Exposure Delay Mode

Today's practice session subject: My new outlet find! ;-)

This was taken in natural light on one snowy day. My front hall does not get much light, so I was playing around with increasing my ISO (film speed for all you old film folks...Mom) to increase the light sensitivity of my sensor. This allows you to take pictures in low light situations without using a flash. The trick here is that you don't want to go too high on your ISO settings, because your photo will show too much grain (photographers call this noise). My camera settings were ISO 1600, f/2.5, and a shutter speed of 1/100 of a second. The camera still wasn't giving the tack sharp photo that I was looking for, so I changed my camera settings to Exposure delay mode.

Exposure delay mode (or Mirror Lockup for you Canon folks) locks your camera's mirror in the up position until after the shot is made. This limits the movement inside your camera when you are taking the shot, and therefore it gives you a sharper shot. Camera shake is your enemy for sharp photos! Exposure delay mode does slow down your shutter speed though, so you still have to keep a pretty steady hand. But since it keeps the mirror open, allowing more light onto the sensor, you can shoot at a lower ISO!