# Relatively new at photography!  Advice please!



## Lady707 (Dec 26, 2013)

I'm very new at photography.  I have been loving taking pictures and I'm anxious to learn as much as I can.  I do get frustrated sometimes with my pics but I keep trying.  My question is as a newbie what mode would you suggest I should perfect.  I have tried the P mode but I have found I have taken better pictures with the Aperture mode. I have used the Shutter mode for a long exposure shot of the highway which came out pretty good.  
I find myself using the Aperture mode more often.

I find I take better pictures outside than inside.  All my pictures taken indoors are terrible. I do not have an external flash and I try to use the settings on the camera to make it work.  I do plan on buying an external flash (nothing fancy) but something that is basic for a beginner.  Suggestions would be great on flash.  

Can you please help with the proper settings on my camera for indoor picture taking.  I did the following using the Aperture Mode:

- Aperture f/4
- Set Zoom between 18 to 24mmm
- ISO to 3200
- Set metering to Center Weighted
- I set the lens to VR ON and switched the A/M to A
- I set the AF-Area Mode to single point AF and the focus mode to AF-S
- I did not have a flash so I turned as many lights as possible.

Picture had a lot of noise. I was disappointed with the outcome that I switched to Auto and I really HATE to have to resort to using AUTO.  Sorry I don't have any pictures to share as I deleted them all.  

Any feedback would be great!  Thanks!  
- Metering - center weighted
- AF Area Mode to Single Point AF


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## ShootRaw (Dec 26, 2013)

For shooting inside I would put it in Manual..You got to get out of AUTO and learn to make a correct exposure..ISO 3200 for inside is extreme..Depending on your glass...You should not be exceeding Iso 800 for an acceptable Iso...The wider your aperture the more light you can let in..As well as the slower the shutter speed the more light you let in..But to prevent blurry images you do not want your shutter speed to dip below the focal length you are shooting at..Example: you are at 35mm..Your shutter speed should be at 1/40 a sec or higher..Learning the basics is key..P.S Use matrix metering..What camera do you own? They are all different on how much ISO they can handle before getting noisy..


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## tirediron (Dec 26, 2013)

Okay, step one:  Put the camera down.

Step two:  Pick up the manual.

Step three:  Read same.

Step four:    Re-read same.

Step five:  Read through the tutorials here.

Step six (this one is the REALLY important one):  DO NOT BECOME DISCOURAGED!

Step seven:  Based on everything you've learned from steps three through five, go out and practice.

Step eight:  Repeat step seven as required for the next forty or so years.



Serioulsy, don't get caught up in the 'I can't get a perfect picture on day one' blues.  Once you've read through the manual and those tutorials (and maybe watched a few YouTube videos) you'll have the basics weighed off and you'll be surprised at how quickly your work improves.  As for indoor settings, it's very difficult to recommend specific settings without knowing the exact situation.  The settings you list above seem a reasonable starting point; excessive noise is normal at high ISO.  Since you don't mention which camera you have, but based your use of AF-S and VR, I'll assume a consumer-level Nikon, I would consider the SB-700 speedlight.


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## robbins.photo (Dec 26, 2013)

Lady707 said:


> I'm very new at photography.  I have been loving taking pictures and I'm anxious to learn as much as I can.  I do get frustrated sometimes with my pics but I keep trying.  My question is as a newbie what mode would you suggest I should perfect.  I have tried the P mode but I have found I have taken better pictures with the Aperture mode. I have used the Shutter mode for a long exposure shot of the highway which came out pretty good.
> I find myself using the Aperture mode more often.
> 
> I find I take better pictures outside than inside.  All my pictures taken indoors are terrible. I do not have an external flash and I try to use the settings on the camera to make it work.  I do plan on buying an external flash (nothing fancy) but something that is basic for a beginner.  Suggestions would be great on flash.
> ...



As tirediron mentioned there is a lot of reading you can do that will help with various settings to improve your results.  If you switch the camera to auto mode and the pictures came out well, here's a quick tip that might help - next time save the pictures taken in automode.  All of the settings the camera used, aperture, shutter speed, etc will be stored in the photo and you can take a look and see what settings the camera used so you get an idea as to what direction to go in from there.

