Dawg Pics' New Adventures of the D500 (and maybe the D300)
- Thread starter Dawg Pics
- Start date
Dawg Pics
Senior Member
OK, so I need to add that to my list. New bird for me kind of.
as i mentioned in your post on another thread im happy to comment on your settings used , pretty much the aim of the game is to get the exposure keeping the lowest possible iso , a good tip is you can shoot at a shutter equivalent to your focal length for non moving subjects as this one was (focal length 135mm) , so keeping the low iso in mind you could of halved your shutter speed letting in more light which then the iso is halved reducing light by the same amount that would of got you to say 1/325 and iso 550 , you could do that again 1/150 and iso 250 odd and get a much cleaner image
the d500 does handle higher iso but still better to keep it as low as possible
heres a link to some of my images ive been shooting since film days so im confident in what im saying
https://www.flickr.com/photos/markegan/
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your shutter 1/350 is lower then your focal length so good shooting techniques need to be used to get sharp images (remember to at 50% to your shutter speed when working this out as its a 1.5 crop sensor so 100mm is 150mm, also shooting through window wouldnt help , in this one at such a high zoom id shot it at
f2.8 letting in double light and double the shutter speed reducing half light = exposure same , your shutter then would of been 1/700
+
aperture mode is very easy as is shutter mode , basically you are just choosing your depth of field f2.8 shallow f16 sharp through the image , and also choosing wide apertures to let a lot of light in so you can use quicker shutters which result in sharper images.
as you choose your aperture the shutter will compensate buy itself , you then make sure you are checking its a fast or slow enought shutter depending on what your shooting , then you can add iso if you need more light , iso is the last thing i do i set it at 100 and increase only when i have to , if you look through my shots you can see the info most would be iso 100 unless i needed the extra light or i made an error +
the exposure compensation of -1.5 on the black bird is interesting did you understand what you were doing , exp comp is another story
if you want me to continue assessing some of your images let me know im happy to help , basically just starting with the simple exposure triangle
Dawg Pics
Senior Member
@egosbar
Thanks for looking.
The exposure compensation on the coot was just an accident. I forgot to change it. The 2 images I posted were 2 keepers, alought not awesome to say the least. The ISO was on auto, which is why it ran up so high. I agree about ISO, I like to keep it as low as possible most of the time. Now and then I shoot a really high ISO image just for giggles. However, since I got the D500, I have been using auto more ISO often, which again, is why you are seeing the higher numbers. This has also been somewhat experimental. I actually prefer lower ISO and less noise when possible.
The time of day didn't help my images either with the lake being backlit.
I messed around with the aperture settings for DOF on some of the images, but most weren't worth keeping. No biggie. Mainly, this was experimental since I shoot manual most of the time.
I wasn't paying that much attention to shutter speed because I set the minimum to 250th (I think), which was fine for the lens I started out with. I decided to change to my longer lens and didn't pay attention to the minimum shutter after I did that. Thanks for pointing out the shutter speed issue.
I understand the exposure triangle and sensor noise from high ISO. Just for whatever reason, my exposure seems to be all over the place on A mode. Maybe people using it are in an area with consistent light?? I got tired of screwing around with the exposure compensation.
Anyway, I thought I would see what the fuss was about. After shooting on A today, I kind of remembered why I don't use it. I guess I need practice just like with everything else. I will take a look at your images. Thanks for taking time to analyze my images. (I haven't read the other thread yet.)
Thanks for looking.
The exposure compensation on the coot was just an accident. I forgot to change it. The 2 images I posted were 2 keepers, alought not awesome to say the least. The ISO was on auto, which is why it ran up so high. I agree about ISO, I like to keep it as low as possible most of the time. Now and then I shoot a really high ISO image just for giggles. However, since I got the D500, I have been using auto more ISO often, which again, is why you are seeing the higher numbers. This has also been somewhat experimental. I actually prefer lower ISO and less noise when possible.
The time of day didn't help my images either with the lake being backlit.
I messed around with the aperture settings for DOF on some of the images, but most weren't worth keeping. No biggie. Mainly, this was experimental since I shoot manual most of the time.
I wasn't paying that much attention to shutter speed because I set the minimum to 250th (I think), which was fine for the lens I started out with. I decided to change to my longer lens and didn't pay attention to the minimum shutter after I did that. Thanks for pointing out the shutter speed issue.
I understand the exposure triangle and sensor noise from high ISO. Just for whatever reason, my exposure seems to be all over the place on A mode. Maybe people using it are in an area with consistent light?? I got tired of screwing around with the exposure compensation.
