Need help on aperture n shutter setting!!!


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cs_sim

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Apr 20, 2004
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Got my cam for 3wks already, have been using the auto modes so far but would like to try taking manually. Did some reading on e various settings but still quite loss on how to go abt. :dunno: Would like to know if there is any rule of thumb for these setting? Like what appreture setting shld go with what shutter speed? And what type of background shld go with which setting?
 

use the exposure meter...choose any settling you like ...if exposure is wrong...then juz click ard till the meter feel's its right....then be sure you record the readings down for future ref...tt's all
 

cs_sim said:
Got my cam for 3wks already, have been using the auto modes so far but would like to try taking manually. Did some reading on e various settings but still quite loss on how to go abt. :dunno: Would like to know if there is any rule of thumb for these setting? Like what appreture setting shld go with what shutter speed? And what type of background shld go with which setting?
it depends wat u wanna take... sometimes a wide aperture with quick shutter speed will stop motion... if u want motion blur, use a small aperture and slower shutter speed...
 

ur question is ...too vague ;-)

maybe u indicate some detailed scenarios of what u want to shoot...then we work out slowly one by one
 

well, since you are not confident with the setting. you can try breaking away from auto modes and try on Tv or Av mode first.

if you wish to experiment with DOF, then set your camera to Av mode and take a few shots with different settings (maybe one at f/2.8, one at f/8 and one at f/16). Let your camera set the shutter speed for you while you play with your aperture. then compare the result and learn from there.

same goes for Tv mood, when you want to try different effect of shutter. maybe you can try with a moving subject.

When you are confident with your judgement, then try to move on to Manual mode.

End of the day, just shoot alot with different setting and you will learn on the way.

Happy shooting
 

I also got a newbie question to ask...paiseh sounds similar case like above

I using the Nikon D70

I use the auto mode to meter and then copy the settings for my M mode but pic comes out super underexposed:(

Really cannot figured why leh...
no EV compensation
Shutter / Aperture / ISO same
no flash
no AF Assist

Anyone care to help :sweat:
 

Dino said:
I also got a newbie question to ask...paiseh sounds similar case like above

I using the Nikon D70

I use the auto mode to meter and then copy the settings for my M mode but pic comes out super underexposed:(

Really cannot figured why leh...
no EV compensation
Shutter / Aperture / ISO same
no flash
no AF Assist

Anyone care to help :sweat:

Auto mode probabaly uses a different metering mode than the manual mode. When you shoot in manual mode, what meter mode do you use? Spot? Center-weighted? Matrix?
 

cs_sim said:
Got my cam for 3wks already, have been using the auto modes so far but would like to try taking manually. Did some reading on e various settings but still quite loss on how to go abt. :dunno: Would like to know if there is any rule of thumb for these setting? Like what appreture setting shld go with what shutter speed? And what type of background shld go with which setting?

There i no hard and fast rule. There is a basice relationship between the shutter speed and aperature size. Depending on the scene you are trying to capture, a combination of shutter speed and aperature is required to capture the correct exposure of which you use the onboard meter to determine your settings. (this is for manual mode)

For Aperature and shutter prioty modes, the same relationship is used. however the camera will compute the necessary numbers for you. You just need to determine the shutter speed (in S mode) or aperature size (in A mode) as compared to manual mode, you have to decide both numbers.

Thats just the surface. Think you should either do a search on the forum or get a book and read.
 

Dino said:
I also got a newbie question to ask...paiseh sounds similar case like above

I using the Nikon D70

I use the auto mode to meter and then copy the settings for my M mode but pic comes out super underexposed:(

Really cannot figured why leh...
no EV compensation
Shutter / Aperture / ISO same
no flash
no AF Assist

Anyone care to help :sweat:

ummm... what were you shooting? what part of the picture was underexposed? which part of the scene did you take the meter reading from? what metering mode did you use?

as i've said before, cameras are stupid things and their brains are easily fooled especially when the lighting becomes tricky.

since you have a D70, it should be easy enough to study the picutre and answer the above questions and figure out what went wrong.

by the way, why did you use an auto mode to meter, then copy the exact same reading in manual mode? why not just take the shot in auto mode in the frist place since you didn't change any of the settings?
 

Dino said:
I also got a newbie question to ask...paiseh sounds similar case like above

I using the Nikon D70

I use the auto mode to meter and then copy the settings for my M mode but pic comes out super underexposed:(

Really cannot figured why leh...
no EV compensation
Shutter / Aperture / ISO same
no flash
no AF Assist

Anyone care to help :sweat:

read your manual. it might be a case that your camera metering differently when set to different mode.
 

patch17 said:
ummm... what were you shooting? what part of the picture was underexposed? which part of the scene did you take the meter reading from? what metering mode did you use?

I am doing some protraiture indoors with Flourescent lighting

as i've said before, cameras are stupid things and their brains are easily fooled especially when the lighting becomes tricky.

Computers are stupid but they follow a certain set of logics which enable their metering - hence the different outlook of photos including lighting and exposures

since you have a D70, it should be easy enough to study the picutre and answer the above questions and figure out what went wrong.

I have tried using the auto mode and the manual mode over the same settings (even with the same matrix metering) but always came out super underexposed

by the way, why did you use an auto mode to meter, then copy the exact same reading in manual mode? why not just take the shot in auto mode in the frist place since you didn't change any of the settings?

I was testing the different modes but its the manual mode which gives me problematic metering:( - If I were to carry on shooting on auto modes and having no control over the different modes --> better use a compact DC than a DSLR in this case :blah:
 

Am i right to say appreture setting affects the expose and depth of field? Or is it e other ways round?
 

cs_sim said:
Am i right to say appreture setting affects the expose and depth of field? Or is it e other ways round?