I shoot in Aperture mode quite a bit but lately I've been getting away from it and going more to manual mode, I like having the extra control that manual mode provides.  Also on most Nikons there will be a noise reduction setting for those occasions when you have to use higher ISO, I shoot a D5100 myself and generally have it set to "normal" for those occasions when I need a higher ISO to get the shot I need, but sometimes I will push it to high if I really need to boost the ISO a lot to get a shot (say up to 6400 or so).

The rule about letting your shutter speed going lower than 1/40 if your shooting at 40mm is generally a good rule of thumb if you don't have a lens that is equipped with VR, however you can generally get below that threshold and still get a good shot with VR.  The slower the shutter speed the more light your letting into the sensor and the lower the lighting can be and still get a good usable shot.  The real thing to consider there is whether or not your subject is moving, a stationary target is ideal for lower shutter speeds but if your target moves and your shutter speed is too low you will get motion blur.

Ideally for indoor shooting you'll eventually want to invest in a good external flash unit, I use a YN-565 EX myself and it's always given me great results.


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## Derrel (Dec 26, 2013)

Indoors in the winter time at Toronto's latitude and longitude, the light from outdoors is NOT much help unless you happen to live in a modern, condo-style high rise building that has MASSIVE square footage of windows that let in sky lighting or lighting reflected off of nearby skyscrapers. Oh sure, if you happen to have a wall of windows kind of place that faces the rising sun, you **might** have a few hours of glorious light early in the day, or maybe later in the afternoon if the place faces east, you **might** get an hour, maybe two, maybe even three hours of late afternoon light coming inside. But if you live in a "normal" house or apartment at street level, you're basically hosed as far as light coming inside from out of doors.

So...that leaves you with a tripod and long, slow exposures, or using electronic flash to light up your pictures. The ISO 3200 + VR thing is kind of "Mehhh." for most subjects.

The odd thing is...with a GOOD< solid tripod and ISO 400, you can make a lot of nice photos using exposures of 1/8 to 4 seconds indoors. Of course, the subjects need to be still.

You can also try painting with light aka light painting...setting the shutter to a LONG exposure, like say 30 seconds, and twirling lighted objects, like flashlights, or LED lights, and so on, to illuminate the scene and or to create interesting light trails.

A smallish shoe-mounted flash, bounced upward off the ceiling, or sidewaysm, or backwards, of of walls or celings, or wall/ceiling junctures, or off of a corner indoors--that is called "*bounce flash*", and can work near miracles.


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## bratkinson (Dec 27, 2013)

It seems to me that you are trying Aperture mode, Shutter speed mode, and P mode without really understanding 'why' they function as they do and what the tradeoffs are.  That's why the necessity for a higher than acceptable amount of noise as the camera had to adjust the other 2 parameters of the exposure triangle to get a proper exposure.

The 'art' of photography is thoroughly understanding the exposure triangle - aperture (f-stop), shutter speed and ISO speed.  There are tradeoffs when adjusting any of them one way or the other and 'compensating' tradeoffs to the other two.  If, as in your example, you are using an aperture of f4, the camera likely set the shutter speed to about 1/125th and then 'cranked up' the ISO to get a decent exposure.  Without comprehending 'why' the camera behaved as it did, it's easy to find out the hard way it's not the results you want.

Tirediron above makes a good point that you understand what the manual for your camera says.  But unless you have an understanding of how photography 'works', most of the descriptions in the manual will not make any sense.  I liken it to reading the manual that comes with a new car and then going out to drive.  The manual doesn't say a thing about -when- to turn the steering wheel or -when- to press the brake pedal, much less that the brake pedal will slow the car down.  Learning how to drive comes first.  

Learning the basics of exposure (the triangle), then going out and shooting and figuring out what 'works' and doesn't work is a good starting point.  Tirediron also linked to the tutorials on this website.  Spend some time reading through those to not only understand the exposure triangle, but the tradeoffs of fast/slow shutter speed, wide/small aperture, and high/low ISO all need to be considered when making exposure settings, or letting the camera decide.  

