johnriley wrote:
I think the main thing here is knowing when to alter the exposure indicated by the camera. On the images where there are burnt out areas, less exposure needs to be given. On the others, they are all satisfactory for dealing with in Photoshop. Maybe some look a little dark, but the sky will cause this as the camera thinks there's more light that there actually is on the foreground.

I would buy a basic book on photography and the principles of exposure will be well covered by that.

If you take some shots of say buildings or plants with no sky, then I think you'll find those will be spot on.

sterretje wrote:
droopsnoot is correct; changed values are indicated in red

That setting is (more than likely) copied from your camera. Take a shot with another setting (e.g. vibrant) on the camera and check it with the utility.

Does your histogram indicates correct exposure? Is your monitor calibrated?

thespirit3 wrote:
Oops - seems I've totally misunderstood Program Mode.

After doing some research it appears Program Mode is basically Auto but with the added ability to manually alter shutter speed or aperture (with the camera then adjusting the other to compensate).

wvbarnes wrote:
Page 317 of the user manual. Takes a white pic against a plain surface and shows where any dust is.Check again after cleaning.

wvbarnes wrote:
I have it on by default. Canikon friends bemused by such a fine feature and the dust preview screen option. The ad hoc option in the menu seems more vigorous

I use a hurricane blow brush to clean the protective screen in front of the sensor if persistant dust. I check whenever I'm back from field use of multiple lenses.