One of the great advancements in the conversion from film to digital photography is the ability to change the ISO, or film speed, WITH ANY PICTURE. With film, photographers were stuck with an ISO, or ASA, for 12, 24, or 36 exposures. Today, a camera’s sensitivity to light can be changed with the push of […]
For most photography exposures, as more light is allowed through the aperture, a faster shutter speed will be needed to balance the exposure. If less light is allowed through the aperture, (a higher f/stop number,) then a slower shutter speed will be needed for balance. If a faster shutter speed is desired to stop movement, […]
So far in the series we’ve learned that a camera has an aperture in the lens that lets in different amounts light and controls the background’s clarity. The camera also has a shutter that blocks the light until the button is pushed. The shutter controls how long the light passing through the lens will be allowed […]
Let’s look at an example. You are at a sporting event, and just took some pictures. Reviewing your pictures, you notice that a picture is blurred even though you know the camera focused properly: The shutter speed was too slow to handhold the camera steady enough for a clear picture, or you moved while the […]
The shutter inside your camera blocks the light that is coming through the lens from reaching the camera’s sensor. Think of it like mini-blinds on a window that won’t allow any light through from outside. You are the “sensor” inside the house. When you push the button to take a picture, the shutter opens and […]
The second aspect of the f/stop or aperture is more about creative control. Though the camera will focus on the subject to make it clear, the aperture controls what else in the entire scene will be clear or blurred-out. A low number f/stop will blur the foreground and background. As the f/stop number increases, the […]
The first aspect of the f/stop, or aperture, is fairly straightforward: The lower the number, the more light you’re letting come through the lens. Think of the aperture like the pupil of your eye. A low number f/stop, (i.e. f/2.8) lets more light through the lens, a dilated pupil, than any higher f/stop number. As […]
Before we dive straight into the features and functions of your camera, we need to lay the groundwork of how a camera takes a picture. Every camera has 2 components that create the picture: the aperture (or f/stop) and the shutter speed. Understanding how these 2 components work together will help you to use the […]