Aperture Priority vs. Shutter Priority vs. Manual

[Edge100]

What do you mean? In all but the most extreme situations, Aperture mode using exposure compensation would seem to be more convenient and just as effective at controlling exposure.

No, it wouldn't.

http://neilvn.com/tangents/exposure-metering/exposure-compensation/

Get the exposure right once and for all in M mode. Exposure compensation levels would have to change depending on how you zoom or how you frame the shot (do I need 1EV or 1.5EV, now that I've zoomed and added more shadows to this image???).

M mode.

 

[Edge100]

I do not believe M is worth using if use any metering mode other than Spot or Partial. I think CWA is useless, though some will disagree.

Good advice.

M mode + spot or partial metering = perfect control over exposure.

Nothing wrong with Av mode and evaluative metering; they're great for situations with fairly uniform light or when light conditions are rapidly changing (I'd hate to shoot concerts or live theatre, for instance, in M mode). But if you want/need perfect control over exposure, M is the way to go.

 

[The Mad Kiwi]

I disagree with snberk103's comment that "you can't tell by looking at the depth of field of a photo whether it was taken by an SLR camera or not". Of course you can't tell with a stopped-down photo, or with macro shots, but I'd challenge anyone to reproduce this sort of depth-of-field with a non-DSLR

Because a Leica M9 with a Leica 50mm F0.95 Noctilux-M isn't going to produce any bokeh whatsoever

To the OP Go the AV mode I say, it's not that hard, just check the screen on the back after every shot, which you should be doing anyway to make sure you don't have any blinkies. Set the review to 5 seconds instead of the standard 2. Too easy.

 

[snberk103]

Because a Leica M9 with a Leica 50mm F0.95 Noctilux-M ...

Am I understanding this correctly? Leica has a lense that has F/stops that go from whatever the top end is through to ... f/5.6, f/4, f/2.8, f/2, f1.4, f/1, f/0.95 ( more or less - maybe without the f/1 ).... Is that what you are saying? Holy Phlying Photons!!

 

[Fultonpics]

I vote with the crowd. Set it to AV and adjust for dof you want. Since it's digital, shoot tons of shots! Something will turn out great for sure. You can forget all the other settings except ISO, but your camera may have an auto ISO feature too. Have fun! The more you shoot the better.

 

[pit29]

Am I understanding this correctly? Leica has a lense that has F/stops that go from whatever the top end is through to ... f/5.6, f/4, f/2.8, f/2, f1.4, f/1, f/0.95 ( more or less - maybe without the f/1 ).... Is that what you are saying? Holy Phlying Photons!!

Nice, huh? It's $10k though...

 

[El Cabong]

Nice, huh? It's $10k though...

The Voigtlander 50mm f/1.1 is a mite cheaper at ~$1.5k.

Their 25mm f/0.95 for m4/3 also seems to be pretty nice (with the obvious restrictions of the format), and sells for less than $1k.

Of course, why buy any of these when any compact, in the right hands, can do exactly the same thing?