Yesterday, while out vending at an art show, someone insulted me with the #1 phrase that hurts/pisses off/offends pro photographers the most.
“Your camera takes great pictures”
I snapped back with, ” I shoot in manual so it does everything I tell it to do”
Why is this an insult and why did I say that?
People really think and believe that we just point and shoot using an automatic mode in our camera. On a camera, automatic modes are used by people that do not know how to shoot in manual mode. Shooting in an auto mode means the camera automatically adjusts all the settings for you and you literally have no control over what the camera does. Pro photographers shoot in manual mode, not an automatic mode. In manual mode, you have full control over the camera’s settings.
In order to shoot in manual mode, you must need to learn about ISO, Shutter Speed and aperture ( F stop) and the Exposure Triangle. The Exposure Triangle is how those 3 things come together. The ISO, Shutter Speed and Aperture do 3 different things. Each one impacts the other. If you change setting of one, you have to change the setting of another for everything to all balance together to get the desired image that you want.
When you shoot in manual, you have to put in the aperture, ISO and shutter speed individually. Again, in order to do this, you have to understand how they all work together in order to know what settings to use.
Why use manual? Professionals require full control of how their images come out. This produces better images. Plus as a professionals, we go a step above- because we are professionals.
Ever take a picture at night, on an automatic mode, and it comes out “grainy”? It’s because the camera automatically increases the ISO to overcome the darkness. Increasing the ISO causes the grainy aka noisy appearance. Do you know why you never see that kind of outcome with a professional? Because we know how the Exposure Triangle works and how to adjust the settings so that our images do not come out with all that noise.
Ever take an action shot and it comes out blurry? Ever seen a pro have an intentional blurry action shot? Remember, the person using the camera, in an automatic mode, lets the camera choose the settings. How does the camera know that it’s an action shot? It doesnt so it picks whatever settings it wants, which is usually an inadequate shutter speed. Sure, you can put the camera in the “sports or action mode” but it is still an automatic mode and you can still have blurred images. Again, the camera does what it wants when it is in an automatic mode. While, pros know what shutter speed to use– along with the appropriate aperture and ISO. That is why a pros picture is not blurry compared to someone using a cam in automatic mode. Yes, the pros have the better equipment but THEY STILL NEED TO KNOW HOW TO SHOOT IN MANUAL. The equipment does not automatically take the perfect image for them.
Cell phones do not have the option to shoot in manual mode–as advanced as the cameras are on them, they still are only capable of shooting in automatic modes.
In addition to knowing the Exposure Triangle, we also have to learn about lighting. Ever notice that a professional camera does not have a built in pop up flash? I am talking about a REAL professional camera, not just any camera. Why don’t pro cameras have them? Because the pop up flashes create harsh light and do not provide adequate lighting. Any real pro knows this so they use off camera flash such as studio lights etc. So it is pointless to have a pop up flash on a real professional camera.
Learning about lighting and flashes is a whooolllle other ball game. Also, pros need to know the position and types of lighting and the cause/effects of it. As well as overall composition and posing and numerous other things. We spend years studying all of this and the learning never stops. Things change and advance so we have to keep up with it all.
For landscapes and sunset/sunrise shots, the photographer needs to know the right moment to shoot and what direction they need to be in for it. Also, the position, they, themselves, need to be in. Personally, I have spent hours waiting on the banks of bodies of water waiting for that perfect moment to snap that perfect sunset–while being eaten alive by mosquitoes, watching out for snakes and alligators.I know exactly when I need to snap and have to wait for that perfect time to do it. I have laid down in the mud on my stomach, got into twisted positions and risked myself in a number of ways to get the shot that I had envisioned in my mind.
None of what I mentioned above is “automatic”–NONE OF IT.
So, when someone says to a photographer, “your camera takes good pictures”, it is implying that it is the camera that produced the “good picture” and the skills and knowledge of the photographer had absolutely nothing to do with it. That is why pros are insulted by that comment.
You never hear anyone tell a chef, Chef, “wow, this food is great, you must have a good stove”. Also never hear anyone tell a seamstress, “wow, this is sewn well, you must have a good sewing machine”. But, yet, us pro photographers, always hear, “wow, your camera takes great pictures. WTF?
My point of this blog is to educate and bring awareness and appreciation to what we do. So that we hopefully start getting more respect –and can stop hearing that heart wrenching phrase, “wow, your camera takes great photos”
Thanks for reading.
Peace & Love
~Tiffany