Am I the only one that doesn't shoot on full silent mode?

[MattK]

I'm curious to know if I'm the only one that doesn't shoot on full silent mode (even though you can). The other week I was having a discussion with another photographer and they couldn't understand why I wasn't shooting silent. Many of the newer cameras allow you to turn off audio signals completely. Not just the Auto Focus beeps, but also have silent shutter options. 

Now, I 100% get that silent shooting is necessary for some situations. It has revolutionized golf photography, for example, because now you can shoot during a backswing. 

However, for me and my bird photography, I find that I like the sound of the electronic shutter. If anything, it helps not fill up my cards as fast. When I have silent shutter on, I feel like I burn through my cards at twice the speed because I need the audio sound to let me know how much I'm shooting. 

Anyone else like this? 

[GaryHart]

I never do. My recommendation would be to default to EFS and not use Silent mode unless you have a specific need (acknowledging that for many photographers there may be many). Here's a link with all the reasons not to use Silent mode: https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/articles/00122352. 

[tonygale]

I rarely use silent, maybe just because I am old school. However when I do time lapse, I use silent shutter

[DonSmith]

I also do not turn on Silent Mode. I'm so old school that it is comforting to me to hear a shutter clicking even if it is just a fake noise. I would use it for golf, weddings and anywhere that I had to be as minimal of a distraction as possible.

[monicasigmon]

I’m with you! I still love the sound of the shutter. The few times I’ve turned on silent mode, I felt like I kept having to check that there was an image there! I know there was, it just made me nervous without the sound LOL!

[CarolineJensen]

I need audio signals! 

[CarolineJensen]

I use anti-flicker a lot, which conflicts. 

[IraBlock]

I am old school, but i have come to love silent shooting. The only time there is an issue is under cheap LED lights when you can get banding. I set the camera up so there is a 'blink' in the viewfinder on the edges that indicates the camera is actually taking a photo.😁

[glb]

the only time I use silent mode is with wildlife 

[bjohnson]

I'm in the "like to hear the sound" school. And it's not just the reassuring click. I've had some times where in silent mode I don't realize something is pressing on the shutter button and I rip off a bunch of shots of my leg and the ground (mostly when I've got the camera on a BlackRapid sling).

The second reason is that when shooting in high-speed burst, I can get a sense of when the frame buffer is starting to fill up because the 'clicks' will slow down. That's my cue to let up for a second or two, and maybe move my eyes attention to the buffer indicator in the viewfinder.

Third, it's just cool to hear that shutter sound cranking along at 20fps 🙂