David Busch's Sony Alpha a6100/ILCE-6100 Guide to Digital Photography is your essential handbook for learning all the powerful - but easy to use -- features of Sony's most advanced entry-level APS-C mirrorless camera.
This camera's new LCD swivels to face forward, making the camera excellent for self-portraits, vlogging, and other applications. The a6100 features a 24 megapixel sensor with 425 embedded phase-detect pixels for lightning-fast autofocus at up to 11 frames per second. With an electronic shutter that provides a silent shooting option, stunning 4K/UHD video capabilities, and new time-lapse photography features, the a6100/ILCE-6100 is a versatile digital camera that has simple operation yet boasts all the features you need to take great photos. With this book in hand, you will discover all the capabilities of the Sony Alpha a6100/ILCE-6100 as you explore the world of digital photography, develop your creativity, and capture the best photographs you've ever taken.
Filled with detailed how-to steps and full-color illustrations, David Busch's Sony Alpha a6100/ILCE-6100 Guide to Digital Photography describes every feature of this sophisticated camera in depth, from taking your first photos through advanced details of setup, exposure, lens selection, lighting, and more. It relates each feature to specific photographic techniques and situations. Also included is the handy camera "roadmap," an easy-to-use visual guide to the a6100/ILCE-6100's features and controls. Learn when to use every option and, more importantly, when not to use them, by following the author's recommended settings for every menu entry.
With best-selling photographer and mentor David Busch as your guide, you'll quickly have full creative mastery of your camera's capabilities, whether you're shooting on the job, taking pictures as an advanced enthusiast pushing the limits of your imagination, or are just out for fun. Start building your knowledge and confidence, while bringing your vision to light with the Sony Alpha a6100/ILCE-6100.
Chapter Page
Preface ix
Introduction xi
Chapter 1 Getting Started with Your Sony a6100 1
Your Out-of-Box Experience 3
Initial Setup 6
Battery Included 6
Final Steps 7
Formatting a Memory Card 10
Selecting a Shooting Mode 13
Getting Instant Help 16
Choosing a Metering Mode 16
Choosing a Focus Mode 17
Selecting a Focus Area 18
Other Settings 19
Adjusting White Balance and ISO 19
Using the Self-Timer 19
Using the a6100's Flash 20
An Introduction to Movie Making 21
Reviewing the Images You've Taken 22
Transferring Files to Your Computer 23
Wireless File Transfer 24
Chapter 2 Sony a6100 Roadmap 25
Using Cross-References 25
Front View 26
The Sony a6100's Business End 29
Using the Touch Screen/Pad 33
Directional Button Functions 36
LCD Panel Data Displays 38
Using the Quick Navi Function Menu 40
Going Topside 41
Underneath Your Sony a6100 42
Chapter 3 Camera Settings I Menu 45
Anatomy of the Menus 45
Improved Menu System 47
Camera Settings I Menu 48
File Format (Stills) 49
JPEG Quality (Stills) 51
JPEG Image Size (Stills) 52
Aspect Ratio (Stills) 53
Panorama: Size 54
Panorama: Direction 54
Long Exposure NR/High ISO NR (Stills) 57
Color Space (Stills) 59
Lens Compensation 62
Auto Mode 64
Scene Selection 64
Superior Auto Image Extract 65
Drive Mode 65
Bracket Settings 67
Interval Shooting Functions 67
Memory Recall 69
Memory 71
Focus Mode 72
Focus Area 73
AF Illuminator (Stills) 74
Face/Eye AF Settings 75
AF with Shutter (Stills) 77
Pre-AF (Stills) 78
Eye-Start AF (Stills) 78
AF Area Auto Clear 79
Display Continuous AF Area 79
AF Micro Adjustment 80
Exposure Compensation 80
ISO Setting 81
Metering Mode 82
Face Priority in Multi Metering 83
Exposure Step 83
Autoexposure Lock with Shutter (Stills) 84
Flash Mode 85
Flash Compensation 85
Exposure Compensation Settings 86
Wireless Flash 86
Red Eye Reduction 86
White Balance 87
Priority Setting in AWB 89
DRO/Auto HDR 90
