the beep is a dealbreaker. I made sure the A7iii had an option to turn it off before buying. I'm autistic and that little beep is really grating to my ears. I do landscape photography because it's so quiet, so I make sure I'm as quiet as nature. (Also, to anyone who listens to music on the trail, throw your speaker off a cliff please)
I never use auto ISO and it is the last thing I will change manually to get the right amount of light for the exposure. Shutter speed and aperture come first.
For me #1 is always turning the beeps off those drive me absolutely insane and I don’t always want people/animals to know Im taking pictures! I suppose I could see it as being useful if you’re using a countdown timer to take a group picture with you in it. Other than that I can see zero use for it.
Unfortunately my shutter is noisy at any slow/fast/normal shutter drive. Bugs me to no end and the people around me. I have used other cameras and was relieved when they were near silent, just wish my 90D does.
Hey Mark, long exposure "noise" is entirely different than noise from underexposure, as it actually refers to hot pixels that show up in long exposures. Long exposure noise reduction does not blur the image like regular noise reduction. Rather, it takes a dark frame to identify and interpolate out the hot pixels. The only downside is a doubling of each exposure.
Good list. Long exposure noise reduction takes a picture with the shutter closed and with the same settings as the light picture in order to kno where to remove sensor noise. Unless you also take a dark image and blend it with a light image, you will have a hard time reducing noise as much as in camera long exposure noise reduction. Is there something I am missing?
I leave long exposure noise reduction on. It can be annoying that it doubles already long exposure times, but still worth it IMO as it's one thing that the camera actually can do better than post processing, as it have info that's not available in post. That is unless you do extra manual dark exposures, but that takes even more time.
Of course it's a tradeoff. I rarely go over 60s, but even then the extra minute wait can be frustrating. At some point it obviously get impractical to have it on.
I have mine on, but always wondered does it get deactivated when using continuous bracketing such as 3 or 5 long exposure shots in a row, because it seems to start taking the next exposure shot immediately?
@@thegodphreaker No, it impacts your RAW files and can not be undone - but in most circumstances it's beneficial to the image quality (unless you are using older Nikon cameras which had some processing errors in this function). In fact if you don't do your own dark frames it is irreplaceable from a certain shutter speed onwards because it prevents hotpixels from ruining your long exposures. It can not be replaced by any kind of later processing unless you have created a dark frame yourself.
The advice is clearly for landscape, makes it easier to understand why some photographers use different cameras for different purposes, quite many settings to change if you want to do something different.
I like landscape and nature, but I'm handheld so I guess I'll keep the image stabilizer on for now. But it's good to keep in mind. My brother was just showing a 1/2 setting for stabilizing, but my lenses don't have that so I don't have to worry about it.
When I started out 2 years ago, I could not stand "back button focus". I was so used to using the shutter button. A lot of photographers swore by that back button setting. I switched over and had to get use to it during the first few weeks (probably muscle memory and being new). Now I always change any camera I rent/own/borrow to the "back button focus". It is a game changer and love it.
I did that, too, recently. Didn't know it's a common thing nut found it quite convenient. (Before it wasn't an issue, as I used exclusively manual focussing lenses.)
Excellent video! I always turn off the possibility to take pictures without a memory card inserted. It is enabled by default on new Canon cameras, to help retailers demonstrate the camera.
The most important one to me is back button focus. I've been using that for two or three years now. I actually prefer having the beep to verify focus. My hearing is not great so I'm just happy I can hear it.😀
Back Button Focus and turning off the beeps are CRITICAL for me. I hate beeps and notifications in general. And having more control of when I use AF is a game changer for me.
I love BBF, but sometimes return focus to the shutter button in the winter when it's impossible to press the back button with a gloved thumb. At such times I slide a remote inside my mitten and shoot with it.
Thank you for explaining WHY to do back button focusing. I’ve heard other photographers say to change this setting but you’ve provided what the effect on the photos. This is very helpful as I get know my new camera. Thanks!!
If you turn on Back Button Auto Focus (#3), you certainly don't want to turn off Continuous AF (#1). The two go hand in hand. If all you shoot are landscapes why have AF enabled at all?
No, if you use back button autofocus you definitely want to turn Cont AF off, you want to focus with the back button and for it to keep that focus, you dont want it hunting for new things to focus on
Good video as always ! I don't agree with AF-C, it is totally personal but the combination of AF-C and back button focus works very good for me. I can focus on a still subject and if I don't want the focus to change, I just leave the back button alone. The best part here is that I can focus on a moving subject without touching my config. I totally agree with the beeps, always turned off ! Thx for your good advices !
Nice way of presenting, inserting a story between every 3 topics you wanted to talk about. It increased my information absorbtion rate. And definitely made the wait more rewarding. Kudos 🍻
Excellent as always. Have you ever tried to set the max ISO setting and use auto ISO? This way you still have some control. I will use min shutter speed when I am doing wildlife and that works pretty good for me.
Hi Mark, another interesting video and as ever, thanks for sharing... I must be kinda getting this hang of this photography malarkey, as I have already turned off 6 of the 7 items you listed. I have set up my camera to BBF and continuous focus mode, so that I can press the button once for stationary subjects and keep it pressed for moving ones. Of the 7 you mention, as a relative newbie I don't post process ( well hardly ), so I've left the long exposure noise reduction set to on. Maybe once I begin to use Lightroom etc, I'll do that too. I use Nikon's NX studio occasionally.
Always turn off playback myself as a hybrid landscape/wildlife photographer I find it gets in the way, just manually check with the handy playback button.
Various Nikons I've owned have consistently overexposed when using Auto ISO, so I keep it off for landscape work. I wonder if other Nikon users have this experience? I guess I'm a rare one since I'm not particularly bothered by the AF beep. My vision isn't as good as it once was and in some situations I have difficulty seeing the Live View screen well enough, so I find the beep can be useful (at its lowest volume setting). I almost always use a tripod, so it's pretty obvious to any people who might be around what I'm doing, and I rarely shoot wildlife, so the beep usually stays on.
