Once you have bought a new digital camera, two traditional fundamentals in photography are of utmost importance for beginners to understand.
They are lighting and proper exposure.
We would go into some basics such as shutter speed, aperture and ISO which would eventually affect the pictures taken with a digital camera.
If a picture is too dark or too bright, the best or highest megapixel is of no use.
Therefore let's go into the fundamental concepts of shutter speed, aperture and ISO.
The overall contrast or brightness of a photograph taken is depending on the following three main factors, i.
e.
Example numbers are f/2.
8, f/4, f/5.
6,f/8, f/11, f/16, and f/22.
It must be noted that the higher the number the lesser amount of light is allowed to the image sensor.
Each f-stop number allows twice as much light as the next higher f-stop number.
For example, a f/8 aperture will allow twice as much light going through as compared to a f/11 aperture setting.
(We are not going into details on how these f-stop numbers are derived mathematically as this beyond the scope of this article.
) Other than controlling the amount of light striking the image sensor thus affecting its exposure, the aperture setting also affects the depth of field (depth of field is the amount of sharp detail you see between the foreground and background parts of your picture).
A higher f-stop number will increase the depth of field.
For example, if you are shooting a portrait picture where background is to be less focussed, you may choose a lower f-stop number.
On the other hand, taking landscape picture where near and distant objects are to be as sharp as possible, you should choose a higher f-stop number where a smaller aperture setting is used.
Shutter speed Shutter speed refers to the length of time the shutter stays open when the shutter button is pressed or activated.
It is measured in fractions of a second.
For example a shutter speed of 1/300 means the shutter is open for one-three-hundredth of a second.
Shutter determines whether a moving object when taken using a digital becomes blurry or sharp.
In general a faster shutter speed "freezes" a fast-moving object such as running.
If a fast running athlete is pictured using a slow shutter speed, the image becomes blurred.
There is a problem when shooting using a very slow shutter speed.
If your hands are unsteady, the picture becomes blurry.
This we call camera shake.
However, this could be resolved using a tripod or switch on the anti-shake feature of the camera.
Most modern digital cameras are now come equipped with this image stabilization feature.
ISO setting The third factor which affects the final exposure of the photograph (after the correct shutter speed and aperture are chosen) is the light sensitivity of the image sensors of the digital camera.
It is measured in ISO numbers such as 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 and even higher.
In general the higher the number, the more sensitive the sensor becomes.
That means to say you need less light to capture a decent picture.
This is especially useful when shooting in low light conditions, using a faster shutter speed or a smaller aperture.
The disadvantage of using higher ISO setting is the photograph taken tends to be more grainy and gives a more speckled appearance.
In modern digital cameras ISO setting is either automatically set by the camera when selecting Sports or Night mode or manually adjusted.
In manual ISO setting the photographer could experiment different ISO numbers to suit his taste.
Bringing It All Together The basic principles of controlling exposure in digital camera are not very complicated.
However, to shoot a perfect picture while mastering the skills of taking good exposure requires a lot of practice.
Happy shooting!
They are lighting and proper exposure.
We would go into some basics such as shutter speed, aperture and ISO which would eventually affect the pictures taken with a digital camera.
If a picture is too dark or too bright, the best or highest megapixel is of no use.
Therefore let's go into the fundamental concepts of shutter speed, aperture and ISO.
The overall contrast or brightness of a photograph taken is depending on the following three main factors, i.
e.
- Aperture setting (commonly called f-stop) which controls the amount of light shining on the image sensor of the digital camera
- Shutter speed which controls the length of time the light is hitting the image sensor
- ISO setting which controls the sensitivity of the image sensor to light
Example numbers are f/2.
8, f/4, f/5.
6,f/8, f/11, f/16, and f/22.
It must be noted that the higher the number the lesser amount of light is allowed to the image sensor.
Each f-stop number allows twice as much light as the next higher f-stop number.
For example, a f/8 aperture will allow twice as much light going through as compared to a f/11 aperture setting.
(We are not going into details on how these f-stop numbers are derived mathematically as this beyond the scope of this article.
) Other than controlling the amount of light striking the image sensor thus affecting its exposure, the aperture setting also affects the depth of field (depth of field is the amount of sharp detail you see between the foreground and background parts of your picture).
A higher f-stop number will increase the depth of field.
For example, if you are shooting a portrait picture where background is to be less focussed, you may choose a lower f-stop number.
On the other hand, taking landscape picture where near and distant objects are to be as sharp as possible, you should choose a higher f-stop number where a smaller aperture setting is used.
Shutter speed Shutter speed refers to the length of time the shutter stays open when the shutter button is pressed or activated.
It is measured in fractions of a second.
For example a shutter speed of 1/300 means the shutter is open for one-three-hundredth of a second.
Shutter determines whether a moving object when taken using a digital becomes blurry or sharp.
In general a faster shutter speed "freezes" a fast-moving object such as running.
If a fast running athlete is pictured using a slow shutter speed, the image becomes blurred.
There is a problem when shooting using a very slow shutter speed.
If your hands are unsteady, the picture becomes blurry.
This we call camera shake.
However, this could be resolved using a tripod or switch on the anti-shake feature of the camera.
Most modern digital cameras are now come equipped with this image stabilization feature.
ISO setting The third factor which affects the final exposure of the photograph (after the correct shutter speed and aperture are chosen) is the light sensitivity of the image sensors of the digital camera.
It is measured in ISO numbers such as 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 and even higher.
In general the higher the number, the more sensitive the sensor becomes.
That means to say you need less light to capture a decent picture.
This is especially useful when shooting in low light conditions, using a faster shutter speed or a smaller aperture.
The disadvantage of using higher ISO setting is the photograph taken tends to be more grainy and gives a more speckled appearance.
In modern digital cameras ISO setting is either automatically set by the camera when selecting Sports or Night mode or manually adjusted.
In manual ISO setting the photographer could experiment different ISO numbers to suit his taste.
Bringing It All Together The basic principles of controlling exposure in digital camera are not very complicated.
However, to shoot a perfect picture while mastering the skills of taking good exposure requires a lot of practice.
Happy shooting!
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