Beyond the Basic Camera Settings
ISO: the measure of a digital camera s sensitivity to light APERTURE: the size of the opening in the lens when a picture is taken SHUTTER SPEED: the amount of time that the shutter is open when a picture is taken
These three elements work together to determine an image s exposure Changing one of these three elements will affect the others
In FILM photography, ISO is the indication of how sensitive film is to light. In DIGITAL photography, ISO measures how the sensitivity of the image sensor The lower the number, the less sensitive your camera is (less grain) The higher the number, the more sensitive your camera is (more grain)
Higher ISO Use in darker situations Will help your camera achieve faster shutter speeds Lower ISO Use in situations with bright light Will sometimes slow down the shutter speed of your camera
Generally, 100 ISO is considered normal and will usually give you crisp shots Some point-and-shoot cameras will not allow you to adjust your ISO (you must then rely on your Auto mode) you can search in your camera menu or read your manual to see what your camera offers
You may want to push your ISO settings higher at: Indoor sporting events (fast-moving subject and little light) Concerts (low light with no-flash zones) Art galleries & churches (low light) Birthday parties (think: blowing out the candles)
Simply put, aperture is the size of the opening in the lens when you shoot a photo Larger opening: more light Smaller opening: less light
Measured in f-stops f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/22, etc. Moving from one f-stop to the next either doubles or halves the size of the opening (and thus the amount of light) when you take a photo
Large Apertures Allow a LOT of light in Have SMALLER f-stop numbers So f/2.8 is actually a much larger aperture than f/22 Small Apertures Allow a LITTLE light in Have LARGER f-stop numbers So f/22 is actually a much smaller aperture than f/2.8
Depth of Field This is the amount of your shot that will be in focus Large DOF means most of your image will be in focus, regardless of distance Shallow DOF means that only part of the image will be in focus and the rest will be fuzzy
Large aperture (with a smaller f-stop number) will decrease depth of field Hint: Small numbers = small depth of field Small aperture (with a larger f-stop number) will give you a larger depth of field Hint: Big numbers = Big depth of field
F/22 APERTURE F/2.8 APERTURE
Shutter speed is the amount of time that the shutter in your camera lens is open When you hear the click of your lens as you snap a photo, that is your shutter opening and closing
Measured in seconds (or fractions of seconds) the bigger the fraction s denominator, the faster the shutter speed 1/1000 is much faster than 1/30 In most cases, your camera will default to a 1/60 or faster shutter speed Anything slower usually results in camera shake and therefore a blurry photo To shoot with a slower shutter speed, you should use a tripod or other stabilizer
To freeze movement in an image, you need a very fast shutter speed To show blurred movement, you will use a slower shutter speed The actual speeds you choose must work in conjunction with your aperture
Used when the photographer wants SOME but not ALL of the control Allows the photographer to choose the f- stop range (to determine depth of field) but leaves the other settings for the camera to choose
Used when the photographer wants SOME but not ALL of the control Allows more control for the photographer when shooting a moving subject you can set the shutter speed to determine how much of the motion you want to freeze and the camera will choose the other settings for you Your DOF will be impacted
BAD NEWS: Your camera is designed to shoot in Auto mode primarily That means you have to shoot A LOT of extra photos to get the ones you want/need GOOD NEWS: You can sometimes trick your camera into doing what you want Most basic digital cameras have different modes you can utilize and that will give you some enhanced control over the image you re making
For Shallow DOF: Try the portrait mode (it will trigger your camera to choose a wider aperture) For a Larger DOF: Try the landscape mode (it will trigger your camera to choose a smaller aperture) For Freezing Motion: Try the sports mode (it will give you a faster shutter speed) For Blurred Motion: Good luck this is tough to do on purpose. You can try the night mode but it will give you a flash, which can negate the attempt