Welcome to Tutorial Tuesday, by COAP Online

Manual mode gets misunderstood as a “hard mode”. In aviation photography, it’s often the opposite. It’s the simplest way to make your exposure predictable and your creative choices repeatable.

The real problem: the background won’t sit still

At an airshow or on the ramp, the background changes constantly. Aircraft move from dark tree lines along a runway to bright sky as they lift. A light grey fuselage passes a deep shadow. The camera’s metering sees those shifts and, in auto or semi-auto modes, tries to compensate.

That’s why a burst of five images can look like five different edits!

Manual mode removes the camera’s urge to “fix” the scene. Instead, you decide what matters - and as we know, usually that’s the aircraft.

Manual mode equals creative control

When you think about it. creative freedom is really just control over three decisions:

• Motion
• Want to freeze the action? Choose a faster shutter speed.
• Want prop blur or rotor blur? Choose a slower shutter speed.
• Want a sense of speed in a pass? Choose a shutter speed that supports panning.
• Depth of field
Aperture determines how much of the aircraft is sharp, which often matters for head-ons, formations, and longer focal lengths.
• Brightness and clean colour
ISO becomes the “exposure finisher” once shutter speed and aperture are chosen for the look you want.

When those choices are locked in, the aircraft stays consistent and the background stops hijacking your exposure.

A simple workflow to start using manual today

• Set your shutter speed based on the look (freeze or motion).
• Set aperture based on the depth of field you need.
• Adjust ISO until the aircraft looks right (not the background).
• Shoot the scene. Review. Nudge ISO if the light changes.

Oh, and that last line really matters - manual mode isn’t “set and forget”. Think of it as “set with intent, then adjust with purpose”.

If you want to go further, COAP Online covers manual exposure with aviation-specific starting points and the exact thought process for different aircraft types and lighting scenarios. The Merge post goes deeper with a practical “manual mode checklist” and example settings for jets, props, helicopters and panning. Explore COAP Online with a free trial at www.coaponline.com.