Digital Photography Fundamentals : Aperture, Shutter Speed and Perspective

DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY FUNDAMENTALS

“ The important thing is not the camera but the eye.” – Alfred Eisenstaed

WHAT IS A DIGITAL CAMERA? Digital camera ﾐ A camera that captures the photo not on film, but in an electronic imaging sensor that takes the place of film.

WHAT IS AN SLR? SLR - Single Lens Reflex - Means the camera has a viewfinder that sees through the lens (TTL) by way of a 45°-angled mirror that flips up when the shutter fires and allows the light to strike the image sensor (or film).

NOW WHAT?? HAS EVERYONE READ YOUR CAMERA MANUAL??

CHARACTERISTICS OF PROGRAM MODE Aperture and shutter speed are set by the camera, but can be shifted using the control dial, with the exposure staying the same Unlocks some other settings in your camera that gives you more control over the final image : ISO setting, white balance, exposure compensation Great for quickly getting a photograph without having to think too hard about settings

CHARACTERISTICS OF TV MODE TV means time value Shutter priority lets you set the shutter speed and calculates the matching aperture Use when photographing moving subjects, such as some sporting action, you might want to choose a faster shutter speed to freeze the motion Capture movement as a blur of the subject, like a waterfall, and choose a slower shutter speed

CHARACTERISTICS OF AV MODE AV means aperture value Manually control the aperture while the camera sets the matching shutter speed Particularly useful to control a stationary object where you don’t need to control the shutter speed Choosing a larger aperture (f/stop) means the lens will get smaller and it will let less light in so a larger depth of field (more of the area in focus), but your camera will choose a faster shutter speed and vice versa

CHARACTERISTICS OF MANUAL MODE Full control over camera settings such: shutter speed, aperture, ISO, white balance and exposure compensation Gives you the flexibility to set your shots the way you want them to be Can result in creative and non-traditional exposures

CHARACTERISTICS OF PORTRAIT MODE An automatic mode with emphasis on settings for a perfect portrait shot. The ability of the camera to detect if there are faces in the image and to ensure they are all in focus Sets a wide aperture of the lens so that the background behind your subject is softly focused (shallow depth of field)

CHARACTERISTICS OF LANDSCAPE MODE Narrows the aperture, so both the subject and background stay sharp (deep depth of field) Foreground, middle ground, and background are all in focus Exposure compensation for entire frame

CHARACTERISTICS OF MACRO MODE An automatic mode with emphasis on settings for close-up photography Commonly used to photographing flowers, insects and other small items Somecameras may be able to focus when the lens is less than an inch away from the subject Creates a very shallow depth of field

CHARACTERISTICS OF ACTION/SPORTS MODE Represented by an icon of a sprinter, this is perfect for taking pictures of moving objects Also good for shooting children or pets in action Can give you higher shutter speeds to stop action, along with a smaller aperture so that more of the action will be in focus

CHARACTERISTICS OF NIGHT PORTRAIT MODE Usually symbolized by a figure against a dark sky with a star Fires the flash to illuminate a nearby subject and then holds the shutter open long enough for the background to be exposed

CHARACTERISTICS OF FLASH MODE Auto- Flash Off Flash On (mandatory flash, useful for filling in shadows when shooting in daylight) Auto + Red-eye reduction- Flash On + Red-eye reduction Soft Flash (Diffused flash) Slow-sync flash (Second-curtain flash)

DIFFERENT WAYS TO MAKE A GOOD PHOTOGRAPH Control exposure Aperture Shutter speed ISO

UNDERSTANDING EXPOSURE THE WINDOW EXAMPLE Imagine your camera is like a window with shutters that open and close. Aperture is the size of the window. If it’s bigger more light gets through and the room is brighter. Shutter Speed is the amount of time that the shutters of the window are open. The longer you leave them open the more that comes in. Now imagine that you’re inside the room and are wearing sunglasses (hopefully this isn’t too much of a stretch). Your eyes become desensitized to the light that comes in (it’s like a low ISO) .There are a number of ways of increasing the amount of light in the room (or at least how much it seems that there is. You could increase the time that the shutters are open (decrease shutter speed), you could increase the size of the window (increase aperture) or you could take off your sunglasses (make the ISO larger)

APERTURE The aperture of a lens is the diameter of the lens opening The larger the diameter of the aperture, the more light reaches the film / image sensor Aperture is expressed as F-stop, e.g. F2.8 or f/2.8 The smaller the F-stop number (or f/value), the larger the lens opening (aperture) (inverse relationship) Controls depth of field

Depth of Field EXERCISE Pick a partner Stand away from your partner Take a photograph of their face only with your lens unzoomed Zoom in and shoot but only fill the frame with their entire face again See the difference in depth of field

SHUTTER SPEED Shutter speed is the amount of time that the shutter is open Shutter speed is measured in seconds – or in most cases fractions of seconds It is not in isolation from the other two elements of the Exposure Triangle (aperture and ISO) Long shutter causes blur and fast shutter freezes motion

Shutter speed is used to stop action 1/1000 sec

Or shutter speed can blur motion 1/15 sec

SHUTTER SPEED EXERCISE Everyone pick a partner Step outside the classroom Capture an image of action (jumping, spinning, etc.) Stop the action with a fast shutter speed Blur the action with a slow shutter speed

ISO SETTINGS ISO speed ﾐ A rating of a film's sensitivity to light. Though digital cameras don't use film, they have adopted the same rating system for describing the sensitivity of the camera's imaging sensor. Digital cameras often include a control for adjusting the ISO speed; some will adjust it automatically depending on the lighting conditions, adjusting it upwards as the available light dims. Generally, as ISO speed climbs, image quality drops.

