Basics of Photography

These are the main concepts of Photography:-

[Link] of photography 4. Digital system

[Link] System DSLR camera
SLR camera Sensors
Negative film Sensor size
Positive film
5. Camera setting
3. Basic settings Camera modes
Aperture Metering modes
Shutter speed Focus modes and areas
ISO White balance
Exposure triangle Composition
Depth of field
Focal length
Focus distance
 History of Photography
• Photography has come a long way in its relatively short history. In almost 200 years, the
camera developed from a plain box that took blurry photos to the high-tech mini
computers found in today’s DSLRs and smartphones.
The basic concept of photography has been around since about the 5 th century B.C.E. It
wasn’t until an Iraqi scientist developed something called the camera obscura in the 11 th
century that the art was born.
The first camera obscura used a pinhole in a tent to project an image from outside the tent
into the darkened area. It was not until the 17th century that the camera obscura became
small enough to be portable. Basic lenses to focus the light were also introduced around this
time.
In 1826/27, using a camera obscura fitted with a pewter plate, Niépce produced the first successful
photograph from nature, a view of the courtyard of his country estate, Gras, from an upper
window of the house. The exposure time was about eight hours, during which the sun moved
from east to west so that it appears to shine on both sides of the building.
 SLR Camera

• A single-lens reflex camera (SLR) is a camera that typically uses a mirror

and prism system (hence "reflex" from the mirror's reflection) that
permits the photographer to view through the lens and see exactly what
will be captured. With twin lens reflex and rangefinder cameras, the viewed
image could be significantly different from the final image. When the
shutter button is pressed on most SLRs, the mirror flips out of the light
path, allowing light to pass through to the light receptor and the image
to be captured.
Negative film
Negative film is the name for a photographic film that will give images which have
their colors inverted, after development. This inversion means that the
complementary color is used. A second process (usually called making a print) is used
to obtain any number of photos, which can also be in different sizes.

Positive film
Positive film, which is used to develop photos (slides) that would go into a slide
projector, is also known as “reversal,” “slide,” or “transparency” film. It is a film or
paper record of a scene that represents the color and luminance of objects in that scene
with the same colors and luminance (as near as the medium will allow).
 Basic settings for Photography

APERTURE
Aperture in photography is the opening of the camera lens, which is related to
the amount of light that passes through the camera lens to the image
sensor.
The aperture mechanism in the lens that allows more or less light to come in is
formed of a series of opaque “blades” called diaphragm. When the blades are open,
your camera sensor will capture more light, whereas as the blades progressively
close, less light will hit your sensor.
The F-stop number (or focal-stop number) is a reference to how open or how
closed the aperture is in your camera lens.
 SHUTTER SPEED
Shutter speed in photography is the time that the camera shutter is open and, therefore, capturing
and exposing light.

In film and digital cameras, the sensor is covered by a thin “curtain” that controls the amount of light
that passes through the lens. This “curtain” is called the shutter.

The first shutter speed effect on photography is the change in exposure and second shutter speed
effect on photography is motion.
 ISO
• ISO is simply a camera setting that will brighten or darken a photo. As you increase your
ISO number, your photos will grow progressively brighter.

ISO 100 (low ISO) , ISO 200 , ISO 400 , ISO 800 , ISO 1600 , ISO 3200 , ISO 6400(high ISO)

The acronym ISO stands for “International Organization for Standardization”.

At the lowest (base) ISO setting, your images will have the least amount

of noise and the highest dynamic range, giving you the most flexibility in post-processing.

As ISO is increased, noise levels increase and dynamic range typically decreases as well.
 DEPTH OF FIELD
• Depth of field (DoF) in photography can be defined as the space in the image that is
relatively sharp and in focus. It is the distance between the nearest and farthest elements that
are sharp and in focus in your photos.

A shallow depth of field is considered a short focus; that is, the line between the nearest and
farthest elements that are sharp and in focus is very short, or, in other words, there’s a small
portion of your image in focus.

A large depth of field is a greater depth of field, which means that a larger amount of the
image is in focus. In this case, the line between the nearest and farthest elements that are
reasonably sharp is long.
 DEPTH OF FIELD FACTORS IN PHOTOGRAPHY

• DEPTH OF FIELD AND APERTURE

• DOF AND FOCAL LENGTH

• DOF AND FOCUSING DISTANCE

• DOF AND SENSOR SIZE

 FOCAL LENGTH
• The focal length of the lens is the distance between the lens and the image
sensor when the subject is in focus, usually stated in millimeters (e.g., 28
mm, 50 mm, or 100 mm). In the case of zoom lenses, both the minimum and
maximum focal lengths are stated, for example 18–55 mm.

• Standard focal lengths range from 35mm to 50mm depending on the type of
camera sensor.

35mm for CROP SENSOR camera and

50mm for FULL FRAME camera

• When you look at the focal length of
the lens in question and you see a
number below 35mm, you know
you’re looking at a short focal
length.