Brings back memories of when hourly beeps were on watches. Hated hearing this as I do all camera beeps. I have all settings off as you do….except for the back button focus. Knew about it for years, but never a desire to try it. Excellent video as always.
I usually mute my phone too for the same reason. When I'm shooting from a tripod, I like to turn the AF off and manual focus, but that's probably more out of nostalgia than any technical reason.
We'll have to agree to disagree about BBF. 🙂 I disabled it on my camera. I found due to the way I carry the camera I was constantly touching the BBF button with my thumb (I have large-ish hands) and the focus was seeking for a non-existent focal point. That can make a difference in battery life, aside from the annoyance factor. Plus, most of the time when I'm shooting landscapes I switch the lens to manual focus so it doesn't matter. Having BBF on means slightly more finger gymnastics, so ...no for me. But I respect your view!! LOL 😀 Also, while I also disable LENR, it does have advantages since it can read camera / sensor noise factors that (as far as I understand) are not available outside the camera. As a result it can effectively function as a dark frame. Good video.
On my X-T3 I had almost the same problem. I found it a pain to find and reach the button for back focus when shooting hand held, which I do a lot, so I switched it. It's now the front button focus which is just under and to the left of the shutter release.
I shoot on Nikon: I've messed around with Auto-ISO and use it sparingly. Jury is still out. My auto-focus is on AF-C (continuous) at all times because, like your next point, I use back-button focus. As you pointed out, that allows me to decide when to focus. Having it on AF-C also gives me complete control over the focusing. If I want just a quick focus of something, whether hand-held or on a tripod, I hold the back button down until it's focused, then release it and take all the shots I want. If, however, I am shooting a moving target, I just keep it held down while shooting, and for moving targets, it's usually in Continuous High-Speed (CH) shutter mode. To get a single shot, I just quickly press and release the shutter. Since I take a fair number of nighttime shots, L E N R would double the amount of time I'm out there and it's of little or no benefit to my images.
A helpful video for those "Beginner" photographers that shoot exactly the type of photography that you do! Many don't shoot 80% of their photos on a tripod. IBIS is helpful for many. BBF is not. I'm not a Pro but based on some of the responses, many don't agree with all your top 7 which I'm assuming you knew they wouldn't. I guess it's the title of this video I don't agree with. "7 Camera Settings you May want to consider Turning Off" maybe? Having said all that, I love your videos, great photo skills and clear explanations of what you do! Thanks
Thanks Mark! I love the back button auto focus also. The only issue that I run into with these settings is when the wife wants someone to snap a picture of us with my camera. I have to give a dissertation before they can use my camera.
Q: Do you know what time it is when your wife wants to snap a picture with your camera ? A: its time to get her a camera she likes ( probably a high end point and shoot ) and enjoy choosing it, buying it and using it together .. and quietly celebrate that buying that bit of extra gear next time won't be so difficult to justify
@@steveboys5369 uh oh, the ol' you got something now its my turn, ploy...On the advice from another Steve, via this Steve (me},...DANGER, DANGER! Once she starts comparing the cost of purchases between the both of you, the sense of equity is over, ha :)
Excellent thoughts, back button has been the best 'discovery' I've made on my camera and has completely changed how I take photos. I love you CTC ballhead. How are you enjoying it?
Back button focus….don’t know how I lived without it for as long as I did…success rate is extremely high for capturing that exact image seen in front of me…thanks for sharing your thoughts…stay blessed
Good subject again Mark! Apart from the continuous autofocus I turn off exactly the same features. I usually end up with continuous autofocus on because I also do wildlife photography and I find that, with back button focusing, it doesn't impact on my landscape shots.
The "beep" setting is useful for me when I use my manual focusing Rokinon 85mm f/1.2 lens with my Canon 5DSR. I prefer back button focusing on all my cameras especially while shooting landscapes. But I agree that the beeps are annoying when using the self timer.
I do all of these that you mentioned. One thing you didn't mention was the image stabilization on the lens. I usually turn it off but I haven't been turning the IBIS off in my Nikon. I may start doing that. I'm not sure if I can set a function button for it but I might be able to put it in my quick menu. I'm a big fan of bbf but I don't use AF-S . I just press the focus button one time and it should act like AF-S. I do use auto ISO if I'm hand holding my camera and I'm just walking taking pictures like street photography or if I'm taking portraits. I did use it at an air show because the places were passing by faster than I could make adjustments. I needed the aperture and shutter speed to be set so I used auto ISO. But when I'm on a tripod I use manual controls only except for the auto focus. But sometimes I use focus peeking and manually focus. I just got into macro and there's times when you need to manually focus. You might want to check into macro for those days like in this video when you don't have fog and it's not interesting. You might can find some mushrooms and do miniature landscape photos. The thing about macro is that there's always something that can be shot on any given day regardless of the light or conditions. You can create your own light using flash and a small softbox.
Yet another excellent video. I was surprised at how many of the settings you mention I actually had turned off. There are a few to look into, such as the long exposure noise reduction. Many others suggest to turn this on, but it probably has more to do with the genre. I find your tutorials very useful. I have learned so much since following your channel. Planning a trip to northwest NY state to do some fall photography. Very excited as here in Edmonton, Alberta we get yellow and nothing. Keep up the great work.
Fuji makes it so easy and quick to just switch to manual focus though, that on my Fuji cameras I no longer use back-button focus! Especially since in Fuji's MF mode you can still use the AF-ON (or AF-L) button to acquire initial focus, and MF mode has focus-peaking to check focus. AF-S with back-button focus doesn't give you focus-peaking.
