Modes

The good, the bad and the ugly

Your camera probably offers you anything between eight to fifteen shooting modes, right? You might think that having so many different modes is a bonus, but the truth is you’ll never need to use most of them.

THE GOOD

P, S (Tv) and A (Av) are the only modes you need to get familiar with to take great photographs. These are the good guys. They’ll help you unlock your creativity and achieve the results you want. We’ll get to know them better over the next few pages.

THE BAD

‘Scene modes’ – the modes represented by a picture, like this – are junk. These are factory presets, which adjust your camera’s settings to shoot a particular subject in a particular way. But there’s no single right way to photograph anything. That’s why your own ideas and creative flair are so important. So, from now on, just try to pretend they’re not there.

THE UGLY

The fully ‘Auto’ mode is for quick snapshots, which often turn out looking nothing like you intended. Think of this as the mode with no personality or imagination. Having said that, it’s OK to set your camera to automatic – it’s just that there’s another mode that’s far better than this one.