Originally posted by janosh Looks like "Av" (aperture priority) may be the best bet for me (mixing M and Limited lenses) because that works as well with both types
As another poster points out, Av mode does *not* work with M lenses - the camera is unable to read the aperture ring. So it basically ignores the ring completely and shoots wide open all the time. If you plan to use "M" lenses at any other aperture, you have no choice but to use "M" mode.
Quote: "Av" seems more intuitive, doesn't imply as much peering through the finder at internal readouts as "M" does...Pentax and everybody else, save Leica, is badly designed in this respect...knobs like Leica's are often better than readouts because they can be set by touch, without even looking.
I guess I don't see how having to take your eyes away from the viewfinder to look at aperture rings and shutter speed dials could *possibly* be considered better than seeing both of these displayed in the viewfinder, which is of course where your eyes normally are when shooting anyhow. Sure, if you can "feel" the setting of the aperture ring and shutter speed dial, that's better than *nothing*, but isn't seeing the setting right in front of your eyes better still? And in any case, with M lenses, you *are* still using the aperture ring, and you *do* have to set it by feel if you don't want to take your eyes off the viewfinder. So it's basically what you are looking for, except that you'll have to look at the shutter speed display right in front of your eyes instead of guess based on "feel".
In any case, with just a few minutes practice in M mode, you'll get the hang of it quickly. The process is quite simple.