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I tend to switch between the two manual or automatic, but then I tend to focus on the composition and any effects I want exagerated I use photoshop, the principles the same it is the person behind the camera that sees and creates good photography not the camera, although experience will make you experiement more to get more out of your equipment and to push yourself out of your comfort zone. 
Wow Thanks everyone for your advice and thoughts here on this thread so far.
I have been using my camera with all the presets tv av manual etc ..... I want to get complete control and understanding of my camera in order to get the best results. So far i have had as much failure as success but i don't mind that at all as i'm learning and with each bad picture i will gain something positive from it.
Chris your advice about getting a book is right and i have already invested in " Complete guide to Digital Photography " by Ian Farrell which was recommended on this site, and i have to say for me as a learner it's a fabulous book covering all the areas i need to look at. I think for the time being this book will see me through for the next few months or so !!!! ( it's huge and full of info ).
I need to go back through this thread and read it again in more detail but thanks to you all for your time and help. Hopefully it will improve my photos , i'm really looking forward to trying different things and this week i'm goijng to my local club to see what it's like ?
it does mean Program, you're right.
and there's a £9000 wedding photography business course that fully advocates using only P mode.... not kidding.
Quote: I shoot in P for professional mode at all times. I've no idea what these other modes do ... 
I thought " P " stood for Programmed Auto, am I wrong?
Absolutely not. P stands for Professional mode and means that the Pro gets it right 99% of the time, enabling him/her to make oodles of money from their cameras. It's the best kept secret in photography... 
Ade are you saying there is a wedding course for pro's that says you should use "P" for taking pro pic's at weddings !!! omg lol that sounds rediculus how can anyone do a full wedding without changing modes or getting that crystal sharp picture just on "P" !!! hmmmm i really do have alot to learn. lol
Quote: how can anyone do a full wedding without changing modes or getting that crystal sharp picture just on "P"
Because the photographer produces results that the customer likes. Whether the photographer thinks they are the best possible quality is irrelevant - if they sell who are we to argue?
By the way, 'P' mode should produce crystal clear images because AF comes as part of the programme.
you CAN if you wish use the P mode for a wedding; P for Program is not an automatic mode as you the photographer can override, under or over expose the shutter speed/ fstop combination to suit your subject; I may question the use of the fully automatic green rectangle where you delegate all decisions to the camera; you can use any settings you like for a wedding or any other scenario whatsoever and if such gets great pictures for yourself and/or the clients then use whatever application you like.
Absorb what is useful.
the course is more about the wedding business - getting the package, the marketing, the positioning and the product side of things right.
the photographs are incidental
it's all about getting to the point where you can get lots of weddings a year at £2000+ each... apparently... based in the lakes.... big name... etc.
Quote: the course is more about the wedding business - getting the package, the marketing, the positioning and the product side of things right.
the photographs are incidental
Which could easily apply to any photography business, and makes a distinction bewteen taking photographs and getting an income from photography.
Quote: I shoot in P for professional mode at all times. I've no idea what these other modes do ...
Seriously though, if you make a point of only shooting in Raw and you do, seriously, want to become proficient in the use of your camera, I would suggest ignoring "scene" modes and restrict yourself to P, A, S and M. I tend to use Aperture Priority more than the others because being able to specify the aperture is what matters most to me. At a race track I might switch to Shutter Priority to get enough motion blur and, when "snapping" from the top of an open top bus I might use P. For "difficult" situations and serious landscapes, I inevitable use Manual.
But my advice to a beginner would be to stick to P for a few weeks until you find a reason to use one of the others.
f8 and be there is an old established photo principle, but with a zoom like the Canon 24-105 that'll be 1 or 2 stops down from maximum which means you'll be at about the best performance. This doesn't mean you shoot at this all the time, but if the camera is set to start up at f8 on AV you'll get a lot of quick shots before fine tuning if it's a static subject.
I have found using M is a handful and takes time to set up taking a shot, but being new to photography i expect it to be like this untill such time as i'm use to using the camera and knowing my settings are correct. When i have used the presets i always take a look at the details of what the camera has chosen to get an idea of what i need to keep in mind when taking a peticular shot.
I can see that using M would be at least for me a nightmare when trying to do a wedding where the action comes thick and fast. So resorting to P or the scene modes for me is ideal. Having said that i really need to get outside and take lots of pic's and see what i can turn out.
I think for me right now it's about getting to know the camrea and making mistakes and getting to understand what does and doesn't work. I just wondered how you guys handle it all and how you use your knowledge and experience to get your shots.
As for weddings or any professional shots !!! I think i need a few years to get the hang of things and some special shots on my PF which i do not have yet !!! hahaha
Quote: I can see that using M would be at least for me a nightmare when trying to do a wedding where the action comes thick and fast
I prefer to be in control in those situations and use M most of the time - if you use P/A/S the camera may get it wrong... with M you can meter, shoot, chimp and adjust VERY quickly
I use off camera flash at weddings, and you have to shoot with M for that - unless you're on ETTL triggers I guess.
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