Even though I've had my camera for a couple of years now, I have always been too intimidated to use manual mode. I borrowed a great book from the library called 'Understanding Exposure' and have vowed to never go back to using automatic settings!
The pictures above are the first ones I attempted in manual mode. I have a lot to learn, but I realized the best way to practice it to just take a lot of pictures in different environments.
Taking pictures outside is the easiest so far, although I seem to spend a lot of time looking at my camera's brightness meter!
Some pictures turn out blurry of course, others are either over or underexposed. Every once in a while a capture a favourite (like the one below)
While shooting in automatic mode, I used to focus solely on the composition of the picture and let the camera do the rest. Now I have shifted my focus from compostion to just focusing on getting an exposure that is clear and bright. Once I gain more confidence I am hoping I will be able to multi-task.
I definitely need to work on my close-ups...
The portraits of Miko are turning out better already, but I am having trouble with landscape shots and shooting indoors.
These ones of Miko peering through the fence are my favourites so far.
