The Enthusiast's Guide to Exposure by John Greengo

Author:John Greengo [Greengo, John]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781681982595
Publisher: Rocky Nook
Published: 2017-04-03T00:00:00+00:00

26. MANUAL MODE

IN THE MANUAL exposure mode, you are in full control over shutter speeds and apertures. Knowledge of the effects of the various shutter speed settings and apertures will be key to maximizing this option. In order to get proper exposures, you’ll need to monitor your exposure indicator or light meter to check the light levels.

To start, locate the exposure indicator or light meter in your camera. Choose either shutter speed or aperture, and make a setting. Now adjust the other exposure setting so that the light meter’s reading is an even exposure (0). Most cameras have an indicator or line below a graphic display with a 0 near the middle, a plus (+) indicator on the right, and a minus (-) indicator on the left. Some cameras will simply have a series of numbers (-2, -1, 0, +1, +2) in which 0 indicates an image that is correctly exposed.

Once the exposure indicator is set to 0, take a photo and review it. Check to see if it’s too bright or too dark for your liking. If you aren’t happy with the settings or the results, make a change and try it again. If the photo is too dark you could either set a slower shutter speed or a larger aperture opening, depending on what is available and what your preference is. If your image is too bright you can set a faster shutter speed or a small aperture opening.

If you are satisfied with the exposure (brightness) of the image but want to change either the shutter speed or the aperture, you’ll need to do some trading. If you make the shutter speed faster, you’ll need to open up your aperture. Closing the aperture will require you to use a slower shutter speed. In either case, the light meter will no longer read 0, which in this case is perfectly fine.

A meter reading of 0 simply indicates that the scene has a moderate brightness level that isn’t overly dark or bright. In reality, many scenes are brighter or darker than average. In these cases, you’ll be shooting photos while your light meter is indicating that you are either over- or underexposing your image. Don’t worry too much about these readings; not all photos have an exposure setting of 0. This is one of the benefits of shooting in the Manual exposure mode—you get to choose the brightness level that seems right to you.

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