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The Best Landscape Photography Settings: A Guide

14 Oct

The post The Best Landscape Photography Settings: A Guide appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Bond.

In this article, you’ll discover the best landscape photography settings to take your photos to the next level.

Landscape photography is one of the most popular photographic genres, and it’s why many of us pick up a camera in the first place. However, determining the perfect settings for great results can be a struggle, which is where this article comes in handy.

Below, I share plenty of settings advice. I explain how to select the perfect camera mode, shutter speed, aperture, and white balance, plus plenty more – so if you’re ready to improve your landscape photography, then read on.

sun rising over the landscape — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 17-40mm f/4L | f/22 | 1/8s | ISO 100

The best camera mode for landscape photography

Your camera has several modes, ranging from Automatic through to Manual. These are the common modes available to you:

Automatic: With Auto mode, your camera chooses the aperture, ISO, and shutter speed. All you need to do is compose and take the photo.
Landscape: This is also a type of automatic mode, but is a step up from the standard Auto mode mentioned above. In Landscape mode, your camera knows you’re photographing a landscape, so it will choose a more standard “landscape” aperture.
Aperture Priority: Aperture Priority mode allows you to set your aperture and (if you wish) the ISO, while your camera selects the shutter speed. You can adjust the exposure value – to darken or lighten the photo – with your camera’s Exposure Compensation feature.
Shutter priority: Shutter Priority mode lets you choose a specific shutter speed while your camera picks the aperture. This can be useful for long exposure landscape images.
Manual: Manual mode lets you control all your settings – the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO – to get the correct exposure. This will take longer, but in landscape photography, you have the time.

As a beginner, you maybe tempted to use the camera’s automatic features, but I highly recommend you learn your camera setting and use Manual. Your results will pretty much always be better!

river and blue sky — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 17-40mm f/4L | f/8 | 1/400s | ISO 100

The best aperture, shutter speed, and ISO for landscape photography

The three key settings for any photographer, no matter the type of photo, are aperture, shutter speed and ISO. Together, these settings determine the final exposure of your image, which is why they’re often referred to as the exposure triangle.

In landscape photography, you’ll want to adjust these settings very carefully. Let’s take a closer look, starting with:

Aperture

Aperture is arguably the most important setting in landscape photography. It controls sharpness, depth of field, and at smaller apertures can create a starburst effect.

Sharpness: Landscape photos are best when they’re both focused and sharp. Using the wrong aperture for your landscape can result in a softer image. You’ll want to select an ultra-sharp aperture somewhere between f/8 and f/11, but the specifics depend on the lens you have. Generally, your lens’s sharpest aperture is three stops down from its widest aperture, so feel free to use this as a guideline (though you can always do a few tests!).
Depth of field: When you have foreground elements close to the camera, depth of field is especially important. You’ll need a deeper depth of field to maintain sharpness across the frame, which is achieved in one of two ways: with a narrow aperture (around f/8 and beyond), or with focus stacking, where several photos are taken then merged in post-processing to produce focus throughout the photo.
Starburst effect: A small aperture can produce a pleasing starburst effect when you shoot toward points of light like street lights or a partially covered sun.

beautiful sunrise landscape photography — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 17-40mm f/4L | f/8 | 1/100s | ISO 500

Shutter speed

Another very important landscape photography setting is the shutter speed. In fact, it can dramatically change the type of landscape photo you capture. Based on your shutter speed, you can create a crisp photo (fast shutter speed) or a softer, long exposure (slow shutter speed). Note that any shutter speed over half a second is considered long exposure, and you’ll need a tripod for the best results.

The long exposure effect

Long exposure has a transformative effect on photos when applied in the right place and at the right time. You can easily carry out long exposures at night, thanks to the lack of light; during the day, you’ll need a strong neutral density filter to achieve a long shutter speed without overexposing the image. You might choose to use a long shutter speed in any of the following scenarios:

Coastlines: Use at least ten second exposures to flatten the water.
Moving water: Use exposures of one second or higher around white water for the “silk effect”
Traffic light trails: Use exposures long enough to capture car light trails along the length of the road you’re photographing. Aim to keep the shutter speed over 15 seconds or so.
Windy days: You can capture cloud movement across the sky with exposures of 30 seconds or longer.
Intentional camera movement: Try moving your camera body or adjusting the focal length during a long exposure. These type of photos can last anywhere between five to thirty seconds in length.

black and white landscape — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 17-40mm f/4L | f/8 | 20s | ISO 1000 | Hoya infrared filter

ISO

Your ISO setting will brighten your photo, but the higher the ISO, the worse the image quality.

As a landscape photographer, you should shoot with a tripod for the best results, so in most conditions you’ll be able to use an ISO of 100 (or your camera’s base ISO setting).

That said, there are times – especially at night – when you might want to use a higher ISO. For example, if you’re using an aperture of f/11 and you’re not getting enough light for a correct exposure even at 30 seconds, you may want to boost your ISO to get a reasonable shutter speed.

Also, if you do astrophotography, you’ll definitely need a high ISO, assuming you want to freeze the stars (which are always moving across the sky, or at least appear to be!). Consider shooting at ISO 12600 or even more, if your camera can handle it. In fact, standard Milky Way settings are an aperture of f/2.8, an exposure of 25 or 30 seconds, plus an ISO as high as you can reasonably go.

colorful orange and red trees in a landscape scene — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 17-40mm f/4L | f/16 | 1/200s | ISO 640

The best focusing settings for landscape photography

When it comes to landscape photography, you have two choices for the proper focusing mode:

Autofocus or manual focus.

In my opinion, the best results come from manual focus, though it is somewhat dependent on the equipment and the scenario. Let’s take a closer look at these two options:

Autofocus

With autofocus, your camera where automatically focus, though you do get the option to specify where you want your camera to focus.

So set your camera to its single-point focus mode (where it uses a single AF point to determine the proper focus). Then compose your shot, select an object in the middle ground, and position your single focus point over that object.

Press your shutter halfway to achieve focus, then take the shot.

river rushing water — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 17-40mm f/4L | f/11 | 13s | ISO 250 | ND1000 filter

Manual focus

Manual focus will often given you sharper images, though it’s a little trickier. You’ll need a tripod, or at least a steady location where the camera remains still. Here’s what you do:

Place your camera on a tripod and compose your shot.
If your lens has image stabilization, be sure to switch it off.
Set your lens to manual focus; that way, you’ll be focusing the lens with your lens focus ring.
Turn on your camera’s Live View function. If you’re using a DSLR, the mirror will lock up.
Use your Live View’s zoom function to zoom in on an area of your composition. Note: Don’t zoom with your lens, only with the Live View zoom.
Once you have zoomed in, use the lens focus ring and focus sharply on your desired object.
Zoom back out, check your composition, and take your photo.

wheat with a city in the background — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 17-40mm f/4L | f/8 | 1/125s | ISO 100

The best white balance for landscape photography

White balance is an important setting for any photographic situation, and landscape photography is no different. You have a few choices, including a manual and an automatic option. But depending on your image file format, you can make further adjustments in post processing.

Why does white balance need adjusting?

When photographing during the day, you’ll likely get good results from the automatic settings on your camera. However, photographing at night with cold or warm street lights can cause the automatic option to fail, in which case you may prefer to use a semi-automatic or manual white balance option.

Automatic white balance

The Auto White Balance setting, or AWB for short, tells your camera to make the white balance decisions for you. It’s certainly usable during the day, and today’s cameras will give good AWB results.

White balance presets

Your camera will also have a number of preset white balances. These include settings like Tungsten and Fluorescent, which counteract he warm or cold light produced by the corresponding light sources. White balance presets are useful for nighttime cityscape photography, when you want to cool your image and remove the orange glow a city produces.

Manual white balance

The white balance can be quantified using Kelvin, a measure of temperature. Cameras generally offer a white balance Kelvin scale ranging from around 2500K to 15000K, where the lower the Kelvin number in your camera, the cooler the resulting image, and vice versa.

