Is using Aperture priority bad?

[AstroEd]

Is using Aperture priority considered an amateur setting vs manual setting? IU found that my whites are less blown out on my Egrets and Pelicans when I used to use aperture priority but in order to learn to be a “professional” wildlife photographer some day I switched to Manual with auto ISO. But I am struggling with blowouts even with using up to -1.0 exposure adjustment. But I am tempted to return to aperture priority except for the fear I will be viewed as a noobie beginner.

 

[Doug Herr]

Whatever works for you. If you're blowing out the whites it's not working. Personally, I use manual shutter, aperture and ISO with zebras set at 107 to warn me of over-exposed highlights. If the over-exposed areas are not important, no worries. If they are important I adjust Shutter, Aperture or ISO as needed for the particular circumstances.

 

[DRwyoming]

Is using Aperture priority considered an amateur setting vs manual setting? IU found that my whites are less blown out on my Egrets and Pelicans when I used to use aperture priority but in order to learn to be a “professional” wildlife photographer some day I switched to Manual with auto ISO. But I am struggling with blowouts even with using up to -1.0 exposure adjustment. But I am tempted to return to aperture priority except for the fear I will be viewed as a noobie beginner.

Nothing wrong with running in Aperture (or Shutter) Priority mode. Like many photographers it was my go-to auto exposure mode for several decades.

Just don't expect miracles, there's nothing about Aperture Priority that will eliminate blown out highlights any better or any worse than using Manual plus Auto ISO or Shutter Priority modes. Trouble with blown highlights comes down to trouble with being able to evaluate a scene and understand when you need positive or negative exposure compensation. Basically trouble with blown highlights comes down to understanding the limitations of camera exposure metering and how we have to evaluate the scene in front of us and use exposure compensation as dictated by the specific scene which includes how large or small the subject (bird) is in the frame, the tonality of the subject as well as light and background tone.

 

[Butlerkid]

For what subjects are you using aperture priority? That leaves shutter speed and ISO to the camera to decide. The camera doesn't know if the subject is stationary or flying very fast.

Instead, I suggest you focus on the histogram - regardless of whether you are using aperture or shutter or manual priority!!!! Only the histogram will indicate if whites are being blown.

Personally, I want to control the shutter speed since I know more than the camera about the speed of the subject. Secondly, I know more about the light and the needed DOF than the camera, so I set the aperture. Finally, I let the camera recommend the ISO. Once I see the exposure in the viewfinder, I look at the historgram. If the histogram is blocked up on the right, I quickly dial in a - exposure compensation. If the historgram is blocked up on the left, I dial in a bit of + exposure compensation.

Give shooting in manual with Auto ISO a try. I mean REALLY give it a try. I think you might like it.

 

[bronaldo]

I don't think its bad in all cases. If I do street photography, I often shoot in aperture priority. If I do landscapes or cityscapes, I almost always shoot manual with auto ISO. For birds and wildlife, I shoot shutter priority. If I had a telephoto lens with a large aperture (F4 - F2.8), I'd probably do manual with auto ISO.

 

[bleirer]

All of the automatic exposure modes are simply different facets of the same diamond. If you understand how exposure works you can get to the same exposure value using any mode, so it doesnt matter. It's the understanding that is important, not the mode.

In Aperture priority you can still be aware of what the shutter speed and iso are. In shutter priority you can still be aware of what the f number and iso is. Manual with auto iso might be thought of as shutter and aperture priority. But for all the camera is still trying to center the needle. When things go wrong, they all end up with the same wrong exposure value, no matter what combination of settings we end up using.

 

[AstroEd]

Whatever works for you. If you're blowing out the whites it's not working. Personally, I use manual shutter, aperture and ISO with zebras set at 107 to warn me of over-exposed highlights. If the over-exposed areas are not important, no worries. If they are important I adjust Shutter, Aperture or ISO as needed for the particular circumstances.

does the Nikon D500 have “Zebras”?

 

[abc123brian]

As others have already said, there is nothing wrong with using aperture priority. I actually shot full manual for a long time but as cameras got better and moving to mirrorless where you see the exposure in the EVF, I’ve actually reverted to going back to a more automated mode. The trick to understanding what you want to accomplish and how to do it. Aperture priority lets you set the aperture and the camera controls everything else. Is this what you actually want for birds? If these birds are moving, you would probably be better off controlling the shutter speed using shutter priority and let the camera control the aperture value. Using manual with auto iso is you telling the camera your shutter speed and aperture speed and letting the camera decide the iso to accomplish this. So it is technically all using a similar form of automatic exposure with you controlling different parts of the exposure. Adjusting the exposure compensation tells the camera to make the image brighter or darker based on the bias you select.

