Beyond Auto Mode: A Guide to Taking Control of Your Photography

PART 2: SEMI-AUTO AND MANUAL MODES

However it is you wish to document your life, whatever the types of images you want to make, having a solid understanding of the exposure elements will make your images that much better. Photography is complicated, yet it is also simple: Make the correct exposure decisions for the image you want to make.

In this section we delve into two of the semi-auto modes—aperture priority and shutter priority—as well as manual mode, discussing how they work, when to use them, and how to ultimately take full control.

Sometimes referred to as “creative” modes, the semi-auto modes on your camera offer you shared control of your settings. You set one or two corners of the exposure triangle and your camera sets the third. Using semi-auto modes in your journey to get beyond auto mode is a way to gain a greater understanding of how one piece of the exposure triangle affects the others.

I often alternate between the semi-auto AV setting on my camera and manual mode as a professional photographer. A lot of professionals do—especially wedding and portrait photographers, who often work in changing light conditions. Although professionals do, on occasion, choose to use the semi-auto modes, they are also proficient in manual mode.

As we move into manual mode, you will discover it is not just understanding exposure elements that will make your photographs better, ...