To set the white balance on your camera, you can use the camera’s custom white balance setting. Aim your camera at a gray or white card, then take a photo. Then use this photo to set your camera’s custom white balance. Alternatively, use the camera’s Kelvin adjustment buttons to choose the correct setting.

long exposure water scene — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 50mm f/1.2L | f/8 | 20s | ISO 100

File type

There are two main file types to choose from when taking photos (TIFF is another popular option but is more relevant to post processing). These are RAW and JPEG:

JPEG

This file type is designed to be a finished product. If you’re not interested in a lot of editing work, a JPEG might suit you. The size of file is also a lot smaller than its RAW counterpart, which can be helpful in certain situations.

When capturing JPEGs, it’s best to get the image right in camera, because you have much less flexibility in post-processing. If you’re happy to work this way, then JPEGs are a good path.

RAW

The vast majority of landscape photographers photograph in RAW, also referred to as the digital negative. RAW file sizes are larger, but the ability to enhance your image in post processing is so much greater.

Adjusting settings after the fact, like temperature, sharpness, and exposure levels, give much better results when the file was shot in RAW. You’ll also find that adjusting (and recovering) shadows and highlights will be improved.

city at night — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 50mm f/1.2L | f/8 | 10s | ISO 100

Additional landscape photography settings to know

There are a handful of other landscape photography settings that can improve your results, including:

Mirror lock-up

Mirror lock-up only applies to cameras with mirrors (e.g., DSLRs). It can improve the sharpness of your photo if you’re using slow shutter speeds, because it prevents the camera mirror from causing vibrations when you hit the shutter button.

Image stabilization

If you’re taking a photo handheld and your lens or camera has image stabilization, it’s a good idea to turn it on. Stabilization technology counteracts camera shake, and will therefore allow you to photograph at a slower shutter speed.

However, when your camera is on a tripod and you’re shooting at slow shutter speeds, make sure to turn off all image stabilization technology; in such cases, the image stabilizer will actually cause image blur.

Bracketing

If you wish to do any HDR or digital blending in post-processing, then bracketing is an important setting to get right. When your camera is set up for bracketing, it will take three photos of the same scene (you should use a tripod for this) with different exposure values, typically +1, 0 and -1. Though you can vary the exposure values, the idea is to create a dark, normal, and light image, which you can later blend together for improved dynamic range.

long exposure beach rocks — Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 17-40mm f/4L | f/8 | 1/3s | ISO 400

Landscape photography settings: final words

Landscape photography is an exciting genre, and it’s great to get out and capture those epic scenes! Now that you’ve finished this article, you should be a landscape settings expert – so get out to some great places near you and apply your new knowledge.

Over to you:

What settings have you been using for your landscape photos? How will your workflow change in response to this article? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

The post The Best Landscape Photography Settings: A Guide appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Bond.

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13 iPhone Camera Settings to Improve Your Photos

17 Jun

The post 13 iPhone Camera Settings to Improve Your Photos appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.

There is an amazing array of iPhone camera settings you can tweak, customize, and configure to get just the right shots. Some of these settings are obvious, but others are buried beneath layers of buttons and menus and are easy to miss.

And while anyone can take great shots on an iPhone just by launching the camera and pressing the shutter button, learning a few of the custom options can truly take your iPhone photography to the next level.

13 iphone camera settings to improve your photos

Also, most of these iPhone tips and tricks are available no matter your iPhone model – so even if your iPhone is a few years old, you can still access some very helpful settings.

Are you ready to discover 13 highly useful iPhone settings?

Let’s dive right in.

lake with fluffy clouds — A picture of a lake near the United States/Canada border (shot with my iPhone). When you know how to tweak your iPhone camera settings, you can get the shots you’re looking for.

1. Show and hide camera options

Nestled near the top of the iPhone camera is a thin strip (with the Flash icon on the left and the Live Photos icon on the right, as displayed below). Situated directly between these two icons is a small arrow pointing up, like the ^ caret above the number six on a keyboard:

camera options iPhone camera settings — Tap the ^ icon at the top of the camera interface to show/hide the camera options icons at the bottom.

Tap the caret at the top to show and hide a row of options near the bottom of the camera interface. As you can see in the screenshot above, this uncovers a handful of useful options, including filters and real-time cropping.

Another way to access these settings? Press your finger directly on the middle of your iPhone screen with the camera open, then swipe up or down. This yields the same result as tapping on the ^ icon, but some people find the press-and-swipe method to be a little more convenient. Either way, the hidden row of options puts some powerful tools right at your fingertips and can help you instantly take better photos.

One caveat: When you reveal this row of settings icons, your normal photo modes, such as Pano, Portrait, and Video, disappear. You can still access them by pressing on the middle of your phone and dragging your finger to the right or left, but it’s easy to get lost without seeing the name of the mode you are currently using.

I recommend you first set the photo mode (i.e. Portrait, Photo, etc.), and only then reveal the row of camera options icons.

2. Use the volume buttons as your camera shutter

When Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone in 2007, he proudly declared that it would not have a keyboard (much to the chagrin of smartphone users around the world!). Replacing the physical keys was a revolutionary touchscreen that could transform into whatever the developer wanted.

While the touchscreen was a brilliant move, it meant some common actions like snapping a picture became a little more tricky. It’s not always easy to hold your phone just right and press the shutter button at the same time.

Fortunately, there’s an easy fix for this common frustration:

Press the volume-up button to snap a picture.

This feature is enabled by default, but many users aren’t aware that it exists. Once you learn to use it, you won’t ever want to go back to awkwardly tapping the touchscreen to take pictures.

(Also, quick tip: When you press and hold the volume-up button, your phone will begin recording a movie. Release the button to stop recording.)

Many people don’t know this, but the volume buttons on any iPhone can be used to take a picture. You don’t have to change any settings to do it – it’s enabled by default.

3. Shoot in burst mode

An iPhone might not seem like the ideal device for action photography. After all, it can’t compare to a high-end DSLR or mirrorless camera that can fire off a burst of photos in rapid succession.

Or can it?

In fact, iPhones offer a burst mode – and with it, you can get action shots you never thought possible. You can shoot dozens of rapid-fire photos, then choose the best one from the batch.

Here’s how it works:

With the Camera app open, press and hold the shutter button, then quickly slide your finger all the way to the left. Burst mode will activate, you’ll start taking a series of images, and you’ll see a counter with the number of captured shots.

Use this during moments of fast action. You’ll always end up with those split-second, perfectly timed shots – without spending thousands of dollars on high-end camera equipment.

burst mode is a key iPhone camera setting — Press and drag the shutter button with your finger to take a burst of photos. The shutter button displays your photo count.

4. Press and hold the volume button for a photo burst

Burst mode is great, but what if you prefer using the camera volume buttons to snap pictures? If you press and hold the volume button, your phone starts recording a movie, not a burst – but did you know that you can force the volume buttons to shoot in burst mode when held down?

First, navigate to the Settings app. Then scroll down to Camera.

Next, look for the option that says Use Volume Up for Burst, and tap to enable it.

That’s it! Now, if you hold the volume-up button, your iPhone will fire off a burst – and if you hold the volume-down button, you’ll record a movie. It’s the best of both worlds, and a setting I highly recommend. You never know whether you’ll need a burst or a movie, so it helps to have both options at your fingertips!

5. Use the built-in self-timer

Sometimes, you don’t want to take a photo the instant you press the shutter button. DSLRs and mirrorless cameras have a built-in self-timer; it lets you set a delay from the time you press the shutter to the time the camera actually takes a picture.

At first glance, this feature may seem missing from iPhones. But with a quick tap or swipe, you can activate the self-timer and start taking control of your photos.

Here’s what you do:

First, show the row of extra camera options by tapping the caret at the top of the screen (as described in Point 1 of this article).

Then press the Timer icon. Select either Off, 3s, or 10s:

iPhone Camera Settings self timer — To use the built-in self-timer, tap the *Timer* icon. Then specify whether to use the 3-second or 10-second delay.

Now, when you press the shutter button, you’ll get a delay before your iPhone snaps the photo.

It helps to have a tripod to hold your phone steady, but the timer works fine for selfie shots, too. That way, you can snap a picture without trying to position the phone and fire your iPhone shutter at the same time.