What you could potentially be running into with manual and auto iso is the camera not being able to lower the iso enough. Say you set your shutter speed at 1/1600, aperture at F/5.6, auto iso and it’s a really bright, sunny day with the sun hitting your white bird. If the camera drops your iso to 100 (its minimum) and can’t go any lower, you’re not actually going to get to your negative exposure compensation selected. Same conditions in aperture priority and the camera could change your shutter speed to 1/4000 to get the correct exposure. Or in shutter priority it might adjust your aperture to F/11. So if you were in manual with auto iso and still overexposing, check to see what your iso was. If it is at the lowest for the camera, you could try adjusting your aperture to a smaller value or shortening your shutter speed.

 

[NorthernFocus]

Is using Aperture priority considered an amateur setting vs manual setting? IU found that my whites are less blown out on my Egrets and Pelicans when I used to use aperture priority but in order to learn to be a “professional” wildlife photographer some day I switched to Manual with auto ISO. But I am struggling with blowouts even with using up to -1.0 exposure adjustment. But I am tempted to return to aperture priority except for the fear I will be viewed as a noobie beginner.

You shouldn't be getting different exposure with different auto exposure modes unless you have something set to limit ss or ISO.

Aperture priority isn't an "amateur" setting but with modern cameras it makes no sense to use either aperture or shutter priority. With ISO performance of modern sensors and NR software it frees us to set ss and f-stop to achieve what we want creatively and let the camera vary ISO for exposure.

There is no technical reason that shooting auto ISO is blowing out your whites. There's something else going on that may not be evident. Are you judging only based on shots made in the field? If so then you should do some controlled test in you backyard. Same target, same lighting conditions and try shooting both modes. Go into your settings and remove any upper/lower limits that you have set for ss and ISO.

 

[DRwyoming]

does the Nikon D500 have “Zebras”?

No, that's something that Sony mirrorless cameras have and is a nice feature to let you know when you risk over exposure prior to taking the shot. No DSLRs have this feature for through the viewfinder shooting.

But the D500 and other DSLRs do have a highlight warning (aka blinkies) screen that you can enable when reviewing photos you've already taken. A quick test shot and review can tell you if you're blowing out highlights and then you can dial in a bit more negative exposure compensation if you see blinkies during image review. That applies to any auto exposure mode including Aperture Priority or Manual with Auto ISO. That gives you the same information you'd get from a zebras display but you have to take a test shot first and don't see the blinkies prior to taking a shot the way you do with zebras in electronic viewfinders that support this feature.

 

[Doug Herr]

does the Nikon D500 have “Zebras”?

Nope, that's a mirrorless thing. One of the many benefits of mirrorless.

 

[MrFotoFool]

I use Aperture Priority almost exclusively for wildlife (or other moving subjects) and use Manual for landscape and architecture. Though I don't make a living at photography, I do consider myself a part time professional (with dozens of publication credits). A lot of pros prefer Aperture Priority, but don't take my word for it.

Long-time professional wildlife photographer Mark Carwardine uses Aperture Priority almost exclusively and claims most of the wildlife photographers he knows do the same.

Professional wedding/portrait photographer Jiggie Alejandrino uses Aperture Priority ninety percent of the time.

 

[AstroEd]

You shouldn't be getting different exposure with different auto exposure modes unless you have something set to limit ss or ISO.

Aperture priority isn't an "amateur" setting but with modern cameras it makes no sense to use either aperture or shutter priority. With ISO performance of modern sensors and NR software it frees us to set ss and f-stop to achieve what we want creatively and let the camera vary ISO for exposure.

There is no technical reason that shooting auto ISO is blowing out your whites. There's something else going on that may not be evident. Are you judging only based on shots made in the field? If so then you should do some controlled test in you backyard. Same target, same lighting conditions and try shooting both modes. Go into your settings and remove any upper/lower limits that you have set for ss and ISO.

I will have to rest my settings to default and start over, I must have something setup wrong. I am currently using settings I got from a YouTube video by Mark Smith I think…

 

[NorthernFocus]

I use Aperture Priority almost exclusively for wildlife (or other moving subjects) and use Manual for landscape and architecture. Though I don't make a living at photography, I do consider myself a part time professional (with dozens of publication credits). A lot of pros prefer Aperture Priority, but don't take my word for it.

Long-time professional wildlife photographer Mark Carwardine uses Aperture Priority almost exclusively and claims most of the wildlife photographers he knows do the same.

Professional wedding/portrait photographer Jiggie Alejandrino uses Aperture Priority ninety percent of the time.

Sometimes it's hard for old dogs to learn new tricks. Not impossible. But hard. But out of curiosity, what are the perceived benefits of aperture priority vs manual aperture/ss and auto ISO ?