Anyway, I thought I would see what the fuss was about. After shooting on A today, I kind of remembered why I don't use it. I guess I need practice just like with everything else. I will take a look at your images. Thanks for taking time to analyze my images. (I haven't read the other thread yet.)
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Dawg Pics
Senior Member
This was a grab shot. The shutter was up at 750th, which was where I had the camera set due to shooting birds flying onto my feeder. All of my bird shots were set at around that speed during that time. Normally, I wouldn't set the camera like that just for a still shot. I am pretty sure this was an overcast day and kind of late in the day as well. I do try to shoot at least double the focal length plus some for hand-held because I am not as steady as most people even when I anchor myself.
I believe you know what you are doing. My Dad was a professional photographer, and I have had cameras in my hands off and on since I was about 12. My favorite camera was a Minolta HiMatic E film camera-thought I was a pro with that thing. A few years ago I decided to really learn about photography, so I learned the basics, and there was not harsher critic than my father. He analyzed every image I sent to him and usually wanted the original file, and then he would reprocess it. What I do now is so much better than a couple years ago. However, if you see those bird feeder images, you are likely to think I don't know a thing. Ha Ha. Mostly shooting to catalogue the birds on the feeder, which is why I was set-up in my kitchen shooting through a window.
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Carolyn, I use Aperture Priority the majority of the time and Manual Mode the remainder of the time. Even though I shoot birds, I don't switch to Shutter Priority. I keep my eye on the shutter speed and compensate with the ISO.
As far as metering, if you are in Aperture or Shutter Priority while shooting birds, your exposure is going to be a crap shoot so to speak when photographing BIF. When birds are flying with only the sky in the background, the meter will read the sky's light and underexpose. Then when the bird swoops down below the tree line, the camera reads the background (dark trees) and compensates by changing the meter's reading. The body will then overexpose due to the darkened background.
There isn't a one-button way to change your meter when in Aperture or Shutter Priority that I'm aware of without using the +/- button on the top display (at least that's where mine is located). When you are in Manual Mode, all you need to do is either change the command or sub-command dial to change your aperture or shutter speed thus changing your exposure (unless you have Auto ISO enabled).
I use Center Weighted metering since Matrix Metering left me having to adjust my exposure much more frequently (for my shooting style). I never tried Spot Metering. The programmable back button that can be set to lock exposure might be of help. The problem is when using the back button for BBF, the option to use the button for exposure lock is turned off. I don't know if there is a different button that can be programmed for exposure lock. Even if there is, I imagine it might be difficult to hold the back button for BBF while also holding a second button for exposure lock.
If you are comfortable shooting on-the-fly in Manual Mode, why change? Or if you are using Auto ISO while in Manual Mode, why not turn it off and practice changing your metering by using the command or sub-command dials to adjust aperture or shutter speed?
As far as metering, if you are in Aperture or Shutter Priority while shooting birds, your exposure is going to be a crap shoot so to speak when photographing BIF. When birds are flying with only the sky in the background, the meter will read the sky's light and underexpose. Then when the bird swoops down below the tree line, the camera reads the background (dark trees) and compensates by changing the meter's reading. The body will then overexpose due to the darkened background.
There isn't a one-button way to change your meter when in Aperture or Shutter Priority that I'm aware of without using the +/- button on the top display (at least that's where mine is located). When you are in Manual Mode, all you need to do is either change the command or sub-command dial to change your aperture or shutter speed thus changing your exposure (unless you have Auto ISO enabled).
I use Center Weighted metering since Matrix Metering left me having to adjust my exposure much more frequently (for my shooting style). I never tried Spot Metering. The programmable back button that can be set to lock exposure might be of help. The problem is when using the back button for BBF, the option to use the button for exposure lock is turned off. I don't know if there is a different button that can be programmed for exposure lock. Even if there is, I imagine it might be difficult to hold the back button for BBF while also holding a second button for exposure lock.
If you are comfortable shooting on-the-fly in Manual Mode, why change? Or if you are using Auto ISO while in Manual Mode, why not turn it off and practice changing your metering by using the command or sub-command dials to adjust aperture or shutter speed?