I use Auto ISO but set the max to 400, and with the cameras today there is little or no noise. And if there is, I use Topaz Denoise. It complements Aperture priority in woodland with light variations and slightly windy conditions. I keep my timer beep on, it lets the black bear and whitetail deer know I'm in the area - and the bowhunter!
totally agree with the Fall entrance... off to Colorado in a few days. Back Button Focus a major plus. I shoot raw so picture profiles don't apply in my case. Auto ISO... I use for wildlife, but I see your point for landscapes. Still learning this space shuttle called an R5
WOW Maybe that is why most of my photos are a bit soft. IBUS turned on in camera and I forget to turn off the lens stabilization. Guess I will make the change and see what happens. TY
For Fujifilm if you change the camera to manual focus you still have back button for auto focusing, so is no need to go around settings and change something..just put manual and use back button 😉
I have my camera settings pretty much like your preferences. The only exception is my camera doesn't beep so that one I didn't have to turn off. For me I really like back button focus.
Another great video Mark. I would have to disagree with always turning auto ISO and focus off - for me, it depends on what I am doing. I do tend to limit the ISO in auto but it does have its uses, as does auto focus for e.g. wildlife. I don't have IBIS, but must admit to sometimes forgetting to switch off VR on the lens after handholding.
Thanks for the great tips, Mark! I must admit, I tried going to back button focus earlier this year, after reading about it in some article/blog post. I gave it an honest effort, but never liked it. I don't know if it was just that I couldn't make the mental shift or what, after years of shutter button focusing. After a few weeks or so - maybe a month - I went back to shutter button focusing. If I have my camera on a tripod to shoot, I often use a shutter release cable anyway, to avoid any potential camera shake. (Not a huge fan of the 2 second timer method, either.) So I can focus with the button on that more easily in that situation. Other than that, I've pretty much done as you said here with turning off settings. Also, I want to mention a help you gave me. The other night, my mom & I went out to see Jupiter rising. (It's the closest it's been to Earth in about 59 years now.) While I didn't end up with great photos, as my longest lens only goes up to 200mm, I did remember your tip about removing the camera strap when the camera is on a tripod. My strap has clips on it so I can easily remove/attach it, so I removed it. I don't know if it mattered, but I was impressed with myself for remembering that! LOL If I'm hiking, though, I keep the camera strap around my neck - and attached to the camera. No way I'm going to break my equipment by accidentally dropping it! Thank you again for your tips, & for all your videos. I love your conversational style, & how casual you make things. I am also looking forward to more Fall-like weather. Here in East Texas, we suffered through at least a month of 100+ degree temps over this past summer. Can't wait for cooler weather and (fingers crossed) more colorful foliage. Hope you have a great day! :)
Talking about Fog, I just remembered that you released a foggy photo editing episode long back. Can you make a couple of videos on "shooting in fog" and "editing styles of fog photos" please? Fall & Fog is an unparalleled combination in my opinion :)
Film simulation on fujifilm cameras does get stored in raws, but it won’t affect the actual raw image data. It’s always 100% reversible, as long as it’s not jpg/heic.
Auto ISO is a big one that I sometimes forget to turn off. It has its place, but in a recent trip, for example, I had left it enabled (was shooting some wildlife on the previous trip and left it on by mistake) and was trying to do some landscape photography and couldn't figure out for a few minutes why I could change the shutter speed and aperture but the overall exposure of the scene was staying the same (this was in Manual mode) and at one point I did hit about 1/4000s and it started to adjust but it was a sunset and I was puzzled as to why I needed 1/4000s for a sunset). then it occured to me that I had left auto ISO on and set it for a max of 6400, so once the camera hit ISO 6400 it started to decrease the exposure and the scene got darker in the view finder, but I was at 1/4000s at f/8, which didn't seem, right to me initially. The part about BBF I think is overlooked a lot, and many people think that only wildlife/sports photographers use BBF. But it does make sense to use it even for landscape so the camera is not refocusing when you're going to take the shot. The possible downside to this is that it takes getting use to BBF if you don't use it and it's burned me a few times where I forgot, and would look and wonder why the image was out of focus and then realize I had BBF turned on (and disabled focus on the shutter button). One other one I would point out, and not all cameras can do this, but along with the AF beep, I turn off the AF illuminator lamp on my camera so it doesn't use the LED for focusing in low-light. It's an obnoxious green (I have a Nikon Z so they went from an amber light on the DSLRs to a green LED I think because of some technical reasons someone told me) but it's annoying to me and others especailly if I'm using the self timer (which cause the AF light to blink). If you can't turn it off, a piece of electrical tape also helps. However, the downside to this is that the camera probably won't AF as accurately in low-light.
I was wondering why my camera took so long when saving images until I realized a firmware upgrade (or inadvertent menu selection) had enabled long exposure noise reduction. Was really happy to turn that feature off!
@@MarkDenneyPhoto I truly enjoy your videos, not only for the insights but they are entertaining as well! Thanks for sharing your art with us Mark, I really mean that.
I agree with most of those. IBIS on a button is a great idea - sometimes at the coast I'm shooting with a tripod and it's windy, so IBIS is on, otherwise off. And I also do night photography, so I'll turn on in-camera noise reduction, because it works better for low light and star photography than I can get from Lightroom or Photoshop.
Good information as I have a new Fuji camera and mostly focused on landscape. And seeing you outside in the Fall glorious moments is really inspiring. I'll be out there soon as it comes a little later in CA. 😀
IBIS on with a tripod can be VERY helpful. If you're using a lightweight tripod and it's windy outside the camera can be shaking. I had a time it was windy and shaking, I turned on IBIS and it saved my shot. But yes 99% of the time, turn off IBIS on a tripod.
