I know to set up your photo and then focus last. But should I adjust ISO, Shutter Speed, and Aperture in a particular order and then focus. For example: I usually adjust shutter speed, then ISO or Aperture, then finally focus before hitting the shutter button. Is this correct. Just something I was wondering about so I can get the best out of my photos. Thanks 365er's!
I'm always playing with the settings in no particular order... I think every picture is unique and you will have to play with the settings to make it work for you! Good luck!
@artstartraveler I don't understand your question. It's not like you would change the value of a setting just because you did it first one time and third another. If you want a picture with small depth of field, you will set your aperture to be very large, regardless of if you set that value first or last. If you want motion blur, you'll set a slow shutter speed regardless of whether you do it first or last. You are changing all three settings before the picture is taken, so the order doesn't matter.
In a studio setting, I usually do focus last on initial set-up, in case I move the camera whilst messing about. After that I adjust aperture/shutter speed for subsequent shots just to get a variety of pics.
It doesn't matter what order you adjust ISO/aperture/shutter.
If you're interested in time management, I would recommend setting your ISO first, that is usually the one variable that stays the most constant, if you have a shot pictured in your head, say small DOF, then I would set the aperture next and then the shutter speed to accomplish the correct lighting for the given aperture because of the effect you are trying to get, then the focus.
In general, set your ISO, then adjust shutter/aperture in any order to get a correct exposure, focus and shoot.
Thanks so much for the response. I've always been about video editing and photography is new for me. I was just curious about it. These were all very helpful.
If I was out and about taking a photo. I would agree with @shadesofgrey because the ISO will be pretty constant. I would then do my f stop since that is what lets the light in, and then I would figure out my shutter to address how long the exposure needs to be. Also if it is a dslr, I would probably still have my white balance on auto since it seems to work best that way and why fuss with it.
Thanks. I'm shooting with a 50mm 1.8 right now and for the price, It's awesome. I don't know if it's my eyesight or (most likely) my settings but I can't get the sharp images that I want. I ordered the EF 85mm F1.8 and I'm pretty pumped to play with that.
I actually started using AF more with this lens because as soon as I figured out how to use the back stop button I found I got better results with AF on. I think it may be my Aperture because it only happens when I'm taking portraits of 2 or more people. For instance I took portraits of a couple and the girl was out of focus while the guys was perfectly sharp. Not sure what my setting should be on? I shoot at 1.8 a lot. What would you recommend for outside portraits?
19 out of 20 times, the last thing I do is dump my shot in the trash can... Anything I did prior to the trash can is a mystery :)
I am sure the order really doesn't matter as long as you are happy with the settings before you trigger the shutter; and it all depends on the effect you are trying to achieve.
@artstartraveler I don't have a particular order but usually change the ISO first.
When you shoot more than one person you shouldn't use an aperture of f1.8 since the focus point will be too small.
When shooting my two kids I make sure the aperture is greater than 2.5. If they are close together then I can get away with 2.2, as long as I am not straight on which makes their noses the focal point. Enjoy the nifty fifty. I love mine!
Oh no. I just went to get my camera and my 50mm f/1.8 was busted. I keep it in a bag at all times and I've never dropped it. I'm heartbroken. Thank goodness I just ordered a new lens. I'm def sending this back because I've only had it for 4 months :(
Interesting question - it never occurred to me to think about it! Ive only recently taken the leap away from auto settings... I do ISO first - the lowest I think I can handle given light, what I'm shooting, etc... I also do white balance - and if indoors will try a test shot... Outdoors I seem to be able to get good results picking sun or cloud as appropriate... Indoors is iffy- sometimes auto is btr, sometimes not - not sure what is making the difference... Mostly I use AV - pick the aperture and let shutter speed set itself... I will fiddle w shutter speed if I'm trying to do something funky... Or shooting in really low light or at night...
I feel like I've missed a setting, but can't think what it may be!
Happy to hear any suggestions for improving on my approach, but from thread so far sounds like there isn't one right way...
I guess to answer your original question it really depends on what you are shooting.
But has you have said you are shooting portraits and generally of more than one person.
