Manual Photography

It’s simple to shoot shots on automatic, but become a pro by going manual! Check out what the many technical options can do for your photo. You’re probably looking for photos with a hazy background. The only way to do so is to experiment with depth of field. Opt for a lens with a large aperture (for example, f/1.4, f/1.8, f/2.0, f/2.8). Make sure the attention is on your model or object, and welcome to the hazy background! A narrow aperture means less in focus, while a bigger aperture means more in focus. Let’s discuss about ISO now. If you want to prevent noise, keep the ISO as low as possible (100 or 200), though today’s cameras can handle a higher ISO value rather well. For moving objects, the shutter speed must be at least 1/125, or the image will have a distracting movement. (Alternatively, use a tripod.)

Shoot in RAW mode.

Make sure to photograph in RAW rather than JPEG before we begin. A RAW file is a file that contains all of the image detail directly from the camera’s sensor, without any processing. This allows us to develop the photo from the ground up. In Photoshop, we have complete creative control over the process. RAW also allows us to restore detail in the highlights and shadows, which is a huge plus. That’s exactly how we like it.

My preferences are as follows: With a flash light in the studio

For my camera, the shutter speed in the studio is set at 1/125, which is known as sync speed. The fastest shutter speed you may utilise with your flash light is Sync speed. If you try to use a faster shutter speed than the flash sync speed, a portion of the image will become black. So I always work at 1/125 in the studio. Because I prefer everything to be sharp in the studio, I choose an aperture of f/7.1 or greater to achieve a deep depth of field. To avoid noise, the ISO in the studio is always set to 100. Instead of using a higher ISO, I will just raise the power of my flash if I require more light. Because I want complete control over all of my settings (control freak! ), I always set the white balance to custom. The temperature is usually around 5500 K. The metering is set to matrix, which reads light from all angles of the scene.

My setup: I’m on location and it’s daylight.

When working with daylight on location, the shutter speed varies depending on the available light, but it should be at least 1/250 to avoid undesirable movement or blur. When shooting at a shutter speed of less than 1/125, the movement of your shaking hands will be seen in the images. During outdoor shooting, I prefer to use my prime lenses, which perform well at wide apertures such as f/1.4 or slightly higher. This option will produce the well-known sharp-object-with-blurred-background effect. The viewer’s attention will be drawn to your model rather than the busy and colourful street in the background. The ISO is also affected by the amount of light available, although I prefer to keep it as low as possible to eliminate noise. Because I love to have complete control over all of my settings, I always set the white balance to custom about 5500 K. The metering is set to matrix, which reads light from all angles of the scene.

Now go fetch your camera and have some fun! It may be challenging at first, but trust me when I say that there is no better way to learn about your camera than to shoot as much as possible. Have fun!