6. Real-time aspect-ratio cropping

As experienced users know, it’s easy to crop a photo on an iPhone. Just tap on the image, hit Edit, and then press the Crop button.

But while this process works well for cropping your photos after you take them, what if you want to start with a cropped display and frame your image accordingly?

Some high-end cameras allow you to select custom crops when you take photos, and the iPhone has this ability, too.

First, tap the caret at the top of the screen to reveal the hidden camera options. Then, tap the 4:3 button (which represents the 4:3 ratio in which iPhone photos are shot):

iPhone Camera Settings real-time cropping — To use real-time cropping, access the hidden camera options and tap the *4:3* icon. Then specify what type of crop you want: Square, 4:3, or 16:9. Note that these options might be slightly different depending on your iPhone model.

Now you can choose whether to shoot in a 4:3, Square (1:1), or 16:9 aspect ratio – and you won’t have to go through the painstaking process of cropping your photos individually afterward.

school campus — Real-time cropping lets you see how your cropped photo will turn out (without any guesswork).

7. Portrait Lighting

In 2016, the iPhone 7 Plus was released with the first iteration of Portrait mode.

Portrait mode essentially mimics the blurry background effect you can get with a DSLR or mirrorless camera, but with Apple software algorithms. And the blur mimicry has gotten much better since those early incarnations, and now incorporates a feature called Portrait Lighting. This gives your Portrait mode images the appearance of being captured in various lighting conditions, and the result is so good it’s downright uncanny.

To access Portrait Lighting, first put your phone in Portrait mode (find it in the mode options just above the shutter button).

You should see a series of circles above the Portrait label; these are your different Portrait Lighting effects:

The default lighting mode for portraits is “Natural Light” but this can be changed to “Studio Light,” “Stage Light,” “Contour Light,” and more. You actually see the effect in real time, so you know how the finished result will look, and you can change lighting modes as much as you want before you take a picture.

Portrait Lighting is a great way to punch up your portraits, and you can even go back and change the Portrait Lighting effect afterward when editing a Portrait mode image in the photo library.

8. Use filters as you shoot

Instagram and other social networks popularized the idea of filters, and now it’s almost strange to see photos without some kind of filter applied. The most common way of using filters is to snap a photo and then apply the filter afterward – but your iPhone camera has an option to use filters as you shoot.

With this, you can see what your edited pictures will look like before you even take them.

filters on an iPhone — Filters can be applied as you shoot your images so you can see *exactly* what the final result will look like.

To use real-time filters, access the camera options by tapping the caret at the top of the screen. Then tap the icon with three intersecting circles.

The filter options will appear, and you’ll be able to choose from a variety of looks, including Vivid Warm, Dramatic Cool, Silvertone, and more. I find this method much more practical than applying filters after I take a photo, plus seeing your filters applied in real time can have a dramatic effect on your images!

9. Choose your preferred photo format (HEIF vs JPEG)

Until recently, the iPhone shot pictures in JPEG format. But while JPEGs are a good compromise between quality and file size, they’re ill-suited for today’s users, who want features like HDR imaging while still keeping file sizes small.

HEIF is a new file type designed to solve this problem, and it’s now the default format for iPhone photos.

Unfortunately, not everyone has a device that can load HEIF images, which makes sharing iPhone photos somewhat problematic – unless you know a handy iPhone settings solution.

Go to Settings, then Photos, and scroll all the way to the bottom to Transfer to Mac or PC. The Automatic setting will convert HEIF pictures to JPEG when sending them to a device that can’t read HEIF images. (Keep Originals will always send images as HEIFs).

You can also change the image format from HEIF to JPEG or JPEG to HEIF. Go to Settings, then Camera, and select Formats:

iPhone Camera Settings heif jpeg — *High Efficiency* is a good option for saving space, but *Most Compatible* uses the more common JPEG format.

If you tap High Efficiency, your iPhone will shoot HEIFs – whereas selecting Most Compatible forces your camera to use JPEGs.

Generally, I recommend shooting photos in HEIF and leaving Transfer to Mac or PC on Automatic. But it’s always useful to know how to change these settings to your liking!

10. Optimize iPhone storage

If you take a lot of pictures on your iPhone, you might quickly find yourself running out of storage space. And while you can’t add more storage to your iPhone, there is a trick that lets you take tons of photos without worrying too much about using up space on your phone: storage optimization.

Go to Settings, then tap Photos. Look for the Optimize iPhone Storage option:

This will automatically upload the photos to your iCloud account while keeping tiny, low-resolution thumbnails on your iPhone. Then, when you load a photo, the original is automatically downloaded from iCloud.

A caveat is that you need enough space on your iCloud account to accommodate your photos. Unlike your iPhone, you can add more iCloud storage, but you will have to pay. Prices range from one to ten dollars a month, and the one-dollar plan is plenty for most people.

So if you find yourself constantly running low on iPhone storage because of all your photos, don’t delete them! Just use the Optimize iPhone Storage option and let iCloud take care of the rest.

11. Show/hide the camera grid

Many DSLR and mirrorless cameras have grid overlays that help you compose your shots. They’re a great way to make sure your horizons are level, and you can use them to guide your rule-of-thirds compositions.

But did you know that your iPhone also has a grid?

All you have to do is select Settings, then Camera, and enable the Grid option.

iPhone Camera Settings show hide grid — Enable the Grid option in your Settings to display a grid overlay as you shoot pictures.

Now, when you take a photo, you will see a 3-by-3 grid, like this:

campus library and garden — The grid overlay is a great way to make sure your photos are straight and well-composed!

12. Adjust the blur strength in Portrait mode

The iPhone camera has a fixed-aperture lens.

What does this mean? Well, unlike a DSLR or mirrorless camera, you can’t decide whether to shoot wide open or stopped down – and so you don’t have control over the background blur.

Except that, when shooting in Portrait mode, your iPhone does let you customize the level of blur. This effectively mimics aperture adjustments (through software trickery).

First, select Portrait mode from the mode options. Then tap the f icon in the top-right corner.

A slider should appear at the bottom of the camera screen; it approximates various f-stops of a camera lens:

iPhone Camera Settings portrait blur — Once in Portrait Mode, tap the f button in the top-right corner. Then drag the slider above the shutter button left and right to increase and decrease background blur.

Slide all the way to the left for f/1.4 and all the way to the right for f/16. You will see the blur change in real time as you adjust the slider. I often find that the default value selected by my iPhone (usually between f/2.8 and f/4.5) is great, but it’s nice to be able to customize.

portrait blur example — You can adjust the blur level of your Portrait mode backgrounds (even on some lower-end iPhones with a single camera).

13. Preserve Settings

This final trick isn’t going to do anything for your photos, but it could save your sanity! If you find yourself frequently using a specific filter, adjustment, or Live Photos setting, you can tell your iPhone to preserve those settings – instead of forcing you to enable them one by one every time you take a picture.

Enabling the Preserve Settings option is simple:

Tap Settings > Camera > Preserve Settings:

iPhone Camera Settings preserve settings — The *Preserve Settings* option lets you keep all your favorite settings in place.

Here, you can specify the settings you want your iPhone to remember. Then, every time you open the Camera app, all your custom settings will remain just as you left them.

iPhone camera settings: final words

Well, I hope you found these tips helpful! Note that these are just some of the iPhone camera settings you can change to help customize your photography experience. There are dozens of other options to change and tweak, and with just a bit of practice, you will soon find yourself adjusting plenty of settings to suit your needs.

Also, don’t be afraid to poke around in the Camera app and Camera Settings menu. You just might find some new options you didn’t know existed!

iPhone camera settings FAQs

Do I need a high-end iPhone to use Portrait mode?

The first iPhones to do Portrait mode combined pictures from two separate cameras. Now, iPhones with only a single camera offer Portrait mode thanks to advanced software algorithms. Even the iPhone SE, the lowest-priced iPhone, can do it with the rear camera and the front-facing selfie camera.

How can I stop my iPhone pictures from looking blurry?

If your photos are blurry, your iPhone is probably having trouble focusing. Tap the screen to focus in one particular area, then give your phone a half-second to adjust focus. That should help keep your photos sharp.