 

[Marcus]

Nothing wrong with running in Aperture (or Shutter) Priority mode. Like many photographers it was my go-to auto exposure mode for several decades.

Just don't expect miracles, there's nothing about Aperture Priority that will eliminate blown out highlights any better or any worse than using Manual plus Auto ISO or Shutter Priority modes. Trouble with blown highlights comes down to trouble with being able to evaluate a scene and understand when you need positive or negative exposure compensation. Basically trouble with blown highlights comes down to understanding the limitations of camera exposure metering and how we have to evaluate the scene in front of us and use exposure compensation as dictated by the specific scene which includes how large or small the subject (bird) is in the frame as well as light and background tone.

I think anyone getting into wildlife (or any other) photography should read this 1000x, and then again! Very succinctly put.

 

[fcotterill]

As best memory serves, I only used Aperture priority years back with my F3. Ever since, it's been Manual only. I find Manual with Auto ISO works well, except in some challenging scenes, when I use full Manual. This applies across DSLRs and Mirrorless cameras. I'm yet another who works the Exposure compensation button a lot. I find Manual gives me full control over shutter speed, and if I'm not shooting wide open, it's straightforward to close down the aperture if necessary.

We live in the best of times with Modern cameras, the sensors are essentially ISO Invariant, which confers unprecedented latitude using Auto ISO. This applies particularly to FX sensors, so with correct ETTR of images, ISO 6400 is perfectly acceptable with the Nikon Z9 or D850, even if necessary ISO 12800. My D6 is even better in low light, and the Z6 (D780) runs a close second to the 20mp sensor.

I set ISO to the lowest setting in full Manual when shooting landscapes on tripod support.

A useful solution for realtime Exposure in the the EVF wysiwyg of a Nikon MILC is to setup up a Picture Control file, which deliberately blows out Blinkies at each end of the histogram
It's discussed here:

Solution to see Overexposed Highlights in a Nikon Z EVF

This might have been shared here previously, but worth a refresh in any case. Here's a neat solution using a custom Picture Control file, which was shared on dpr close to 2 years ago. It should work on any Zed camera, and obviously will show if a blinky(ies) rears its head when shooting RAW For...

bcgforums.com

 

[agrumpyoldsod]

Is using Aperture priority considered an amateur setting vs manual setting? IU found that my whites are less blown out on my Egrets and Pelicans when I used to use aperture priority but in order to learn to be a “professional” wildlife photographer some day I switched to Manual with auto ISO. But I am struggling with blowouts even with using up to -1.0 exposure adjustment. But I am tempted to return to aperture priority except for the fear I will be viewed as a noobie beginner.

Many portrait shooters use AP; sports shooters use SP; and the rest use Manual with either Auto-ISO enabled OR NOT.

There is no right way or wrong way - there is what works for you having understood the consequences of using a particular mode. AP with a fixed ISO setting simply raises or lowers the shutter speed to set exposure -- and this may (will) result in blurred subjects or overly high ISO levels; similarly SP widens and closes the aperture increasing or reducing depth of focus and this can be appealing or most unappealing.

As a result the bulk of pro and enthusiast shooters I work with choose Manual Mode - often with Auto ISO enabled.

Some very experienced shooter -- Arthur Morris in particular - are able to expose for the subject and shoot entirely manually -- YES his results are spectacular. However, when shooting entirely manual one must first know what one is doing; then constantly monitor and adjust settings as light levels change. AND this approach is less useful when shooting birds below the tree tops in valleys etc.. where light levels on the subject can change very quickly. I have used both approaches. Manual with Auto ISO and Fixed ISO.

What you are highlighting (literally) is the need to understand how your camera meters and sets exposure to understand what this can mean for you.

As a rule Matrix metering with any of the camera determines auto settings will attempt to set exposure "across" the images at ~18% gray -- which means that unless the who scene is the same brightness there will be lighter elements and darker. For wildlife shooters - we are seemingly endlessly faced with our subjects being significantly brighter ( a white bird against a dark background) or significantly darker (any bird in the sky against the sky) that the average. This is why dialing in Exposure Compensation is the trick you need to use. Using EC to add +2EV +/- for a bird in a bright sky is not unusual.

As a D500 shooter you should also have assess to Highlight Weighted Metering -- this automatically assigns the greatest weights to highlights to lower exposure to reduce loss of detail in highlights. BUT I find one still needs to consider exposure compensation

 

[Len Shepherd]

What method is used to achieve an image is secondary to whether the content is good, average or bad.

Modern cameras pointed vaguely in the right direction set on "auto" usually achieve a good exposure and good focus.

