Canon 50d Owners Manual

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5
Advanced Operations
With the Creative Zone 
modes, you can set the 
desired shutter speed or 
aperture to obtain the result 
you want. You take control of 
the camera.
 The  M icon on the right of the page title indicates that the 
respective feature is avail able only in the Creative Zone 
modes ( d, s , f , a, 8 ).
  After you press the shutter button halfway and let go, the 
LCD panel and viewfinder information will remain displayed 
for about 4 sec. ( 0).
  To see what settings can be set in the Creative Zone 
modes, see “Function Avail ability Table” (p.196).
Creative Zone
First set the power switch to < J>.
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The camera automatically sets the shutter speed and aperture to suit 
the subject’s brightness. This is called Program AE.
* stands for Program.* AE stands for Auto Exposure.
1Set the Mode Dial to < d>.
2Focus the subject.
  Look through the viewfinder and aim 
the selected AF point over the 
subject. Then press the shutter button 
halfway.
X The AF point which achieves focus 
flashes in red, and the focus 
confirmation light < o> in the 
viewfinder’s bottom right lights (with 
One Shot AF + automatic AF point 
selection).
X The shutter speed and aperture will 
be set automatically and displayed in 
the viewfinder and on the LCD panel.
3Check the shutter speed and 
aperture display.
  A correct exposure will be obtained 
as long as the shutter speed and 
aperture display do not blink.
4Take the picture.
 Compose the shot and press the 
shutter button completely.
d: Program AE
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d: Program AE
  If the “ 30” shutter speed and the maximum aperture 
blink, it indicates underexposure.
Increase the ISO speed or use flash.
  If the “ 8000” shutter speed and the minimum aperture 
blink, it indicates overexposure.
Lower the ISO speed or use an ND filter (sold 
separately) to reduce the amount of light entering the 
lens.
Differences Between < d> and < 1> (Full Auto)With < 1>, many functions such the AF mode, drive mode, and built-in 
flash are set automatically to prevent  spoiled shots. The functions you can 
set are limited. With < d>, only the shutter speed and aperture are set 
automatically. You can freely set the AF  mode, drive mode, built-in flash, 
and other functions.
About Program Shift  In the Program AE mode, you can freely change the shutter speed and 
aperture combination (Program) set by the camera while maintaining the 
same exposure. This is called Program shift.
  To do this, press the shutter button down halfway, then turn the < 6> 
dial until the desired shutter speed or aperture value is displayed.
  Program shift is canceled automatically after the picture is taken.
  Program shift cannot be used with flash.
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In this mode, you set the shutter speed and the camera automatically 
sets the aperture to obtain the correct exposure matching the 
brightness of the subject. This is called shutter-priority AE. A faster 
shutter speed can freeze the action  or moving subject. Or a slower 
shutter speed can create a blurred effect, giving the impression of 
motion.
*< s > stands for Time value.
1Set the Mode Dial to < s>.
2Set the desired shutter speed.
 While looking at the LCD panel, turn 
the < 6> dial.
3Focus the subject.
 Press the shutter button halfway.
X The aperture is set automatically.
4Check the viewfinder display and 
shoot.
  As long as the aperture is not 
blinking, the exposure will be correct.
s : Shutter-Priority AE
Frozen action
(Fast shutter speed) Blurred motion
(Slow shutter speed)
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s: Shutter-Priority AE
 If the maximum aperture blinks, it indicates 
underexposure.
Turn the < 6> dial to set a slower shutter speed until 
the aperture stops blinking or set a higher ISO speed.
  If the minimum aperture blinks, it indicates 
overexposure.
Turn the < 6> dial to set a faster shutter speed until 
the aperture stops blinking or set a lower ISO speed.
Shutter Speed Display
The shutter speeds from “ 8000” to “4” indicate the denominator of the 
fractional shutter speed. For example, “ 125” indicates 1/125 sec. Also, “ 05” 
indicates 0.5 sec. and “ 15” is 15 sec.
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In this mode, you set the desired aperture and the camera sets the shutter 
speed automatically to obtain the correct exposure suiting the subject 
brightness. This is called aperture-priority AE. A higher f/number (smaller 
aperture hole) will make more of the foreground and background fall within 
acceptable focus. On the other hand, a lower f/number (larger aperture hole) 
will make less of the foreground and background fall within acceptable focus.