Most of all, don't get 'trapped' into thinking there's a zillion numbers/combinations/settings that must be memorized to take pictures.  I almost never think in those terms.  I simply think of 'more' or 'less' of whatever I want and make that setting, then adjust more in terms of 'clicks' than 'stops' and take a shot, look that the result on the LCD, and make additional adjustments if I'm not happy with the result.  For example, if I want a 'thin' depth of field (area in focus), I know I need to open up the aperture to (at or) near maximum and either speed up the aperture and/or slow down the ISO speed to get the proper exposure in the same lighting conditions as the previous shot.  

Go out and shoot!  Enjoy!


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## Centropolis (Dec 27, 2013)

It's really hard to provide specific tips when I don't know what you're trying to take pictures of indoors.  But I will try and provide some pointers.

- If you're taking pictures of things that don't move, the most obvious answer to this is use a tripod.  This way, you can keep the ISO relatively low and keep the noise down.  Or if you don't have a tripod for now, just rest your camera somewhere stable.

- If you're taking pictures of things that move, well, it really depends on the lens you are using.  Without actually speculating how close you want to zoom in, in general, use the largest possible aperture your lens allows when you're taking pictures indoors.  If you're taking indoor pictures during the day and it is possible to move the subject, have the subject closer to a window.  Then atleast you may be able to use ISO 800 or something.  

- The longer the focal length, the harder it is to take a picture without blur.  So if you can choose and wider focal length, use that instead.

- Lastly, get a proper flash and learn how to use it properly.  There are many "tricks" in using a flash, like modifiers, and things.  But to start, if you have to point the flash directly to your object, one thing to lessen the harsh shadows is to use the flash compensation.


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## TamiAz (Dec 27, 2013)

Get used to frustration because you will experience a lot of it.. Don't expect perfection either.  I'm a perfectionist and that was the hardest thing for me to to let go of. Photography is hard. I didn't realize how difficult it was until I got my first DSLR and started taking pictures. In the last two years I have been a sponge..Reading everything I can about photography and then going out and practice what I read. You just have to keep shooting and really learn how to use your camera and how the exposure triangle works. It took me a good three months before shutter speed, ISO and Aperture clicked for me.. I can be a slow learner at times..LOL!! This place is a great resource..You need a thick skin and don't take things too personally around here. These guys/gals know their stuff and they will help you grow. Don't expect them to sugar coat anything!! 

A book I found helpful was Brian Peterson's Understanding Exposure, YouTube is another great resource..I watched a lot of videos by Mark Wallace, which I thought were very helpful. Keep reading and practicing..Also, don't delete all your pictures. You need to keep some so you can see your progress.. It's very encouraging to see your growth through the pictures you have taken.

Good luck!!


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## Centropolis (Dec 27, 2013)

Another thing I sometimes do if I don't have a proper lens, shoot RAW and underexpose your photos by one or two stops so that you are using somewhat faster shutter speed than normal, then post-process it to the proper exposure.  This is kind of cheating but it's better to have sharp pictures than useless blurry pictures.


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## hirejn (Dec 27, 2013)

The mode you use depends on how you want to tell stories. Photographers are storytellers, and cameras and lenses are their tools. There's no one right mode. If you're serious about photography, I'd recommend mastering manual mode, where you control all the variables of the exposure. This can help you understand more how each variable contributes and what effect it has on the image. That doesn't mean it's the only right mode. It's just a recommendation. You should probably learn how all of the modes work and then decide which works best for you. Every mode can get you the exact same result.


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## robbins.photo (Dec 27, 2013)

hirejn said:


> The mode you use depends on how you want to tell stories. Photographers are storytellers, and cameras and lenses are their tools. There's no one right mode. If you're serious about photography, I'd recommend mastering manual mode, where you control all the variables of the exposure. This can help you understand more how each variable contributes and what effect it has on the image. That doesn't mean it's the only right mode. It's just a recommendation. You should probably learn how all of the modes work and then decide which works best for you. Every mode can get you the exact same result.



Just do yourself a favor and do not try to tell the Goldilocks story.  Turns out actual grizzlies are not that fond of porridge.  Who knew?


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## Lady707 (Dec 27, 2013)

Thank you!   This is my ultimate goal to master the manual mode on my camera.  Thank you for your help!


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## Lady707 (Dec 27, 2013)

Centropolis said:


> Another thing I sometimes do if I don't have a proper lens, shoot RAW and underexpose your photos by one or two stops so that you are using somewhat faster shutter speed than normal, then post-process it to the proper exposure.  This is kind of cheating but it's better to have sharp pictures than useless blurry pictures.



