"P" Mode vs. Av Mode
- Thread starter Dcanoli
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AndrewWG
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2007
I always (well, when I'm not using full manual) use Av mode. It gives you more artistic control of the camera. In normal daylight situations, it probably doesn't make a big difference in the final pic if you just want a snapshot, but to limit depth of field, etc, I like the control of Av.
Master Mason
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- Jul 27, 2006
probaby 90% of my shots are done in AV, the other 10% would be divided between Tv and Manual.
Dcanoli
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 31, 2004
Glad to see both of you post here.
I like Av mode too for that control of depth of field; however, both of my friends said they were told to use the "PORTRAIT" mode for taking pictures of children.
Do you ever use the "P" mode? I can't say I've even ever played around with it.
I like Av mode too for that control of depth of field; however, both of my friends said they were told to use the "PORTRAIT" mode for taking pictures of children.
Do you ever use the "P" mode? I can't say I've even ever played around with it.
Master Mason
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When I first got the XT I used P mode because the flash wouldn't pop up. Once I started learning or relearning how to use an SLR, I quickly wanted to control my shots.
P and the other presets are great for folks that don't want to learn, or haven't yet learned how to control their camera, but most often your going to get much better results if you understand how and WHY your making the various changes yourself.
Blessed99
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2008
I may be wrong but I thought the P was the program mode. 
What I use it for is making the flash work on sunny days to erase shadows on faces and such. Of course I don't think of myself as anything more than a amatuer hobbyist that has tons to learn!
Kelly
Me Kelly
and DD 8 Kamryn
What I use it for is making the flash work on sunny days to erase shadows on faces and such. Of course I don't think of myself as anything more than a amatuer hobbyist that has tons to learn! Kelly
Me Kelly
and DD 8 Kamryn 
Golf4food
Male pirate last time I checked. Yep. Still male.
- Joined
- Feb 10, 2005
P is not Portrait. P is program mode. It is a combination of Av and Tv - you control the Av (apeture) with one dial and Tv (shutter speed) with another. It is very, very close to full manual, but the camera handles some of the more complicated work.
I generally use Av but will switch to P if I need to get a little more light into a shot with a longer shutter release.
The flash is probably popping up in P mode for you if you have inadvertnatly moved your shutter speed to something very short and are in a lower light situation where the shutter speed is too fast to properly expose the apeture setting you have chosen.
Then again, I'm not exactly a trained expert in these things.
Hopefully one of our resident "pros" will chime in and correct me if I am wrong, but I'm 99% sure I have that all correct, lol.
I generally use Av but will switch to P if I need to get a little more light into a shot with a longer shutter release.
The flash is probably popping up in P mode for you if you have inadvertnatly moved your shutter speed to something very short and are in a lower light situation where the shutter speed is too fast to properly expose the apeture setting you have chosen.
Then again, I'm not exactly a trained expert in these things.
Hopefully one of our resident "pros" will chime in and correct me if I am wrong, but I'm 99% sure I have that all correct, lol.
Master Mason
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- Jul 27, 2006
P is not Portrait. P is program mode. It is a combination of Av and Tv - you control the Av (apeture) with one dial and Tv (shutter speed) with another. It is very, very close to full manual, but the camera handles some of the more complicated work.
I generally use Av but will switch to P if I need to get a little more light into a shot with a longer shutter release.
The flash is probably popping up in P mode for you if you have inadvertnatly moved your shutter speed to something very short and are in a lower light situation where the shutter speed is too fast to properly expose the apeture setting you have chosen.
Then again, I'm not exactly a trained expert in these things.
P is program mode. You control the ISO, and if the flash is up or not. The camera will then choose Apeture and Shutter speed just as if it was in Green box mode. Essentailly it is green box without the flash and gives you control of ISO if you want it.
In portrait mode, the camera will chose apeture, ISO, shutter speed, and flash with a nod to trying to focus on your subject and blur the background. Usually it looks like a little person on the dial.
Master Mason
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- Jul 27, 2006
I may be wrong but I thought the P was the program mode.
Kelly
Me Kelly
that can be a good use of the P mode as well as your forcing the flash.
MarkBarbieri
Semi-retired
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2006
It is also my understanding that P stands for Program. The traditional four exposure modes for an auto-exposure camera are P (program), Av (aperture priority), Tv (shutter priority) and M (manual). If you adjust increase your shutter speed (allow less time for the light to reach the sensor/film), your picture gets darker. To make it look the same, you need to increase your aperture (make the lens opening wider) so that you let more light in. In Manual mode, you adjust both the shutter speed and aperture yourself. In Av, you adjust the aperture and the camera adjusts the shutter speed. In Tv mode, you adjust the shutter speed and the camera adjusts the aperture. In P mode, the camera sets them both.