Why can’t I use Night mode on my iPhone?

While all the settings in this article can be used on virtually every iPhone, Night mode requires special hardware and is therefore only available on certain models. If you try to take a photo in dimly lit conditions and your iPhone has Night mode, it will automatically show up as an option. If you don’t see Night Mode appear, then your iPhone probably does not have this feature.

What are the best settings for casual, everyday use?

If you’re feeling overwhelmed at all the iPhone camera settings, my advice is to just ignore everything and go take some pictures. The default values for your iPhone camera are just fine. You don’t have to change, tweak, or customize anything to get great photos.

The post 13 iPhone Camera Settings to Improve Your Photos appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.

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10 Must-Know Camera Settings for Concert Photography

05 Jun

The post 10 Must-Know Camera Settings for Concert Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Matthias Hombauer.

10 key camera settings for concert photography

What are the best concert photography settings, and how can you use them for great results?

Settings are a key part of getting awesome concert photos, especially in low-light situations. If you get your settings right, the results will be spectacular. But if you get them wrong? Your shots will be blurry, unpleasant, and just all-around bad.

That’s why, in this article, I’m going to share 10 settings for concert photography. These are the exact camera settings I use in my own concert shooting, so you know they work. (And I promise: They’ll help you immediately boost your career!)

Let’s dive right in.

The Rolling Stones
Nikon D800 | 185mm | f/4 | 1/320s | ISO 1600

1. Use Manual mode or Aperture Priority

When I started off doing concert photography, I used Aperture Priority mode. I would dial in the aperture, my camera would set the shutter speed accordingly, and I’d hit the shutter button.

And in general, Aperture Priority works well. It’s great for beginners because it partially automates the exposure process, giving you one less thing to worry about.

But after shooting for a while, I recognized that only Manual mode would give me the flexibility I was after. I wanted to set the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO – and then change each setting on the fly based on my requirements.

So depending on your level of experience and comfort, pick one of these two options.

(Also, if you do choose Manual mode, make sure to frequently check your LCD preview and your histogram to ensure your exposure is correct!)

Fink concert photography settings — Fink
Nikon D700 | 14mm | f/2.8 | 1/200s | ISO 3200

2. Use your lens’s widest aperture setting

Struggling to decide which lens to use for concert photography? I always give the same advice: use fast lenses and shoot them wide open.

Set your aperture to the smallest f-number your lens allows, which will give you the biggest aperture opening. That way, the most possible light hits your sensor.

A wide aperture is especially important in low-light concert photography. If possible, shoot with an f/2.8, f/1.8, f/1.4, or f/1.2 lens.

If you’re a beginner on a budget, I’d recommend grabbing a 50mm f/1.8 lens, which is cheap, features a wide maximum aperture, and offers surprisingly nice image quality.

3. Use a fast shutter speed

Have you ever been to a concert where the artist was running and jumping from one side of the stage to the other?

This type of action makes for some great photography – but to freeze such movement, you must use a fast shutter speed.

In general, I set my shutter speed to 1/200s or faster (and depending on the level of action, you may want to push this even higher.)

Miley Cyrus
Nikon D800 | 340mm | f/4.8 | 1/320s | ISO 1600

4. Boost your ISO

The higher your ISO, the less light you need for a proper exposure – and in concert photography, where light is generally limited, this is a key setting to get right.

Your camera’s ISO range likely starts at 100. But if you’re shooting a low-light concert, I’d recommend kicking this up to 1600, 3200, or even 6400. Otherwise, your shots will end up far too dark (or you’ll be forced to drop your shutter speed, which will introduce blur).

Unfortunately, a high ISO does come with a significant tradeoff:

Noise.

As you push your ISO from 400 to 800 to 1600, you start to get little flecks of color and light that look pretty bad. The specifics will depend on your camera (modern sensors do a very good job of minimizing high-ISO noise!), but you should always be cautious when boosting the ISO. Only raise it when absolutely necessary, and be mindful of your particular camera’s high-ISO capabilities.

5. Use spot metering

Spot metering limits your camera’s exposure readings to the center of the scene – which allows you to determine the exposure based on a small subject (e.g., a face). It works especially well when your subject and background are differently lit.

And when shooting concerts, the artist will often be lit by a spotlight while the rest of the stage remains dark.

So here’s what you do:

First, switch your camera to spot metering mode.

Then place the artist’s face in the middle of your viewfinder and memorize the recommended exposure settings.

Finally, if you’re using Manual mode, you can dial in the settings, then compose without worrying about fluctuating meter readings. If you’re using Aperture Priority, you’ll need to lock in the exposure; that way, you don’t end up with varied exposures as the performers jump around your viewfinder.

If you don’t like spot metering and it’s giving you bad results, you can try the matrix/evaluative metering mode. The camera will take a light reading at several points in the scene, and this can work – but you’ll want to be on the lookout for overexposed faces, especially when the background is dark.

Atari Teenage Riot
Nikon D700 | 50mm | f/1.8 | 1/2500s | ISO 1600

6. Use the middle autofocus point

Did you know that different autofocus points feature different levels of accuracy?

It’s true. Peripheral autofocus points tend to work fine in good light, but the performance weakens as the light drops.

Whereas the center autofocus point remains effective in both good light and bad.

That’s why I recommend you use the central focus point in low-light situations. It’ll be the most accurate, and it’ll ensure you get the sharpest results, no matter what the artist is doing on stage.

If you don’t want the artist to sit smack-dab in the center of the frame, you’ll need to use a focus-and-recompose technique; simply push your shutter button halfway down to focus on the artist’s face – this will lock focus – then adjust your composition until you get the desired framing. Once you’ve nailed both focus and composition, press the shutter button the rest of the way.

Note: To use this focus-and-recompose technique, you’ll need to set your camera to One-Shot AF, also known as AF-S. Otherwise, the camera will focus continuously while you reframe your picture.

(You can also set up back-button focus, which many shooters – myself included! – love. With back-button AF, you use a button on the rear of your camera to lock focus, then use the shutter button to take the shot.)

7. Use Auto White Balance

White balance combats unwanted color casts in your scene, and it’s important to use if you want good-looking photos.

However, I highly recommend you deal with white balance after taking your photos, during post-processing. So set your camera to Auto White Balance, then ignore the WB setting until you’re back at home.

You see, if you shoot in RAW, the white balance is completely flexible. Whether you determine the white balance setting at the time of capture or whether you wait until you’ve opened up Lightroom days later makes zero difference.

Except that setting the white balance during a concert is difficult to do, especially when you have different lights flashing all around the stage. So do yourself a favor and leave the white balance setting for another time.

Skunk Anansie
Nikon D700 | 85mm | f/3.5 | 1/500s | ISO 1600

8. Use burst mode

Your camera’s burst mode setting, also referred to as continuous shooting, lets you do rapid-fire photography.

With burst mode activated, you can shoot five, ten, or even sixty frames per second, depending on your camera.

And this is hugely helpful in concert photography, for two reasons:

If you take several shots in a row, at least one of them will probably turn out sharp even if the others aren’t in focus.
Multiple photos increase your chances of nailing the perfect frame.

Now, I don’t recommend you set your camera to its high-speed continuous shooting mode and use it nonstop. You’ll run out of storage space pretty quickly, plus you’ll just end up with thousands of unnecessary photos.

But I do recommend analyzing the situation, then – when you’re ready to capture split-second action shots – turn on burst mode and use it judiciously.

Make sense?

9. Never use flash

This is a quick tip:

Don’t use flash at a concert.

For one, you’re not allowed; imagine ten photographers bursting their flashes all at the same time.

And straight flash pictures don’t look great. For good flash photography, you’ll need to position your flash off to the side of the artist (i.e., you’ll need an off-camera flash), which isn’t really feasible in a concert setting.

Korn concert photography settings — Korn
Nikon D700 | 130mm | f/2.8 | 1/250s | ISO 3200

10. Shoot in RAW format

Here’s your final concert photography setting, and it’s a big one:

Always, always, always shoot in RAW.