Thank you, I will try some test shots using RAW.


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## amolitor (Dec 27, 2013)

Indoors without flash is tough.

Since I am not a mind reader, I am not going to assume that you don't know what any of your settings do. You selected a very sensible setup for indoors with available light, I assume because you have some idea what you are doing.

ISO3200 is just noisy. Indoors is way darker than it looks and feels, as you are finding out.

Derrel has it in a nutshell: for things that do not move, long exposures on a tripod (or just set the camera down on something and use the self timer to shoot), and flash for things that do.

Or, learn to like noise. Especially for black and white, noise can be quite nice, for certain kinds of pictures.

I would also look up Exposure Compoensation. I often shoot with -0.3 or -0.7 exposure compensation indoors, so the camera stops trying to make what is actually mildly dark (inside) into "proper exposure". Depends on what you're doing, but this is often a more natural look.

Exposure compensation is more or less meaningless in manual mode, but in Av, which you're using, it's something you need to know how to use.


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## radco (Dec 27, 2013)

As a Noob myself. I ordered a couple books . I am also  going to look into a class at the local school. I figure every little bit helps.....and of course read this forum


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## Lady707 (Dec 27, 2013)

Thank you TamiAz!  We are on the same page.  lol....I have taken a beginner course at Henry's Photography, I have the videos by Mark Wallace as well.  I usually watch it a few times then I practice what I learned. I also view YouTube and other videos on the internet.  I learned about light painting and tried that as well--wasn't perfect but not bad for my first try.  I agree with you about the triangle.  I need to get a better understanding of how it all works together.  I sometimes get impatient. ...lol ... I want to capture what I see and get something totally different.   I do understand that it takes time and practice. Over the last few months I've been feeling a bit more comfortable with my Nikon.  The best way for me to learn is by practicing what I learned....then I move on to another technique.    Thanks for your help!


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## Lady707 (Dec 27, 2013)

radco said:


> As a Noob myself. I ordered a couple books . I am also  going to look into a class at the local school. I figure every little bit helps.....and of course read this forum



Yes this forum is awesome!  That's for sure!


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## Lady707 (Dec 27, 2013)

Hi amolitor,
lol....I used those settings from a cheat sheet I got off the internet.  I kinda know where I need to go to change my settings.  I just need to understand when I should make changes and what type of changes to make in different conditions.  Right now I write things in a book and I need to refer to that but hopefully I will be able to make decisions on my own.  Thank you for your advise.  I will try adjusting the exposure compensation when I'm using the A mode.  Thanks!


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## weepete (Dec 27, 2013)

I'll pitch in. Get a speedlite.

It doesn't have to be expensive,  I've got a yongnuno 460 which was really cheap and I use it just fine.  Noise is one of those trade offs that we make in situations where we  can't use external lighting, so we bump up the ISO. Unless you have a  really good reason to not use one (indoors and in low light) you should  use one. Good flash photography is excellent but a lot of beginners get a  bit scared of it for some reason.

Oh and use a flash, it will sovle your problem.


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## Lady707 (Dec 27, 2013)

Thank you bratkinson!  Your last paragraph is exactly how I feel...."zillion numbers/combinations/settings to be memorized. You made some good points in getting away from that mindset.  I'm still learning how to navigate in this forum.  I look forward to posting a few pictures to get folks to critique and advise.


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## Lady707 (Dec 27, 2013)

Thank you!  will check out the flash.


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## Lady707 (Dec 28, 2013)

Derrel said:


> You can also try painting with light aka light painting...setting the shutter to a LONG exposure, like say 30 seconds, and twirling lighted objects, like flashlights, or LED lights, and so on, to illuminate the scene and or to create interesting light trails.
> 
> A smallish shoe-mounted flash, bounced upward off the ceiling, or sidewaysm, or backwards, of of walls or celings, or wall/ceiling junctures, or off of a corner indoors--that is called "*bounce flash*", and can work near miracles.



I have tried light painting using an apple. I made it a smoking apple.  Wasn't perfect but I was pleased for my first try.  Thanks for your great suggestions.


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## jewleeanne (May 16, 2014)

#1 piece of advice: Learn manual mode.

