As a begginer i should grow photos but i found it is more exciting and easier for me to grow autos,they are short,nedd a smaller space than photos and they are done in app. 10 weeks,always growing in soil because it is easy to flush the plant if i notice toxicity from nutes,already have feeding chart from previous grows and it is easy to feed them,last 5 autos i grew bring me about 70 g per plant under 200 w hps light,that amount of weed i could get from photos but since my box is on the balcony and it is winter i have to run lights 24/0 ,it gives me perfect conditions because hps is emitating a lot of heat,never seen my leaves curling under the light even they are more close than recommended,Im satisfied with all benefits autos can give me and im glad to use that benefits in my favour,there are a lot of disadvantages like short period to recover a plant from mistakes but ialways reduce them to the minimum,never had some big issues with autos,for now.