Which picture style do you use?

[taxidermista]

Hello there. I'm new to the DSLR world, I've just purchased the Canon XSi and have some doubts about Canon picture styles. I just shoot the same pic with diferent picture styles (I tried portrait, landscape, and neutral) and I'm not sure which one should I use normally.

What do you usually do? Do you set a style depending on what pic you're going to take everytime? Have you found any custom configuration that suits all your needs? Do you leave it to neutral (0 sharpness, 0 contrast, 0 saturation, 0 tone) to edit it later in PS?

I really enjoy post processing so I'm not sure if I should leave it always in neutral picture style. I don't know either if I customize landscape style to 0,0,0,0 will it act the same as another custom style in a 0,0,0,0 configuration.

Thanks in advance and sorry for the poor english!

[GaryS]

Your english is fine...

I have a custom style defined, which is +1 contrast, +1 Saturation, and I shoot in RAW.

I find this comes closer to how I want the photos to look in the end, but I have the option in DPP of backing out that picture style if it doesn't work. I look at the picture style settings as a starting point...

[XaiLo]

Leave your settings neutral and post process using raw problem solved. For the most part raw data is uneffected by any change made to optimize the image. Jpeg on the other hand is a different story and is directly effected by those settings. Off hand I would say most here only use P, Tv, Av, or M modes. I don't know whether your editing raw or jpeg images. What you would adjust your settings to depends on your taste.

[24Peter]

On my 40D I only shoot .jpegs and use +4 sharpening, +1 saturation, +2 contrast. Suits my taste (taste my suit?)

[griptape]

"Picture Styles" is just a fancy word for "Auto Mode". You'd be far better off learning the basics of how a camera sees light and what a sensor actually captures when you take a picture, and how the settings that actually matter (ISO, aperture, shutter speed) work together to make that picture. Then figure out what amount of in camera sharpening, contrast, and saturation suits your taste. Or shoot raw and deal with those (and white balance) after the fact.

[cdifoto]

"Picture Styles" is just a fancy word for "Auto Mode". You'd be far better off learning the basics of how a camera sees light and what a sensor actually captures when you take a picture, and how the settings that actually matter (ISO, aperture, shutter speed) work together to make that picture. Then figure out what amount of in camera sharpening, contrast, and saturation suits your taste. Or shoot raw and deal with those (and white balance) after the fact.

Picture Styles aren't metering modes, they're jpeg processing parameters.

[griptape]

Picture Styles aren't metering modes, they're jpeg processing parameters.

I know, I guess I got a little ahead of myself, but I think being able to expose properly, or at least knowing what the camera is thinking when it makes the exposure for you is just as important as figuring out what in camera processing you prefer. I guess I should have said choosing a "style" is just auto mode for your in camera parameters. Or, like I said, you can just choose it in PP if you shoot RAW (the included DPP software actually has a drop down menu of the picture styles that you can apply, as well as the sliders for the actual parameters).

[cdifoto]

I think it's good to have a preferred look to the images either as a post-processing basis with your JPEGs or as a starting point if you shoot RAW and use DPP. If you use a third party program and RAW it's moot of course, but;

If you shoot everything 100% neutral and are using SOOC JPEGs & find yourself always adding contrast or saturation in post, you may as well boost those in-camera to save yourself some steps after the fact.

If you shoot RAW and use DPP but find yourself moving the same sliders to the same or similar points all the time, you may as well set those in-camera so DPP can read them straight away. You can always move them a little more if desired.

Proper exposure is a good thing of course but it really doesn't have anything to do with this discussion.

[Visual Reality]

Well that depends. Different programs handle adjustments like saturation differently. It may be the case that PS can do this type of adjustment better than the camera. The only way to find out is to try.

[michaelb]

Your english is fine...

I have a custom style defined, which is +1 contrast, +1 Saturation, and I shoot in RAW.

I find this comes closer to how I want the photos to look in the end, but I have the option in DPP of backing out that picture style if it doesn't work. I look at the picture style settings as a starting point...

This is pretty much exactly how I do it. Shooting RAW allows you to adjust these values in post. I use DPP to convert my images, so all of the picture style settings are simple to adjust.