I'm enjoying Cheryl Johnson's Twelve Days of Christmas photography class and finding it somewhat manageable to squeeze into my hectic work schedule. The class is a nice mix of composition and technical assignments. I'm learning a lot, in particular, about shooting inside my house (something I do fairly rarely). I'm learning about setting my white balance, which is really crucial. I'm also learning about using some different camera settings. I have to admit that I get pretty stuck on using the "running man" setting and "aperture priority."
So, I'm curious. For those with DSLR camera, what settings do you use most? And why? Do you use the "p" setting (program) and, if so, what else do you set? Are you a manual kind of gal? If so, are there certain settings you go back to time and time again?
![LEAP [into lightroom]](http://learn.kimklassen.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Kim-Klassen_20151223_6459.jpg)
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Great questions - our new DSLR camera just arrived (a Christmas gift to ourselves), so I'm looking forward to learning all these things!
I always, always set my white balance, every single time I take a set of pictures. It's the one thing I've found that really improves my pictures. And I use "P" a lot. I don't have a full DSLR, just a Bridge
oh geeze ... i really need to learn to use my camera better ... it's been set to "auto" the whole time i've had it :)
Mariana in CA
Well....you're obviously doing something right....because that indoor photo looks great.
I'll be interested to see what karen says because I think she has a great grasp of what to do.
My settings depend on my situation. For a long time I mainly used P setting, it worked well for me because Av and Tv were taken care of but I could set the ISO and the white balance, I too change the white balance setting all the time. P is what I use when I have taken wedding photos - it is fool proof when you don't have time to fuss.
Over the past year I have shot in both fully manual and AV, I like both and both have their place, but M is time consuming and not always good for shooting people, especially children.
I set my exposure to +1 as well and recently I have been custom setting my white balance which is when you hold up the sheet of paper or grey card and change the settings that way ... it makes a big difference, but so do the camera setting WB options, and that's quicker.
For the last month I have only had my 50mm on the dSLR in the hope of familiarising myself with the restrictions of that mode - it has been interesting and I am liking the results.
I use A most of the time, sometimes I swing into full M mode but normally I don't have time to set everything up in M.
I have a white balance lens cap that I use. It is a white cap that you put over the end of your lens, point it at whatever you want to take a photo of and then take the white balance measurement photo with eh cap on. Works great & doubles as a lens cap as well
First - I love that photo of Gypsy! :o)
Second - I tend to stay on Av mode for most of the time, and I'll go over to Manual if I have time to play. And sometimes, just to make sure I have another chance at the shot, I'll switch it over to Auto for a shot or two. (However, I'm finding that when I do that I'm not as happy with the shot I got on Auto.)
I've been on manual for about a year now. It took a lot of practice before I could do it fast enough to be practical. If I need to shoot quickly, I go back to AV, and occasionally Tv.
I always set my white balance, even on my point and shoot. I just bought a gray card for setting custom white balance but I haven't used it yet.
When I shoot indoors, I find a tripod makes for much better photos because our house is so dark. I keep mine set up in my studio and carry it downstairs when I need it.
I signed up for a new photography course online in November, but it ended before I ever got started so I'm very impressed that you are keeping up during this hectic time. I'm hoping to get to some of my assignments this week.
Well I don't own a DSLR so I cannot help you in that department, but Gypsy sure is adorable in this photo :)
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