• A lens focal length that’s greater

than 50mm is considered a long
focal length. This view is narrower
than the normal view we’re
accustomed to when paying bare
attention
 FOCUSING DISTANCE
• Focusing distance is the distance from the focusing plane to the subject. Minimum
focusing distance is the shortest distance from the focusing plane to the subject, at
which it can be sharply rendered, i.e. “in focus”.

Focal distance is the distance between the subject you are focusing to the camera
sensor. Lenses that can work at close focal distances have higher magnification (or
reproduction ratios) relative to lenses that need you to stay far from the subject.

Macro lenses have the highest magnification due to their unique

construction, which reduces the focal distance they operate within
and allow you to focus in very close subjects.
 DSLR CAMERA

• A digital single-lens reflex camera (DSLR) is a

digital camera that combines the optics and the
mechanisms of a single-lens reflex camera with a
digital imaging [Link] reflex design scheme
is the primary difference between a DSLR and
other digital cameras. In the reflex design, light
travels through the lens and then to a mirror
that alternates to send the image to either a
prism, which shows the image in the viewfinder,
or the image sensor when the shutter release
button is pressed.
 IMAGE SENSOR
• In a digital camera, the image sensor is the device that collects incoming light
when the shutter opens and converts that light into an electrical signal. The
camera then analyzes that signal and translates the data into colors, that
match the real-life image in the camera's viewfinder.
CCD sensor (charge coupled device):

A CCD sensor reads the amount and quality of light captured at each photosite
sequentially. that information is then transported to additional circuitry in a different
area of the sensor where it is converted to digital information.

CMOS sensors (complementary metal oxide semi conductor):

Light measurements taken at the photosites in cmos sensors are processed simultaneously
rather than sequentially.
 IMAGE SENSOR SIZE

• In photography sensor size describes the physical dimensions of a sensor. Sensor

size can be measured in mm or inches. For example a ‘full frame’ sensor
measures 36 x 24mm and a ‘micro four thirds’ or ‘4/3’ sensor measures 17 x
13mm. Sensor size relates to the physical dimensions of the sensor itself, not its
imaging [Link] size can dramatically effect the overall quality of the
sensor’s output. If we compare a full frame 20mp sensor with a 1″ 20mp sensor.
The smaller dimensions of the 1″ sensor will require the use of much smaller
pixels to achieve a resolution of 20mp. This will result in decreased light
sensitivity and increased susceptibility to digital noise.
 CAMERA SETTINGS
CAMERA MODES

• Camera Modes allow photographers to control the parameters of an exposure,

specifically, Shutter Speed, Aperture and ISO. While certain modes can fully automate
the camera exposure, there are other modes that let the photographer manually control
some or all parameters of the exposure.
o Program Camera mode (“P Mode”): Using this mode, the camera automatically sets the
shutter speed and aperture.
o Shutter Priority Mode (“Tv/S Mode”): You set the shutter speed and the camera selects
the aperture.
o Aperture Priority Mode (“Av/A Mode”): You set the aperture and the camera sets the
shutter speed.
o Manual Camera Mode (“M Mode”): You set all the main settings on camera.
• Full Auto-Mode is the main camera mode most novice
photographers rely on when they start in photography.
Using this dial mode, the camera automatically selects all
the camera settings. Unlike the camera program mode
where the camera sets the main exposure settings, in
this shooting mode, the camera will also set the focus mode,
metering mode, white balance, color profile, etc.
 METERING MODES

Basic metering modes to calculate the light in most digital cameras are:

• Multi/Matrix metering: This mode evaluates the light of the entire scene by dividing the
frame into different zones.

• Center-weighted metering: This mode uses the center of the frame to measure the light of
the scene.

• Spot metering: Using this mode, the camera uses a single focus point to read the light.
 FOCUS MODES AND AREAS

• The three basic auto focus modes and areas are:-

o AUTO-FOCUS SINGLE- The camera locks the focus on the subject you want to
[Link] the subject moves you need to focus again.

o AUTO-FOCUS CONTINUOUS-The camera will continue to track the subject even if it

moves around the frame.

o AUTOMATIC AUTOFOCUS- Combination between single and continuous autofocus

modes. The camera switches between both modes depending on the movement of the
subject.
 WHITE BALANCE
• White balance in photography is defined as an adjustment that the camera makes so that the colors of
your image are seen naturally without being affected by the color of the light source of the scene.

• When your camera adjusts the white balance, it’s compensating for the color hue of your light source so
the colors in your image stay true to reality. That is, the pure white parts of your image look white and
don’t pick a warmer or colder tone due to the hue of the light source.

• The AWB in-camera setting is the one the vast majority of photographers stick to. We can define auto
white balance as the adjustment that allows the camera to select the best white balance and color
temperature settings for a given scene.
 COMPOSITION
• Composition is the language of photography, and using different compositional elements and
rules, you’ll be able to capture and shape your visual message. When you compose your image, you
have to arrange the elements of the scene to make them attractive to the viewer. This will also
help you represent your visual message in the most harmonious and impactful way.

o Rule of Thirds

o Rule of Odds

o Rule of Space

o Viewpoint

o Fill the frame