DSLR Settings Cheat sheet

[pikaboo27]

Does anyone keep something like a cheat sheet for camera settings for various situations?

For background, I'm totally new to the whole DSLR thing and I just got a Canon Rebel SL1 for my birthday. I love the picture quality, but I'm pretty unhappy with the shutter speed on auto in low light situations. Having the flash seems to slow the camera down so much that I don't think it's any faster than my point n shoot.

However, I'm so new to the concepts of setting the shutter speed, the aperture and the ISO, that I'm not sure what to set it to out of auto in order to get the best pics of my toddler running around in shade or indoors (the times when the camera decides the flash is needed.) We are heading to Disneyland on 7/25 and so I'm essentially trying to learn as much as I can by then. I think it would help to have a note to myself that I could stick in my pocket to say something like "Low Light/Indoors, ISO: X Aperture: Y F/Z, Nighttime, ISO:X, Aperture: Y, F/Z, etc."

Does anyone have something like that they have used? Or am I about to get flamed for trying to "cheat" and not learn it the hard way? I am planning to take a class and invest in some good books before the trip after this one, but I don't have much time before this trip as you can see.

Any help or tips would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance,

 

[hakepb]

Light varies, so I don't think there is any 1 setting that will always be perfect. I think you would need a light meter to get an exact setting.

A cheat might be turning the dial to the running man, that's sports mode and will get you faster shutter speeds. (But that might result in higher ISO (a bit noiser picture) thàn was needed for a situation)

Most photographers seem to try using Av to set the aperature they want for depth of field / light they want through the lens...and if that results in poor shutter speed, try Tv and set the shutter speed you want.

 

[havoc315]

Even experienced photographers rarely set all the settings manually.
The mods on your dial: TV and AV are about priority.

For capturing candids of toddlers.. set the camera to TV mode, and set the shutter speed as fast as you can, while still getting enough light. So it will depend on the lighting conditions and the lens you are using. In TV mode, the flash is manual -- you need to turn on or turn off the flash. Yes, using the flash slows you down.
So try turning off the flash, and see how high you can push the shutter speed.
Start at 1/200 or so -- which should be fast enough to freeze toddlers at regular play. If the picture is too dark, you will need to slow down the shutter speed. If you get enough light, but the action is being blurred, then set the shutter speed even faster.

So basically, take control of the shutter speed... and let the camera pick the aperture and the ISO.

You may want to invest in a faster lens. In typical indoor settings, your lens won't really be capable of capturing a decent image of a non-stationary subject without a flash. But a faster lens will do quite nicely... You can get a "nifty fifty" very cheaply, which would truly capture very low light. Or for a bit more, you can get something like the Canon 17-55 2.8 or the Tamon 17-50 2.8 -- These would basically be upgrade/replacements of your kit lens, and allow you to work without a flash in typical indoor environments.

 

[photo_chick]

You can have an idea of how you want to go into a situation, but you can't know the exact settings until you're there. I have three DSLR's and they all use a little bit different settings in a given situation because even though they should all have exactly the same exposure they don't.

Tv and Av are excellent places to set the camera to. If it's moving so that shutter speed is important I use Tv. If it's a situation where I want to control depth of field I use Av. In both modes I move the ISO to get the exposure I want. You also have to learn how to use your light meter (and how to use exposure compensation) because some situations it won't give you an accurate exposure.

Shooting the toddler on the move indoors.. you may need a faster lens than the kit lens if you want to do this without a flash. The other key is to pay close attention to where the light is coming from. Take advantage of brightly lit windows and other available light.

 

[wiigirl]

Shooting the toddler on the move indoors.. you may need a faster lens than the kit lens if you want to do this without a flash. The other key is to pay close attention to where the light is coming from. Take advantage of brightly lit windows and other available light.

Really good advice!

 

[cobright]

I love the picture quality, but I'm pretty unhappy with the shutter speed on auto in low light situations. Having the flash seems to slow the camera down so much that I don't think it's any faster than my point n shoot.

If you mean fast as in shutter speed, fully half of my shots ... near all of my best shots really, end up with a shutter speed of 1/60 or less.

This is maybe just me but I got the impression you are frustrated with ... maybe the time between pushing the button and the picture snapping? This is something someone new to DSLRs would run into a lot. In lower lights the autofocus on most cameras is pure crap. Take it off AF and focus by hand.

Here's a cheat sheet for you. In the morning if it's sunny, set your ISO to 400 and put the thing on A (Aperture Priority). Now dial the aperture to something in the middle. Now when you snap a pic the camera will adjust your shutter speed based on the amount of light coming in. If the shutter speed is less than ...1/30 to 1/60 based on how steady your hands are, then adjust the Aperture until that shutter speed picks up.

If you go indoors during the daylight hours or it's well lit, bump the ISO to 800. When it gets dark, consider 1600.

