Owning a DSLR and not getting intimate with all of its settings and intricacies should be considered a sin. Far too many consumers buy a DSLR to take simple holiday pictures, not knowing what kind of kit they’re holding in their hands.
You’re not one of those people. You are the curious explorer, the type of photographer who wants to know exactly what ways there are to manipulate her/his gear to extract the most out of it — to allow your artistic creativity to come out well and achieve exactly the look you had in mind before you hit that shutter button.
Mastering your DSLR is like learning how to draw. Knowing what techniques and functions can help you manipulate the image you’re trying to create. It helps translate a vision into reality (without too much help from Photoshop or Lightroom).
Assuming you understand the basics already, here are 15 settings you may not have tried yet that can really make a difference in getting THAT shot. Know of any advanced DSLR settings that haven’t been listed here? Share them in the comments below!
1. Interval Timer Shooting / Time Lapse
Although remote triggers with interval timing are available for pretty much any DSLR camera, a few of the more recent Nikon models have an interval timer built in, which makes creating time lapse videos or shots like star trail photography that much easier. Canon, at time of writing, have yet to release a DSLR with in-built interval timer shooting.
On Nikon models which offer this function, go to the Shooting menu, select Interval Timer Shooting and: select your start time; choose an interval; select the number of intervals and shots per interval; start shooting by highlighting Start > On.
2. Exposure Compensation
Exposure compensation allows you to partly “override” the meter’s recommendations by increasing/decreasing the exposure with one or multiple stops. It’s especially useful when using Aperture (Av) or Shutter priority (Tv) modes. This takes a bit of trial and error and is something you’ll develop with experience.
3. Flash Compensation
Flash compensation works similarly to exposure compensation, giving you control over the level of flash output. Often the camera’s metering leaves you with an overdose of light, with a washed out look. Flash compensation lets you find an adjustment — usually a couple of stops lower — which blends the flash light with the ambient light already available for a much more evenly distributed and less harsh result.
4. Auto Focus Lock (AF-ON) / Back Button Focus
Using back button focusing or auto focus lock, you can lock focus on an off-centre subject and recompose without refocusing between shots. This is especially useful at weddings or any situation where you need to act quickly.
Canon: In the Custom Functions menu, look for “Shutter/AE Lock Button” then select “Metering Start / Meter + AF Start”. This shifts AF functionality to the AF-ON button, so the shutter button only meters light.
Nikon: Go to Custom Settings → Autofocus → AF Activation → choose “AF-ON only”.
5. Highlight Alert (on preview)
The highlight alert automatically highlights areas of your shot that are overexposed (“blown out”). Since blown-out highlights lose detail that’s difficult or impossible to retrieve in post, this function is a lifesaver. Enable it in Playback menu on both Canon and Nikon.
6. Mirror Lock-Up
When the shutter button is pressed, the mirror flips up and causes vibrations that can blur the image — especially noticeable at slow shutter speeds, with long telephoto lenses, or in macro photography. Mirror lock-up completes the mirror flip before the shot is taken. Use it with a tripod and a remote trigger or 2-second self-timer for best results.
7. Auto Exposure Bracketing (AEB)
AEB allows you to take numerous burst shots at different exposures without manually changing settings. You can alter the variation between images by different “stops” — a “2 stop” gap for a huge variation, or “half stop” for a small variation.
Nikon: Custom Settings Menu → e bracketing/flash → option e4.
Canon: Select Expo. comp./AEB, press Set, use Cross Keys to set compensation amount, and turn the Main Dial to set AEB amount.
8. AE Lock (Locking The Exposure)
Auto Exposure Lock freezes the camera’s exposure settings, so if you move the camera from one object to another, the aperture/shutter speed values won’t be affected. Point the camera at the desired object, press the AE-L button on the back of the camera, then reframe and take the shot.
9. Dynamic Range Increase (Highlight Tone Priority)
Canon’s Highlight Tone Priority increases the effective dynamic range by protecting the highlights. Particularly helpful to wedding and landscape photographers — it captures more detail in wedding dresses, sky, and bright décor elements.
Nikon’s Active D-Lighting similarly improves high contrast shots by restoring shadow and highlight details.
10. ISO Expansion
Enable ISO Expansion from Custom Function → Exposure → ISO Expansion → On. Expanded ISO may range up to 12,800. Think of it like turning up the volume on a stereo — the higher the volume, the more noise comes out.
11. Long Exposure Noise Reduction
The longer the exposure, the noisier your shot. Set Long Exposure Noise Reduction to Enable, Disable, or Auto in the camera menu. When set to Enable, the camera uses dark frame subtraction: it charges the sensor for the same duration as the shot, creates a dark frame, compares the noise, and removes similar noise from your image.
12. High ISO Noise Reduction
High ISO Noise Reduction is available on more recent DSLRs and is completely different from Long Exposure Noise Reduction. It can be used for any ISO setting. Beware though — it causes a slight loss of fine detail, so test and compare results on your PC before committing to it.
13. Depth of Field Preview
Pressing the depth of field button tells the camera to set the aperture at your selected level, so you can observe exactly how much of your shot will be in focus through the viewfinder. Especially useful for macro and portrait photography — hold the button while adjusting aperture until you find the ideal combination of background blur and subject focus.
14. Picture Styles / Custom Picture Controls
Even if you shoot RAW, your DSLR still generates a quick preview JPG for reviewing on the LCD. By setting a punchy Picture Style or Custom Picture Control, you get a better preview of what a shot will look like after post-processing — while still retaining the original, untouched RAW file.
15. Multiple Exposure
Multiple exposure combines several shots into one output image, creating an effect of movement or layering. Available on higher-end DSLRs, it can be used in standard or continuous shooting mode. A great example: a car photographed three times as it moves across the frame, appearing at three positions in one image — creating a powerful sense of motion.
Can you think of any other advanced settings that are missing here? Leave a comment below!