I’m always surprised when people let me know how afraid they are of transitioning into manual mode for their food and product photography.
First, you should know that how you use your camera is your choice. It doesn’t make you a better or worse photographer if you create the photos you envision while using shutter or aperture priority. Many professional photographers take advantage of these modes in specific situations such as in nature where things are constantly changing.
But I encourage everyone I teach to learn how to use their camera in manual mode. Here’s why:
It gives you more control over capturing your image.
You learn more about your camera and what it is capable of. Something that could lead you on a new path of artistic creation you didn’t know existed.
You learn more about light and how to control it whether you choose to use natural light, like I do most of the time, or artificial light.
Like most photographers who step into this world from another type of work and begin with it simply being a hobby, I started in auto mode then transitioned to aperture priority.
I photograph food most often and I fell in love with shallow depth of field (blurry background). In order to create that, I had to learn about aperture. All settings on your camera influence the light or brightness in your images, but aperture can be viewed as a hole that lets more or less light into the camera.
When that setting is low, more light gets into the camera (called a wider aperture) and it creates that blurry background we tend to love in close up food shots.
Once I knew how to create that with using aperture priority, I was all set for a long while.
Then I decided to make this photography thing part of my career shooting editorial, for food and drink brands, and for cookbooks.
I knew I needed to tackle manual mode, and fully understand it even if I didn’t use it, to transition from a hobbyist to a professional.
And it was so easy.
There is absolutely nothing to be afraid of.
Just begin with understanding one component, like I did with aperture. By doing that, when I started using the camera in manual mode, I knew what aperture setting I wanted for the majority of the photos I was creating.
A general how-to-use-a-camera course really helped me. I took John Greengo’s course on Creative Live, Fundamentals of Photography. (I’m a Creative Live affiliate so if you purchase anything via my links I’ll receive a small commission.)
I took the training when it very first came out and they offered it as a 10-week course for free. It was a long time ago, back when we lived in Central Kentucky, so 10+ years ago. I learned so much and owe what I know about my camera, how to control my light and capture motion, to that course.
From there I learned about camera settings and lenses as they relate more specifically to food and still life photography. About ISO, how it affects the brightness of the image and at what setting I needed in my own studio to prevent grainy photos (stay at 400 or below). I didn’t fully understand that until I learned from Matt Armendariz.
I tackled shutter speed, and understood better how that can influence camera shake, something I learned from Diane Cu-Porter and Todd Porter.
You can take a course like the one I mentioned above or pick up bits and pieces in YouTube videos and articles online. I think a comprehensive course or lesson is easier.
It’s why I teach some of the concepts in one of my free webinars which is coming up soon in September and then I expand on them in my Confused to Confident Course.
But the most important thing is to just switch that camera to manual and practice. Take some shots, change your settings and track what you change. Over time, with some additional support like a course or webinar, things will start to click and you’ll understand how it all works together.
The control you’ll have over your camera and the images you create is guaranteed to change your work for the better. I promise.