Shooting/Exposure Modes – Auto

This is the obvious choice for people just starting out, especially those with a new camera. It does everything for you! That means that it selects the shutter speed, aperture and ISO (and probably some other stuff), so it’s making an educated guess about the exposure.

For a brief explanation of these settings, see my Exposure Basics.

Auto is perfect if you need a “grab shot”, or if you are in a situation where you don’t have time to fiddle with your camera settings. On the other hand, it not may achieve the result you are looking for.

Don’t get me wrong – there have been plenty of situations where I thought I could be smarter than the camera’s Auto settings, but was sorely disappointed at the results, especially indoor shots in low light. I have learned to take a shot in Auto first to see what the camera thinks is best, and then use that as a guide when I switch to Aperture Priority or Manual.