by James Richardson

Created on: July 13, 2008

An explanation of your digital camera's manual mode really requires a two-pronged approach. The "manual mode" proper is often accessed by rotating the function dial to the "M" position, or choosing a menu setting. What manual mode does is it allows you to dial in your own settings for aperture and shutter speed, thus controlling the depth of field and exposure compensation (brightness vs. darkness) of your photos. The second facet of manual shooting involves focus. Instead of pushing the shutter button down halfway and letting the camera focus the scene, you adjust the lens accordingly, creating your own focus.

To begin, I'll discuss the manual mode, or "M" setting first. To comprehend this mode, you need a rudimentary understanding of what aperture and shutter are and how they work in tandem to create photos. Explaining all the fine points of aperture and shutter could fill a book, which is why I recommend you visit your local library and check out a simple digital photography book.

Ok, back on trackaperture is like a valve on a pipeline: it can be adjusted to either let more light in or let less in. A wider aperture will allow more light in and also yield a softer depth of field (DOF). On the other hand, a more constricted aperture will allow in less light, but will yield a sharper DOF. Aperture is expressed in numbers called f-stops. To really complicate the matter: a smaller f-stop number actually means a wider-open aperture, whereas a larger f-stop number equals a smaller aperture opening. Confusing for sureagain, I suggest that book

Shutter can be thought of as the curtain on the stage: it opens and closes to control when light enters the camera through the aperture. A wider aperture, allowing in more light, generally allows for a faster shutter. Remember though, that wide aperture will yield soft DOF. A pinhole aperture will give you razor-sharp DOF, but a longer shutter will be necessary to gather sufficient light.

Now that you're probably scratching your head regarding aperture and shutter, you can begin to apply these principles in manual mode. Reading a good digital photography book will explain more about the situations that can call for a specific aperture and/or shutter speed combination in order to yield interesting results. An example: a subject that is backlit by a window. If you let the camera expose, it'll dial in a tighter aperture and quicker shutter to compensate for the light coming in through the window, leaving the subject as a silhouette.

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