Dawg Pics
Senior Member
Yes, the shutter was low for the focal length, but I was set-up on a tripod using a shutter cord. You can't hand hold this lens, so it is always on a tripod. I maybe hand held a couple times for fun. It is so dang heavy.l
id be getting out of auto iso , not sure why your having trouble with aperture priority , its a semi automatic setting and should expose right nearly every time , try taking auto iso off and shoot A mode start with iso on 100 , meter the scene and take a look at shutter if its slow and you have some f stop left widen the aperture and the shutter will quicken if your fully wide creep your iso up until the shutter is fast enough ,
you mentioned A mode all over the place , im betting you may have spot metering on , try matrix metering and you should be good
you mentioned A mode all over the place , im betting you may have spot metering on , try matrix metering and you should be good
heres a thought for you , if your shooting manual with auto iso your not really shooting manual ( i actually didnt think you could shoot auto iso on manual ive never tried) , your selecting one of the three exposure settings as auto ,
M mode (with auto iso) your iso is auto and shutter and aperture are manual
S mode your doing the same except aperture becomes auto and iso and shutter manual
A mode your doing the same except shutter becomes auto and iso and aperture are manual
id prefer out of the three options to have iso as manual every time except for birds in flight type of shots where i set it to auto iso and save it to my memory bank B for (BIF helps me remember) its the only bank i have with auto iso , the action is quick and the backround can change quickly so the iso will adjust , in saying that i set it to max out iso at 6400 and will rethink if im getting up to 3200 but i can still get the shot
M mode (with auto iso) your iso is auto and shutter and aperture are manual
S mode your doing the same except aperture becomes auto and iso and shutter manual
A mode your doing the same except shutter becomes auto and iso and aperture are manual
id prefer out of the three options to have iso as manual every time except for birds in flight type of shots where i set it to auto iso and save it to my memory bank B for (BIF helps me remember) its the only bank i have with auto iso , the action is quick and the backround can change quickly so the iso will adjust , in saying that i set it to max out iso at 6400 and will rethink if im getting up to 3200 but i can still get the shot
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i have shot plenty in M and auto ISO, especially under tress where the light changes so much.
Dawg Pics
Senior Member
@hark. Pretty much on the nose of what is happening. I think my expectations for what the camera would do in that mode, based on what I have been reading, was just not reasonable. (If you meter on dark, it wil compensate and vise versa). I will check my metering as well because when I shoot in manual, I use spot metering. I will look at the exposure lock since it is something I don't use.
Working in changing light for wildlife is a challenge. I am getting out more and not just shooting at birds in my yard. Mostly, I do what you normally do. Quickly mess with the ISO or exposure comp. After a few test shots, I can get pretty close and then tweak. With A mode, seems like every little tweak was overcompensating for lack of a better word. I will look at my metering. Thanks, Hark
@egosbar
Right on. Using auto ISO is pretty new to me. I thought maybe using some of the auto features might make my life easier or you know it might be one of these, "Hey, why haven't I been using that all along" moments. However, we all know auto features can only do so much, you still have to look at what the camera is doing. So, all of the wonderful people who are taking awesome images using A mode and auto ISO on this forum, are people with a lot more experience than me, and that is where my expectations went wrong (I am guessing).
. So, I will look at the bracketing because I may have been messing with the camera, and will look at the metering and see if I can get myself closer to where I want to be. A few people mentioned metering, so I will look at it.
I have to say, going from the D300 to D500 pretty much shined a big light on my weaknesses. I have pointed that out before. Just need to practice some more. This, for me, is all about learning some new things that might help me. If it is a feature that I find doesn't, I just won't use it. I can't learn if I don't try.
Thanks all for your tips, everybody. I am also going to dive into the menus and see if I have the camera set to act a certain way like when you set the stops of exposure compensation, etc.
Working in changing light for wildlife is a challenge. I am getting out more and not just shooting at birds in my yard. Mostly, I do what you normally do. Quickly mess with the ISO or exposure comp. After a few test shots, I can get pretty close and then tweak. With A mode, seems like every little tweak was overcompensating for lack of a better word. I will look at my metering. Thanks, Hark
@egosbar
Right on. Using auto ISO is pretty new to me. I thought maybe using some of the auto features might make my life easier or you know it might be one of these, "Hey, why haven't I been using that all along" moments. However, we all know auto features can only do so much, you still have to look at what the camera is doing. So, all of the wonderful people who are taking awesome images using A mode and auto ISO on this forum, are people with a lot more experience than me, and that is where my expectations went wrong (I am guessing).
. So, I will look at the bracketing because I may have been messing with the camera, and will look at the metering and see if I can get myself closer to where I want to be. A few people mentioned metering, so I will look at it.I have to say, going from the D300 to D500 pretty much shined a big light on my weaknesses. I have pointed that out before. Just need to practice some more. This, for me, is all about learning some new things that might help me. If it is a feature that I find doesn't, I just won't use it. I can't learn if I don't try.
Thanks all for your tips, everybody. I am also going to dive into the menus and see if I have the camera set to act a certain way like when you set the stops of exposure compensation, etc.
Dawg Pics
Senior Member
Thank you very much, Moab Man.