I will use the assumption that you are not using strobes.
To start of f1.2 is waaaaaaayyyyyyyyy to shallow for more than one person. It is difficult to get the focus correct on person at f1.2 and near on inpossible with more than one. You should be shooting at something like f5.6 where I would shot it at around f11.
This is how I would do it:
I work from most important to least important just in case I forget something. :)
Set your camera to AV and select the DOF that you would like. As mentioned I would set it at f11.
Set ISO to 200.
Set metering to use spot.
Set focus to center focus
Focus on the closest eye and lock it in
Adjust for composition.
Take shot.
Pack up and go home. :)
Now the different if I was doing this with strobes (which is most of my shots) is that I would set the shutter speed to 1/125 and have the camera on manual. From there I adjust the lights and subject to the lights ad background to get the shot I am after.
Now on the other side if I was shooting say a horse event, I would do:
Set your camera to TV and select the motion blur that I would like. starting point is 1/200.
Set ISO to 200.
Set metering to use center weight .
If the horse is running from left to right I would set the focus point to be the most left point
Focus on the main part of the body on a moving horse or the eye if stationary.
Adjust for composition if possible or if running horse take the shot the instant it gets focus.
Luckily it's still under warranty. I'm definitely going to experiment with all of this. Thanks so much for all of the responses. These were extremely helpful Up until now I've only been shooting in manual :)
@artstartraveler For me manual is over rated. People see it as the pinnacle of controlling your camera, where in reality it is not the norm. I think it may of been that manual was the way to go but the cameras these days are soo advanced they do a fantastic job in split seconds.
Manual is used when you want to be creative but without strobes this is limited to some extent. i.e. you can not use the shutter speed to change the background lighting, etc etc.
Good luck with getting a replacement and I am always happy to answer any questions you just need to tag me in the comments as I sometimes don't find the time to go trolling. :)
Thanks. This is my first DSLR and I wanted to get really comfortable with the manual mode. I feel like I'm ready to branch out now. After all that's why I;m doing 365 :) I'm def going to give AV and TV a try
@artstartraveler Dude, same thing happened to my 50mm lens. I loved that thing. I cried a little. I want a new 50mm, and I think I might just upgrade to the 1.4 USM.
Anywho, there's a lot to read here, and I'm tired, so I'm just going to start typing stuff and cross my fingers that somewhere in my rambling I answer your question...
It all depends on what I'm doing. Ultimately, the order in which you adjust your settings doesn't matter. They're all different roads to the same destination. The better you know your camera, the available light, and your tools, the better you can initially judge, and the less subsequent adjustments you'll have to make.
If I'm strobing it indoors, I always shoot in manual. First, I take a dozen pictures and realize that I'm not in manual at all. Then, I actually switch to manual. This is obviously very important, but often forgotten. Sometimes, I also have to remember to turn the camera on, and also remove the lens cap.
In most cases, I go right to ƒ7.1 or ƒ8 and ISO 200, because I know my lenses are sharpest at that aperture, and I'm familiar with the output of my speedlites at those apertures, so I don't have to goof around too much. Shutter speed between 1/100 and 1/200.
I'd do the same thing if I was shooting with flashes outside. It's a little more complicated because you need to balance the flashes with the natural light, so I'd first adjust my settings to properly expose the natural light, and then add in and adjust my flashes to get what I want from them. (Honestly, I think I spend most of my time adjusting flashes. Forget the stupid camera box thing.)
If I'm shooting close ups of my cats, I'll drop to somewhere between ƒ1.8 and ƒ3.5. The slimmer DOF makes them look much softer. Obviously, at this point I need to readjust my lights.
Shooting outside without strobes? Or even indoors without strobes? Switch to AV, set ISO to 100 to 400 based on the intensity of the light, and let the camera handle the shutter speed. If I'm shooting action, like my cats mauling each other, set it to Tv, pick a shutter speed, and let the camera do the rest.
Focusing is always last, and always with AF, but never full auto focus. I always pick a specific AF point. I never use manual focus because I can't see anything through the VF, and Live Mode is stoopit. Focus, and fire away.
