I read with interest about some people's issues with shooting in auto mode.
Frankly, what is manual mode and what is auto mode? Do you make use of the reading on camera to tell you if you are hnder or over exposing, amd make adjustment base on that reading?
P A S M mode almost every modern cameras base the meter reading on in-camera metering. Be it multi segment, spot or centre weighted metering. If you base your exposure on in-camera metering, isnt it considered auto as well?.... Even though you shoot in M mode? What about auto ISO?
Once upon a time when we used to shoot on film, ISO is almost always set to DX mode. Meaning, the ISO of the camera will follow the ISO rating of the film you put into the camera. Can you set, say ISO 800 when using ISO 100 film? Of course. But you will be severely underexposing all your shots because the metering base all EV on ISO 800 sensitivity film.
So, what is considered fully manual? In those days, it means carrying your own light meter (in those days, Minolta light meter was the one to get) and measure the light value in a few areas. Average it. And then set your aperture, shutter speed, base on a fixed ISO set in the light meter. Everything about photography is about amount of light (aperture opening), how long is the light exposing to the film/sensor (shutter speed), and how sensitive is the film/sensor (ISO setting, or ASA rating of film). And of course your composition of the picture, rules of third, etc.
The modern day digital camera sensor is so advance that it was once a holy grail in photography, as it can adjust its sensitivity to adapt to the available light, at a given f stop and shutter speed. Anything more than ISO 6400 on film was never heard of in my days with film SLR. Nowadays, ISO 6400 is the minimum expected of any new SLR with clean exposure. Anything less is considered heresy.
So, is it scandalous to make art in photographic form in auto mode? We all depend on the camera's accuracy in metering, auto focusing, image stabilizing, etc.... In one form or another. So, to me there is nothing wrong in using auto mode to take well framed subject if the camera is so good that it can give you better exposure in auto mode than you can set your own manual white balance, aperture, shutter speed and/or ISO.
Since memory card now cost less than film, i would bracket my shots using various combination of setting concentrate on focusing (to be sure auto focusing is focused on the right area), and framing the subject, and ensure i dont miss out on rare photographic opportunity ..... Whether I'm om iAuto, green square, or P mode.
