I believe in Thinking Photography – not learning settings. Every situation is different, everyone’s gear is different, and the light changes as we work.
I’m not a fan of the exposure triangle:-
1. there are more than three factors involved. It discounts being able to change or add lighting.
2. it gives the wrong impression, making it seem wrong to use tighter apertures or higher isos – fundamentals of modern photography.
3. so many beginners – and more advanced photographer – are utterly confused by it.
I advocate a linear “approach” with a sequence of unrelated factors to consider:-
1. Light – if possible I’ll place my subject in the best possible light for the shot, sometimes using the sun, sometimes turning the subject against the sun, sometimes grabbing the shade and sometimes reinforcing it with flash, adding, shading or reflecting light. As I work the subject moves and the light shifts so I have to adapt too.
2. Aperture – set for the depth of field I need, not the exposure as this is secondary nowadays. If using Servo focus with a DSLR, rather than a mirrorless camera, I know that the camera will pick up the body rather than the eyes. If I’m shooting a wedding group I know that everyone is a different distance from the lens. If shooting close up with macro, or simply zoomed right in, I’ve learnt that depth of field is significantly reduced. In all these situations I stop down, sometimes considerably, depending on the lens …. and I err on the side of safety. Forget the milky background, if it’s a wedding the venue is often a large financial outlay and the bride wants to see it.
3. Shutter speed – I decide what the minimum needs to be to freeze both the subject’s and my own movements – then I err on the side of safety.
4. ISO – in order to achieve the above I select an iso that will allow everything. I want the shot, and I usually want it quickly. When working with a client I need to know that I’m not going to have to ask them to repeat the shoot.
Noise – it’s usually created by working in poor light, underexposing, and then trying to boost the image or the shadows. I’m not saying that at super high isos noise won’t become apparent or that some cameras generate more than others, BUT, if I want THE shot, it’s a trade off I’m willing to make, especially now that noise reduction software has become so good – erm, I hardly ever use it. If the light’s good I can use massive isos. In my experience much noise is imagined by the photographer and ignored by the client.
So, how Do I shoot?
Sorry to brag, but I can’t remember the last time I fluffed an exposure, and the only time I’ll usually consider using manual is if I can control everything in the studio. I trust my camera technology – sheesh, I’ve spent enough on Canon Designers and techies over the years and hate to waste that wonderful expertise.
Aperture Priority – I think the four factors through as above and use the iso to drive the floating shutter speed, ensuring it is always over the minimum I’ve decided upon. As the light changes, or the subject moves I watch the shutter speed in the bottom of the viewfinder and adapt the iso as necessary. If I want to overexpose, or more rarely underexpose, everything is right there, in front of me, as I work.
Floating ISO – some find this easier to use than aperture priority. Some call it Manual. It isn’t. Manual is setting everything yourself with no camera control, just as we always used to work before we had this wonderful, modern technology. The aperture and shutter speed are set as above and the iso allowed to float.