Shooting in "scene" mode
Published on 2010-05-28 01:49:55
A few cameras offer special scene modes that are supposedly optimized for underwater imaging. They are to be used in replacement for manual selection of shutter speed and aperture. Olympus offers three underwater modes on their Stylus Tough series:
"Macro" mode - used for close up but not really macro
"Wide angle 1" mode - for wide angle scenes with a close foreground
"Wide angle 2" mode - for wide angle scene with no foreground
In macro and wide angle 1, the flash is set forced. Both wide angle modes are equivalent to a P mode so the perfect recipe for a big blue (or green) blur in case of low luminosity as the shutter is potentially set to a very slow speed. In macro mode, the camera seems to default to 1/30s which is far too slow to guarantee a clear shot all the time. All modes seem to play with the ISO as well (instead of the shutter speed). Since the Stylus is capable of high ISO, that's another perfect recipe for digital noise.
If your camera offers these kinds of mode but no priority modes (Tv/Av for Canons), they may be a first step to better images. However, if your camera has priority modes, then forget about the scenes and start shooting like a (semi) pro...
React to this article
Be the first one to react!
Take me back home