Learning how to use manual mode really helped my photos. It gives you complete control over the look of your images. It may seem difficult at first, but it really is the easiest thing. You may get overwhelmed with all the terms, but you get used to it!

Try to keep your ISO as LOW as possible. The higher the ISO, the more noise/grain. Aperture pretty much means how much you want in focus. If you are photographing people, I usually set the apreture to match the amount of people in the photo. Example: I am photography two people, I would have my apreture at f/2.8. The lower the apreture, the less in focus. As for shutter speed, the lower the shutter speed, the shakier the photo. I don't like to go below 1/125. The lowest I will ever go is 1/60, as for anything below that you would need a tripod. Shutter speed is "the amount of time that the shutter is open". To freeze movement in an image youll want to choose a faster shutter speed.

I learned everything I know from this amazing blog: How to Shoot in Manual Mode-The Basics - Click it Up a Notch 
This post is amazing, and you will learn so much. There are many more things you will be able to find online, this is just my favourite. I also recommend checking out Pinterest for tips, tutorials, and ideas.


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## dubiousone (May 18, 2014)

KISS...Keep It...Simple!

I still shoot lots of film. I do because I enjoy that media. It also forces me to be a more...not careful, contemplative photographer. When I use film I find myself thinking more on exposure and the factors that govern it. I don't always bracket my shots, but that is useful when you're trying for something specific and are unsure of the exposure. Take one 'normal' one plus a stop or whatever and then one under. (That doesn't always work either)  P gives you more control over certain parameters such as ISO, white balance and such. Depending on your camera in P mode you might be able to scroll through different combinations of shutter and aperture combinations. For example, the camera is in P mode and selects a shutter speed of 250 with an aperture of F11 but you want a narrower depth of field. Scrolling with the control wheel you can choose another combination such as 2000 and F4 or, if you wanted a deep DOF 60 and F22 would give the same exposure. One thing that has been very useful for me when I was learning exposure is an old fashioned light meter. Not the newfangled ones like the Gossen Digisix that simply reads out on an LCD but an older one with a wheel that lets you see, at a glance, what combinations are available.

I like aperture priority mainly but it does depend on what I'm doing. If I'm trying to catch moving things, shutter priority is what I'll use however this might get tricky when I want a specific depth of field. (You can't have both sometimes)

Instead of using auto ISO, use a fixed ISO. 100, 400, 1000 whatever. This will help you develop a sense of what exposure is needed for a given scene. If the camera is constantly changing ISO on you, you'll get widely different combinations of shutter/aperture.

Instead of taking 'nice pictures' and worrying about composition or 'what', go out and just focus on depth of field. Find that combination with the lens you are using that gives the DOF you are looking for. Then work on shutter speeds in stopping motion. My neighbor as one of those half size windmills and one afternoon I spent a half hour just taking pictures of that. Stopping motion when the blades are spinning like a top or getting them to look like they are going real fast when it reality they were going slow. The nice thing about digital is it doesn't cost anything unless you print it!

Another day take on exposure. I took a whole roll of crummy, poorly exposed photographs when I forgot to check what metering selection I had. It was on spot metering not matrix. Those early morning deep shadow shots and bright sunlight with a person's face hidden in shadow by a wide brim hat...yuck. There's LOTS of things in a photograph that effect exposure and the only way to learn is to TRY different combinations of shutter/aperture and learning what works and what doesn't. Manual helps with that and using the aperture priority and shutter priority modes will help you prepare for that. Then there's exposure compensation. A subject that's backlit might need to be over a stop to get the person in shadow. But of course the bright background will be over. How much is up to you and you learn that by...practice!


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## minicoop1985 (May 18, 2014)

Like everyone says, learn your manual mode. Learn about spot metering and metering for your subject, not whatever the camera decides is your subject. Learn single point focus (still trying to figure out how to do that in One Shot on my 7D... my last DSLR was a lot easier). Learn... anything you can, really. One of the best ways to learn is with an old manual film camera. Forces you to think more with nothing to fall back on.


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## anila (May 22, 2014)

I have started photography as a hobby and learning from different online resources. I dont know from where else I learn photography. Anyway trying to follow some of tips given in this post and someday may be I can take this as a profession!


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