Working with Manual Mode. Photography Post #2

Owen Paznokas
The Beginner's Photography Guide
By Chris Gactum

It's time to take control of the camera. Working with aperture priority mode can alter depth of field and allow more light into the by width. Shutter priority mode is great for capturing motion, or blurring it for that matter and allows light in by rate. However, the next step is to combine these in manual mode to create more controlled pictures. Manual mode puts the photographer closer to the picture than the camera, you are pushing all the buttons, taking over auto focus points and altering aspects of the image that cannot be done with more basic renditions. 

"What it does...is allow yo to set the aperture and shutter speed yourself (as well as the ISO), and no matter where you point the camera it won't change the settings" (Gactum 74). No camera override can be daunting at first, but it can help in particular situations like low lighting. One thing to take into account when shooting in Manual mode is the Camera's metering system. Metering is a camera device that is designed to measure the light in the scene to create an accurate exposure (Gactum 76). Most camera's meter off the center of the scene and this can result to be problematic if there are different light levels in the whole frame. To combat this you can meter off multiple parts of the shot you want to take and determine what settings to shoot off then. 

I took my camera into my backyard a few days ago and worked with manual mode around sunset to create some vastly different shots. 

ISO: 400 135mm f:5.6 1/125 Sec

ISO 800 113mm f:5.6 1/1000 Sec

 The first picture had more light touching my subject, allowing me to use a lower ISO, my zoom lens put out it's full force to capture the plant, the shallow temperature blurred the background and the shutter speed fell into place to allow just the right amount of time in. This photo in other modes would probably not have had the same blurred background affect and would have washed out an image in that lighting. 

The second picture was being shadowed by my deck and created more of an orange light, it was slightly darker which made me bring the ISO up a little more. I got really close to my subject and only had to zoom my lens into 113mm. I used the same aperture to create the blurred background and allowed a very small amount of light in by a time of 1/1000 of a second. 

My question is, what cool affects would you try to create by taking manual control of your camera? How would you create it?

Recources
Gactum, Chris. Beginner's Photography Guide. Dorling Kindersley Ltd, 2016.

Working with Aperture: Photography Post #1

Owen Paznokas
The Beginner's Photography Guide
By Chris Gactum

Hey! I'm Owen, I aspire to be a better photographer everyday! In the past I have worked with basic digital cameras and 35 mm film cameras, but I want to be able to head out of the darkroom on certain occasions and start shooting on DSLR's. Photography is certainly a passion of mine and despite previous knowledge being able to work a DSLR and produce a quality image is integral for me to succeed in the world of photography.

On this post I will be fiddling with Aperture priority mode on my camera. Aperture is the size of opening your lens creates when you're taking a photograph. This influences the amount of light reaching the sensor of you camera and creating an image. "When you choose the aperture, you're deciding what depth of field you want in your shot, which is one of the most important creative decisions you can make when taking a photograph" (Chris Gactum 54). Basically, you are deciding what you want to hone in on.

I recently went into Seattle to take Pictures and the sights of the great wheel and the shops in Pike's place didn't catch my eye as much as other things, signs with Graffiti and fishermen down on the pier struck far more chords than the same things everyone else takes pictures of. I was able to create many photographs with different subjects in mind but I think the two below show a very good representation of how depth of field controls a picture (Gactum 55).

The first picture above is shot at an aperture of f12 which has a relatively small opening. It isn't small enough to get everything in focus but the background is clear. This picture also had a slightly longer shutter speed than it needed which overexposed it slightly.

The second image was shot from an aperture of f5.6 which is a smaller opening and is able to capture the sign in detail while removing the sharpness of the background.

My question for you guys is what image looks better? How does changing the focus of an image alter your perception if the photos meaning?

Recources
Gactum, Chris. Beginner's Photography Guide. Dorling Kindersley Ltd, 2016.