avemal Loc: BALTIMORE

Ysarex Loc: St. Louis

I use my camera in Program mode because it's important to me to have full control of my camera. Like the video author I have a Fuji camera which, in Program mode, I have more precise control than he does using his camera in Manual mode.

Another case of:

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

P has been the universal choice of Professional Photographers since automated exposure became generally available in film SLRs going back to the mid 1970s.

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

I did not know that if I use Program I will be in precise control of my cameras.

1963mca

[quote=Ysarex

I use my camera in Program mode because it's important to me to have full control of my camera. Like the video author I have a Fuji camera which, in Program mode, I have more precise control than he does using his camera in Manual mode.

[/quote]

Sounds like the person who was driving his Tesla while it was in AutoDrive/Program mode while he was playing a game on his smart phone instead of paying attention to what the car was doing. Possibly the Tesla program may not have been accurate enough to miss a barrier, crash and kill the guy. Now using your camera in program mode may not kill you...… But...……….there are advantages to manual controls.

charles tabb Loc: Richmond VA.

That sounds to me like you have no idea of just what Program Mode does.

selmslie Loc: Fernandina Beach, FL, USA

Nearly everyone is aware that Program mode lets the camera select the exposure by controlling both the aperture and shutter speed. In other words, the photographer loses control.

But Manual mode gives the photographer complete control of both exposure settings. Most of us are aware of this and would not make either of the statements made in the second and third post in this thread.

Ysarex Loc: St. Louis

My comment was pretty short so allow me to qualify it and add some detail.

Caveat: Not talking about flash.
Caveat: Not talking about using external light meters.
Caveat: Not talking about special purpose applications like multiple exposures and/or HDR brackets, etc.

The "control" goal is, in the case of the video linked, focused on setting an exposure. Exposure is a function of shutter speed and f/stop given the ambient light and is further qualified by; a "usable or good" exposure and must take into consideration ISO.

In the context then of setting a usable/good exposure I'm referring to ambient light conditions and using the camera's internal meter. Program mode on my camera is typical of Program mode on most modern cameras. I get to set the ISO which in this case let's assume I want to do. Then when I go to take a photo the camera will meter the scene and select both a shutter speed and f/stop according to a program in the camera's software.

If either the shutter speed or the f/stop are not what I want I can easily and quickly change them by using the camera's program shift function. On my Fuji that's a thumb wheel directly under my right thumb. If the camera for example selects a shutter speed of 1/200th sec. and I would prefer 1/500th sec. I just turn the wheel to shift the shutter speed to where I want it (I stay in Program mode). Likewise if the camera for example selects an f/stop of f/2.8 and I would prefer f/4 again I just turn the wheel to shift the f/stop to where I want it (I stay in Program mode).

Whichever I prioritize on, shutter speed or f/stop, the camera shifts the other to maintain the exposure. If for any reason I want to alter the exposure the meter selected and either expose more or expose less then the EC control is of course active and on my Fuji is directly under my right index finger. In my camera the EC control functions over a 10 stop total range (1/3 stop increments). Anyone arguing for an advantage to using Manual by insisting the meter reading my not be what you want hopefully knows better than to suggest the meter may be off by more than 5 stops over/under (that's a broken meter).

Below is first a photo metered and exposed by my camera in Program mode. The result is identical to what Manual mode would produce if the meter were brought to zero. The following two photos are still produced by my camera in Program mode but represent the extreme limits of exposure adjustment available in Program mode. Shooting in Manual mode you could expose even less or even more. Why?

In each case, using EC or shifting the f/stop or shifting the shutter speed while in Program mode I can make adjustments in 1/3 stop increments. In the linked video the author was using a Fuji X camera much like mine. In Manual mode he could not make 1/3 stop increment adjustments like I can in Program mode. His Manual mode lacks the precision that I take for granted.

Sure there are things that we need Manual mode to accomplish and it's important to have available on our cameras. But the nonsense in that video that not shooting manual "you're not going to go far as a photographer" is rubbish.

Joe

Ysarex Loc: St. Louis

Program mode permits me to select the exposure I want and the shutter speed I want and the f/stop I want within the context of producing a "usable/good" exposure (ambient light, using the camera meter, not flash).

Joe

selmslie Loc: Fernandina Beach, FL, USA

So does Manual mode and its concept is universal. You consciously select an aperture and shutter speed independently to achieve the desired exposure value.

You can switch brands and the means available to select shutter speed and aperture are the same, usually in 1/3 stop increments*. You don't have to do it differently for Fuji, Nikon, Canon, Pentax or any other make. But each brand and model might implement Program mode differently.

You can't use program mode unless the camera and lens ready are able to use both shutter and aperture priority. Once both of those were possible, Program mode was added for the benefit of beginners, not professionals.

Manual mode keeps it simple. It works no matter how you determine the exposure you want. What's more, you are not tied to the camera's meter at all. We should all know by now with how many ways the cameras meter can be fooled.

* I can do 1/3 stop shutter speed increments in manual mode with my Sony and Nikons but not my Fuji. I can also vary the aperture between clicks with my Leica lenses but I have never wanted to do that.

Ysarex Loc: St. Louis

That's what EC is for. Fair to assume the huge majority of Manual mode users are also using the internal meter.

"...Program mode lets the camera select the exposure by controlling both the aperture and shutter speed. In other words, the photographer loses control."

So I don't lose control, do I?

Joe

selmslie Loc: Fernandina Beach, FL, USA

You can also use EC in Manual mode. It doesn’t change the exposure but it moves the meter readout.

But the problem with EC is that you are using it because you don’t trust the camera’s meter. You don’t trust it because you know it’s wrong.

Once you really understand exposure you will no longer let the camera’s meter control the exposure.

Ysarex Loc: St. Louis

"...Program mode lets the camera select the exposure by controlling both the aperture and shutter speed. In other words, the photographer loses control."

So I don't lose control, do I?

Joe

selmslie Loc: Fernandina Beach, FL, USA

Your camera's meter is dictating the exposure and, when you see that the exposure is wrong, you will need to use EC to get it right. This might take a couple of tries. You are not in control.

Here is an example of control. This weekend the forecast for the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is mostly sunny (Friday), Sunny (Saturday) and partly cloudy (Sunday). That's a narrow range of light values (LV) - between 14 and 15. At ISO 400 that translates to Exposure Value between 16 and 17. Since I will be using a Sony A7 II and a 35mm Zeiss manual focus lens I will be setting the exposure to 1/1000 @ f/11 for all three days. The only thing I will need to worry about is focus. I doubt that I will take more than single exposure of each subject. I know that I can recover any shadow information during post processing the raw data and that there will be no blown highlights, even with polished aluminum Jaguars if there are any. This approach has worked for years.

Given the same scenario you would probably have to discard a sizable proportion of your images if you use Program mode backed up with EC corrections. That's because you would allow your camera to decide the exposure settings based on the meter reading. You would have lost control.

Jaackil Loc: Massachusetts

Sounds to me like a lot of people do not understand the difference between Manual mode and Program mode.