To answer that one question of yours, just like @agima said, you can't shoot multiple people at different depths with ƒ1.anything. The higher number the aperture, the deeper your DOF becomes, meaning that the range of what appears in focus becomes larger. Shoot at ƒ5.6 and above, but if you have a lot of people and the light to spare, crank it up to ƒ11ish. If you don't have the light, do it anyway, and make it up by increasing your ISO, or lengthening your shutter speed.
Anywho, if after all this futzing around something looks goofy, I might change the white balance, but I usually just rely on auto. You can tweak that all too easily in post anyway, so I don't sweat it that much.
Hell, you can tweak just about anything in post. Why bother taking a picture at all? Just open Photoshop and go nuts.
Nah, just kidding. Take the picture first, and then HDR the hell out of it, add a twirl filter, some cross processing, increase the contrast, and add in some other crap, and you're destined to land on the popular page within seconds.
In conclusion:
The more you shoot, and the more environments you experience, and the more you experiment, the better you learn how your camera works, and the less you have to worry about which settings to adjust first. Eventually, you can set the camera without thinking about it, and probably without looking. For that very reason, this is one of my favorite ads:
I hope that was at least the smallest bit helpful.
Awesome! Gary very informative. I love this add I haven't seen it before. I can relate. I obsess over my dslr so much now that I dream about the settings in my sleep. I'm going to come back and refer to this for sure. Thanks again. I've discovered that I shoot at 1.8 way too much. I really need to work on changing that up.
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It doesn't matter what order you adjust ISO/aperture/shutter.
In general, set your ISO, then adjust shutter/aperture in any order to get a correct exposure, focus and shoot.
Thanks. I'm shooting with a 50mm 1.8 right now and for the price, It's awesome. I don't know if it's my eyesight or (most likely) my settings but I can't get the sharp images that I want. I ordered the EF 85mm F1.8 and I'm pretty pumped to play with that.
I actually started using AF more with this lens because as soon as I figured out how to use the back stop button I found I got better results with AF on. I think it may be my Aperture because it only happens when I'm taking portraits of 2 or more people. For instance I took portraits of a couple and the girl was out of focus while the guys was perfectly sharp. Not sure what my setting should be on? I shoot at 1.8 a lot. What would you recommend for outside portraits?
I am sure the order really doesn't matter as long as you are happy with the settings before you trigger the shutter; and it all depends on the effect you are trying to achieve.
When you shoot more than one person you shouldn't use an aperture of f1.8 since the focus point will be too small.
could answer that question better than I can........
Oh no. I just went to get my camera and my 50mm f/1.8 was busted. I keep it in a bag at all times and I've never dropped it. I'm heartbroken. Thank goodness I just ordered a new lens. I'm def sending this back because I've only had it for 4 months :(
I just picked it up out of the bag and it was like this
I feel like I've missed a setting, but can't think what it may be!
Happy to hear any suggestions for improving on my approach, but from thread so far sounds like there isn't one right way...
@shadesofgrey
I guess to answer your original question it really depends on what you are shooting.
But has you have said you are shooting portraits and generally of more than one person.
I will use the assumption that you are not using strobes.
To start of f1.2 is waaaaaaayyyyyyyyy to shallow for more than one person. It is difficult to get the focus correct on person at f1.2 and near on inpossible with more than one. You should be shooting at something like f5.6 where I would shot it at around f11.
This is how I would do it:
I work from most important to least important just in case I forget something. :)
Set your camera to AV and select the DOF that you would like. As mentioned I would set it at f11.
Set ISO to 200.
Set metering to use spot.
Set focus to center focus
Focus on the closest eye and lock it in
Adjust for composition.
Take shot.
Pack up and go home. :)
Now the different if I was doing this with strobes (which is most of my shots) is that I would set the shutter speed to 1/125 and have the camera on manual. From there I adjust the lights and subject to the lights ad background to get the shot I am after.
Now on the other side if I was shooting say a horse event, I would do:
Set your camera to TV and select the motion blur that I would like. starting point is 1/200.
Set ISO to 200.
Set metering to use center weight .
If the horse is running from left to right I would set the focus point to be the most left point
Focus on the main part of the body on a moving horse or the eye if stationary.
