David Busch's Sony Alpha a6500/ILCE-6500 Guide to Digital Photography

David Busch's Sony Alpha a6500/ILCE-6500 Guide to Digital Photography

by David D. Busch
Released February 2017
Publisher(s): Rocky Nook
ISBN: 9781681982519

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Book description

David Busch’s Sony Alpha a6500/ILCE-6500 Guide to Digital Photography is the most comprehensive reference and guide book available for Sony’s advanced APS-C mirrorless camera.

This eagerly-anticipated enthusiast/professional digital camera adds in-body image stabilization, a useful touch screen, and better low light performance at up to ISO 51,200. It 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, and stunning 4K/UHD video capabilities, the a6500/ILCE-6500 is a versatile digital camera that’s simple to use, yet boasts features demanded by the most avid photo buff.

With this book in hand, you will discover all the capabilities of the Sony Alpha a6500/ILCE-6500 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 a6500/ILCE-6500 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 a6500/ILCE-6500’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 a6500/ILCE-6500.

Table of contents

  1. Preface
  2. Introduction
  3. Chapter 1 Getting Started with Your Sony a6500
    1. Your Out-of-Box Experience
    2. Initial Setup
      1. Battery Included
      2. Final Steps
      3. Formatting a Memory Card
    3. Selecting a Shooting Mode
      1. Getting Instant Help
    4. Choosing a Metering Mode
    5. Choosing a Focus Mode
    6. Selecting a Focus Area
    7. Other Settings
      1. Adjusting White Balance and ISO
      2. Using the Self-Timer
      3. Using the a6500’s Flash
    8. An Introduction to Movie Making
    9. Reviewing the Images You’ve Taken
    10. Transferring Files to Your Computer
      1. Wireless File Transfer
  4. Chapter 2 Sony a6500 Roadmap
    1. Front View
    2. The Sony a6500’s Business End
      1. Using the Touch Screen/Pad
    3. LCD Panel Data Displays
      1. Using the Quick Navi Function Menu
    4. Going Topside
    5. Underneath Your Sony a6500
  5. Chapter 3 Camera Settings I Menu
    1. Anatomy of the Menus
      1. About the New Menus
    2. Camera Settings I Menu Items
      1. Quality (Stills)
      2. Image Size (Stills)
      3. Aspect Ratio (Stills)
      4. Panorama: Size
      5. Panorama: Direction
      6. Long Exposure NR/High ISO NR (Stills)
      7. Color Space (Stills)
      8. Lens Compensation
      9. Auto Mode
      10. Scene Selection
      11. Superior Auto Image Extract
      12. Drive Mode
      13. Bracket Settings
      14. Memory Recall 1/2
      15. Memory
      16. Focus Mode
      17. Priority Set in AF-S/Priority Set in AF-C
      18. Focus Area
      19. AF Illuminator (Stills)
      20. Center Lock-On AF
      21. AF System (Stills)
      22. AF w/Shutter (Stills)
      23. Pre-AF (Stills)
      24. Eye-Start AF (Stills)
      25. AF Area Auto Clear
      26. Display Continuous AF Area
      27. AF Micro Adjustment
      28. Exposure Compensation
      29. ISO
      30. ISO Auto Minimum Shutter Speed
      31. Metering Mode
      32. Spot Metering Point
      33. Exposure Step
      34. AEL w/Shutter (Stills)
      35. Exposure Standard Adjustment
      36. Flash Mode
      37. Flash Compensation
      38. Exp. Comp. Set
      39. Red Eye Reduction
      40. White Balance
      41. Priority Setting in Auto White Balance
      42. DRO/Auto HDR
      43. Creative Style
      44. Picture Effect
      45. Picture Profile
      46. Soft Skin Effect (Stills)
      47. Focus Magnifier
      48. Focus Magnification Time
      49. AF in Focus Magnification (Stills)
      50. MF Assist (Stills)
      51. Peaking Level
      52. Peaking Color
      53. Smile/Face Detect
      54. Face Registration
      55. Auto Object Framing (Stills)
  6. Chapter 4 Camera Settings II Menu
    1. Camera Settings II Menu Items
      1. Movie/S&Q Motion
      2. File Format (Movies)
      3. Record Setting (Movies)
      4. S&Q Settings
      5. Dual Video Record
      6. AF Drive Speed (Movies)
      7. AF Track Sensitivity (Movies)
      8. Auto Slow Shutter (Movies)
      9. Audio Recording
      10. Audio Rec Level
      11. Audio Level Display
      12. Wind Noise Reduction
      13. Marker Display (Movies)
      14. Marker Settings (Movies)
      15. Silent Shooting (Stills)
      16. e-Front Curtain Shutter
      17. Release w/o Lens
      18. Release w/o Card
      19. SteadyShot
      20. SteadyShot Settings
      21. Zoom
      22. Zoom Setting
      23. Zoom Ring Rotate
      24. DISP Button
      25. FINDER/MONITOR
      26. Finder Frame Rate (Stills)
      27. Zebra
      28. Grid Line
      29. Exposure Settings Guide
      30. Live View Display
      31. Auto Review
      32. Custom Key Settings (Shooting Mode)
      33. Custom Key Settings (Playback)
      34. Function Menu Settings
      35. Dial/Wheel Setup
      36. Dial/Wheel Ev Comp
      37. MOVIE Button
      38. Dial/Wheel Lock
      39. Audio Signals
  7. Chapter 5 Wireless and Application Menus
    1. Making a Wi-Fi Connection
      1. Using WPS Push
      2. Registering
      3. Registering Manually
    2. Using the Wi-Fi Functions
      1. Sending Photos to a Smart Device
