How Cameras Work Part 4: Setting Proper Modes on Your Camera

This is part 4 of a 6 part series on getting to know your digital camera. Read part 3: Pinhole Cameras.

Based on what you now know about camera basics, lets get into how to properly expose the film/image sensor. See all those little icons around your camera’s main control button? They all attempt to automate proper exposure, depending on what you want to photograph. Wait-why do I need to tell it? Isn’t it automatic? Aren’t digital cameras supposed to be so much more sophisticated than plain old film cameras?

The only major advantage of digital cameras over film cameras is instant viewing of the captured image.

Wait, that’s it? Afraid so–all the rest is icing. An automated digital camera does nothing more magical than an automated film camera, though it costs about 10 times as much. A fact is the most stubborn thing in the world, especially where technological and physical limits are concerned. You still need to either manually set the exposure, or choose an automated exposure mode appropriate for what kind of photograph you’re going to make.

So those cute little settings on that control knob–Running mode? Head mode? Flower mode? These are automatic exposure control settings. Want to photograph a car race? Use running mode. That automatically sets the fastest shutter speed possible (depending on lighting conditions) to freeze action. Want to take a portrait shot with a fuzzy background? Portrait mode automatically sets the widest aperture possible to accomplish this. The flower indicates close-up mode, which allows the lens to focus within inches of the subject.

Practical Tips

Let’s start out by setting the automatic exposure control to the icon of the Flower. Shoot something close-up, like the detail of the statue’s hand in the photo below. Generally, a camera in

Macro mode

will let you focus on a subject mere inches away from the lens!

Now set the dial to

Mountain mode

. This forces the camera to focus on distant subjects, regardless of what you try to focus on. The image on the bottom left is an example. The image on the bottom right is an example of how not to use landscape mode!

Category: Cameras and Gear