It does pretty well in Auto mode, but I'm pretty sure I can get better shots in Manual if I knew what I was doing. Does anyone have any tips on setup for a couple of common lighting conditions?

I also still haven't looked up how to do B&W yet. lol

 

I'm still working on getting mine just right.

What kind of lighting situations are you looking at?

For black and white, go to custom, scroll down the menu to the colors, and move over to BW.

 

You'll need to use the cameras meter to get the right settings for a given situation using manual mode. There's no way to list all the possible exposure combinations for the myriad possible lighting situations.

I'm not sure exactly how the S3 works, but, if it's like other Canons, when you depress the shutter half way the camera should indicate whether the shot is over or underexposed or just right. Adjust your settings accordingly. Usually, you'd set the aperture to get the desired depth of field then adjust the shutter to get the desired exposure.

Another option is to use Av mode (aperture priority). Set the aperture for the desired DoF, athen the camera automatically sets the correct shutter speed.

Good luck. The S3 is a nice camera and capable of excellent results.

 

^^Just to expand a bit, using an f-stop with a lower number gives you a wider aperture and shallower depth of field (good for blurring the background when shooting portraits, say). Larger f-stop equals greater depth of field (and generally slower shutter speeds, something to consider if you're hand-holding).

If you already know all of this, just tell me to shut up

 

hell, that's good info even for me. I'm still working on getting to know the camera better.

 

I love my S3 IS. The new S5 IS isn't worth the money for the little bit of an improvement over the S3 IS (although the S3 IS is much better then the S2 IS). That being said, I'd buy the S5 IS now if I didn't already have the S3 IS. You really need to get a book to understand all the uses for the features on this camera (there are also lots of training videos on CD you can check out). Very nice as a point and shoot but also has lots of manual options that most point and shoots don't offer.