7 --> Auto Mode is configured. You can choose between “Intelligent Auto” and “Superior Auto”. Here’s what they each do:Yes, it’s basic, but I’ll bet you’ll learn at least one new thing by reading this chapter. :-)
If you’re an AUTO mode snob, feel free to skip to the next section. I find it handy whenever I hand the camera to someone else and say, “Please take a picture of us”.
Yes, there is one AUTO setting on the exposure mode dial (Figure 3-1), but it will invoke one of two AUTO modes depending upon how MENU --> 7 --> Auto Mode is configured. You can choose between “Intelligent Auto” and “Superior Auto”. Here’s what they each do:
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Figure 3-1: One AUTO mode position; two possible AUTO modes selectable. |
In a completely ironic and self-referential way, the Intelligent Auto setting turns your expensive camera into a high-quality point-and-shoot. This setting will reset almost every user-changeable feature, so you can shoot the moment and not have to worry about, “Did I remember to reset mode Q?” Once you’re finished shooting, you can move right back to your previous exposure mode (probably P, A, S, or M) and all of your previous settings are restored.
Intelligent Auto mode is ideal when handing the camera to someone else to take a picture of you.
Here is a summary of what happens to the camera’s settings when you go into Intelligent Auto mode (don’t worry; many of these concepts will be explained more thoroughly in this chapter and in Appendix A):
Features that are NOT reset are:
Superior Auto does the same thing as Intelligent Auto, but in addition it will automatically decide whether or not to invoke one of several advanced shooting modes that will be discussed in detail later on.
This camera also offers Scene Selection modes (where you tell the camera the kind of picture you’re taking, and it will make the necessary adjustments for you). AND it offers Über modes like High Dynamic Range shooting, Handheld Twilight, and other functions where the camera takes several sequential pictures and then aligns and merges them in-camera as a means of dealing with difficult light. I like these features a lot. And it’s true that you do have to understand what they do technically in order to know when to invoke them.
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Figure 3-2: Superior Auto mode will tell you what special shooting mode it has selected, and whether it will take multiple shots (so you won’t be too surprised when it happens). Here the camera’s telling you it detects a Macro shot. |
But what if you didn’t even want to understand what those functions did in order to benefit from them? Extrapolating this thought process further, what if you didn’t even want to know WHERE these functions existed in the menus in order to invoke them?
Welcome to Superior Auto mode, where the camera will analyze the scene you’re looking at, figure out which of the advanced scene modes is appropriate (listed below), and then automatically invoke it for you. It’s a point-and-shoot on steroids!! With this mode, you can get all the advanced benefits your camera has to offer, without really needing to know much about your camera. Just be aware that there will be times when you think you’re going to take one picture but the camera will take three or six (and then say “Processing…” for five seconds, preventing you from getting the next shot) (Figure 3-2). You’ll get used to that, and as long as you’re not shooting sports or kids you’ll thank the camera for taking better pictures than your friends were able to get with their pedestrian mobile phones.
Although it may not mean much to you now, here’s a list of the different shooting modes that Superior Auto is capable of invoking on its own:
Portrait |
Infant |
Night Portrait |
Night Scene |
Backlight Portrait |
Backlight |
Landscape |
Macro |
Spotlight |
Low light |
Night Scene using tripod |
Handheld Twilight |
Interestingly, there are modes here that aren’t selectable from any menu, such as “Backlight Portrait”, “Spotlight”, and my favorite, “Infant” (!!!). And since I can’t invoke these Superior Auto-only modes on command, I can’t be completely sure what the camera does when it decides to use them. (I guess the joy of any “AUTO” function is that you don’t really need to know.)
If this brief section left you feeling a little confused, worry not – all will be explained properly later on. It was included here because AUTO mode was designed to be effective in the hands of people who don’t know what it does. In that light it makes sense to introduce it at the beginning of the chapter before I get into more of the details of your camera.
Not all scenes are recognized in all modes. For example, when Smile / Face Detection is off, then the camera will not recognize Portrait, Backlight Portrait, Night Portrait, or Infant scenes. (Got all that?)
TIP: Using the pop-up flash as the sole source of light in a dark room? If your ISO is set to AUTO the camera will want to raise the ISO as high as possible in an attempt to keep the background from being pitch black. Great for snapshooters; however if you’re concerned about high ISO noise, you may want to take the ISO off of AUTO and set it to something tolerable. (I can’t recommend a value because it depends upon the amount of ambient light, the look you want, how much your subjects are moving, etc. But ISO 1600 isn’t a bad start.)
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