene or not, so I adjust it right away with EC before taking a shot. If shooting in manual, one never has to worry about that, because everything is set manually, so it can't change when pushing the shutter button!

User ID

Yes your procedure is correct in terms of how
the camera works.

Hogsters will always offer additional device to
help you customize your style or deal with a
challenging lighting situation. Good advice but
it may confuse you. So I just want to repeat
that you DO have the basic manual metering
procedure correctly understood. Keep that in
mind when others offer "extra special" advice.

.

pesfls Loc: Oregon, USA

I believe you are on the right track to understanding the three parameters you control. So experiment/practice. A good straighforward read would be: Simplified Zone System, the confused photograper’s guide to exposure. It an older book that’s out of print I think but you ought to be able to find a used copy cheap on line, or order from your library. The author is Farzad. I’d bet you’d find it helpful. The book includes “assignments” to day that will help evaluate subjects. Good luck. Like I said I think you’re on the right track. Have fun.

JimBart Loc: Western Michigan

Thanks to each of you for your input however the above raises another question...… By increasing exposure you mean adding more light to the subject (decreasing the aperture setting) and pushing the exposure compensation closer to " 0 " (if underexposed) or higher into the overexposed area.
Am I correct?

pesfls Loc: Oregon, USA

Increasing exposure means adding more light. So f5.6 instead of f8 for example. Or lowering shutter speed from 1/250 to 1/125. Exposure comp doesn’t function in full manual. However if you are manual mode but have ISO set to auto it will change the ISO to its liking based on your manual shutter speed and aparature. If you want real full manual you must turn off auto ISO and then set it to the film speed you want. Hope that makes sense.

srt101fan

Seems to me you're on the right track, JimBart. Just a few observations.

You say you are comfortable using Auto ISO or fixed ISO with aperture and shutter priority, and that now you want to transition to manual. But if all you are going to do in Manual is always adjust the settings until the meter is at "0" you may be better off staying with one of the auto modes (A, S, P). As Gene51 said, changing the settings to get the meter to "0" is not enough to give you an acceptable exposure under all shooting/lighting conditions. Some situations call for overriding the meter, and increased or reduced exposure may be called for. You need to learn to recognize those situations.

You have another option and that is Manual (M) + Auto ISO + Exposure Compensation (EC). You set the shutter speed based on subject motion or concerns about camera motion. You set the aperture based on depth of field considerations or to get optimum lens performance (image quality). You let the ISO float and, if you want you can set limits. You use EC to increase or decrease exposure to override the meter when appropriate. If you want to pursue this option, I suggest you look at Steve Perry's video:
https://backcountrygallery.com/manual-mode-with-auto-iso/
and an earlier UHH thread:
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-573649-1.html

Good luck and happy shooting!

Edit: I just realized that some of what I said was touched on in earlier posts. Sorry for any duplication!

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

👍👍 personally, I really like m+auto ISO+EC and watching Steve’s video is very instructive. You set the max ISO to whatever you’re comfortable with, the SS to stop motion blur, aperture for DOF and EC to compensate for situations that require modification to the base exposure - simple.

JD750 Loc: SoCal

If Birds et all are you target, why are you trying to transition to manual (M) mode? Do you think that M will improve your BIF shots? Your BIN shots?

If you choose Auto-Anything i.e, auto - shutter, aperture, ISO, then that is NOT M mode. OK?

There is nothing wrong with using the A, S, and auto Iso to capture your wildlife shots. If you set up and the exposure meter reads 0 then that means the exposure is within the parameters you have set. Shoot freely. You can correct for any exposure deficiencies in post. That is what the BIF people have to do.

Now if you are shooting a creative scene, with multiple lights and models then most definitely you want to use M mode and to set the WB to XXX, because you have control of the light and the color of the light.

There are other scenarios where M mode makes sense. But I ask you, for what you are shooting, does M mode make sense fro BIF?

picsman Loc: Scotland

I shoot lots of sports for many hours at weekends. I always use auto ISO with a maximum of 3200 and select spot metering and a high shutter speed. For winter snow sports I increase exposure 1-2 stops. Aperture is generally f4, so not completely manual.

The main message I would give is I always use RAW, if you are not doing that I suggest you start. Also check your histogram which will also guide you. I tend not to look at the exposure meter just the histogram as it suits my way of working in a fast paced environment.