A camera's exposure modes determine how much control you have over two critical exposure
settings— aperture and shutter speed. You can choose the full manual (M) mode, or one of the three semi-automatic modes: programmed auto (P), shutter priority auto (S) and aperture priority auto (A). The semi-automatic modes allow you to take more creative control, but still get some exposure assistance from the camera.
Explore the different exposure modes and ways they can help you capture the best image.
Exposure Mode Settings
In manual mode, you control both aperture and shutter speed. Use the exposure meter to help you adjust the aperture and shutter speed to the correct settings. In this mode, it's important to understand how lighting levels affect exposure. Manual mode gives you complete control over your camera and the outcome of the image.
In aperture priority auto mode, you control the aperture and the camera automatically adjusts the shutter speed to produce the best exposure. This mode is ideal for portraits or macro photography, where capturing the motion of the subject is not as important as controlling the depth of field in the image.
In shutter priority auto mode, you set the shutter speed and the camera automatically adjusts the aperture to expose the image properly. This mode is the right choice for capturing sports or other moving subjects and uncontrolled action because it gives you direct control over shutter speed.
In programmed auto mode, the camera meters the scene and selects the aperture and shutter speed for optimal exposure. You can choose from different aperture and shutter speed combinations to vary the results. This is the recommended mode for snapshots and still portrait settings.