If you shoot in JPEG, your camera will automatically add processing, such as contrast, saturation, and sharpness. And while it might look nice, it’ll limit your post-production freedom, so you won’t be able to further enhance your concert photos.

On the other hand, if you shoot in RAW, the camera won’t process your photo at all. That way, you can change parameters such as exposure, white balance, saturation, contrast, and clarity long after you hit the shutter button.

(In other words: If you’re careful and deliberate with your editing, you can make your photos look a lot better!)

Must-know concert photography settings: final words

Now that you’ve finished this article, you’re well-equipped to capture some stunning concert photos. And for quick reference, here are the concert settings I recommend:

Manual mode
Your lens’s widest aperture
A fast shutter speed
A high ISO
Spot metering
The middle autofocus point
Auto White Balance
Burst mode
No flash
RAW format

So the next time you’re out shooting a concert, make sure to dial in those settings. Your photos will instantly improve!

Now over to you:

Which of my recommended settings do you use for concert photography? Do you have any additional settings you love to use for concerts? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

The Prodigy
Nikon D800 | 85mm | f/1.8 | 1/320s | ISO 1600

Zola Jesus concert photography settings — Zola Jesus
Nikon D700 | 50mm | f/1.8 | 1/200s | ISO 1600

The post 10 Must-Know Camera Settings for Concert Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Matthias Hombauer.

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8 Tips for Perfect Moon Photography Settings

29 Apr

The post 8 Tips for Perfect Moon Photography Settings appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.

Many people have attempted to capture a picture of the bright ball of light that governs the night sky, but getting your moon photography settings just right can be quite tricky. It’s easy to get frustrated when taking photos of the moon, especially when so many moon shots online look crisp and clear.

Fortunately, capturing great moon shots isn’t too difficult once you wrap your head around a few basic elements. With a little patience and practice, you’ll be taking excellent photos of the moon in no time at all!

Moon photography settings: the basics

The first thing to know about shooting the moon is that it’s deceptively bright. You might not think of this giant ball of rock as particularly luminous when compared to the sun, but it puts out way more light than you might think. This makes it tricky to calculate exposure and get your other moon photography settings just right.

The other important item to keep in mind is that the moon is not a slow celestial body. In Greek mythology, Selene, the goddess of the moon, speeds across the night sky in a glowing chariot. Our ancient ancestors knew what they were talking about! If you take a picture of the moon, you have to keep its constant movement in mind; otherwise, you’ll never get a great shot.

Moon Photography Settings Moon Behind Trees — Nikon D7100 | Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II | 200mm | f/8 | 1/180s | ISO 640

The final part of the equation to remember is that the moon, while relatively close in a galactic sense, is pretty far away when you look at it from the perspective of a photographer. If you want a good picture of the moon, you need at least a 200mm lens – and even then, it’s best to use a crop-sensor camera for a bit more reach. So a focal length of 300mm or greater is recommended, and photographing the moon is one time when megapixels really do matter. Unless you have a very long zoom lens, you’ll be cropping your images quite a bit.

If you want a simple answer to the question of what moon photography settings to use, here’s my advice:

Shoot with a fast shutter speed of at least 1/180s.
Use a small aperture like f/8.
Keep your ISO low – so that when you crop, your picture will remain clean and not noisy.
Use a telephoto lens.
Always shoot in RAW; that way, you have plenty of room to edit the colors, sharpness, and other elements of your photo afterward.

Moon Photography Settings Clouds and Foreground Trees — Nikon D500 | Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II | 200mm | f/4.8 | 1/200s | ISO 640

While the above advice is a good starting point, you will need to experiment and figure out which settings are right for you. It’s a good idea to dive a little deeper into aperture, shutter speed, and ISO to find out what effect they have on your moon photos so you can get the shots you’re aiming for.

Now let’s take a closer look at the best moon photography settings:

1. Use Manual mode

This might be intimidating if you’re used to letting your camera make exposure decisions for you, but moon photography is a great way to learn Manual mode.

Your camera knows what to do in most well-lit situations, but shooting the moon isn’t one of them. You have to take control, and Manual mode lets you choose the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO – all of which are critical to getting good pictures of the moon. You must be very specific about your exposure settings, and Manual mode lets you dial in the precise values you need.

Crescent Moon with Trees in Foreground — Dim morning light meant I had a bit more freedom to adjust my exposure settings, which was very easy to do in Manual mode.

Nikon D500 | Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II | 200mm | f/4 | 1/180s | ISO 200

2. Shoot in RAW

You have enough to worry about when taking pictures of the moon: exposure settings, weather concerns, cloud cover, foreground obstructions…and that’s just the beginning.

Setting the right white balance and making sure your highlights and shadows are perfectly captured is almost impossible to do in the moment. Thankfully, RAW can save the day.

Crescent moon Unprocessed RAW — This is the unprocessed RAW file straight out of my camera.

Nikon D500 | Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II | 200mm | f/4 | 1/180s | ISO 200

Shooting in RAW gives you ultimate flexibility when editing your moon photos in a program such as Lightroom. You can adjust the exposure, tweak the sharpening, bring out details you might have missed, and of course, adjust the white balance to your heart’s content.

The JPEG format is fine for many photographic situations, but not moon photography. For best results, use RAW.

Crescent moon processed RAW — The exact same image as above, but after the RAW file was processed in Lightroom. Adjustments include white balance, boosted exposure, and tweaks to the highlights/shadows.

3. Use a fast shutter speed

Shutter speed is a good place to start when thinking about moon photography settings because of how fast the moon moves across the sky. Similar to sports photography, you’ll need a fast shutter speed to freeze the motion.

1/180s is a good starting point, but if you can go higher without increasing your ISO, I recommend doing so. 1/250s is good and so is 1/300s (go beyond that, and you start to get diminishing returns).

full moon — My 1/10s shutter speed was much too slow, and the picture is blurry as a result. 1/10s lets in a lot of light, but the moon moves too much to get a crisp, sharp picture at that shutter speed. Compare this to the image at the end of the article, and you will notice a huge difference!

Nikon D200 | Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 | 300mm | f/11 | 1/10s | ISO 200

4. Keep your ISO low

Cameras have come a long way, and what used to be considered a crazy high ISO – like 3200 or 6400 – is now easily achieved without a huge loss in image quality. Things are a bit different when taking photos of the moon, though. Lower ISOs are always preferable, and that holds doubly true for photos of our nearest celestial neighbor.

ISO 100 or 200 is best, but that might not be realistic given the lens you’re using. Generally speaking, you should be fine with ISO 800 or lower, partly because you will get a cleaner image, but also because you will have more leeway when editing your RAW files afterward.

5. Use a small aperture, but not too small

Most lenses have what’s known as a sweet spot, where the image isn’t too soft and chromatic aberration is well-controlled. This sweet spot isn’t usually at the widest or smallest aperture, but somewhere in the middle.

For that reason, I like to take pictures of the full moon at an aperture between f/4 and f/8. However, the optimal aperture will depend on your particular lens and the type of photos you’re taking.

Moon Photography Settings Crescent and Venus — A crescent moon is very dim! Normally, I recommend a smaller aperture, but for this shot, I needed all the light I could get. I used a large aperture of f/2.8 and an unusually slow shutter speed to capture this celestial dance between the moon and Venus.

Nikon D7100 | Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II | 180mm | f/2.8 | 1/90s | ISO 100

Honestly, of all the moon photography settings to worry about, I would put aperture at the bottom of my list. Before you consider the aperture, make sure you have a fast shutter speed and the lowest possible ISO. Finally, adjust your aperture until you get a picture you like.

Even if your photos are not tack-sharp because you had to shoot wide open, it’s a trade-off I recommend making. I would rather have a slightly blurry result than a higher ISO setting that will result in noise, especially in the deep blacks of the night sky.

6. Underexpose slightly

It might seem counterintuitive, but when taking pictures of the moon, you don’t want your images to be as bright as possible. I get my best results when underexposing by one stop or more, depending on the situation.

The easiest way to do this is to set your aperture, shutter speed, and ISO so your light meter indicates a properly exposed picture. Then drop the exposure by one or two stops. The result is a picture without any blown highlights and plenty of room for editing (as long as you make sure to shoot in RAW).

