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Hi...I'm going on a trip shortly and if I don't get any decent pictures it's 'gonna be a right waste of money I can ill afford.
I am desperate to understand faster shutter speeds, an article of Cheryl's states that her prefered speed is 1/800th. If I set my camera at that all I get is a black screen.
All my shots are taken in aperture mode at the widest possible aperture, despite trying for fast speeds in the manual mode, aperture mode is the only way I get half decent shots.
What am I doing wrong, I know that I'm not very clever but in theory it seems so simple but in practice it's anything but.
...any suggestions....in simple language...appreciated.
many thanks....Mike
Shooting aperture mode wide open will give you the fastest shutter speed available for the available light. uping the ISO will increase shutter speed.
Setting the shutter to 1/800 in manual or shutter priority, there needs to be enough light to allow you to use that speed.
It sound like the black pictures are due to there not being enough light. Where you shooting in bright day light?
HTh
Geoff
edit bright sun shine fast shutter speed ....Dull and grey slow shutter 
Also depends on why Cheryl likes 1/800th second shutter speed. Sounds like it's either a fast moving subject, using a long lens (200mm +), or both!
If you're not comfortable having to manage the balance between aperture and ISO to get the required speed there's a custom function on the D80 to set Auto ISO which allows you to specify the minimum shutter speed - so for instance if there's not enough light to get a fast shutter speed with current settings the camera will automatically increase the ISO rating to get the required shutter speed (all the way up to ISO 1600 if required) - from what I've read it does this even in manual mode though so you'll need to remember to switch the option off again when you don't need it any more!!
The above was via a link from google - can't provide more info as I use Canon!
Hope this helps
The easiest way to understand shutter speed and aperture value is to think of them as our own eyes.
The wider our pupils are the more light it lets in. So setting the aperture to say f1.8 will let more light in.
Shutter speed controls how fast that ambient light is recorded on the sensor. Imagine its a very bright day outside and someone asks you to look at the sun. You open your eyes (shutter) and the longer you look the brighter the sun gets before it hurts your eyes (or over exposes the photograph).
Looking at the light for a shorter length of time stops to much light entering our eyes. Thats why 1/800th left you with a black screen. A slower shutter speed like 1/60 would allow more light in.
The problem with slow shutter speeds is blur and camera shake. Increasing the iso will allow the sensor to record more light but without sacrificing the shutter or aperture value.
Thanks for all that people...'gonna practice with the ISO thing and try and make it work for me.
...trouble is all 'techy stuff is over my head especially when faced with multiple choices.
If all else fails I will do as Rog says and shoot in "Auto" seems like a retrograde step but if it get's the image...
I am not the only one on EPZ who can't take stunning pictures and doesn't understand the technical stuff
....what we need is a Janet and John guide to photography LOL.
thanks again....Mike
If you want to use 1/800th the chances are you will need to invest in an f/2.8 lens, in conditions over than bright sunshine, you will struggle to use a wide enough aperture and high enough iso value to get enough light into the camera to make the picture bright enough and of good enough quality. Chances are Cheryl will be using expensive pro lenses to allow here at get those speeds.
time to do some background reading - here is a good start
experiment with the shutter speeds, apertures acomplishable with your setup and iso values on days with different weather, you will find on a bright day you will get 1/800th second no problem, on overcast days you may only get a bright enough picture at 1/250th second.
I think your black frame problem stems from a fundamental difference between how the camera operates in aperture priority mode (which you state is what you usually use), and shutter priority mode (which I assume is what you chose to get 1/800th).
In aperture priority mode the camera will only let you chose the apertures available on the lens you are using. It then sets the appropriate shutter speed for that aperture based on whatever ISO the camera is set up. Therefore, aperture priority will always give you good exposure (within the metering capabilities odf the camera). You do obviously get potential issues around camera shake if the speed drops to low, but as long as the light is reasonable you should be ok.
In shutter priority mode, things are different. The camera will alow you to set any speed the camera is capable of. Therefore, if you set a speed that would need an aperture greater than your lens is capable of, it doesn't stop you. It just instructs the lens to open as wide as it can - the net result is underexposure.
The key here is to understand the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO, and how to know when you have got them balanced to give correct exposure.
Quote: The key here is to understand the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO, and how to know when you have got them balanced to give correct exposure
That sums it up
best way to do do it is to put your camera in manual mode and learn fast, by experimenting, how your meter works when you change shutter/aperture
just click away, change settings, work out what happens, learn...
Quote: The key here is to understand the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO, and how to know when you have got them balanced to give correct exposure.Quote this post · Mark as helpful
...thanks again everyone, sorry for delay in coming back, I am afraid much of this is over my head, obviously I can increase the ISO but as for understanding the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO...well it's another language.
I wish I were clever like you guys but we are what we are.
....Mike
Not sure which article or technique of mine Mike has been reading. Probably Gigrin, so we are talking birds in flight. It does illustrate why I am reluctant to share settings as they are a guide only for the same conditions as I was shooting in, not a hard and fast rule.
The shutter speed for BIF is a matter of personal choice to a great extent. I actually tend to shoot around 1/500th and for extra wing blur or a different effect even slower. I'm conscious that when others have tried to copy my settings at Gigrin and the like they have struggled so the article on my website suggests a faster shutter speed for greater consistency of results.
If I want a faster shutter speed I will always up the ISO to allow it as others have suggested above.
I generally shoot in aperture priority or manual. To determine my settings I look at the effect I want to achieve. BIF is fairly easy as any aperture is likely to have little effect on background elements as generally there aren't many. So if anything i will stop down to between f/5.8 and f/8.
As others have explained whether you can get a particular shutter speed is dependent on the light and aperture available by choice of lens.
You can shoot BIF at most shutter speeds above say 1/60th second, but the technique you need to employ (panning) or the result of wing blur and movement will vary a lot depending on species and speed and direction of flight.
This is a good reason why I rarely quote my settings because it is totally dependent on the conditions available to the photographer on the day. I watched part of the Wildlife DVD that suggests using 1/200th sec for the red squirrels, most of mine are shot at 1/60th because the light is rarely enough to allow anything faster. The reason the person suggests 1/200th is because the squirrels twitch a lot and so at slower shutter speeds you tend to end up binning a lot of shots for blurring around the paws. If you shoot with this in mind and accept that then you can shoot slower shutter speeds at lower ISOs for better quality.
So the key is decide on either shutter speed or aperture. Then adjust the other setting and ISO to match for a good exposure. So If I want a shutter speed of 1/800th @ f/5.6 but at ISO 200 can only get 1/400th then I change the ISO to 400. And if I could only get 1/200th at ISO 200 then I'd need to change the ISO to 800.
Good luck with whatever you are shooting Mike and you can always PM me if you need something more specific for a target subject.
Quote: Good luck with whatever you are shooting Mike and you can always PM me if you need something more specific for a target subject.
Cheers for that Cheryl....I'm away shortly to the WHF in Kent, the BWC in Surrey and the HCT near Andover and possibly Eagle Heights, Marwell and London zoo's
It's a once only trip so I was hoping to pick up a few pointers beforehand but teaching me anything is not easy...LOL
I'll see how I get on with increasing the ISO.
thanks....Mike
Quote: Quote:The key here is to understand the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO, and how to know when you have got them balanced to give correct exposure.Quote this post · Mark as helpful...thanks again everyone, sorry for delay in coming back, I am afraid much of this is over my head, obviously I can increase the ISO but as for understanding the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO...well it's another language.
I wish I were clever like you guys but we are what we are.
....Mike
Go to the library, see if they have Bryan Petersons book, Understanding Exposure.
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