5 Tips for Making Better Photos in Manual Mode

You can’t make this kind of photo in automatic mode!

I wonder, do you have a digital camera that you take out for special occasions? But use it in automatic mode?

Well, that leads me to two follow up questions:

1. Why do you use your sophisticated camera in its most “cave man” function?
2. Why do you only bring out your camera for special occasions?

I have a feeling that we both have a few things in common, since we both have “nice cameras”. So, I’m writing this post so you can throttle your potential to make better photos of your life as it happens.

Below are 5 tips to keep in mind as you make the leap to learning more about making better photos.

Tip #1: Shoot in Manual Mode

If you shoot in any other mode, your camera is taking over some of the function. But your camera does not have your complex brain, and assumes (to a certain degree) that you do not know what you are doing.

This assumption is the reason why some of your photos look horrible, even though you have a fine piece of equipment. If you switch to manual mode, I promise that things will get better soon. And when I say “manual” I mean aperture, shutter speed, ISO, and white balance.

This may sound a bit scary, but again, I promise that things will only get better from here!

You can meter for the “highlights” in a scene. This way you still keep some details and the human eye will not be overly attracted parts of the scene that are overexposed.

Tip #2: Your Camera Meter Is Your Best Friend

The light meter is the most useful tool that your digital camera has, and will be your best friend as you learn to make better photos.

This is because when you point your lens at any given scene, the meter will tell you if the spot you are focusing on will be underexposed, overexposed, or “just right” (middle grey in photographer speak).

This is where shooting in manual mode comes in so useful. If you want to let in more light, lower the number on either your shutter or aperture, or both.

If you want close out some light, raise the number on either your shutter or aperture, or both.