It is important to understand that a picture taken in any of those modes will look absolutely identical as long as the aperture and shutter speeds match. One mode is not better than another. Each mode is appropriate for different uses. In all four modes, you can still pick from the same range of values, so you can get the same shot in any mode.
When your primary concern is controlling the shutter speed (perhaps because you want a particularly fast shutter speed to stop motion or a long shutter speed to blur motion), shutter priority is appropriate. When your primary concern is controlling the aperture (perhaps because you want a wider aperture for a very shallow depth of field or a very narrow aperture for a very wide depth of field), aperture priority is appropriate.
Sometimes you aren't terribly concerned about either aperture or shutter speed. It may be that conditions are changing very rapidly (as can happen walking around Disney World). Program mode has some smarts to it that help the photographer. In program mode, the camera will try to pick a shutter speed that is fast enough for safe hand-holding. It will also try to pick an aperture where the lens will be sharpest (usually a couple of stops narrower than wide open). As conditions change, instead of you having to think about whether your aperture and shutter speed are optimal, the camera does it for you. Also, if you don't like the settings that it picked, it is usually very easy to adjust them on the fly to something more appropriate anyway.
Manual mode also has it's uses. One example would be when you are taking a lot of shots in one set of lighting conditions. Perhaps it's your daughter's soccer game and it's uniformly sunny. If you set the proper exposure in manual mode, you won't have to worry about the camera picking different exposure levels for different shots. Another example would be when you are shooting with studio flashes. In that case, you can't rely on the camera's meter (because it has no idea how bright the flashes will be).
There are other times when you want to override your camera's meter. It may be getting fooled by unusually light or dark colored subjects. It may be that you want a lighter or darker than "normal" exposure. In those cases, you can use manual exposure mode to force the exposure setting you want. You can also use the P, Av, and Tv modes and tell the camera to under or overexpose by setting the exposure compensation. Once again, this is all just a process to pick the appropriate shutter speed and aperture for your picture.
Flash throws another wrinkle into the exposure mode you choose. The impact is different depending on the camera. In some modes and situations, the camera will rely on the flash as the primary light source. In other modes, the camera will fire the flash but keep the shutter open longer to allow more ambient (non-flash) light into the picture.
Aperture priority is the most popular mode used by SLR shooters here. I suspect that is because most of the most people are more concerned about managing depth of field over any other element. As long as shutter speed is adequate, the aperture will have the biggest impact on the appearance of the photo.
Let me just emphasize one more time - the exposure mode just helps pick what values the camera will use for aperture and shutter speed. The full range of values is available in all modes, so any normally exposed shot you can get in one mode can be taken in any of the other three modes. Picking the mode that helps you get the shutter speed and aperture values you want as quickly, easily, and consistently as possible for the conditions in which you are shooting.
It is important to understand that a picture taken in any of those modes will look absolutely identical as long as the aperture and shutter speeds match. One mode is not better than another. Each mode is appropriate for different uses. In all four modes, you can still pick from the same range of values, so you can get the same shot in any mode.
When your primary concern is controlling the shutter speed (perhaps because you want a particularly fast shutter speed to stop motion or a long shutter speed to blur motion), shutter priority is appropriate. When your primary concern is controlling the aperture (perhaps because you want a wider aperture for a very shallow depth of field or a very narrow aperture for a very wide depth of field), aperture priority is appropriate.
Sometimes you aren't terribly concerned about either aperture or shutter speed. It may be that conditions are changing very rapidly (as can happen walking around Disney World). Program mode has some smarts to it that help the photographer. In program mode, the camera will try to pick a shutter speed that is fast enough for safe hand-holding. It will also try to pick an aperture where the lens will be sharpest (usually a couple of stops narrower than wide open). As conditions change, instead of you having to think about whether your aperture and shutter speed are optimal, the camera does it for you. Also, if you don't like the settings that it picked, it is usually very easy to adjust them on the fly to something more appropriate anyway.
Manual mode also has it's uses. One example would be when you are taking a lot of shots in one set of lighting conditions. Perhaps it's your daughter's soccer game and it's uniformly sunny. If you set the proper exposure in manual mode, you won't have to worry about the camera picking different exposure levels for different shots. Another example would be when you are shooting with studio flashes. In that case, you can't rely on the camera's meter (because it has no idea how bright the flashes will be).