Thank you very much for your tutoriails .i learn a lot. If i can make one little sudgestion, i think that photographers, like me, that takes different kinds of photography, could be better for us to keep this setting in one of the custom setting modes
1. If you are using back-button focusing, the single vs. continuous focusing setting is irrelevant. 2. Picture profiles do not affect RAW images. However, they do affect the histogram on my Canon systems. I always set the profile to Neutral.
The reason why the picture profiles effect the histogram on all cameras is because the histogram is based off a JPEG preview. This is why when exposing and you just start to introduce clipping into your image you can still then push the exposure another one or two-thirds of a shot and not have clipping in the RAW file. It's a good technique to do and lets you push that extra shutter speed time into your shadow areas with real captured information. :)
Once you move to BBF (in #3) what's the point in disabling continuous AF? They'll behave pretty much the same in practice for landscapes once you decouple them from the shutter release.
Hi Mark! Another great video this week. I have a question: you mentioned turning off Long Exposure Noise Reduction and I agree with your thoughts regarding it being on as a default setting. I'm curious to know if you think the same applies to High ISO Noise Reduction? Obviously, with landscape photography this isn't a common concern but maybe it's worth touching on in another upcoming episode. I'd love to hear your thoughts regardless.
For having VR or IBS on while using a tripod, it can ruin your night photos because the shutter speed is low. I remember using my tripod in low light trying to take a cityscape photo and couldn’t figure out why the image had light trails. Turned off the VR on my lens and BAM!
Since your scenes are static, I can completely understand not using auto ISO. I’ve been really getting into wildlife photography. Mainly bird photography and I’ve had issues where I had my ISO set, to where the bird (which was a white snowy egret) flew into a bright area and had a blown out shot that was ruined.
I agree. I found that when I am doing wildlife, I need auto ISO on, just for the fact what Daniel stated. Especially at the zoo where the animals are moving around between shade and light.
@@wjgraham63 manual ISO is perfectly fine for landscape. Totally understand it. But yeah, my profile picture is a perfect example of auto ISO. The peregrine Falcon went from shade to the top of a palm tree in the direction of the sun. Auto ISO saved the image.
If you use back button focus, you can leave continuous autofocus on. Just focus where you want using back button focus and forget it. The camera will not hunt or refocus when you take the image. I always leave my camera in continuous autofocus as I shoot a mix of landscape and wildlife. That way, I'm always ready for action shots but by using back button focus, I don't impact my landscape work.
Just on the noise reduction one I tested it on my Nikon D850 without having it on and having it off and I could not tell the difference between the noise. I just didn’t feel like it actually did anything and for a three minute photo you don’t have to wait three minutes for it to clean the noise it’s just infuriating
If you have a good tripod then you shouldn't have issues in wing situations unless it's really bad. I'd recommend not having IBIS on, but shoot some images with it on and then turn it off just to be 100% sure. A workaround would be to hold your tripod and push down slightly on it for more stabilization or if you can shield the camera from the wind direction. :)
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Dear Mark you had so many wonderful shots behind you 5:00 - 8:00 but thanks anyway I agree to all
Wish Nikon (for example) could make fast BBF. Maybe remove or alter menus to have just one setting in menu for shutter AF on or off and put a Back-Button ON, into a button or the MF/AF toggle under the lens in front! I'd like to change it back and forth quickly as I walk around. It takes 2 or 3 menu items to be changed to set to back-button. Am just am amateur in the city.
What’s one of the camera settings that you always turn off??
You pretty much went through everything on my list. I do alternate the back button though sometimes for the exposure lock.
the beep is a dealbreaker. I made sure the A7iii had an option to turn it off before buying. I'm autistic and that little beep is really grating to my ears. I do landscape photography because it's so quiet, so I make sure I'm as quiet as nature. (Also, to anyone who listens to music on the trail, throw your speaker off a cliff please)
I never use auto ISO and it is the last thing I will change manually to get the right amount of light for the exposure. Shutter speed and aperture come first.
Auto iso off, backbutton, single focal point, raw, touch screen lock, beeps, gps on.
I turned off the touch screen on the back - using the camera handheld and using the viewfinder, I find my nose moves the focus point!
For me #1 is always turning the beeps off those drive me absolutely insane and I don’t always want people/animals to know Im taking pictures! I suppose I could see it as being useful if you’re using a countdown timer to take a group picture with you in it. Other than that I can see zero use for it.
Unfortunately my shutter is noisy at any slow/fast/normal shutter drive. Bugs me to no end and the people around me. I have used other cameras and was relieved when they were near silent, just wish my 90D does.
Hey Mark, long exposure "noise" is entirely different than noise from underexposure, as it actually refers to hot pixels that show up in long exposures. Long exposure noise reduction does not blur the image like regular noise reduction. Rather, it takes a dark frame to identify and interpolate out the hot pixels. The only downside is a doubling of each exposure.
Good list. Long exposure noise reduction takes a picture with the shutter closed and with the same settings as the light picture in order to kno where to remove sensor noise. Unless you also take a dark image and blend it with a light image, you will have a hard time reducing noise as much as in camera long exposure noise reduction. Is there something I am missing?
I leave long exposure noise reduction on. It can be annoying that it doubles already long exposure times, but still worth it IMO as it's one thing that the camera actually can do better than post processing, as it have info that's not available in post. That is unless you do extra manual dark exposures, but that takes even more time.
but for astro it will be very annoying, Since we have to take 100s of long exposures
Of course it's a tradeoff. I rarely go over 60s, but even then the extra minute wait can be frustrating. At some point it obviously get impractical to have it on.
I have mine on, but always wondered does it get deactivated when using continuous bracketing such as 3 or 5 long exposure shots in a row, because it seems to start taking the next exposure shot immediately?