Adjust for composition if possible or if running horse take the shot the instant it gets focus.
Luckily it's still under warranty. I'm definitely going to experiment with all of this. Thanks so much for all of the responses. These were extremely helpful Up until now I've only been shooting in manual :)
Manual is used when you want to be creative but without strobes this is limited to some extent. i.e. you can not use the shutter speed to change the background lighting, etc etc.
Good luck with getting a replacement and I am always happy to answer any questions you just need to tag me in the comments as I sometimes don't find the time to go trolling. :)
Thanks. This is my first DSLR and I wanted to get really comfortable with the manual mode. I feel like I'm ready to branch out now. After all that's why I;m doing 365 :) I'm def going to give AV and TV a try
Anywho, there's a lot to read here, and I'm tired, so I'm just going to start typing stuff and cross my fingers that somewhere in my rambling I answer your question...
It all depends on what I'm doing. Ultimately, the order in which you adjust your settings doesn't matter. They're all different roads to the same destination. The better you know your camera, the available light, and your tools, the better you can initially judge, and the less subsequent adjustments you'll have to make.
If I'm strobing it indoors, I always shoot in manual. First, I take a dozen pictures and realize that I'm not in manual at all. Then, I actually switch to manual. This is obviously very important, but often forgotten. Sometimes, I also have to remember to turn the camera on, and also remove the lens cap.
In most cases, I go right to ƒ7.1 or ƒ8 and ISO 200, because I know my lenses are sharpest at that aperture, and I'm familiar with the output of my speedlites at those apertures, so I don't have to goof around too much. Shutter speed between 1/100 and 1/200.
I'd do the same thing if I was shooting with flashes outside. It's a little more complicated because you need to balance the flashes with the natural light, so I'd first adjust my settings to properly expose the natural light, and then add in and adjust my flashes to get what I want from them. (Honestly, I think I spend most of my time adjusting flashes. Forget the stupid camera box thing.)
If I'm shooting close ups of my cats, I'll drop to somewhere between ƒ1.8 and ƒ3.5. The slimmer DOF makes them look much softer. Obviously, at this point I need to readjust my lights.
Shooting outside without strobes? Or even indoors without strobes? Switch to AV, set ISO to 100 to 400 based on the intensity of the light, and let the camera handle the shutter speed. If I'm shooting action, like my cats mauling each other, set it to Tv, pick a shutter speed, and let the camera do the rest.
Focusing is always last, and always with AF, but never full auto focus. I always pick a specific AF point. I never use manual focus because I can't see anything through the VF, and Live Mode is stoopit. Focus, and fire away.
To answer that one question of yours, just like @agima said, you can't shoot multiple people at different depths with ƒ1.anything. The higher number the aperture, the deeper your DOF becomes, meaning that the range of what appears in focus becomes larger. Shoot at ƒ5.6 and above, but if you have a lot of people and the light to spare, crank it up to ƒ11ish. If you don't have the light, do it anyway, and make it up by increasing your ISO, or lengthening your shutter speed.
Anywho, if after all this futzing around something looks goofy, I might change the white balance, but I usually just rely on auto. You can tweak that all too easily in post anyway, so I don't sweat it that much.
Hell, you can tweak just about anything in post. Why bother taking a picture at all? Just open Photoshop and go nuts.
Nah, just kidding. Take the picture first, and then HDR the hell out of it, add a twirl filter, some cross processing, increase the contrast, and add in some other crap, and you're destined to land on the popular page within seconds.
In conclusion:
The more you shoot, and the more environments you experience, and the more you experiment, the better you learn how your camera works, and the less you have to worry about which settings to adjust first. Eventually, you can set the camera without thinking about it, and probably without looking. For that very reason, this is one of my favorite ads:
I hope that was at least the smallest bit helpful.
Awesome! Gary very informative. I love this add I haven't seen it before. I can relate. I obsess over my dslr so much now that I dream about the settings in my sleep. I'm going to come back and refer to this for sure. Thanks again. I've discovered that I shoot at 1.8 way too much. I really need to work on changing that up.