      2. Wi-Fi Transfer to a Computer
      3. Viewing Images on a TV
      4. One-Touch (NFC)
    3. The Application Menu
      1. Application List
      2. Introduction
      3. Working with Applications
      4. Current Sony Apps
  8. Chapter 6 Playback and Setup Menus
    1. Playback Menu
      1. Delete
      2. View Mode
      3. Image Index
      4. Display Rotation
      5. Slide Show
      6. Rotate
      7. Enlarge Image
      8. Protect
      9. Specify Printing
      10. Photo Capture
    2. Setup Menu
      1. Monitor Brightness
      2. Viewfinder Brightness
      3. Finder Color Temperature
      4. Gamma Display Assist
      5. Volume Settings
      6. Upload Settings
      7. Tile Menu
      8. Mode Dial Guide
      9. Delete Confirm
      10. Display Quality
      11. Power Save Start Time
      12. Auto Power Off Temperature
      13. NTSC/PAL Selector
      14. Cleaning Mode
      15. Touch Operation
      16. Touch Pad (Vertical)
      17. Touch Pad Area Settings
      18. Demo Mode
      19. TC/UB Settings
      20. Remote Control
      21. HDMI Settings
      22. 4K Output Selection (Movies)
      23. USB Connection
      24. USB LUN Setting
      25. USB Power Supply
      26. PC Remote Settings
      27. Language
      28. Date/Time Setup
      29. Area Setting
      30. Copyright Info
      31. Format
      32. File Number
      33. Set File Name
      34. Select REC Folder
      35. New Folder
      36. Folder Name
      37. Recover Image Database
      38. Display Media Information
      39. Version
      40. Setting Reset
  9. Chapter 7 Shooting Modes and Exposure Control
    1. Getting a Handle on Exposure
      1. Equivalent Exposure
    2. How the a6500 Calculates Exposure
      1. Correctly Exposed
      2. Overexposed
      3. Underexposed
    3. The Importance of ISO
    4. Choosing a Metering Method
    5. Choosing an Exposure Mode
      1. Aperture Priority (A) Mode
      2. Shutter Priority (S) Mode
      3. Program Auto (P) Mode
      4. Making Exposure Value Changes
      5. Manual Exposure (M) Mode
      6. Other Settings
      7. Using ISO Auto
    6. Exposure Bracketing
      1. Continuous Bracketing
      2. Single Bracketing
      3. White Balance Bracketing
      4. DRO Bracketing
    7. Dealing with Digital Noise
      1. High ISO Noise
    8. Using Dynamic Range Optimizer and HDR
      1. Auto HDR
      2. Bracketing and Merge to HDR
    9. Exposure Evaluation with Histograms
      1. The Live Histogram
      2. The Playback Histograms
      3. Tonal Range
      4. Histogram Basics
      5. Understanding Histograms
    10. Automatic and Specialized Shooting Modes
      1. Auto and Scene Modes
      2. Sweep Panorama Mode
  10. Chapter 8 Mastering Autofocus Options
    1. Getting into Focus
      1. Contrast Detection
      2. Phase Detection
    2. Comparing the Two Hybrid Components
      1. Focus Modes and Options
    3. Focus Pocus
      1. Adding Circles of Confusion
      2. Your Focus Mode Options
      3. Autofocus Magnified
      4. Setting the AF Area
      5. Using Manual Focus
    4. Back-Button Focus
      1. Activating Back-Button Focus
    5. Useful Menu Items for AF
    6. Autofocus Summary
  11. Chapter 9 Advanced Shooting
    1. Exploring Ultra-Fast Exposures
    2. Long Exposures
    3. Continuous Shooting
      1. Customizing White Balance
      2. Fine-Tuning Preset White Balance
      3. Priority Setting in Auto White Balance
      4. Setting White Balance by Color Temperature
      5. Setting a Custom White Balance
  12. Chapter 10 Movie Making
    1. Some Fundamentals
      1. Choosing a File Format
      2. Choosing a Record Setting
      3. Choosing Metering/Exposure Modes
      4. Choosing an Autofocus Mode
      5. Using Frame Guides
    2. Time Codes and User Bits
    3. Picture Profiles
      1. Gamma, Gamma Ding Dong
      2. Shooting in 4K
    4. Tips for Movie Making
      1. Composition
      2. Lighting for Video
      3. Audio
      4. Lens Craft
  13. Chapter 11 Working with Lenses
    1. Don’t Forget the Crop Factor
    2. SteadyShot and You
      1. How It Works
    3. Choosing a Lens
      1. The Sony “Trinity” X Two
    4. Other E-Mount Lenses
      1. Sony FE Lenses
      2. Zeiss Touit Lenses
      3. Zeiss Loxia Lenses
      4. Zeiss Batis Lenses
      5. Other Third-Party Lenses
      6. Using the LA-EA Series Adapters
    5. Adapter Adaptations
      1. AF System
      2. AF Micro Adjustment
  14. Chapter 12 Working with Flash
    1. Why Flash?
    2. Electronic Flash Basics
      1. How Electronic Flash Works
      2. Flash Modes
      3. Flash Exposure Compensation
      4. Red Eye Reduction
    3. Using an External Electronic Flash
      1. Guide Numbers, Hot Shoes, and More
      2. HVL-F60M Flash Unit
      3. HVL-F43M Flash Unit
      4. HVL-F36AM Flash Unit
      5. HVL-F32M Flash Unit
      6. HVL-F20M Flash Unit
    4. Wireless Flash
      1. Key Wireless Concepts
      2. Setting Channels and Remote Groups
      3. Setting Ratios
      4. Radio Control

Product information

  • Title: David Busch's Sony Alpha a6500/ILCE-6500 Guide to Digital Photography
  • Author(s): David D. Busch
  • Release date: February 2017
  • Publisher(s): Rocky Nook
  • ISBN: 9781681982519