Doesn't that only work in joeg
@@thegodphreaker No, it impacts your RAW files and can not be undone - but in most circumstances it's beneficial to the image quality (unless you are using older Nikon cameras which had some processing errors in this function). In fact if you don't do your own dark frames it is irreplaceable from a certain shutter speed onwards because it prevents hotpixels from ruining your long exposures. It can not be replaced by any kind of later processing unless you have created a dark frame yourself.
The advice is clearly for landscape, makes it easier to understand why some photographers use different cameras for different purposes, quite many settings to change if you want to do something different.
I like landscape and nature, but I'm handheld so I guess I'll keep the image stabilizer on for now. But it's good to keep in mind. My brother was just showing a 1/2 setting for stabilizing, but my lenses don't have that so I don't have to worry about it.
When I started out 2 years ago, I could not stand "back button focus". I was so used to using the shutter button. A lot of photographers swore by that back button setting. I switched over and had to get use to it during the first few weeks (probably muscle memory and being new). Now I always change any camera I rent/own/borrow to the "back button focus". It is a game changer and love it.
Absolutely!
I did that, too, recently. Didn't know it's a common thing nut found it quite convenient. (Before it wasn't an issue, as I used exclusively manual focussing lenses.)
9:34 "One day I'll get it, but it won't be that exciting either..." - you had me laughing with that high level of honesty!
Excellent video! I always turn off the possibility to take pictures without a memory card inserted. It is enabled by default on new Canon cameras, to help retailers demonstrate the camera.
The most important one to me is back button focus. I've been using that for two or three years now. I actually prefer having the beep to verify focus. My hearing is not great so I'm just happy I can hear it.😀
Back Button Focus and turning off the beeps are CRITICAL for me. I hate beeps and notifications in general. And having more control of when I use AF is a game changer for me.
I love BBF, but sometimes return focus to the shutter button in the winter when it's impossible to press the back button with a gloved thumb. At such times I slide a remote inside my mitten and shoot with it.
I'm going to try Back button instead of the front button focus lock
Thank you for explaining WHY to do back button focusing. I’ve heard other photographers say to change this setting but you’ve provided what the effect on the photos. This is very helpful as I get know my new camera. Thanks!!
If you turn on Back Button Auto Focus (#3), you certainly don't want to turn off Continuous AF (#1). The two go hand in hand. If all you shoot are landscapes why have AF enabled at all?
No, if you use back button autofocus you definitely want to turn Cont AF off, you want to focus with the back button and for it to keep that focus, you dont want it hunting for new things to focus on
@@ThepPixel And how will it keep focusing if you release the focus button?
Good video as always ! I don't agree with AF-C, it is totally personal but the combination of AF-C and back button focus works very good for me. I can focus on a still subject and if I don't want the focus to change, I just leave the back button alone. The best part here is that I can focus on a moving subject without touching my config. I totally agree with the beeps, always turned off !
Thx for your good advices !
Great passion.
you are right, i love back button focusing
informative 12mins
Great tips unless shooting sports or bird in flight
Nice way of presenting, inserting a story between every 3 topics you wanted to talk about.
It increased my information absorbtion rate. And definitely made the wait more rewarding.
Kudos 🍻
Excellent as always. Have you ever tried to set the max ISO setting and use auto ISO? This way you still have some control. I will use min shutter speed when I am doing wildlife and that works pretty good for me.
Yes, I agree wityh all of these.
Great tips. I have done most of the things you recommended, especially the beeps!!
Hi Mark, another interesting video and as ever, thanks for sharing... I must be kinda getting this hang of this photography malarkey, as I have already turned off 6 of the 7 items you listed. I have set up my camera to BBF and continuous focus mode, so that I can press the button once for stationary subjects and keep it pressed for moving ones. Of the 7 you mention, as a relative newbie I don't post process ( well hardly ), so I've left the long exposure noise reduction set to on. Maybe once I begin to use Lightroom etc, I'll do that too. I use Nikon's NX studio occasionally.
Always turn off playback myself as a hybrid landscape/wildlife photographer I find it gets in the way, just manually check with the handy playback button.
Various Nikons I've owned have consistently overexposed when using Auto ISO, so I keep it off for landscape work. I wonder if other Nikon users have this experience? I guess I'm a rare one since I'm not particularly bothered by the AF beep. My vision isn't as good as it once was and in some situations I have difficulty seeing the Live View screen well enough, so I find the beep can be useful (at its lowest volume setting). I almost always use a tripod, so it's pretty obvious to any people who might be around what I'm doing, and I rarely shoot wildlife, so the beep usually stays on.
Another really useful set of recommendations, Mark! Thanks again.
Thanks Richard!
That beep is crazy lmao shout out to fuju 4 dat. Great video
Thanks so much!
Enjoyed the video - have subscribed - looking forward to more. QUESTION: what is the tripod head you are using in the video? I am intrigued.
Brings back memories of when hourly beeps were on watches. Hated hearing this as I do all camera beeps. I have all settings off as you do….except for the back button focus. Knew about it for years, but never a desire to try it. Excellent video as always.
Yes, great comparison!
I usually mute my phone too for the same reason. When I'm shooting from a tripod, I like to turn the AF off and manual focus, but that's probably more out of nostalgia than any technical reason.
I use af lock, because my back buttons are configured for other use 😊 for example af lock 😊
With you on all them Mark.
Great tips for beginners, Mark. The beeps can be particularly annoying in the outdoor environment.
Glad you found the video helpful Michael!
Once again Mark a wonderful vid with a topic worth doing!! Always enjoy listening to your thoughts on all the topics!
Thanks so much James!
