Can you get great-looking JPEG images straight from camera?

Canon
Landscape Picture Style with a boost in colour saturation, and reduction in contrast lifted the shadows to reveal more detail (Image credit: Brian Worley)

A lot of photographers shoot JPEG images, and so it is more important to configure the right camera settings so that those photographs look their best. First consideration is color or monochrome, and then how do you like your color to look; punchy and vibrant, or softer with muted tones?

All these are determined by the camera's picture mode, or picture style. Most models have an automatic style that switches between categories like Standard, Portrait and Landscape styles depending on the picture. All three are different, with Landscape having the most contrast and vibrant colors, and Portrait having the least. It is a good idea to test out the styles and see which you prefer – and if your camera has a Fine Detail style, take a look as it often gives better results.

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Brian Worley

Brian is a freelance photographer and photo tutor, based in Oxfordshire. He has unrivaled EOS DSLR knowledge, after working for Canon for over 15 years, and is on hand to answer all the EOS and photographic queries in Canon-centric magazine PhotoPlus.