Picking the A mode lets you control your Depth of Field which is a great tool for framing the subject matter in your shot along 3 dimensions. By narrowing the DoF you can focus on your subject and things in the background and in the foreground will remain out of focus. DoF is controlled by adjusting the Aperture.

Hrmm... last thing ... shoot RAW. Post processing can cover up a LOT of bad decisions.

 

[hakepb]

If your main problem is waiting for your built-in flash to recharge before you can take another picture, then an external flash may be part of the answer (except in the no-no low light rides) .most external flashes can take a lot of pictures quickly.

 

[cobright]

For me, the biggest delay in low light is waiting for autofocus to figure things out. AF Illumination is an annoyance at best. But that's probably just me.

 

[mamaCta]

From Pinterest

 

[kofslinky]

I found the book Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson to be quite helpful. If you can check it out before your trip it might help you!

 

[Twigs]

As said above the book "Understanding Exposure", and other books by Bryan Peterson have helped me tremendously. I have also made up index cards with general setting and other info for certain situations with information I have picked up here, from the books and other references. These include things like Snow Scenes, Fireworks, the Moon, Night Sky, Dark rides at disney, KS at disney, general camera functions, and settings I have used in the past that have worked for me. I also wrote down exif info from photos of WDW posted here and other places for specific rides to use as a guide as where to start so I wouldn't waste time figuring out what settings worked best (for me the ride would be over by then). These are all starting off points, and I adjust settings according to the light etc. where I am, or what I want to capture. Since I have done this I rarely use them anymore, as I have learned just by using my camera a lot, but I can reference them quickly if I need to.

 

[pikaboo27]

Hello everyone! Thank you for all the amazing tips...I'm clearly in over my head here. lol

I just signed up for a local beginners class for early next week before we go, so that plus re-reading everyone's responses should at least give me a good basis to get some good shots at DL.

Thank you again everyone!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I kept various cheat sheets and cards with me when I was learning, but the reality was, in practice, they were too cumbersome to use under anything but the most serene circumstances, lol. I honestly don't think taking a class is a magic bullet, either, unfortunately. (Though of course that and reading a book like Understanding Exposure will certainly help.)

Choosing settings really has to become instinctual, and the only way for that to happen is to get out there and shoot using different settings under all types of circumstances. Essentially learning from trial and error, and from successes and failures. This, IME, can take the better part of a year with active use. Big thing is you really have to get off of Auto if you want to get the types of pictures that no doubt drew you to wanting to get a DSLR in the first place.

 

[mom2rtk]

Essentially learning from trial and error, and from successes and failures. This, IME, can take the better part of a year with active use. Big thing is you really have to get off of Auto if you want to get the types of pictures that no doubt drew you to wanting to get a DSLR in the first place.

Yep. And it's quite likely that when one first ventures off "auto" they will take a hit in photo quality. But it will be worth it as they learn to get more out of their camera than ever before. I don't even want to remember how long it took me to get out of the habit of letting the camera choose everything an me being in charge. I kept forgetting to turn things back when I got into a different setting. This was particularly challenging at Disney where the shooting conditions are constantly changing as you go inside and out under very different lighting conditions all day.

But stick with it OP. It's really worth it.

 

[Twigs]

Choosing settings really has to become instinctual, and the only way for that to happen is to get out there and shoot using different settings under all types of circumstances. Essentially learning from trial and error, and from successes and failures. This, IME, can take the better part of a year with active use.

This is what I was trying to say above, but said much better! Joining the scavenger hunts here is what got me learning to use my camera. I had a purpose to take my camera out with me all the time and use it often.

 

[Jules54]

Use the Sunny 16 rule

The sunny 16 rule works like this:

On a clear and sunny day, at an aperture of F/16, you will get a correct exposure if you use a shutter speed that’s the inverse of the ISO speed you’re using.
The second part is probably the one that’s confusing you (if any of it is). You have to know what ISO speed is in order to decipher what’s going on. So allow me to explain.
The easiest way to explain is with an example. If it’s a sunny day, and have your aperture set to F/16 and ISO set to 200, to correctly expose your image the shutter speed needs to be set to 1/200 (the inverse of the ISO number).

 

[photo_chick]

The Sunny 16 will get you in the ballpark but won't nail the exposure. It's a great guideline for where to start if you have a camera with no meter (in situations where we'd bracket) but we have tools at our disposal with digital that make it antiquated.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

This is what I was trying to say above, but said much better! Joining the scavenger hunts here is what got me learning to use my camera. I had a purpose to take my camera out with me all the time and use it often.

I was thinking of suggesting that to the OP too. It does give you a purpose to get out shooting/practicing!

 

[Jules54]

The Sunny 16 will get you in the ballpark but won't nail the exposure. It's a great guideline for where to start if you have a camera with no meter (in situations where we'd bracket) but we have tools at our disposal with digital that make it antiquated.

How do you like the 6D?

 

[photo_chick]

How do you like the 6D?

Love it! I shoot a lot of hand held low light so having ISO 25600 produce images clean enough to use is simply amazing for me.