P, S, A and M modes in your Camera: Explained!
You have always seen these modes on your camera. You may have been getting tired and want to explore what the world outside auto has to offer. These modes can really help you master manual mode step by step. Don't know what they mean? Don't worry cause we'll go through each of them right now and also tell you which ones I like to stay in myself.
I will be mentioning a lot about shutter speed, aperture and ISO here. Not required but you can read this article I wrote on the settings if you haven't fully understood them.
*The photos that I'll be showing for the different modes will be of a canon camera because it's the only I have right now but I'm pretty sure it'll be very similar to what the modes do in other brands.
Program (P) Mode
Very similar to full auto mode. It still sets aperture, shutter speed for you. You are still letting the camera do the work to get the proper exposure but it will allow you to change some little things in your camera that you wouldn't be able to if you were in the green auto mode. Settings like ISO, white balance (check out my article here about WB), AF mode, shooting mode, flash, etc. All that little stuff you will now be able to control and it is a good step up from shooting full auto as you're introduced to some new settings.
The first time I used this as far as I can remember was when I couldn't make the flash stop from popping out in auto mode. I turned the dial to this mode and boom, I could actually control whether or not I want the flash.
Shutter Priority (S or TV) Mode
If you haven't guessed by the name, this mode now allows you to set the shutter speed of the camera yourself plus the little stuff and it will handle the aperture by itself (also the ISO if you set it to auto). It comes in handy when you really want a specific shutter speed for whatever reason during a shoot. For example, if you set your shutter speed 1/200, the aperture will compensate to get the proper exposure. Pretty simple, right?
I have never really used this consistently, just once or twice to test it out. This can be helpful when you already have a shutter speed in mind before the shoot and you want to know the other settings like aperture and ISO in an instant. Take a photo with the shutter speed you want and check the info of the taken photo to see what other settings were used by the camera (and replicate them in manual mode).
Aperture Priority (A or AV) Mode
?Again, if you haven't guessed by the name, the aperture priority mode allows you to change the aperture yourself and the camera will do the rest for proper exposure. I stayed here for the longest time (and still use it here and there). I jumped onto AV mode immediately after I knew what was aperture. I didn't bother to stay at P or TV mode because what I knew was the smaller the f-stop number (aperture), the shallower the depth of field and I always wanted that. I would go to AV mode, set my lowest aperture and let the camera do the rest of the work. I recommend you start out here after you are done with playing with auto.
This is very helpful for me during run-and-gun shooting where I don't have much time changing settings but still have the shallow depth of field (more out of focus background) when I want to separate a subject from its surroundings. You just have to pay attention to the shutter speed and make sure it does not drop too low.
Like any other mode with auto stuff, sometimes (rarely for me) it won't give the best results but these modes help you tell what settings the camera used for a photo. Replicating them in Manual mode to test them out yourself and tweaking them can get you your desired result (also train you to use Manual mode).
Manual Mode
Here, you have full control over how the camera will set the exposure for an image. From shutter speed, aperture to ISO, everything. This is where you should aspire to be if you want to fully take advantage of your camera. It's okay to start out with aperture priority but make sure you're always trying to get out of that mode. Try doing what I said a while ago, which is shooting with AV and replicating the settings in manual mode to test them out yourself.
It can be pretty confusing at first but after continuous practice, these settings become second nature! You will just know what to adjust and when during a shoot. Manual exposure can be really powerful to adapt to whatever situation you are in down the line.
For the last few months, this where I have been most of the time compared to a year ago when I was still a heavy aperture priority shooter. I still juggle between AV and manual mode from time to time depending on what I feel like and the situation I'm in.
That is it for today's quick lesson. Hope you all found this useful. Again, read this article I wrote on shutter speed, aperture, and ISO if you haven't fully understood them. Share this with someone that can benefit from this!
Comment down if you have any feedback on what I could improve upon :)