Best setting for......

[PurrSusan]

Sometimes I take a photo on Auto to get a rough idea of what settings I should use on Manual with my DSLR. I also keep a little notebook to remind me of what settings worked best for me in certain situations. I only have a Canon 18-55, Canon 55-250, and Tamron 18-270 (for walkaround) and a polarizer. I know situations vary but I was wondering if anyone has an opinion on settings for the following:

 

sunrise from the ship

sunset from the ship

photos of San Juan from the ship in the evening (dark) as we sail by

planes at Maho Beach (may take my point & shoot for this)

food inside the dining room

photos on deck in the evening

 

Thanks in advance!

[pierces]

Sometimes I take a photo on Auto to get a rough idea of what settings I should use on Manual with my DSLR. I also keep a little notebook to remind me of what settings worked best for me in certain situations. I only have a Canon 18-55, Canon 55-250, and Tamron 18-270 (for walkaround) and a polarizer. I know situations vary but I was wondering if anyone has an opinion on settings for the following:

 

 

 

Thanks in advance!

 

sunrise from the ship

 

Research auto exposure lock. I usually point the camera at or near the setting sun and half-press the shutter to lock in the exposure so the scene is exposed how I want it, then recompose. I will also use exposure compensation as needed.

 

 

Sunset from the ship

 

See above. Same sun, different horizon...

 

 

photos of San Juan from the ship in the evening (dark) as we sail by

 

Wide open aperture, high ISO.

 

 

planes at Maho Beach (may take my point & shoot for this)

 

Take the DSLR. The beach drops off rapidly and the waves can be brutal. Photography trumps beach stuff there IMHO.

 

Set the ISO manually to 200 or 400 to keep your shutter speed up if you aren't going to pan and want to use f/8 or so to keep things sharp in the foreground. This shot was at 1/80s and the last image of the plane blurred a little (it is a composite...they don't really arrive that close together).

 

 

food inside the dining room

 

Point and shoot (big camera looks odd with formal wear). No flash and brace your camera on a water glass for steadiness at a good angle.

 

 

photos on deck in the evening

 

Wide open, high ISO. Maybe a small tabletop tripod or clamp for railings if you feel like dealing with one. I don't.

 

 

Enjoy your trip!

 

Dave

Edited January 23, 2015 by pierces

[PurrSusan]

Thank you :) I have a small cushion that I use sometimes as a mini-tripod. I'll make a note of taking the P&S to dinner--LOL!!

[pengu1n]

Great advice, Dave!

 

To the OP: your plan for using auto is also good way to see what might be a starting place.

 

For sunsets and sunrises, you can "enhance" the colors by experimenting with white balance.

[GottaKnowWhen]

Sometimes I take a photo on Auto to get a rough idea of what settings I should use on Manual with my DSLR. I also keep a little notebook to remind me of what settings worked best for me in certain situations. I only have a Canon 18-55, Canon 55-250, and Tamron 18-270 (for walkaround) and a polarizer. I know situations vary but I was wondering if anyone has an opinion on settings for the following:

 

sunrise from the ship

sunset from the ship

photos of San Juan from the ship in the evening (dark) as we sail by

planes at Maho Beach (may take my point & shoot for this)

food inside the dining room

photos on deck in the evening

 

Thanks in advance!

If you have a RGB histogram display, then you can a) take a quick shot on Auto or the indicated "proper" manual setting, then b) inspect the histograms and adjust so that you are not blowing out the highlights. If you shoot RAW, then close is good enough and you can adjust later.

[PurrSusan]

Thanks for the white balance tip, Karen. Yes, Gotta Know When, a histogram is definitely my friend :) I appreciate the advice!

 

Dave (Pierces): Forgot to say--I enjoy looking at your photos (on here as well as on other threads)

[dltvermont]

I have to admit I cheated while at Maho last year. I didnt want to take the chance of totally missing the shot so used auto in the sports mode. They came out pretty good.

[dltvermont]

IMG_0891 by darron.tabor, on Flickr

[PurrSusan]

I have to admit I cheated while at Maho last year. I didnt want to take the chance of totally missing the shot so used auto in the sports mode. They came out pretty good.

 

Sure did! :) Did you use a polarizer? The colors look great!

[dltvermont]

That was just the plain old camera lens! Im a photography newbie. Purchased the T3i to take on the cruise and practiced a little before we left. A friend had the same camera and told me he did the same (sports setting) with the planes at Maho so I decided not to chance missing it with my pictures and used it as well.

[TruckerDave]

If you really want to get into sunrise and sunset shots I would look into getting graduated ND filter. (half dark and half clear). Or look into doing HDR (high dynamic range....combining multiple shots. 1 for bright areas, 1 for dark areas and one for mid tone areas for example).

[PurrSusan]

If you really want to get into sunrise and sunset shots I would look into getting graduated ND filter. (half dark and half clear). Or look into doing HDR (high dynamic range....combining multiple shots. 1 for bright areas, 1 for dark areas and one for mid tone areas for example).

 

Thanks TruckerDave! I just learned about HDR recently & haven't had time to play with that yet---sounds like I need to :)

[TheMediaman]

I can recommend an extremely helpful book; "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. The book gives very useful and easy to follow tips and techniques. The author has several others but this is a very good one to start with to get you comfortable with the wonderful world of manual settings.

 

HDR can produce great photos but may be at the flying before running before learning to walk stage of photography.

[dltvermont]

I too recommend that Petersen book. I saw it recommended everywhere I looked when I first got my DSLR and went right out and got it....a great resource.

[TruckerDave]

I can recommend an extremely helpful book; "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. The book gives very useful and easy to follow tips and techniques. The author has several others but this is a very good one to start with to get you comfortable with the wonderful world of manual settings.

 

HDR can produce great photos but may be at the flying before running before learning to walk stage of photography.

 

I'll "third" the recommendation of this book. He breaks it down to the basics and seems to have a pretty good sense of humor. (He even takes a shot a photography web site, not sure which one but I have an idea as I have seen him and his book get slammed by some of the internet experts on said site).

[TheMediaman]

I emailed Bryan Peterson to share a photograph that i took, just by chance, in the same exact spot in Rome that was in his book. He responded quite quickly and was very complimentary. I own most every book of his and am presently working my through "Understanding Flash Photography"

 

Some have golf to frustrate. I have photography. 😉

[pierces]

I purchased and read Understanding Exposure and was sorry to find no new information to add to what I have learned on my own over decades of photography and personal research.

 

If, however, you don't have a couple dozen years to stumble blindly through a painful trial and error education I can honestly add my own high recommendation for Mr. Peterson's excellent book! :)

 

Dave

Edited January 29, 2015 by pierces

[levonfan]

For your outside shots you should be able to set your ISO at 100 for the cleanest pictures possible. No reason to increase it.

 

The easiest way for the other shots (sunrise, sunset, interior, etc) would be to bring a tripod and shoot with a small f stop, leaving your ISO still at 100.

 

You should just try to shoot in Aperture mode, where you set the f stop and the camera does the shutter speed for you. The only exception would possibly be when you are trying to take pictures of the planes, but to be honest you will be in full sunlight so your shutter speed should be well above 125, so you wouldn't have any blur.