Don't get me wrong! When I started this hobby in earnest in the early '60s, manual was all there was. Then in school we used view cameras, and there aint no automatic, there. As technology progressed, the automatic functions of cameras have become almost freakishly intelligent. I spent thousands of dollars on cameras, all with automatic features which rival the skills (exposure and focus) which I had as a photojournalist in Southeast Asia with my trusty Nikon. I shot so much I could judge light, get sharp focus, and get the shot as quickly as my camera can now. Obviously I am much older now, but my goal is still to get the shot. But I am gratefully happy to utilize the work and inventions of all the engineers who have made it possible for me to take the picture, and if I don't like what shows up on my screen, I can change it.

That being said, any newcomer who doesn't know the exposure triangle, is not a picture maker, but merely a picture taker.

Now, who has the popcorn?