There are other times when you want to override your camera's meter. It may be getting fooled by unusually light or dark colored subjects. It may be that you want a lighter or darker than "normal" exposure. In those cases, you can use manual exposure mode to force the exposure setting you want. You can also use the P, Av, and Tv modes and tell the camera to under or overexpose by setting the exposure compensation. Once again, this is all just a process to pick the appropriate shutter speed and aperture for your picture.
Flash throws another wrinkle into the exposure mode you choose. The impact is different depending on the camera. In some modes and situations, the camera will rely on the flash as the primary light source. In other modes, the camera will fire the flash but keep the shutter open longer to allow more ambient (non-flash) light into the picture.
Aperture priority is the most popular mode used by SLR shooters here. I suspect that is because most of the most people are more concerned about managing depth of field over any other element. As long as shutter speed is adequate, the aperture will have the biggest impact on the appearance of the photo.
Let me just emphasize one more time - the exposure mode just helps pick what values the camera will use for aperture and shutter speed. The full range of values is available in all modes, so any normally exposed shot you can get in one mode can be taken in any of the other three modes. Picking the mode that helps you get the shutter speed and aperture values you want as quickly, easily, and consistently as possible for the conditions in which you are shooting.
Dcanoli
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 31, 2004
Here we go.....
I almost always use Av....like the "easiness" of it. If I need to capture motion, I switch to Tv. Those are normally the only two modes I use, HOWEVER....I have two friends that were told to use "P."
...and NO I wasn't going very fast, so we are all okay!
I've always said P was for Program, but when I turned on one of the girl's Canon's, it said PORTRAIT. I looked at her perplexed and said, "This is normally PROGRAM mode. I don't understand why it's coming up saying Portrait."
That's what really got me started on this Program/Portrait trip. Then, the 2nd girl e-mailed me yesterday and said she had a friend that takes pictures of children and so that photographer told her to use the "P" mode.
So, seeing that I got two "use the 'P' mode" comments in a matter of days, I told them I'd pose the question here and see what everyone's responses would be.
I KNEW THEY'D BE COLORFUL AND GOOD.
Now, all that said--Mark, you are throwing too many factors into this amateur's head!
Your comment about using "P" at Disney is intriguing. Never thought about using it at Disney for the average shot.
Disney is the ultimate learning curve. Seems like you need dedicated (i.e., 50mm or 30mm) lenses for late night or dark scenario shoot situations, tripods and remote shutter releases for firework shots (though I didn't have one on my last trip, so I had to compromise and use the 2sec timer with the Tv mode), macro lens for close-ups, and I'm sure the list could go on and on...
Just when I thought my learning curve was lessening just slightly....
Okay...now, to summarize...I get everything you are saying, but if these women use the "P" mode what is the advantage over them using Auto mode? I think I'm missing something here between the two because you are telling me that "P" picks both the aperture and shutter, correct?
Is the only difference the ability to pick an ISO?
I almost always use Av....like the "easiness" of it. If I need to capture motion, I switch to Tv. Those are normally the only two modes I use, HOWEVER....I have two friends that were told to use "P."
...and NO I wasn't going very fast, so we are all okay!
I've always said P was for Program, but when I turned on one of the girl's Canon's, it said PORTRAIT. I looked at her perplexed and said, "This is normally PROGRAM mode. I don't understand why it's coming up saying Portrait."
That's what really got me started on this Program/Portrait trip. Then, the 2nd girl e-mailed me yesterday and said she had a friend that takes pictures of children and so that photographer told her to use the "P" mode.
So, seeing that I got two "use the 'P' mode" comments in a matter of days, I told them I'd pose the question here and see what everyone's responses would be.
I KNEW THEY'D BE COLORFUL AND GOOD.
Now, all that said--Mark, you are throwing too many factors into this amateur's head!
Your comment about using "P" at Disney is intriguing. Never thought about using it at Disney for the average shot.
Disney is the ultimate learning curve. Seems like you need dedicated (i.e., 50mm or 30mm) lenses for late night or dark scenario shoot situations, tripods and remote shutter releases for firework shots (though I didn't have one on my last trip, so I had to compromise and use the 2sec timer with the Tv mode), macro lens for close-ups, and I'm sure the list could go on and on...
Just when I thought my learning curve was lessening just slightly....
Okay...now, to summarize...I get everything you are saying, but if these women use the "P" mode what is the advantage over them using Auto mode? I think I'm missing something here between the two because you are telling me that "P" picks both the aperture and shutter, correct?
