Shutter speeds?

[Caroleen]

I'm new to digital SLR also and my dh bought me a D80. Well, in practicing today I set my camera on Manual mode, set the aperature at a certain amount and wanted to change the shutter speed. The camera stayed on 1/200 and would not let me go above that. Is that normal or is there something wrong with the camera? Thanks for any help. CJ

[rkmart]

Rotate the main command dial to change shutter speed and the sub-command dial to set aperture in Manual mode.

[Caroleen]

I did that. It would not change above 200.

[JulieM]

Hi Caroleen,

What you need to remember is that a proper exposure depends on 3 variables: shutter speed, aperture, and ISO. I think probably you're not considering ISO? So, if you have a preferred aperture for a shot and for that aperture the camera won't let you make your shutter speed any higher (faster) than 1/200, it is telling you that it needs more light than would be let in if the shutter is set faster than 1/200. Increase the ISO setting and try the exposure again. (Higher ISO settings need less light for a proper exposure.)

I hope this helps.

[Caroleen]

OK, I'll try that Julie. Hopefully, when another chance comes it I will remember that.
There are so many instances that I wish there was someone there to critique things for me and tell me Yes or No. Love this forum for that reason. CJ

[JulieM]

I hope that does the trick for you. Someone more experienced may still stop by and give you better advice so stay tuned.

Have you played around with aperture priority and shutter priority? I feel they are a good starting point when you are beginning to take your camera off auto mode. Good luck!

[Whiplash-GT]

in "M" mode iso shouldn't make a difference
the camera should do exactly what you tell it to
if i want to run iso 100, f16 and a 25 second exposure to create a certain effect M is where i want to be...the camera's metering should be redundant and it should not be taking over any controls of the camera, regardless of what it thinks the final outcome should be

i don't believe auto-iso would have this effect either, it will just move up the iso to compensate within the limitations you have set for it, beyond that it should still let you set things to your preference
when you get some time check the iso settings and the speed settings you have set for it

personally i almost always have auto-iso set to off and run iso100, but if i do use it i've allowed up to iso400 and no less than 1/60s

[LeeOtsubo]

Originally Posted by Caroleen

I'm new to digital SLR also and my dh bought me a D80. Well, in practicing today I set my camera on Manual mode, set the aperature at a certain amount and wanted to change the shutter speed. The camera stayed on 1/200 and would not let me go above that. Is that normal or is there something wrong with the camera? Thanks for any help. CJ

Sounds like you're using flash and the camera is maxed out at its fastest flash synch speed of 1/200. You should take a class.

[JulieM]

Lee and Whiplash, thank you for setting me straight.

Carol, sorry for the erroneous information.

[TonyW]

As I recall (and I do have a D80) both Flash and Auto ISO can have that effect. For some odd reason Auto ISO is active in Manual and does effect some of the adjustments. I have it turned off as I found it caused more confusion than usefulness although I can see how in some situations it could be a good thing to use.

Tony