Creative Style 90
Picture Effect 91
Soft Skin Effect (Stills) 93
Focus Magnifier 93
Focus Magnification Time 95
Initial Focus Magnification (Stills) 95
AF in Focus Magnification (Stills) 95
Manual Focus Assist (Stills) 96
Peaking Setting 96
Face Registration 97
Registered Faces Priority 98
Smile Shutter 98
Auto Object Framing (Stills) 99
Self-Portrait/-Timer 100
Chapter 4 Camera Settings II Menu 101
Camera Settings II Menu Entries 101
Exposure Mode (Movies) 102
Exposure Mode (S&Q Motion) 102
File Format (Movies) 102
Record Setting (Movies) 103
S&Q Settings (S&Q Motion) 104
Proxy Recording 105
AF Drive Speed (Movies) 106
AF Track Sensitivity (Movies) 106
Auto Slow Shutter (Movies) 107
Initial Focus Magnification (Movies) 107
Audio Recording 108
Audio Recording Level 108
Audio Level Display 109
Wind Noise Reduction 109
Marker Display (Movies) 109
Marker Settings (Movies) 110
Movie with Shutter 110
Silent Shooting (Stills) 111
e-Front Curtain Shutter 112
Release w/o Lens 112
Release w/o Card 113
Steady Shot 113
Zoom 114
Zoom Setting 115
DISP Button 118
Finder/Monitor 120
Zebra Setting 120
Grid Line 122
Exposure Setting Guide 122
Live View Display 123
Auto Review 124
Custom Key (Stills) 124
Custom Key (Movies) 127
Custom Key (Playback) 128
Function Menu Settings 128
Dial/Wheel Setup 129
Dial/Wheel Ev Comp 130
Function of Touch Operations 130
MOVIE Button 131
Dial/Wheel Lock 132
Audio Signals 132
Chapter 5 Network and Playback Menus 133
Network Menu 133
Send to Smartphone Function 134
Send to Computer 134
View on TV 137
Control with Srnartphone 137
Airplane Mode 137
Wi-Fi Settings 137
Bluetooth Settings 138
Location Information Link Settings 138
Bluetooth Remote Control 138
Edit Device Name 138
Reset Network Settings 138
Remotely Controlling Your Camera 139
Using PC Remote 139
Making a Wireless Connection 140
Camera/Device: NFC Connection 141
Camera/Device: Wi-Fi Connection 141
Using WPS Push 142
Registering Manually 143
Connecting with Bluetooth 145
Viewing Images on a TV 147
Sending Files to a Smart Device 148
Remote Control with Your Smartphone 149
Playback Menu 150
Protect 150
Rotate 151
Delete 151
Rating 152
Rating Set (Custom Key) 153
Specify Printing 153
Photo Capture 154
Enlarge Image 154
Enlarge Initial Magnification 155
Enlarge Initial Position 155
Continuous Playback for Interval 155
Playback Speed for Interval 155
Slide Show 156
View Mode 156
Image Index 156
Display as Group 157
Display Rotation 157
Image Jump Setting 158
Chapter 6 Setup Menu and My Menu 159
Setup Menu 159
Monitor Brightness 160
Viewfinder Brightness 160
Finder Color Temperature 161
Volume Settings 161
Tile Menu 161
Mode Dial Guide 162
Delete Confirm 162
Display Quality 162
Power Save Start Time 163
Auto Power Off Temperature 163
NTSC/PAL Selector 163
Cleaning Mode 164
Touch Operation 164
Touch Panel/Pad 165
Touch Pad Settings 165
Demo Mode 166
HDMI Settings 166
4K Output Selection (Movies) 167
USB Connection 168
USB LUN Setting 168
USB Power Supply 169
PC Remote Settings 169
Language 170
Date/Time Setup 170
Area Setting 171
Format 171
File Number 172
Select REC Folder 172
New Folder 172
Folder Name 173
Recover Image Database 174
Display Media Information 174
Version 174
Setting Reset 175
My Menu 175
Chapter 7 Nailing the Optimum Exposure 177
Getting a Handle on Exposure 177
Equivalent Exposure 182
How the a6100 Calculates Exposure 183
Correctly Exposed 183
Overexposed 184
Underexposed 184
The Importance of ISO 186
Choosing a Metering Mode 187
Multi Metering 187
Center-weighted Metering 188
Spot Metering 189
Choosing an Exposure Mode 190
Aperture Priority (A) Mode 190
Shutter Priority (S) Mode 193
Program Auto (P) Mode 195
Making Exposure Value Changes 196
Manual Exposure (M) Mode 197
Using ISO Auto 199
Exposure Bracketing 200
Continuous Bracketing 201
Single Bracketing 202
White Balance Bracketing 202
DRO Bracketing 202
Dealing with Digital Noise 202
High ISO Noise 203
Using Dynamic Range Optimizer and HDR 205