Is the only difference the ability to pick an ISO?
handicap18
<font color=blue>Husband, father of 3, and Disney
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2005
In "P" program mode the only thing you control is the ISO and the flash popping up. The camera chooses the aperture and shutter. If your choosing the aperture and shutter then its Manual. Of the 3 (A, S, & P) it is the furtherst from full manual.
I do most of my shooting in aperture priority. I'll use manual for long exposures. I'll sometimes use shutter priority, but I can generally get the shutter speed I want in A. I'll use Program for a lot of flash work. I never use the pre programed modes. The only time I put it on AUTO is when DW is using the camera or I had it to someone else to take a picture of me it.
Dcanoli
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 31, 2004
MY SENTIMENTS EXACTLY, "Wait, hang on a second...." (As I'm switching the mode to AUTO!)
handicap18
<font color=blue>Husband, father of 3, and Disney
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2005
Your comment about using "P" at Disney is intriguing. Never thought about using it at Disney for the average shot.
Okay...now, to summarize...I get everything you are saying, but if these women use the "P" mode what is the advantage over them using Auto mode? I think I'm missing something here between the two because you are telling me that "P" picks both the aperture and shutter, correct?
Is the only difference the ability to pick an ISO?
I have many times used "P" while walking around Disney. Especially when the family is together. Sometimes you just don't have the time to scroll through variouse shutters and/or apertures. People move quick down there and P can help with getting that quick shot on the go.
There are a few differences between P and Auto. You choose the ISO in P, while the camera chooses that for you (and you can't change it at all in AUTO). If the shutter speed is below 1/60th or thereabouts, the flash will pop-up automatically. In P you can pop the flash when you want it. I don't know about other cameras, but on mine you can still choose your focus points in P. In auto the camera defaults to closets subject (though I do think I can change that). Also my metering automatically goes to Matrix Metering. Spot and Center Weight Metering are disabled. White Balance is also set to auto and you can't change it in AUTO (though it can be changed in PP if you shoot RAW). The bracketing feature is disabled in AUTO. Some camera's limit the highest ISO in auto ISO on AUTO. So even if your camera can go to 1600, 800 might be the limit in AUTO. Check your manuals for that though.
One way to check specific's on your camera. Put it on P, then go through the menu. All the options are available to you. Now change it to AUTO and go through the menu again. You'll notice that there are options that you can no longer choose.
MarkBarbieri
Semi-retired
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2006
My 10D also switched from RAW to JPG when you went into Auto. I think it also nixed exposure compensation. It's sort of like a "force everything to defaults" mode. P mode only affects exposure. Auto overrides all sorts of other things. My current camera has no "Auto" mode - just P, M, Av, Tv, and Bulb. Bulb is sort of like M in that you determine both the aperture and the shutter speed. The difference is that the shutter speed is determined by how long you hold down the shutter button. It's great for fireworks and lightening when you don't know how much light there will be until after it starts happening. It's also good for exposures longer than 30 seconds.
Dcanoli
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 31, 2004
Okay, I may try using "P" for those quick shots. Maybe you have convinced me to give it a try.
I'm not sure I've learned (or understand) about all the metering modes so far. I've got mine set on the "top" one...I'm experiencing a brain-fade right now...can't remember what mode that is....sorry...
I've been meaning to read up on those.....
Haven't been shooting in RAW (don't kill me)...takes up WAY too much room on the card, and I haven't seen a tremendous amount of difference in shots yet.
I'm guessing it's great for working on WB and low-light shots....
As for these two friends of mine, I "think" they know less about the camera than I do (though I could be wrong), and so using "P" for the ISO, flash, and metering options is pretty much moot.
If that's the case, then what you all are telling me is there is no difference FOR THEM in using the "P" mode and AUTO. Correct?
I'm not sure I've learned (or understand) about all the metering modes so far. I've got mine set on the "top" one...I'm experiencing a brain-fade right now...can't remember what mode that is....sorry...
I've been meaning to read up on those.....
Haven't been shooting in RAW (don't kill me)...takes up WAY too much room on the card, and I haven't seen a tremendous amount of difference in shots yet.
I'm guessing it's great for working on WB and low-light shots....
As for these two friends of mine, I "think" they know less about the camera than I do (though I could be wrong), and so using "P" for the ISO, flash, and metering options is pretty much moot.
If that's the case, then what you all are telling me is there is no difference FOR THEM in using the "P" mode and AUTO. Correct?
handicap18
<font color=blue>Husband, father of 3, and Disney
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2005
Based on what you've said here, for them AUTO is probably correct. They're also probably not getting everything out of the camera that it is capable of and they may think they don't get as many great shots as they should be. Many people in this example think that their old PnS digital took better pictures.
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