Auto function of DSLR


Status
Not open for further replies.

animian2002

New Member
Dec 18, 2005
124
0
0
is it just me or what ? :embrass:

i notice the auto function of a DSLR still lose out to those of prosumers / Point and shoot cameras

I went HK last week, and because it is a package tour and i am constantly on the move so i switched to Auto (easier than having to adjust the Aperture etc) and i realised that for the same scenery, i tend to prefer the one i shot using AP mode rather than the one by Auto mode :embrass: at least the color are better for the AP mode :embrass: why is that so :dunno:

also i know the small the F/number the narrow the depth of field but if i uses a high F/numbers...the pictures (scenic ) tend to look abit darker...why is that so :embrass:

also i notice ... under the bright sun light... higher F/number ...the picture will turn out just fine ...hmm.... does that means when i head to hokkaido next week... i need to shoot in high F/numbers cos... there will be white snow everywhere and snow will reflect sunlight very well
 

Last edited:
is it just me or what ? :embrass:

i notice the auto function of a DSLR still lose out to those of prosumers / Point and shoot cameras

I went HK last week, and because it is a package tour and i am constantly on the move so i switched to Auto (easier than having to adjust the Aperture etc) and i realised that for the same scenery, i tend to prefer the one i shot using AP mode rather than the one by Auto mode :embrass: at least the color are better for the AP mode :embrass: why is that so :dunno:

also i know the small the F/number the narrow the depth of field but if i uses a high F/numbers...the pictures (scenic ) tend to look abit darker...why is that so :embrass:

also i notice ... under the bright sun light... higher F/number ...the picture will turn out just fine
...hmm.... does that means when i head to hokkaido next week... i need to shoot in high F/numbers cos... there will be white snow everywhere and snow will reflect sunlight very well

Hi,
i'm also very new to photography.
however as per my understanding. the higher the F-number, the lesser the light can get in. hence when u use higher F-number, ur background gets darker. you might need to make ur shutter speed slower(use tripod if neccessary) to get the exposure right.

correct me if i'm wrong.
thanks~!
 

Last edited:
animian2002 said:
is it just me or what ?

i notice the auto function of a DSLR still lose out to those of prosumers / Point and shoot cameras

I went HK last week, and because it is a package tour and i am constantly on the move so i switched to Auto (easier than having to adjust the Aperture etc) and i realised that for the same scenery, i tend to prefer the one i shot using AP mode rather than the one by Auto mode at least the color are better for the AP modewhy is that so

also i know the small the F/number the narrow the depth of field but if i uses a high F/numbers...the pictures (scenic ) tend to look abit darker...why is that so

also i notice ... under the bright sun light... higher F/number ...the picture will turn out just fine ...hmm.... does that means when i head to hokkaido next week... i need to shoot in high F/numbers cos... there will be white snow everywhere and snow will reflect sunlight very well


The larger the f-number, the smaller the aperture, thus letting in less light. In aperture-priority mode, the shutter speed will automatically be reduced to allow more light in to compensate.
My guess is that the place where you did the half-press of the shutter button (to lock the exposure value) is not the same, hence causing a difference in the brightness of the 2 photos.
By the way you didn't mention what shooting mode you were in when you encountered this situation. If you reply 'M' mode, I'll knock your head :kok: :)

Your "experiment" wasn't terribly scientific.
 

with snow, the camera tends to underexpose (it thinks the scene is very bright). In P, A, S modes, you need to increase the exposure compensation value to correct for this anomaly.
 

The larger the f-number, the smaller the aperture, thus letting in less light. In aperture-priority mode, the shutter speed will automatically be reduced to allow more light in to compensate.
My guess is that the place where you did the half-press of the shutter button (to lock the exposure value) is not the same, hence causing a difference in the brightness of the 2 photos.
By the way you didn't mention what shooting mode you were in when you encountered this situation. If you reply 'M' mode, I'll knock your head :kok: :)

Your "experiment" wasn't terribly scientific.

my experiment is on the same spot at the same angle on the same landscape ;p
i uses Auto mode and Aperture mode .. i dare not touch full M mode at this moment... my skill still sucks big time :embrass:
 

Maybe pick up a book on photography to read, while flying to Hokkaido?
 

Compact cameras have much much higher DOF then dSLR which is why compacts tend to appear sharper pictures, which appears harsher at some point.

The newer compacts (not the cheaper ones) do focused on good color reproduction. That is the selling point.

Having said that, some dslr does have better Auto mode.

Overall, your observation is correct.
 

If you're using auto mode, why use a DSLR instead of a prosumer camera? :dunno:
When you have a DSLR, it's better that you start to use the manual functions like M, S, A and P modes on you camera. ;)
 

If you're using auto mode, why use a DSLR instead of a prosumer camera? :dunno:
When you have a DSLR, it's better that you start to use the manual functions like M, S, A and P modes on you camera. ;)

It's true that the manual modes allow greater user control over the final output.
However, it seems strange that sometimes the DSLR's auto function appears poorer than the far cheaper and smaller PnS, in areas such as colour, exposure, white balance. After all, there's no hardware or software that is inferior on the DSLR compared with the PnS.