We'll have to agree to disagree about BBF. 🙂 I disabled it on my camera. I found due to the way I carry the camera I was constantly touching the BBF button with my thumb (I have large-ish hands) and the focus was seeking for a non-existent focal point. That can make a difference in battery life, aside from the annoyance factor. Plus, most of the time when I'm shooting landscapes I switch the lens to manual focus so it doesn't matter. Having BBF on means slightly more finger gymnastics, so ...no for me. But I respect your view!! LOL 😀
Also, while I also disable LENR, it does have advantages since it can read camera / sensor noise factors that (as far as I understand) are not available outside the camera. As a result it can effectively function as a dark frame. Good video.
On my X-T3 I had almost the same problem. I found it a pain to find and reach the button for back focus when shooting hand held, which I do a lot, so I switched it. It's now the front button focus which is just under and to the left of the shutter release.
I used to use Auto ISO, but I didn't like the way my camera metered the scene. I went to Manual ISO and ETTR to make sure I get the exposure I want.
I shoot on Nikon:
I've messed around with Auto-ISO and use it sparingly. Jury is still out.
My auto-focus is on AF-C (continuous) at all times because, like your next point, I use back-button focus. As you pointed out, that allows me to decide when to focus. Having it on AF-C also gives me complete control over the focusing. If I want just a quick focus of something, whether hand-held or on a tripod, I hold the back button down until it's focused, then release it and take all the shots I want. If, however, I am shooting a moving target, I just keep it held down while shooting, and for moving targets, it's usually in Continuous High-Speed (CH) shutter mode. To get a single shot, I just quickly press and release the shutter.
Since I take a fair number of nighttime shots, L E N R would double the amount of time I'm out there and it's of little or no benefit to my images.
What is the brand and model of your tripod? Thank you in advance!
A helpful video for those "Beginner" photographers that shoot exactly the type of photography that you do! Many don't shoot 80% of their photos on a tripod. IBIS is helpful for many. BBF is not. I'm not a Pro but based on some of the responses, many don't agree with all your top 7 which I'm assuming you knew they wouldn't. I guess it's the title of this video I don't agree with. "7 Camera Settings you May want to consider Turning Off" maybe? Having said all that, I love your videos, great photo skills and clear explanations of what you do! Thanks
Thanks Mark! I love the back button auto focus also. The only issue that I run into with these settings is when the wife wants someone to snap a picture of us with my camera. I have to give a dissertation before they can use my camera.
🤣🤣🤣
Q: Do you know what time it is when your wife wants to snap a picture with your camera ?
A: its time to get her a camera she likes ( probably a high end point and shoot ) and enjoy choosing it, buying it and using it together .. and quietly celebrate that buying that bit of extra gear next time won't be so difficult to justify
@@steveboys5369 uh oh, the ol' you got something now its my turn, ploy...On the advice from another Steve, via this Steve (me},...DANGER, DANGER! Once she starts comparing the cost of purchases between the both of you, the sense of equity is over, ha :)
Excellent thoughts, back button has been the best 'discovery' I've made on my camera and has completely changed how I take photos. I love you CTC ballhead. How are you enjoying it?
Thanks Sean! It’s the best ballhead I’ve used to date👍
Back button focus….don’t know how I lived without it for as long as I did…success rate is extremely high for capturing that exact image seen in front of me…thanks for sharing your thoughts…stay blessed
Agreed!
Thanks for sharing this information about camera settings and well for this great video as all ways
Always glad to do it Noel!
Number 7 is ok when you use dark frame noise reduction when doing astro. But only for your final shot as it doubles the time a shot takes.
Good subject again Mark! Apart from the continuous autofocus I turn off exactly the same features. I usually end up with continuous autofocus on because I also do wildlife photography and I find that, with back button focusing, it doesn't impact on my landscape shots.
Happy to hear you enjoyed it!
The "beep" setting is useful for me when I use my manual focusing Rokinon 85mm f/1.2 lens with my Canon 5DSR. I prefer back button focusing on all my cameras especially while shooting landscapes. But I agree that the beeps are annoying when using the self timer.
Great video!!! Thanks
I do all of these that you mentioned. One thing you didn't mention was the image stabilization on the lens. I usually turn it off but I haven't been turning the IBIS off in my Nikon. I may start doing that. I'm not sure if I can set a function button for it but I might be able to put it in my quick menu. I'm a big fan of bbf but I don't use AF-S . I just press the focus button one time and it should act like AF-S. I do use auto ISO if I'm hand holding my camera and I'm just walking taking pictures like street photography or if I'm taking portraits. I did use it at an air show because the places were passing by faster than I could make adjustments. I needed the aperture and shutter speed to be set so I used auto ISO. But when I'm on a tripod I use manual controls only except for the auto focus. But sometimes I use focus peeking and manually focus. I just got into macro and there's times when you need to manually focus. You might want to check into macro for those days like in this video when you don't have fog and it's not interesting. You might can find some mushrooms and do miniature landscape photos. The thing about macro is that there's always something that can be shot on any given day regardless of the light or conditions. You can create your own light using flash and a small softbox.
Well done as always Mark. Top notch for those of us trying to master a very hard trade!! Cheers!!
Thanks so much!
Yet another excellent video. I was surprised at how many of the settings you mention I actually had turned off. There are a few to look into, such as the long exposure noise reduction. Many others suggest to turn this on, but it probably has more to do with the genre. I find your tutorials very useful. I have learned so much since following your channel. Planning a trip to northwest NY state to do some fall photography. Very excited as here in Edmonton, Alberta we get yellow and nothing. Keep up the great work.
Fantastic to hear you enjoyed it Michael!
Awesome Mark as usual. 👍👍
Thanks so much!
Fuji makes it so easy and quick to just switch to manual focus though, that on my Fuji cameras I no longer use back-button focus!
Especially since in Fuji's MF mode you can still use the AF-ON (or AF-L) button to acquire initial focus, and MF mode has focus-peaking to check focus. AF-S with back-button focus doesn't give you focus-peaking.
