Best mode to shoot outdoor vacation shots - advice please

[tdigi]

<p>I have a trip planned to the Galapagos islands and I wanted to get some opinions for shooting outdoors, natural light. I mostly shoot indoors with flash most of the time and I am pretty experienced with a camera so I understand aperture and shutter etc but when shooting outdoors I find I keep myself in P mode quite often with my ISO set to 100 - 400 depending on available light. Sometimes I even keep this in auto mode. I do plan on using a polorizer for bright sunlight. I would imagine for shooting animals moving I would boost the shutter and for shallow dof i can shoot aperture priority but how many of you keep the camera in P mode most of the time?</p>

<p>Was interested in getting some opinions or experiences of what others do when shooting outdoors. I will be shooting Raw with good Canon gear, L lenses etc. </p>

<p>Thanks</p>

[photo_dark]

<p>Best mode? Whatever mode you are comfortable with. If you are comfortable with P mode, then use P mode. There's no magic bullet with photography, regardless of how much expensive gear you have.</p>

[phule]

<p>Indeed. If you're comfortable with P mode, use it. If you find yourself in a situation where you know you want a particular look (i.e. shallow DoF or motion blur) then adjust accordingly. </p>

<p>There's no committee around with a rule book ready to pounce and fine you for using a mode available to you. :) I would think that what matters most is capturing the image.</p>

<p> </p>

[seismiccwave]

<p>Just my personal opinion. Moderator please delete if necessary. I think we need to stop tourists from going to the Galapagos. We need to leave those poor animals alone. Haven't we destroy enough environment on this Earth already. Tourism is a self destructive industry. The more tourists we invite the more we destroy the environment. Leave those turtles and Komodo dragons. Let then eat each other. We don't have to visit them and photograph them. There are a lot of other subjects we can take pictures of!</p>

[stemked]

<p>Hi Hansen.<br>

I appreciate your level of concern. The guides do too and are paid by the government to protect the animals. You are not allowed off the trails and the good guides keep the visitors honest. Indeed the biggest direct threat is not the tourist themselves, but the potential inadvertently bring seeds, insect pests, etc. along with them that might invade and out-compete native species. There is also already heavy pressure from mainlanders (from Ecuador) to fish the waters, especially for sea cucumbers for Asian markets. And it isn't hard to imagine left unprotected the native tortoises would be harvested for meat or the pet trade. There have already been several serious confrontations including an event where the tortoises breeding program was under threat by those demanding more fishing rights. Like it or not, the best way to protect and preserve what is left of the islands is probably through tourist dollars.<br>

And I think you mean Iguanas (Land and Marine). Komodo dragons live on islands in Indonesia. But you are right; one can love a place to death.</p>

[steve_lantz]

<p>I agree with the suggestions to shoot in the mode you are most comfortable with. I don't know how long you have before you leave for your trip but what I would suggest is spend a lot of time outside shooting to get some experience with it.</p>

<p>This will give you a chance to experiment with different modes, learn when to make exposure and focusing adjustments, etc. and become more familiar and experienced with shooting outdoors and the variations in light you will be dealing with.</p>

<p>Sounds like a great trip. As I understand it the number of people allowed to visit Galapagos is limited, something like a yearly quota, correct? Be sure to share some of your work with us when you return.</p>

[tdigi]

<p>Thanks for the input everyone. I leave in May so I will practice up as much as I can. Photography is very humbling and when ever I think I am getting better I feel I am just starting out so I am always interested to hear what others have to say. <br>

Hanson, I understand your feelings but from what I have heard and read its very well controlled and the animals are well adapted to humans. But yes, I think its always about money first environment second or third or...... </p>

[matthew_newton]

<p>Actually one of the biggest issues is the native population. The town, despite government 'control', continues to grow and the human element from that is causing problems. Of course if there were no tourists then the population pressures and issues from the town would go away as it is primarily supported by tourism. That being said, though I think the Gallopagos and many other places need to be respected and treaded upon with the utmost care, regulation and limitation I don't believe tourism to those places should stop.<br>

I agree with Steve. Shoot in your most comfortable mode, but maybe step out of your comfort zone for awhile before the trip. Try shooting in aperature and shutter priority as well as all manual. Get a feel for what you are comfortable with. Shot some stuff that is primarily all black on black so you get a feel for dialing in compensation as I have heard there are a number of lava flows you may shoot on.</p>