Three factors affect the Depth of Field (DOF):
- Aperture size (the larger the shallower the DOF will be)
- Distance of subject from camera (the nearer the shallower the DOF will be)
- Focal length of lens (the longer the shallower the DOF will be)

Large aperture (small F number, e.g. f2.8) = shallow DOF.
Conversely, small aperture (large F number, e.g. f11) = large DOF.

"Large aperture" means the diaphram of the lens forms a large circle in the lens to allow more light to pass through. You (or the computer) will have to set a fast shutter speed to prevent overexposure.

"Small aperture" means the opposite of large aperture. The diaphram forms a small hole in the lens to allow less light to pass through. You/computer sets a relatively slower shutter to prevent underexposure.
 

Dino said:
I was testing the different modes but its the manual mode which gives me problematic metering:( - If I were to carry on shooting on auto modes and having no control over the different modes --> better use a compact DC than a DSLR in this case :blah:

well not all auto modes are fully automatic. Av (aperture priority) gives you control of the aperture and allows you to play with the DOF. Tv (shutter priority) lets you control the shutter speed. even in full program mode, you can override the camera's selected exposure with exposure compensation. (i think some cameras come with this feature, pls feel free to correct me if i'm wrong.)

by the way, what metering pattern are you using?

and yes, sometimes a compact DC is the best tool for the job. :bsmilie:
 

Dino said:
I also got a newbie question to ask...paiseh sounds similar case like above

I using the Nikon D70

I use the auto mode to meter and then copy the settings for my M mode but pic comes out super underexposed:(

Really cannot figured why leh...
no EV compensation
Shutter / Aperture / ISO same
no flash
no AF Assist

Anyone care to help :sweat:


The D70 is spoilt
sell to me cheap lah
i will repair it : )

Try to meter on average gray scene
or a gray card
do not meter on extreme bright / dark objects as this will
influence the meter to biase under/over expose

Thought the matrix metering of Nikon will handle these ?
unless you are using spot
most pics should turn out servicable ? no ?

I am not Nikon user btw....
 

well not all auto modes are fully automatic.

Fully agree :devil:

Av (aperture priority) gives you control of the aperture and allows you to play with the DOF. Tv (shutter priority) lets you control the shutter speed. even in full program mode, you can override the camera's selected exposure with exposure compensation. (i think some cameras come with this feature, pls feel free to correct me if i'm wrong.)

There is no problem when I am in A / P / S mode but in M mode it is damn difficult to control the exposure (it is really puzzling to me when the other modes do not give me extreme underexposed pix)
by the way, what metering pattern are you using?

The default 3D matrix metering mode with AF-C or AF-S (I have tried both Autofocusing system - they yield same result) :sweat:

and yes, sometimes a compact DC is the best tool for the job. :bsmilie:

True to a certain extent - tats why I am still missing my F828 :cry:
 

Dino said:
The default 3D matrix metering mode with AF-C or AF-S (I have tried both Autofocusing system - they yield same result) :sweat:

focusing mode doesn't affect exposure, AF-C simply means the focusing continously tracks the subject to keep it in focus, whereas AF-S means a one time focus. if the subject moves, you'll have to refocus.

only reason i can think of why your shots are underexposed when using manual mode is that you didn't set the camera right. i mean, manual mode means just that, you're in charge of aperture and shutter speed. one of them could be set wrongly. (no offence, but it's just a thought) whereas in any of the other auto modes, the camera takes care of one or both variables. i somtimes forget to adjust and check the settings (read: lazy) after metering and end up with crap. :bsmilie:

your 3D matrix meter should be compensating for the bright background, hence the underexposed face/s of your subject. take a reading off a portion with more shadow and less highlight, lock it and recompose the shot.

it'd be good if you can post a couple of pics, one taken with the auto mode, and the exact same one taken in manual mode. (indicate the settings used for both pictures) :think:
 

Hi there,

As a new D70 owner I have been following this thread with interest. I took my new purchase down to the Esplanade last night for it's first trial run at night photography and found the metering to be spot on. This was in A mode i.e. I was controlling the aperture as I wanted to make sure I had enough depth of field to keep the whole frame sharp.

I bracketed my exposures +-1/3 but each time the inital reading was spot on and the bracketed exposures were over/under-exposed respectively.

Keep experimenting - the great thing with digital is that whilst you are learning through your mistakes you are not wasting film/money.

Good luck - keep shooting. But do try out the A and S modes rather than taking meter readings from Auto and setting in M. This seems a waste of time.
 

Dino said:
I was testing the different modes but its the manual mode which gives me problematic metering:( - If I were to carry on shooting on auto modes and having no control over the different modes --> better use a compact DC than a DSLR in this case :blah:
fyi, auto mode sets a few things in the setting to auto, like auto ISO. in manual mode your ISO might not be in auto. also in auto the Optimize image is normal, while in manual u could change it.

i use white wedding curves and most of the time the exposure is just right. with auto tone comp, most of the time i find that it's 1/3 to 1/2 stop under.

matrix metering will try not to overexpose any hilites. ie. if in your scene there's a very bright spot, it'll meter the scene so that that bright spot is not too over. this might be why the rest of the scenes will look dark. in this case, use spot or center meter

anyway, u dun need to use auto to see which setting the camera thinks is good. in manual mode, from the viewfinder, u can see the metering if it over or under
 

Finally tried the shutter priority mode, but 1 Qn! I set the shutter speed to 125 to snap some shots of my goldfish, but when i on e flash, e speed reduced to a max of only 90. Why is this so? Does this mean e fastest speed tha can be used with flash is 90? :dunno:
 

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