Auto HDR 208
Bracketing and Merge to HDR 209
Exposure Evaluation with Histograms 212
The Live Histogram 212
The Playback Histograms 213
Tonal Range 213
Histogram Basics 214
Understanding Histograms 216
Automatic and Specialized Shooting Modes 220
Auto and Scene Modes 221
Sweep Panorama Mode 223
Chapter 8 Mastering Autofocus Options 225
Getting into Focus 226
Contrast Detection 226
Phase Detection 227
Comparing the Two Hybrid Components 229
Focus Modes and Options 231
Focus Pocus 232
Adding Circles of Confusion 233
Your Focus Mode Options 235
Autofocus Magnified 237
Setting the AF Area 238
Tracking Subjects, Faces, and Eyes 241
Face Detection and Eye AF Overview 243
Making Your Face/Eye Detection Settings 244
Magic Autofocus-Set and Forget 246
Using Manual Focus 247
Back-Button Focus 249
Activating Back-Button Focus 250
Useful Menu Items for AF 250
Chapter 9 Advanced Shooting 253
Exploring Ultra-Fast Exposures 253
Long Exposures 256
Continuous Shooting 259
Customizing White Balance 262
Fine-Tuning Preset White Balance 264
Setting White Balance by Color Temperature 265
Setting a Custom White Balance 266
Interval Shooting 267
Interval Shooting Checklist 268
Settings Recap 270
Viewing Your Interval Sequences 271
Time-Lapse Movies 272
Star Trails 275
Chapter 10 Movie Making 277
Some Fundamentals 277
Choosing a File Format 279
Choosing a Record Setting 280
Choosing Metering/Exposure Modes 283
Choosing an Autofocus Mode 286
Using Frame Guides 287
Shooting in 4K 288
Tips for Movie Making 290
Composition 291
Lighting for Video 294
Audio 296
Lens Craft 297
Chapter 11 Working with Lenses 299
Don't Forget the Crop Factor 299
Choosing a Lens 301
The Sony "Trinity" 305
Third-Party Lenses 306
Zeiss Touit Lenses 306
Other Third-Party Lenses 306
Using the LA-EA Series Adapters 309
AF Micro Adjustment 312
Evaluate Current Focus 314
What Lenses Can Do for You 317
Categories of Lenses 318
Using Wide-Angle Lenses 319
Avoiding Potential Wide-Angle Problems 321
Using Telephoto and Tele-Zoom Lenses 322
Avoiding Telephoto Lens Problems 323
Chapter 12 Working with Flash 325
Why Flash? 325
Electronic Flash Basics 329
How Electronic Flash Works 329
Flash Modes 336
Flash Exposure Compensation 337
Red Eye Reduction 338
Using an External Electronic Flash 338
Guide Numbers, Hot Shoes, and More 339
HVL-F60M/RM Flash Units 341
HVL-F45RM Flash Unit 342
HVL-F43M Flash Unit 342
HVL-F36AM Flash Unit 343
HVL-F32M Flash Unit 343
HVL-F20M Flash Unit 343
Wireless Flash 344
Key Wireless Concepts 345
Setting Channels and Remote Groups 347
Setting Ratios 348
Radio Control 349
Off-Camera Flash 350
Index 351
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
With more than two million books in print, David D. Busch is the world's #1 best-selling camera guide author, with more than 100 guidebooks for Nikon, Canon, Sony, Olympus, Pentax, and Panasonic cameras, and many popular books devoted to digital photography and imaging techniques. His best-sellers include Digital SLR Cameras and Photography for Dummies, which has sold more than 300,000 copies in five editions, and Mastering Digital SLR Photography, now in its Fourth Edition.
The graduate of Kent State University is a former newspaper reporter/photographer, and operated his own commercial photo studio, shooting sports, weddings, portraits, fashion, architecture, product photography, and travel images. For 22 years he was a principal in CCS/PR, Inc., one of the largest public relations/marketing firms based in San Diego, working on press conferences, press kits, media tours, and sponsored photo trade magazine articles for Eastman Kodak Company and other imaging companies. His 2500 articles and accompanying photos have appeared inside and on the covers of hundreds of magazines, including Popular Photography, Rangefinder, and Professional Photographer.
Softcover. 2020. Unabridged edition. Illustrated, w/Index. 9" L x 7" W. 376 pages. Brand New.