Advanced Photo Modes

Your Canon has three modes that let you decide how much control you have over your settings.

Manual Mode: In this mode you have full control over the settings on your camera. Remember to use the camera's light meter to check that your exposure is balanced.

Shutter Priority Mode (Tv): Perfect for when shooting motion. This mode allows you to control your shutter speed while the camera automatically sets the aperture, so you can concentrate on capturing the action!

Aperture Priority Mode (Av): In this mode you control the aperture value, while the camera automatically sets the shutter speed. This mode is perfect for when you need to concentrate on how much of your scene is in focus.

Aperture

The lowest Aperture setting gives you the largest lens opening and the shortest area of focus (depth of field). As you increase the Aperture the lens opening becomes smaller and depth of field becomes bigger.

Shutter Speed

The lowest shutter setting will keep your shutter open the longest amount of time (1 sec), letting in lots of light and showing motion in your photo. As you increase this setting, your shutter speed becomes faster, the less light you are capturing and motion appears frozen in a moment of time.

ISO

A low ISO value (at the left side of your scale) gives low sensitivty in your image sensor. A low setting works in an environment where there is lots of light. As you increase the ISO, the sensor becomes more sensitive and will therefore need less light to get a good exposure. But remember, the higher your ISO, the more digital noise you will capture in your photo.

Exposure Meter

Watch the Exposure Meter - Ideally you want the Exposure Meter to be around zero (0) for a photo that has the proper exposure. The Exposure Meter will change as you adjust the Aperture, Shutter Speed and ISO settings, because each of these effects the amount of light in your photo.