Great advice as always Mark, thanks for the back button focus tip, I must give it a shot, but I will be leaving the beeps on. Thanks for sharing
Thanks for checking out this week's episode John!
I use Auto ISO but set the max to 400, and with the cameras today there is little or no noise. And if there is, I use Topaz Denoise. It complements Aperture priority in woodland with light variations and slightly windy conditions. I keep my timer beep on, it lets the black bear and whitetail deer know I'm in the area - and the bowhunter!
Hi Mark. What tripod are you using in this video?
The beeps and bleeps reminds me of Spaceballs. 😂😂
You talked about disabling the IBIS, I guess same goes with in lens as well ?
If I'm not mistaken IF you turn off IBIS in body and you have a lens with OIS it disables BOTH.
Many camera bodies will automatically turn off the OIS in the lens when IBIS is disabled.
totally agree with the Fall entrance... off to Colorado in a few days. Back Button Focus a major plus. I shoot raw so picture profiles don't apply in my case. Auto ISO... I use for wildlife, but I see your point for landscapes. Still learning this space shuttle called an R5
Some good information in this video, I like how you put the disclaimer in there saying it’s for landscape photography.
Thanks Tom!
I switch to back button focus, turn off the ridiculous sounds, and select RAW within 15 seconds of taking a new body out of the box. Sometimes faster.
Good tips, Mark. I agree with most of your settings but I did turn off a few like Long Exposure NR and the annoying beeps. Thanks!.
Thanks Alastair!
WOW Maybe that is why most of my photos are a bit soft. IBUS turned on in camera and I forget to turn off the lens stabilization. Guess I will make the change and see what happens. TY
For Fujifilm if you change the camera to manual focus you still have back button for auto focusing, so is no need to go around settings and change something..just put manual and use back button 😉
I have my camera settings pretty much like your preferences. The only exception is my camera doesn't beep so that one I didn't have to turn off. For me I really like back button focus.
Another great video Mark. I would have to disagree with always turning auto ISO and focus off - for me, it depends on what I am doing. I do tend to limit the ISO in auto but it does have its uses, as does auto focus for e.g. wildlife. I don't have IBIS, but must admit to sometimes forgetting to switch off VR on the lens after handholding.
Fall makes me feel sleepy, tired, drained. I prefer Summer days & nights.
Thanks for the great tips, Mark! I must admit, I tried going to back button focus earlier this year, after reading about it in some article/blog post. I gave it an honest effort, but never liked it. I don't know if it was just that I couldn't make the mental shift or what, after years of shutter button focusing. After a few weeks or so - maybe a month - I went back to shutter button focusing. If I have my camera on a tripod to shoot, I often use a shutter release cable anyway, to avoid any potential camera shake. (Not a huge fan of the 2 second timer method, either.) So I can focus with the button on that more easily in that situation. Other than that, I've pretty much done as you said here with turning off settings. Also, I want to mention a help you gave me. The other night, my mom & I went out to see Jupiter rising. (It's the closest it's been to Earth in about 59 years now.) While I didn't end up with great photos, as my longest lens only goes up to 200mm, I did remember your tip about removing the camera strap when the camera is on a tripod. My strap has clips on it so I can easily remove/attach it, so I removed it. I don't know if it mattered, but I was impressed with myself for remembering that! LOL If I'm hiking, though, I keep the camera strap around my neck - and attached to the camera. No way I'm going to break my equipment by accidentally dropping it! Thank you again for your tips, & for all your videos. I love your conversational style, & how casual you make things. I am also looking forward to more Fall-like weather. Here in East Texas, we suffered through at least a month of 100+ degree temps over this past summer. Can't wait for cooler weather and (fingers crossed) more colorful foliage. Hope you have a great day! :)
Again thanks for the tips
Always happy to do it James!
Thanks for sharing your knowledge an experience. What tripod are you using in this video? Would you critique my photos?
Talking about Fog, I just remembered that you released a foggy photo editing episode long back. Can you make a couple of videos on "shooting in fog" and "editing styles of fog photos" please? Fall & Fog is an unparalleled combination in my opinion :)
Film simulation on fujifilm cameras does get stored in raws, but it won’t affect the actual raw image data. It’s always 100% reversible, as long as it’s not jpg/heic.
Same here.
Auto ISO is a big one that I sometimes forget to turn off. It has its place, but in a recent trip, for example, I had left it enabled (was shooting some wildlife on the previous trip and left it on by mistake) and was trying to do some landscape photography and couldn't figure out for a few minutes why I could change the shutter speed and aperture but the overall exposure of the scene was staying the same (this was in Manual mode) and at one point I did hit about 1/4000s and it started to adjust but it was a sunset and I was puzzled as to why I needed 1/4000s for a sunset). then it occured to me that I had left auto ISO on and set it for a max of 6400, so once the camera hit ISO 6400 it started to decrease the exposure and the scene got darker in the view finder, but I was at 1/4000s at f/8, which didn't seem, right to me initially.
The part about BBF I think is overlooked a lot, and many people think that only wildlife/sports photographers use BBF. But it does make sense to use it even for landscape so the camera is not refocusing when you're going to take the shot. The possible downside to this is that it takes getting use to BBF if you don't use it and it's burned me a few times where I forgot, and would look and wonder why the image was out of focus and then realize I had BBF turned on (and disabled focus on the shutter button).
One other one I would point out, and not all cameras can do this, but along with the AF beep, I turn off the AF illuminator lamp on my camera so it doesn't use the LED for focusing in low-light. It's an obnoxious green (I have a Nikon Z so they went from an amber light on the DSLRs to a green LED I think because of some technical reasons someone told me) but it's annoying to me and others especailly if I'm using the self timer (which cause the AF light to blink). If you can't turn it off, a piece of electrical tape also helps. However, the downside to this is that the camera probably won't AF as accurately in low-light.