*< f > stands for Aperture value (aperture opening).
1Set the Mode Dial to < f>.
2Set the desired aperture.
 While looking at the LCD panel, turn 
the < 6> dial.
3Focus the subject.
 Press the shutter button halfway.
X The shutter speed is set 
automatically.
4Check the viewfinder display and 
shoot.
  As long as the shutter speed is not 
blinking, the exposure will be correct.
f : Aperture-Priority AE
Blurred background
(With a large aperture opening)Sharp foreground and background(With a small aperture opening)
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f: Aperture-Priority AE
Press the depth-of-field preview button 
to stop down to the current aperture 
setting. You can check the depth of field 
(range of acceptable focus) through the 
viewfinder.
Depth-of-Field Preview N
 If the “ 30” shutter speed blinks, it indicates 
underexposure.
Turn the < 6> dial to set a larger aperture (smaller 
f/number) until the blinking stops or set a higher ISO 
speed.
  If the “ 8000” shutter speed blinks, it indicates 
overexposure.
Turn the < 6> dial to set a smaller aperture (larger 
f/number) until the blinking stops or set a lower ISO 
speed.
Aperture Display
The larger the f/number, the smaller the aperture opening will be. The 
apertures displayed will differ depending on the lens. If no lens is attached to 
the camera, “ 00” will be displayed for the aperture.
  A higher f/number will make more of the foreground and background fall 
within acceptable focus. However, the viewfinder will look darker.
  If the depth of field is difficult to discern, hold down the depth-of-field 
preview button while turning the < 6> dial.
  The exposure will be locked (AE lock) while the depth-of-field preview 
button is pressed.
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In this mode, you set both the shutter speed and aperture as desired. To 
determine the exposure, refer to the exposure level indicator in the 
viewfinder or use a commercially-available handheld exposure meter. 
This method is called manual exposure.
*< a> stands for Manual.
1Set the Mode Dial to < a>.
2Set the shutter speed and 
aperture.
  To set the shutter speed, turn the 
 dial.
  To set the aperture, set the power 
switch to < J>, and turn the < 5> 
dial.
3Focus the subject.
  Press the shutter button halfway.
X The exposure setting will be 
displayed in the viewfinder and on the 
LCD panel.
  The exposure level mark < s> lets you 
see how far you are from the 
standard exposure level.
4Set the exposure.
  Check the exposure level and set the 
desired shutter speed and aperture.
5Take the picture.
a: Manual Exposure
Exposure level mark Standard exposure index
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Objects in the foreground and background will be in focus automatically. 
All the AF points will function to detect the subject, and the aperture 
required to attain the necessary depth of field will be set automatically.
*< 8 > stands for Auto-Depth of field. This mode sets the depth of field automatically.
1Set the Mode Dial to < 8>.
2Focus the subject.
 Aim the AF points over the subjects 
and press the shutter button halfway 
(0 ).
  All the subjects covered by the AF 
points flashing in red will be in focus.
3Take the picture.
8 : Automatic Depth-of-Field AE
 If the “ 30” shutter speed blinks, it indicates that the subject is too dark. 
Increase the ISO speed.
  If the “ 8000” shutter speed blinks, it indicates that the subject is too 
bright. Decrease the ISO speed.
  If the aperture blinks, it indicates that the exposure level is correct but the 
desired depth of field cannot be obtained. Either use a wide-angle lens or 
move farther away from the subjects.
  If the camera sets a slow shutter speed, hold the camera steady or use a 
tripod.
  If you use flash, the result  will be the same as using  with flash.
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The metering mode is the method of measuring the brightness of the 
subject. In the Basic Zone modes, evaluative metering is set 
automatically.
1Press the  button. (9 )
2Select the metering mode.
 While looking at the LCD panel, turn 
the < 6> dial.
q Evaluative metering
This is an all-around metering mode suited for 
portraits and even backlit subjects. The camera 
sets the exposure automatically to suit the scene.
w Partial metering
Effective when the background is much brighter than 
the subject due to backlightin g, etc. Partial metering 
covers about 9% of the viewfinder area at the center.
r Spot metering
This is for metering a specific part of the subject or 
scene. The metering is weighted at the center 
covering about 3.8% of the viewfinder area.
e Center-weighted average metering
The metering is weighted at the center and then 
averaged for the entire scene.
q  Selecting the Metering Mode N
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