Achieving good content is much more challenging

If you aim for a specific zone of sharpness or background blur a specific aperture and focal length usually come to the front of the queue.
It matters less whether you use aperture priority or manual - especially if the sharpness/blur ratio is not 10 out of 10.

Similarly to record specific action clearly a minimum shutter speed usually comes to the front of the queue.
It matters little whether you use shutter priority or manual - especially if the timing is not 10 out of 10 and the peak moment is missed.

With modern high ISO performance and de-noise software a "new fangled method" is to set aperture and shutter speed manually and to use auto ISO to achieve a good exposure - and it often works well - if your subject matter is worth 10 out of 10.

Anything good, bad or average about an image usually has much more to do with the skill and dedication of the photographer than debating what exposure method to be used.

REMEMBER - it can take 11 photographers to take a single photo
That is one photographer to press the shutter and another 10 to tell him/her what they think should have been done differently - rather than looking at the final image and deciding in their opinion if it is good, average or bad.

 

[dabhand16]

@AstroEd I use the shooting mode appropriate to what I'm shooting - probably 90% apreture priority as I'm not a wildlife photographer. It should not make any difference to the exposure. Sounds like there are differences in the conditions that your settings or camera can't cope with.

As has been said, if you have a dynamic range greater that the camera can deal with you have either got to accept some clipping or decide if you want to protect the shadows or highlights with exposure compensation.

 

[bleirer]

Another factor might be: how easy is exposure compensation on your camera? On mine it's a no-brainer to shoot manual with auto iso because EC is on a wheel on the back. The plus side is that you only let the camera control one variable and even then you control the ISO with the EC dial. So really you are in full control, just using auto ISO as a starting point. If you have to fiddle with getting EC it might be a different story. The only downside is if you run into a limit on ISO then you might have to give a little on f number or shutter speed to get enough room for the EC to work.

As far as the blowouts, there are a couple of ways, depending. The one I rely on is test shots with blinkies. I find that shooting raw using evaluative/matrix metering if I find the highest non-blinkie exposure I can reliable increase that 2/3 stop without fear of blowouts. I set the camera to hold the image review until a button is pressed (or 2 seconds works too) giving enough time see the blinkies. On my camera it doesn't interfere with bursts because the review only appears when I release the BBF. You'd have to see what works on your setup, it might be better to press the review button yourself only when you take a test shot.

But either way, test shots are a good way to go. Otherwise it's guessing or experience for how much EC to use.

 

[MrFotoFool]

Sometimes it's hard for old dogs to learn new tricks. Not impossible. But hard. But out of curiosity, what are the perceived benefits of aperture priority vs manual aperture/ss and auto ISO ?

The benefits are that with moving subjects (going from sunlight to shade for example) you cannot adjust manual settings quickly enough to capture the action. If you are doing wildlife in any situtation where the exposure would need to be changed, which in my experience is most situations, you will lose shots if you shoot in manual.

 

[bleirer]

The benefits are that with moving subjects (going from sunlight to shade for example) you cannot adjust manual settings quickly enough to capture the action. If you are doing wildlife in any situtation where the exposure would need to be changed, which in my experience is most situations, you will lose shots if you shoot in manual.

Both aperture priority and manual with auto iso out to adapt the same way, no? Since they are both auto modes.

 

[MrFotoFool]

Both aperture priority and manual with auto iso out to adapt the same way, no? Since they are both auto modes.

I have never used auto ISO, so maybe I don't understand how it works. I thought if you are in manual (regardless of ISO mode) the camera will give a fixed exposure which may or may not be correct; it is whatever aperture and shutter speed you choose. Does auto ISO somehow override this? (Forgive my ignorance, I honestly do not know).

 

[bleirer]

I have never used auto ISO, so maybe I don't understand how it works. I thought if you are in manual (regardless of ISO mode) the camera will give a fixed exposure which may or may not be correct; it is whatever aperture and shutter speed you choose. Does auto ISO somehow override this? (Forgive my ignorance, I honestly do not know).

In manual with auto iso you set the shutter speed and f number and the ISO floats to hit the exposure level the meter indicates. If you use exposure compensation it raises or lowers the ISO the amount of the EC. If you hit an ISO limit then you have to adjust shutter speed or f number to make room for the auto ISO.

 

[RichF]

Until the advent of Auto ISO I shot Av. Now w/ Auto ISO I shot manual w/ Auto ISO. Basically from the exposure triangle you have 3 factors you can adjust: shutter speed, aperture and ISO. I think shutter speed and aperture are the two main ones I like to control so I let ISO float. If I don't like the ISO value, I adjust one of the other two.

All to personal taste. How much salt to add to the stew - to personal taste