Definitely power-on delay and auto-focus acquisition wins hands-down though.
 

is it just me or what ? :embrass:

i notice the auto function of a DSLR still lose out to those of prosumers / Point and shoot cameras

I went HK last week, and because it is a package tour and i am constantly on the move so i switched to Auto (easier than having to adjust the Aperture etc) and i realised that for the same scenery, i tend to prefer the one i shot using AP mode rather than the one by Auto mode :embrass: at least the color are better for the AP mode :embrass: why is that so :dunno:

also i know the small the F/number the narrow the depth of field but if i uses a high F/numbers...the pictures (scenic ) tend to look abit darker...why is that so :embrass:

also i notice ... under the bright sun light... higher F/number ...the picture will turn out just fine ...hmm.... does that means when i head to hokkaido next week... i need to shoot in high F/numbers cos... there will be white snow everywhere and snow will reflect sunlight very well

it's definitely just you. you have clearly not understood how to use a DSLR. either learn it before your trip or else you're better off with a compact point and shoot.
 

The DSLR should not have this Auto Mode in the first place

why not?

Should a sports car like the Porsche 911 turbo not have an automatic transmission as well? After all, sports cars are meant to give you the entire driving experience, aren't they? Surely the driver should change gears him/herself??
How about traction control? ABS? Power steering?
 

Last edited:
it's definitely just you. you have clearly not understood how to use a DSLR. either learn it before your trip or else you're better off with a compact point and shoot.

:embrass:my english must be very bad to the extent that you cant tell from my short post that i am experimenting with the AUTO function and the manual Function of a DSLR :embrass:

forgive me...i am a noob who just moved on to a DSLR from a prosumer camera ...and the best time for practice/experimenting with my DSLR is when i am travelling :cry: i dont have the luxury of going from places to places in singapore to practice the photography skills like you guys and that is probably why prof photographer like you guys will think that i am asking stupid questions :embrass:
 

just shoot with aperture mode, more control so u wont get unwanted effects from ur photos.
 

When you use auto mode, you have no control over ISO, speed, aperture, contrast, metering and focusing mode.

When you use P, A, S, M mode you can control all the above.
 

:embrass:my english must be very bad to the extent that you cant tell from my short post that i am experimenting with the AUTO function and the manual Function of a DSLR :embrass:

forgive me...i am a noob who just moved on to a DSLR from a prosumer camera ...and the best time for practice/experimenting with my DSLR is when i am travelling :cry: i dont have the luxury of going from places to places in singapore to practice the photography skills like you guys and that is probably why prof photographer like you guys will think that i am asking stupid questions :embrass:

I think there's high chance that you are going to be disappointed how your pictures turn out if the only time for you to learn is when travelling. It's like opening your textbook for the first time during an open-book exam. Not gonna work.

It's nice, but not a must to go from place to place. I also practice shooting the view outside my window at home just to get hang of the various functions and the feel. Since no skill, so don't expect nice pictures. Since pictures not nice, no point going around too many places also. Get the bare fundamentals right then start moving.

My 2cents.
:)
 

Good point.
Practice doesn't mean must go here go there. Take photos at the neighbourhood shops, food centre, shopping centre, park, etc. during different times of the day (different lighting conditions). Take photos of family during dinner time (event photography)... etc... the opportunities are endless... Just have to seek them out!
 

Animian, it's not ppl think you're stupid but it helps when you actually tell the whole story instead of giving snippets and expect people to know what you're thinking

I take it you're saying that your DSLR auto pictures looks not as good as your PnS. Which DSLR are you using and which point and shoot. also which lens is mounted on your DSLR
You say you prefer the picture coming from your dslr at AP mode rather than Auto mode. Honestly, I don't know if you'r referring to Av or P since i'm a canon user.
You also mention about F number and how pictures are darker at higher F number, again we need to know which mode are you using since it should not be so if you're at Av mode.

The easiest way is to post pictures with EXIF intact, then only can we help you since there are so many variable like picture styles, exposure compensation and even your metering mode that affects all this and honestly if the location is bright enough, tehre wouldn't be much difference between pictures DSLR and a PnS.
 

animian2002 said:
is it just me or what ?

i notice the auto function of a DSLR still lose out to those of prosumers / Point and shoot cameras

I went HK last week, and because it is a package tour and i am constantly on the move so i switched to Auto (easier than having to adjust the Aperture etc) and i realised that for the same scenery, i tend to prefer the one i shot using AP mode rather than the one by Auto mode, at least the color are better for the AP mode :embrass: why is that so?

also i know the small the F/number the narrow the depth of field but if i uses a high F/numbers...the pictures (scenic ) tend to look abit darker...why is that so?

also i notice ... under the bright sun light... higher F/number ...the picture will turn out just fine ...hmm.... does that means when i head to hokkaido next week... i need to shoot in high F/numbers cos... there will be white snow everywhere and snow will reflect sunlight very well

animian2002 said:
my experiment is on the same spot at the same angle on the same landscape
i uses Auto mode and Aperture mode .. i dare not touch full M mode at this moment... my skill still sucks big time :embrass:

There's one other thing that MAYBE is causing your photos to turn out darker.
If for example the correct exposure for a particular scene is F/4, 1/15s (assume ISO constant for the sake of discussion).
In Aperture-priority mode, you turn to F/5.6, and the shutter speed should be 1/8s (i hope I'm right)
Then to F/8, and speed is now 1/4s
F/11, and speed is now 1/2s
F/16, and speed is now 1s

Your camera might have some function to limit the minimum shutter speed in A-mode. It might be 1/4s, for example. In that case F/8 --> 1/4s and F/11 also --> 1/4s, resulting in underexposure. That's just my guess... Am scratching my head here.
 

there is another reason, what is the metering mode you using? if the backgnd is very bright and you use bracket metering then you front object will turn up DARK, try using Spot metering instead and up EV if too dark.
 

Status
Not open for further replies.