Characteristics of ISO Low light conditions use higher ISO Action shots use a higher ISO Keep ISO lower in bright light The higher the ISO number the more noise is generated in your photograph When you enlarge your image you can see the noise

WHITE BALANCE The process of removing unrealistic color casts, so that objects which appear white in person are rendered white in your photo Takes into account the "color temperature" of a light source, which refers to the relative warmth or coolness of white light Needs to be adjusted under various light sources: tungsten, fluorescent, sunlight, cloudy, etc

WHITE BALANCE EXERCISE Pick something or someone and take photographs of them while adjusting the WB on your camera to it’s various settings Notice the difference in lighting

TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT YOUR CAMERA CONTROLS

Pixel ﾐ Picture Element: digital photographs are comprised of thousands or millions of them; they are the building blocks of a digital photo.

uncompressed (an 8 megapixel camera will produce a 8 MB Raw file) the complete (lossless) data from the camera’s sensor higher in dynamic range (ability to display highlights and shadows) lower in contrast (flatter, washed out looking) not as sharp not suitable for printing directly from the camera or without post processing waiting to be processed by your computer RAW

JPEG compressed fairly small in file size (an 8 megapixel camera will produce JPEG between 1 and 3 MB’s in size) lower in dynamic range higher in contrast and sharper immediately suitable for printing, sharing, or posting on the web processed by your camera

PROS AND CONS RAW files are bigger and take more space on your memory card RAW files need post production RAW files are better quality RAW files give you much more control over how the image will look Better for professional photographers

JPEG files are smaller in size and take less space to store JPEG files do not need any post production JPEG files loose richness, detail (sharpness), color range JPEG files give you less ability to control the final image Better for snapshots

CHARACTERISTICS OF EV EV means exposure value The range over which you can manually over or underexpose to lighten or darken the image Usually, the range of adjustment goes from +2 to -2 EV in 1/3 steps

AEB- AUTOMATIC EXPOSURE BRACKETING

CHARACTERISTICS OF AEB The camera automatically takes three or more shots with a different exposure for each frame One image at the camera measured exposure, a second at a negative exposure compensation (usually -1/3 EV, though some cameras allow you to specify the amount), and a third at a positive exposure compensation (usually +1/3 EV, though some cameras allow you to specify the amount) Useful option for taking HDR scenes

HISTOGRAM Simple graph that displays where all of the brightness levels contained in the scene are found, from the darkest to the brightest Displays a photographs dynamic range In camera light meter

WHAT MAKES A GREAT PHOTOGRAPH?

MAKE GREAT PHOTOGRAPHS THOUGHTFUL TIMING COMPOSITION (RULE OF THIRDS) PERSPECTIVE

RULE OF THIRDS Refers to the placement of the subject within the frame of your photograph Places the main subject off center and away from the center of the frame. As a result, photos can look more dynamic and interesting Place points of interest in the intersections or along the lines

PLACE OBJECTS AT INTERSECTIONS

PERSPECTIVE Perspective is the way that an object appears to the eye Dependent on focal length and picture angle Creative way of looking at your photographic subject Example ALEXANDER RODCHENKO , BILL BRANDT , HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON

IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS Practice photography on a regular basis Avoid common photographic mistakes like over exposure, under exposure, or blur Look at photographs of others to inspire Read your manual and learn about your camera functions Learn better compositional techniques Don’t be afraid to experiment

PERSPECTIVE EXERCISE Find an object/subject Shoot 36 different ways (using rules of perspective and composition) Get creative with angles 30 minutes

A LITTLE ABOUT ME… B.A. & M.F.A. Photography Professor of photography/online lecturer TRAVEL & FREELANCE photographer Worked in Brazil, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Hong Kong, Macau, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and Central America, Canada, Europe (all over) and USA www.inthefray.org www.favelite.com Paris Metro Project with Brazil www.alexandracopley.com www.taquerias.blogspot.com www.youramexica.blogspot.com book called ‘ Transmigrants ’

THANKS! Connect with me! TWITTER, FACEBOOK, FRIENDFEED (ALEXANDRA COPLEY) www.twitter.com/alexandracopley www.facebook.com/alexandracopley www.alexandracopley.com

Digital Photography Fundamentals : Aperture, Shutter Speed and Perspective

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Digital Photography Fundamentals : Aperture, Shutter Speed and Perspective