Full Moon with Power Lines in Foreground — My light meter told me this photo was properly exposed – but in the end, the moon was too bright. I should have dropped the exposure to darken the image.

Nikon D500 | Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II | 200mm | f/4 | 1/200s | ISO 360

I also recommend using spot or center-weighted metering when doing moon photography. The moon is extraordinarily bright compared to the dark sky around it, which causes all sorts of confusion for your camera’s light meter. Telling your camera to meter based on one small portion of the scene (i.e. the moon) will help you get a better initial exposure value, one that you can then fine-tune.

7. Get creative

Taking pictures of the moon is enthralling, especially if you have never done it before. But after a few shots of that big bright ball of light in the sky, start thinking of a new approach. Try putting trees, buildings, or other objects between you and the moon. Experiment with taking pictures during the waxing or waning crescent phase.

Moon Photography Settings Lunar Eclipse — Instead of taking one single picture of the moon during a lunar eclipse, I took 20 and combined them in Photoshop. The end result was much more visually interesting than a single shot would’ve been.

Also, try getting shots at dawn or dusk when you can catch the sky in a rich blue or purple. These are simple, fun ways of taking pictures of the moon that can produce some unexpected results.

8. Manually focus to infinity

Your camera’s autofocus might struggle when it comes to getting pictures of the moon, but you can take care of this by adjusting your lens’s focus point manually.

Make sure your lens is focused as far out as it will go (this is often indicated by an infinity symbol on the lens barrel).

Moon photography settings: conclusion

Moon Photography Settings Full Moon — Nikon D200 | Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 | 300mm | f/2.8 | 1/250s | ISO 200

There’s no magic or secret sauce when it comes to getting great shots of the moon. The only real trick is to get the right moon photography settings and to keep practicing until you’re happy with the results.

Try some of these tips as a starting point, and then branch out and see what you can come up with. You might be surprised at the pictures you’re able to take!

Moon photography settings FAQ

Can I take a picture of the moon with my phone?

It’s possible, but this is an area where a DSLR or mirrorless camera with full manual controls really has the edge. A mobile phone can’t zoom in very far, and even those that do have optical zoom lack the light-gathering ability required for good moon shots. That’s not to say it can’t be done, but you’ll likely get significantly better results with a dedicated camera.

Do I need an expensive zoom lens to get a picture of the moon?

A zoom lens helps, but it doesn’t have to be expensive. Even a basic 55-250mm kit lens, like the one that might have come with your camera when you bought it, is fine. Just make sure to follow some of the tips in this article, and you can get some good moon pictures.

What white balance setting should I use to get a picture of the moon?

That really depends, and there’s not always a good answer. Some people like to use the Daylight setting because the moon is reflecting the sunlight and has no actual light of its own. Just make sure you shoot in RAW so you can adjust your white balance after you take the picture.

How do I keep both the moon and the foreground in focus?

First, make sure you are using a small aperture like f/8 or f/11, which will give a much wider depth of field. In addition, you need to put a lot of space between you and your foreground objects. If you’re shooting through tree branches in your own backyard, they will always end up far too blurry. Position yourself so the trees, buildings, or other foreground objects are farther away; this will help make sure they are more in focus.

How do I get the moon to look so big? My moon pictures never look like the professional shots I see online.

Many people have asked me this, and it all comes down to your lens. A longer focal length will make the moon appear larger. If you don’t have a long lens, you can rent one for the few days that a bright full moon is visible. Many professional moon pictures are also cropped, and if you use a very high megapixel camera, you have a great deal of freedom to crop without a huge drop in quality.

The post 8 Tips for Perfect Moon Photography Settings appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.

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ISO Settings in Digital Photography

03 Nov

The post ISO Settings in Digital Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

ISO is one of three important settings on your camera that are used to take well-exposed photos.

The other two fundamental settings are aperture and shutter speed – and if you’d like to learn about these settings, check out our introduction to aperture and our beginner’s guide to shutter speed.

An introduction to ISO settings in photography

We regularly get questions about ISO from readers of Digital Photography School like these:

What is ISO and why is it important?
What is the best ISO setting?
Should I always choose the lowest ISO?

In this short tutorial, I want to answer each question in turn.

Let’s start with a definition of ISO:

What is ISO?

ISO actually has two definitions, depending on whether you’re discussing film or digital photography:

ISO in traditional/film photography

In traditional (film) photography, ISO (or ASA) is an indication of how sensitive a film is to light.

In film photography, ISO is measured in numbers. You’ve probably seen them on film canisters: 100, 200, 400, 800, etc.

The lower the number, the lower the sensitivity of the film, and the finer the grain that will appear in your photos.

ISO in digital photography

In digital photography, ISO measures the sensitivity of the image sensor.

The same principles apply as in film photography:

The lower the number, the less sensitive your camera is to light and the finer the resulting grain.

Higher numbers mean your sensor is more sensitive to light, and this allows you to use your camera in darker situations. The cost of doing so is more grain – although cameras are improving all the time. Today, many cameras can use high ISO settings and still get very useable images.

Here’s a time when you might want to choose a higher ISO:

If you’re photographing an indoor sporting event where the light is low and your subject is moving fast.

In such a situation, by choosing a higher ISO, you can use a faster shutter speed to freeze the athletes’ movement.

ISO settings and grain

Choosing higher ISO settings comes with a serious cost:

The higher your ISO, the more grain or noise that appears in your photos.

I’ll illustrate this below with two enlargements. The image on the left was taken at ISO 100, and the image on the right was taken at ISO 3200.

Can you see the difference? The high-ISO photo (right) is full of unpleasant noise, whereas the low-ISO photo (left) is completely clean.

ISO 100 is a “normal” or “standard” ISO on most cameras. It’ll give you lovely, crisp shots (with little to no noise or grain).

Most people tend to keep their digital cameras set to Auto mode, where the camera selects the appropriate ISO setting depending on the conditions you’re shooting in. However, most cameras also give you the opportunity to select your own ISO.

When you do override your camera to choose a specific ISO, you’ll notice that this impacts the aperture and shutter speed needed for a well-exposed shot.

For example:

If you bumped your ISO up from 100 to 400, you’ll notice that you can shoot at faster shutter speeds and/or smaller apertures.

Questions to ask when choosing ISO

When choosing my ISO setting, I generally ask myself the following four questions:

Light – Is the subject well lit?
Grain – Do I want a grainy shot or one without noise?
Tripod – Am I using a tripod?
Moving subject – Is my subject moving or stationary?

If there is plenty of light, I want little grain, I’m using a tripod, and/or my subject is stationary, then I will generally use a relatively low ISO rating.

If it’s dark, I want grain, I don’t have a tripod, and/or my subject is moving, I might consider increasing my ISO. This will enable me to shoot with a faster shutter speed and still expose the shot well.

Of course, the trade-off will be noisier shots.

Situations where you might need to push ISO higher include:

Indoor sports events, where your subject is moving fast, yet you have limited available light
Concerts, which are low in light and often “no-flash” zones
Art galleries, churches, and more, where there are rules against using a flash and the interiors aren’t especially well lit
Birthday parties, where blowing out the candles in a dark room can give you a nice, moody shot that would be ruined by a bright flash. Increasing the ISO can help capture the scene.

ISO is an important aspect of digital photography to have an understanding of if you want to gain more control over your digital camera. So experiment with different settings and how they impact your images. And in particular, learn more about aperture and shutter speed, which – along with ISO – are a part of the exposure triangle.

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More photography tips for beginners

Feel like a beginner at photography? We’ve compiled our best tutorials for beginners here on our Photography Tips for Beginners page.

The post ISO Settings in Digital Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

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The Five Most Essential Camera Settings and How to Use Them

20 Oct

The post The Five Most Essential Camera Settings and How to Use Them appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by David Shaw.

Modern cameras, from smartphones to high-end DSLRs, are designed to make decisions for us.

And, for the most part, they do a pretty good job. Slap your DSLR into Auto mode, and more often than not you’ll get images that are sharp with a decent exposure.