I was wondering why my camera took so long when saving images until I realized a firmware upgrade (or inadvertent menu selection) had enabled long exposure noise reduction. Was really happy to turn that feature off!
Mark…what about lens vibration reduction when using a tripod? Curious as to your take on the plus and cons of this feature.
All great tips thanks!
Thanks for checking out the video Monte!
@@MarkDenneyPhoto I truly enjoy your videos, not only for the insights but they are entertaining as well! Thanks for sharing your art with us Mark, I really mean that.
I agree with most of those. IBIS on a button is a great idea - sometimes at the coast I'm shooting with a tripod and it's windy, so IBIS is on, otherwise off. And I also do night photography, so I'll turn on in-camera noise reduction, because it works better for low light and star photography than I can get from Lightroom or Photoshop.
Completely agree with turning off the AUTO ISO. Nah, I want to choose as well.
Good information as I have a new Fuji camera and mostly focused on landscape. And seeing you outside in the Fall glorious moments is really inspiring. I'll be out there soon as it comes a little later in CA. 😀
Thanks for checking out the video Nancy!
What are those little red thingies hanging off your camera strap hooks? I've seen them on several videos (yours and others), but can't figure it out.
IBIS on with a tripod can be VERY helpful. If you're using a lightweight tripod and it's windy outside the camera can be shaking. I had a time it was windy and shaking, I turned on IBIS and it saved my shot. But yes 99% of the time, turn off IBIS on a tripod.
My settings are exactly the same as yours.
Thank you very much for your tutoriails .i learn a lot. If i can make one little sudgestion, i think that photographers, like me, that takes different kinds of photography, could be better for us to keep this setting in one of the custom setting modes
1. If you are using back-button focusing, the single vs. continuous focusing setting is irrelevant.
2. Picture profiles do not affect RAW images. However, they do affect the histogram on my Canon systems. I always set the profile to Neutral.
The reason why the picture profiles effect the histogram on all cameras is because the histogram is based off a JPEG preview. This is why when exposing and you just start to introduce clipping into your image you can still then push the exposure another one or two-thirds of a shot and not have clipping in the RAW file. It's a good technique to do and lets you push that extra shutter speed time into your shadow areas with real captured information. :)
What is the brand of ball joint is it that you are using - interesting solution!
The the Aspen ball head from the Colorado Tripod Co.
Once you move to BBF (in #3) what's the point in disabling continuous AF? They'll behave pretty much the same in practice for landscapes once you decouple them from the shutter release.
Hi Mark!
Another great video this week. I have a question: you mentioned turning off Long Exposure Noise Reduction and I agree with your thoughts regarding it being on as a default setting. I'm curious to know if you think the same applies to High ISO Noise Reduction? Obviously, with landscape photography this isn't a common concern but maybe it's worth touching on in another upcoming episode. I'd love to hear your thoughts regardless.
What ball head are you using. Found tips handy but I shoot wildlife so I turn all off
For having VR or IBS on while using a tripod, it can ruin your night photos because the shutter speed is low. I remember using my tripod in low light trying to take a cityscape photo and couldn’t figure out why the image had light trails. Turned off the VR on my lens and BAM!
Since your scenes are static, I can completely understand not using auto ISO. I’ve been really getting into wildlife photography. Mainly bird photography and I’ve had issues where I had my ISO set, to where the bird (which was a white snowy egret) flew into a bright area and had a blown out shot that was ruined.
I agree. I found that when I am doing wildlife, I need auto ISO on, just for the fact what Daniel stated. Especially at the zoo where the animals are moving around between shade and light.
@@wjgraham63 manual ISO is perfectly fine for landscape. Totally understand it. But yeah, my profile picture is a perfect example of auto ISO. The peregrine Falcon went from shade to the top of a palm tree in the direction of the sun. Auto ISO saved the image.
That's true of capturing movement (cameras notoriously adjust too slow here), but for static shots like landscape auto ISO can be great.
@@roysecord2095 exactly. Especially when you want a shot with as low as an iso as possible.
Auto ISO is essential for wildlife, landscape I definitely want to be as close to base ISO as possible though I will bump that up a bit if needed.
The only thing I haven't done was moved my shutter button but now I'm considering it.
It's a real game changer Certainly worth a try!
If you use back button focus, you can leave continuous autofocus on. Just focus where you want using back button focus and forget it. The camera will not hunt or refocus when you take the image. I always leave my camera in continuous autofocus as I shoot a mix of landscape and wildlife. That way, I'm always ready for action shots but by using back button focus, I don't impact my landscape work.
Just on the noise reduction one I tested it on my Nikon D850 without having it on and having it off and I could not tell the difference between the noise. I just didn’t feel like it actually did anything and for a three minute photo you don’t have to wait three minutes for it to clean the noise it’s just infuriating
I’ve used BBF for the last 10 years. But I have a new Sony A7IV and I’m finding it don’t need it. Weird. It’s a habit I guess I’ll get used to it.
How about windy situations? Do you have ibis on there? Or do you just trust the tripod?
If you have a good tripod then you shouldn't have issues in wing situations unless it's really bad. I'd recommend not having IBIS on, but shoot some images with it on and then turn it off just to be 100% sure. A workaround would be to hold your tripod and push down slightly on it for more stabilization or if you can shield the camera from the wind direction. :)
Dear Mark you had so many wonderful shots behind you 5:00 - 8:00 but thanks anyway I agree to all
Thanks for checking out the video!
Wish Nikon (for example) could make fast BBF. Maybe remove or alter menus to have just one setting in menu for shutter AF on or off and put a Back-Button ON, into a button or the MF/AF toggle under the lens in front! I'd like to change it back and forth quickly as I walk around. It takes 2 or 3 menu items to be changed to set to back-button. Am just am amateur in the city.
The beeps! Definitely turn those off! :D