Different Manual Camera Settings and Their Effects

Sam Stallard
Jul 18, 2017
3 min read

Christina got this brilliant idea to share some of her photography skills with her Facebook Friends. She just has an innate ability to teach and take beautiful photos that I can't rival. Seriously. Her vision for photos is amazing. No wonder so many people over the years have chosen her business, Christina Stallard Photography to capture their special memories. Today, though, I want to respond specifically to a sweet Facebook friend who commented,

"...[I] would like to see something on different camera settings and the look that each gives."

Ok. Here it is =).

1.) Read the camera manual. asap. now. Stop reading this blog and read your camera manual. Seriously. Walk away from your electronic device. I'll wait... (if you don't have that handy, a simple search of your camera make and model on any search engine should bring up that manual).

2.) Aperture. We'll call that f number or f stop. No, that's not profanity. f Stands for focal in focal Length. If you want some details, here they are. If you are a super nerd, this here is for you.

So here are three photos as I focus (no pun indented) on changing aperture settings. No retouching on these chicas.

f/2.0

At f/2.0, some of the front parts of the plant are in view while the back of the plant and background are blurry or out of focus.

f/4.0

At f/4.0, more of the plant becomes visible while the background remains out of focus. I like this. The plant is my subject. I want to see most of the plant.

f/8.0

At f/8.0, more of the plant and background is in focus.

What does this imply? Lower aperture, less stuff in focus. When I think of aperture, I think about what I want to focus on in my photo. If the object is really close to my camera, I’ll really need a higher f stop.

3.) Shutter Speed. This is displayed as a whole number or fraction on your camera. It’s how fast your camera’s shutter opens and closes allowing light to touch the film or sensor. If you want more details, they’re here. If you’re a nerd, that stuff is here. Here's a handy chart that I look at from time to time about shutter speed and lenses.

1/30

At 1/30th of a second, you can see the stream of water appears to be solid.

1/125

At 1/125th of a second, you can see the stream begin to break.

1/500

At 1/500th of a second, you can begin to see individual droplets of water.

What does this imply? Lower number, sharper photo (think fractions =)). When I think of shutter speed, I ask myself, “Is the object in motion?” If so, depending on the object, I may want a faster shutter speed to see that object. Think of someone quickly running down a basketball court.

4.) ISO. This is displayed as a whole number on your camera. It’s how sensitive your camera’s film or sensor is to light. Back in the day, I remember buying 400 film. That number 400 was that film’s ISO. ISO stands for International Standards Organization. You can see more details about ISO and how it works with aperture and shutter speed here or the nerd stuff (film) is here.

400

At ISO 400, the photo is very clear. Very little color grain or noise.

3200

At ISO 3200, the photo begins to show some noise.

6400

At ISO 6400, the grain is very visible.

25600

Just for kicks, at ISO 25600.

What does this imply? Lower ISO, less grain.When I think of ISO, I think of my location. If I’m outside I start at my lowest ISO (100) and work up from there. If I’m inside, I start at ISO 400 and work up from there. The lower the ISO, the lower the grain.

Again, if you want to see how these all work together to expose a photo, that's here.

I won't qualify who this is for or tell you what experience you need and such, it's not a hard read. Yes there are exceptions to some of these. I know someone is dying to point out specifics with my explanations. "But ISO 400 can be just as clear as ISO 100, Sam!" Again, this is a basic overview. I'm trying not misleading anyone. =)

Here's the gear.

Canon 5D Mark III Camera on M mode (Manual).

Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art Lens

Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM Lens.