Five Most Essential Camera Settings seaside landscape

Now, if you’re just looking to document your world, then go for it. Snap away. But the drawback is that images taken with Auto mode tend to look similar to one another, with a uniform depth of field and exposure.

If you want to move beyond the automatic camera settings, you need to understand your camera, how to use it and, most importantly, what impact changing those settings will have on your final image.

Here are five of the most essential camera settings, what they mean, and how they’ll impact your photos.

ISO

Here’s the first essential camera setting you should know:

ISO.

Now, the acronym “ISO” is terrible, because it’s basically meaningless in terms of photography. It stands for International Organization for Standardization, a European non-governmental organization that makes sure industries apply the same standards.

In the case of photography, the International Organization for Standardization wanted to make sure that an 800 ISO on a Canon camera is the same as on a Nikon, Sony, or a Fuji. If that standard didn’t exist, then settings wouldn’t be applicable across camera brands. So if I set my Canon to make an image at 1/100s at f/2.8 and ISO 400, and you set your Nikon to the same settings, we wouldn’t get the same exposure.

Thankfully, all the major manufacturers do subscribe to the ISO standard.

So what is ISO?

ISO is the measure of the sensitivity of your camera’s digital sensor to light. The lower the number, the lower the sensitivity; the higher the number, the more sensitive the sensor becomes.

Say that you’re shooting in a low light situation, such as in a poorly-lit room or on a dusky evening. An ISO setting of 100 will require that more light reaches the sensor than if you were to use a setting of ISO 400, 800, or 1600.

Five Most Essential Camera Settings fire night image — This night image required a fast shutter speed to retain detail in the flame, so I had to use a high ISO (3200). In the next shot (below), you can see the noise in the original RAW file. (By the way, this image shows what happens when you free methane from a bubble in the ice of a frozen pond in the boreal forest and then set it alight.)

Drawbacks of a high ISO

So why not shoot with a high ISO all the time?

Two reasons:

High ISOs often create digital noise in the image (though camera sensors are getting better and better at avoiding this).
Sometimes you may want to force a slow shutter speed, in which case you need less sensitivity to light. This may be the case if you are trying to capture blurred motion such as water or wind, or if you’re creating pleasing blurs in sports photography.

Five Most Essential Camera Settings ISO — Note the noise in the detail of the person’s clothing and in other shadowed areas.

In short, ISO is one of the three tools you have at your disposal to manipulate your exposure.

Shutter speed

The length of time your camera’s sensor is exposed to light is the shutter speed.

Many cameras have a mechanical shutter that snaps open and closed, allowing light to reach the sensor. Others use a digital shutter that simply turns on the sensor for a set period of time before switching it off again.

Your shutter speed has a huge impact on the final image.

Why?

Because a long shutter speed will create blur in moving subjects. As a landscape photographer, I use long shutter speeds to blur water, capture starlight, or show wind motion.

Five Most Essential Camera Settings beach — For this image, I used a 1/2s shutter speed to blur the waves while retaining some detail.

Five Most Essential Camera Settings shutter speed — A 30s shutter speed blurred the Yukon River into a mirror-like surface.

Short (i.e., fast) shutter speeds have the effect of stopping motion. Use a shutter speed of 1/2000s and the motion of a runner or a cyclist will be stopped dead.

Your use of shutter speed must be thoughtful to create a good image. Think about the final image you want to create. Does it have blurred components or is it all sharp? Do you want to stop your subject or convey a sense of motion?

Consider, experiment, then decide on your shutter speed.

Aperture

The aperture, or f-stop, might be the most confusing aspect of photography for many photographers. This is because it affects images in unexpected ways.

Essentially, the aperture is how big the hole in the lens is. The smaller the hole, the less light that is allowed in; the larger the hole, the more light that gets through.

What often confuses people is the numbering system:

The smaller the number, the larger the hole.

So a setting of f/2.8 corresponds to a larger opening than f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/11, and so on. Lenses with a wide maximum aperture (i.e., a small number like f/2) are considered fast, meaning that they are capable of allowing in more light.

But it’s not just about light and how wide a lens can open. The aperture also affects image sharpness.

You see, most, if not all, lenses are sharper a few f-stops down (called the sweet spot). A lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.8 will create a sharper image at f/8 than at f/2.8. The better the lens, the less this matters, but it is noticeable on most lenses.

Depth of field and its applications

The aperture also controls the depth of field.

The depth of field is the amount of the image from close to far that is in focus. A lens set to its widest aperture (say f/2.8) will give less depth of field than the same lens set to f/11.

Five Most Essential Camera Settings aperture grouse — A very shallow depth of field in this image brings the grouse hiding in the brush into focus while the surrounding chaos of branches blurs into a haze.

As with shutter speed, your use of aperture should be purposeful. Have a landscape image that you want in focus from front to back? You better select a high f-stop (such as f/11). How about a portrait where you want a clean, soft background but a tack-sharp eye? Then use a small f-stop (such as f/2.8 or f/4) and carefully choose your focus point.

Five Most Essential Camera Settings aperture — An f-stop of f/11 at 17mm was sufficient to make the entire scene, from inches in front of the lens to the cliffs in the distance, sharp.

The aperture directly impacts the shutter speed. A narrow aperture will require you to use a longer shutter speed to attain a proper exposure, just as a wider aperture will allow you to use a faster shutter speed. Aperture and shutter speed are completely interrelated; there is no escaping it.

So you need a strong understanding of both.

White balance

White balance, like ISO, relates to the sensor.

But, in this case, it has to do with the color of the light, rather than its brightness.

Different light sources have different color tones. Our eyes often don’t detect these differences, but you can bet your camera will. Have you ever seen a photo of a home interior lit by soft white bulbs, but including a window? Usually, the interior of the room looks natural while the outdoor light looks artificially blue.

That’s white balance. The camera (or photographer) decided to use the interior light (the warm-toned bulbs) as the neutral color, but then the natural light outdoors shifted toward blue.

Now, when the white balance is set wrong, the colors are off. They look too yellow, blue, or orange.

But when the white balance is correct, everything looks natural, as our eyes detect it.

Five Most Essential Camera Settings white balance aurora — Here is an image with the camera’s white balance set to Auto. The colors of the aurora borealis appear too purple and yellow.

What about Auto White Balance?

I’ve got a confession to make here:

I almost always use the Auto White Balance setting on my camera. Cameras are pretty darn good at assessing color tones and deciding on the appropriate white balance. When my camera does get it wrong, I can check the image on the LCD and make the correction for the next shot.

Also, I shoot exclusively in RAW format, which means that I can make adjustments to the white balance during post-processing. I trust the image on my computer screen more than I trust the tiny LCD on the back of my camera.

That said, there are times you should adjust the camera’s white balance setting. The first is if you are shooting JPEGs. The JPEG file format will not allow you to effectively adjust the white balance later, so you must get it right in-camera.

The second time you’ll want to adjust your white balance setting is when stacking images, either for high-contrast scenes or for panoramas. When stacking, slight changes in color tones will make combining several images into a single HDR photo or a panorama much more difficult or even impossible.

You can also adjust your white balance if you purposely want to make an image look cool or warm, or if you are using artificial lights.

So be mindful of your white balance; know what it does and how it will impact your images. Then decide how to use it.

Exposure compensation

What is exposure compensation?

Exposure compensation allows you to very quickly add or subtract light from an image.

Too dark? Use the exposure compensation feature to add a stop of light. Too bright? Exposure compensation can quickly darken the image.

For the image above, I used exposure compensation to make sure the scene showed details in the foreground, while keeping the bright sunset in the background from being blown out.

And the image below was made in bright sunlight, but a deliberate underexposure of three stops (via exposure compensation) reduced the mountains to black but retained detail in the sky, resulting in a surreal image.

Know your camera well

Exposure compensation is a tool you should know how to adjust without lowering the camera from your eye. How it is set depends on your camera settings.

I use Aperture Priority mode most often on my camera. So I select the aperture, and the camera decides the shutter speed. If I adjust the exposure compensation, my camera will retain my chosen aperture and simply adjust the shutter speed up or down to get the desired exposure.

