3 Misunderstood But Important Buttons on Your Camera Explained

#photographybackgrounds #photographyblog #photographygalleries

By: Darlene Hildebrandt

Today’s modern DSLR cameras have so many functions, buttons, and menus that it can be confusing and overwhelming to learn how to use properly. In this article, you’ll learn about three commonly misunderstood, but extremely important buttons on your camera. See what they each do, and when to use them.

#1 – The Depth of Field Preview Button

This is one that is not often used but it really handy once you know what it’s for, the depth of field preview button. Let’s have a look.

#2 – The Exposure Compensation Button

Next up is the Exposure Compensation button or dial. I use this one a lot with my Fuji X-T1 and X100F cameras when I’m shooting in Aperture Priority mode, which is most of the time. See where to find on your camera and how to apply it here.

#3 – Auto Exposure Lock (AEL)

Finally, the last button you should learn about is the AEL or Auto Exposure Lock button. It’s very handy when you want to lock your exposure, or your focus, or both and take multiple images of the same scene, with different compositions.


Can you confidently say you are familiar with and comfortable using all these buttons on your camera? If not, make it a habit to learn one new thing about your camera every day. Get to know all the buttons and dials. If you can’t figure it out, consult your camera user manual. Or search for your camera and model number on YouTube to find some good tutorials specific to your setup.
Know your camera inside and out. Then, and only then can you decide if it’s time to upgrade or not. But that’s another topic for another day!
 

Darlene Hildebrandt is an educator who teaches aspiring amateurs and hobbyists how to improve their skills through articles on her site Digital Photo Mentor, online photography classes, and travel tours to exotic places like Peru (Aug 31st - Sept 13th, 2019), Thailand, and India (Oct 28th - Nov 11th, 2019). To help you at whatever level you're at she has two email mini-courses. Sign up for her free beginner OR portrait photography email mini-course here. Or get both, no charge! 

Share this article