The first rung on the ladder to learning how to use your camera in the full manual mode is to switch from shooting in one of the fully programmed modes is to switch to using one of the semi-manual modes, the aperture priority mode or the shutter priority modes.In the aperture priority mode the photographer selects the lens aperture (f/stop) that he or she wants to use and the camera then selects the proper shutter speed based on the lighting conditions.With shutter priority, the photographer selects the shutter speed that he or she wants to shoot at and the camera then sets the proper lens aperture based on the lighting conditions. The question is, the, which mode should you use and when should you use it.
Aperture Priority mode
The lens aperture setting (f-stop setting) determines the depth of field. Depth of field settings determines how much of the foreground and how much of the background is in focus. The larger the aperture, the smaller the f-stop number, the shallower the depth of field. The smaller the aperture, the larger the f-stop number, the deeper the depth of field. Back in the days when we set the f-stop by turning a ring on the lens, itself there was a depth of field index right behind the f-stop ring. Many professional digital cameras makes this information available as a digital readout but all you need to remember is that the smaller the aperture the more of the foreground and background will be in sharp focus. If you want to know what the actual depth of field is for your lens at any given f-stop, you can use this online calculator. Simply select your camera model, lens focal length, f-stop, and the distance to your subject and the calculator will tell you the foreground limits and the background limits for sharp focus. Give it a try www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html. I could explain the math and formulas involved in making these calculations but that not something you need to know to take great pictures. The Aperture priority mode is a good mode to use when shooting still life, portraiture, architectural, close ups, etc.
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One word of caution is in order here. Keep in mind that as you stop the lens down further and further, select larger and larger f-stop number the camera will be selecting slower and slower shutter speeds to compensate for the smaller amounts of light impinging on the camera’s sensor. Few people can hand hold a camera steady enough to shoot at less than 1/60 sec so keep an eye on the shutter speed read out on the LCD or in the viewfinder.
Shutter Priority mode
Shutter priority mode is the mode of choice when shooting sports or in other situations where your subject is moving. Shutter priority gives you the option of shooting with a fast enough shutter speed to stop the fastest action without any blurring of the subject, foreground, or background. You also have the option of shooting at a slower speed to add blur to your moving subject to show movement while keeping the background and foreground in perfect focus. You can choose a slower shutter speed and then pan your camera to keep the subject perfectly focused while adding blur to the background and foreground elements.
Aperture priority mode and shutter priority mode gives you a great deal of control over the way you take pictures but these modes do take a little getting use to if you haven’t use any mode other than one of the programmed modes before. Experiment. Shoot the same picture using a variety of f-stops in the aperture priority mode and then shoot the same picture with a variety of shutter speeds in the shutter priority mode.
