QR codes at San Antonio bus stops change the game for visually impaired commuters

Modern cameras are much more than simple devices offering control of ISO, aperture and shutter speed with a basic lightmeter thrown in for good measure. They’re now advanced devices that now offer a wide range of features and option to help you shoot better photos and videos.Sony Alpha cameras are literally bursting with settings and options that can be tweaked and changed to your own preference and shooting style. 

Turn on grid lines

Most mirrorless cameras allow you to turn on a rule-of-thirds grid that displays in both the EVF and on the LCD, and Sony Alpha cameras are no exception. Even if you’re a highly experienced photographer, this unobtrusive guide is an excellent way to make sure that your compositions are absolutely perfect. It may seem a little like jumping on a bike with stabilisers, but this setting takes all the guesswork out of composition and helps you to compose and shoot much quicker because you have a clear visual representation to work with.

Switch on touch operation

Set display quality

By default, display quality is set to standard, but there’s a high option that provides a higher resolution image in both the EVF and on the LCD screen. This will simply allow you to enjoy sharper, more detail-packed images when composing shots and reviewing images, especially when zooming in to check sharpness. With such a high resolution EVF and LCD available on these cameras, it makes sense to take full advantage of what’s on offer, and there’s nothing better than being able to see the highest resolution versions of your shots in the field.

Save battery with Airplane Mode

By default everything seems to be turned on when you get a Sony camera, so to save valuable battery, switch the camera to Airplane Mode. This will turn off all types of wireless connectivity and can simply be turned off when you need to use Wi-Fi or NFC to connect your smartphone or tablet to the camera using the Sony Play Memories app. Alternatively, you could turn these off individually, but Airplane Mode is a quick and easy way to ensure you’re not inadvertently wasting battery power and can be switched off in seconds.

Customise the button layout

One of the great things about the A7 series and A9 cameras is that the vast majority of the dials and direct access buttons can be configured to your own preferred layout. For the most part, the standard default button layout works well and you can often keep half or more as they are, but there are a number of buttons on the back of the camera that you can set up to better meet your needs and help you to access the settings you use most often. Take a look at tip number nine below for one useful recommendation.

Change the display view while shooting

Whether you’re shooting with your eye to the electronic viewfinder (EVF) or using the LCD you can quickly and easily change the information that’s displayed on-screen or in the EVF simply by pressing the Disp button at the top of the scroll wheel on the back of the camera. You may prefer a view showing just camera settings and a histogram, or a virtual horizon to square up your shots, or Live View with a live histogram to view the scene and assess exposure. Many photographers will use all of these with a single shot, so scrolling through the options is quite common.

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