And if I were to use Shutter Priority mode, as I sometimes do, the camera would adjust the aperture, instead.

(In Auto mode, the camera makes this decision for you.)

I use exposure compensation constantly. It is my go-to method for fine-tuning my exposures in the field. On my Canon DSLR, I can adjust it with a simple twitch of my thumb on the rear wheel of the camera. Other cameras have their exposure compensation control as a wheel near the shutter button, or as part of a system of buttons on the back.

Know how your camera works and learn to adjust the exposure compensation quickly and efficiently. Understanding this important tool will mean you don’t miss your chance to get the shot right when you are working in the field or the studio.

Essential camera settings: Conclusion

These five camera settings are the most important things to understand about your camera.

Experiment with them so you know how they affect your final image. Learn to change each setting quickly and without fuss.

Once you’ve done this, you’ll have taken charge of your photography.

And you’ll be on your way to creating purposeful images.

If you have any comments or questions, please add them below!

The post The Five Most Essential Camera Settings and How to Use Them appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by David Shaw.

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21 Settings, Techniques and Rules All New Camera Owners Should Know

13 Oct

The post 21 Settings, Techniques and Rules All New Camera Owners Should Know appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

In this article, we’re going to share 21 photography settings, techniques, and rules you should know as a beginner photographer.

Some are very basic while others go a little deeper, but all have been selected from our archives specifically for beginners and new camera owners.

Enjoy!

Introduction to useful modes and settings on your digital camera

Photography settings, techniques, and rules

1. Digital Camera Modes Explained – I spoke with a family friend recently who had just bought a new point and shoot camera. She came up to me with her camera when no one was watching and embarrassedly asked me if I could tell her what all the little icons on the dial on top of her camera meant. This article explains what each of the most common digital camera modes means and does. Knowing these photography modes can take your shots to the next level.

2. Aperture and Shutter Priority Modes – This introduction takes you through these two very useful settings that can be found on many digital cameras. Aperture and Shutter Priority mode take you off of Auto mode, giving you more control over your images without thrusting you fully into Manual mode. They are great settings to explore and master.

3. Introduction to White Balance – One of the most common problems that I see in beginner photography is shots with incorrect colors. We’ve all seen them: portraits where your subject’s teeth and eyeballs (and everything else) have a yellowish tinge. Learn what causes this and how to combat it with this tutorial on white balance.

Photography settings, techniques, and rules histogram 4. Understanding Histograms – “Histograms are scary.” This is what one reader said to me recently when they discovered that they could view these little graphs on their camera. While histograms might seem a little technical, it is amazing how simple a histogram is to interpret. Know what to look for, and with just a glance you can tell if your image is under- or over-exposed. It’s a useful tool to master.

5. Automatic Exposure Bracketing (AEB) – This feature is another of those often-unexplored settings that many cameras have built into them. It will allow you to get well-exposed shots in even the trickiest of lighting situations.

Other basic camera techniques

Photography settings, techniques, and rules: how to hold a camera

6. How to Hold a Digital Camera – This beginner tutorial covers a topic that most camera owners skip over without realizing that it is a foundational lesson in photography. Get this wrong and it can dramatically impact the quality of your shots.

7. Shutter Release Technique – Another basic tip that many do intuitively, but which can drastically improve your photography if you don’t do it.

8. How to Use Focal Lock – Yet another beginner technique that many of us take for granted, yet is at the core of how all digital cameras focus automatically. Get this wrong and you’ll take a lot of shots of out-of-focus subjects and in-focus backgrounds!

9. How to Take Sharp Digital Images – “My shots are fuzzy.” It’s a problem we’re frequently asked about, so we wrote this tutorial to help you get the sharpest images your camera can take.

10. Shooting with an In-Camera Flash – Flash photography with a built-in flash can lead to some terribly blown-out images. This article offers a few tips on how to avoid this. And here are 7 Strategies for Avoiding Flash Blow Out.

11. How to Get Shallow Depth of Field in Your Digital Photos – A great technique to learn if you’re into many types of photography (portraits, macro, etc.) is how to control the depth of field in your shots. That way, you can make your main subject pop by making your background nicely blurred. This tutorial walks you through how to do it.

12. Understanding Exposure – This post takes new camera owners through the three main elements of exposure. Once you’ve read it, also check out our introductions to ISO, aperture, and shutter speed.

Camera care and maintenance

camera care broken camera

13. How to Avoid a Dirty DSLR Sensor – One of the fastest ways to ruin every single shot you take with your new DSLR is to end up with a dirty image sensor. This tutorial gives some basic tips on how to ensure it stays as clean as possible.

14. How to Clean a DSLR Lens – As much as you try to protect them, lenses tend to get grimy over time. This tutorial shares some basic tips on how to clean lenses so that your shots will be as clear as possible.

15. 7 Digital Camera Predators and How to Keep them at Bay – This tutorial takes you through 7 of the most common ways that digital cameras get damaged, what to look out for, and what preventative actions you can take.

Composition tips

rule of thirds composition tips

16. The Rule of Thirds – Whether you follow it or break it, the rule of thirds is a topic you should at least know about.

17. Points of Interest – An image without some visual point of interest is unlikely to hold the eye of anyone viewing it.

18. Getting Horizons Horizontal – The perfect way to ruin that lovely sunset or landscape shot is to make it lean to one side. Get your horizon horizontal!

19. Fill Your Frame – This is not applicable to every shot you take, but many photographers could drastically improve their photography by getting in close to their subject and filling the frame.

20. Getting Backgrounds Right – The background can make or break an image. This tutorial walks you through a number of things to look out for and techniques to use to get the background just right.

21. Adding Randomness to Your Photos – Learn how to set your images apart from everyone else’s by injecting creativity, variety, and a little randomness into your shots.

Of course, these 21 photography settings, techniques, and rules for beginner camera owners just scratch the surface of all there is to learn about the art of photography. Subscribe to our blog here to get more free daily tips to help you keep learning and improving.

Our guide to getting creative control over your camera

If you’re looking for a complete guide to taking control of your camera, then you might like to check out our course, Photo Nuts and Bolts, which walks you through everything you need to know to start taking beautiful photos.

Here’s the intro:

Grab this great dPS course here.

The post 21 Settings, Techniques and Rules All New Camera Owners Should Know appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

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The Ultimate Guide To Low Light Photography: Tips, Settings, Cameras, Lenses

19 Sep

Low light photography is one of those types of photography that when done well can produce amazing photos but when not done well can leave you feeling a bit disappointed. It’s a type of photography that at first can seem quite complicated as if you need a PhD to master. Yet all you actually need is a few simple pieces Continue Reading

The post The Ultimate Guide To Low Light Photography: Tips, Settings, Cameras, Lenses appeared first on Photodoto.

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Fujifilm releases version 2.0 update for its X Webcam utility, brings on-screen settings control

18 Sep

Fujifilm has announced a version 2.0 release of its X Webcam utility, which makes it possible to use your compatible Fujifilm X and GFX camera as a webcam with popular livestreaming and video conferencing programs.

The version 2.0 update is available for both macOS and Windows users. The small update adds a new settings control window making it possible to change settings on-the-fly. In addition to basic exposure compensation and white balance changes, the settings control window can also be used to change film simulations and more while the camera is connected to your computer.

As with the previous version, Fujifilm X Webcam works with the following Fujifilm cameras: GFX100, GFX 50S, GFX 50R, X-H1, X-Pro2, X-Pro3, X-T2, X-T3, X-T4.

You can download the utility for macOS (10.12 and later) and Windows 10 computers on Fujifilm’s website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Landscape Photography: Complete Guide for Beginners; Equipment, Settings, and Tricks

26 Aug

The breathtaking landscape before you is just begging to be photographed. The only problem is that you don’t know how to do it. You try taking a few images, but upon reviewing them your disappointment sinks in. They don’t hold a candle to the real thing — and they certainly don’t look like those gorgeous landscape images that show up Continue Reading

The post Landscape Photography: Complete Guide for Beginners; Equipment, Settings, and Tricks appeared first on Photodoto.

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