Introduction to Photography Fundamentals

Definition and Core Concept of Photography

  • Photography: Derived from Greek, the term literally means "to draw with light." It involves capturing light on a light-sensitive material.

Evolution of Photography Technologies

  • The progression in photography and media technology is as follows:
    • Printing Press: The first mass medium, revolutionizing document creation.
    • Chemical Technology: Marked the beginning of photography, where chemical processes involving light-sensitive materials were used.
    • Electric Technology: Introduced radio and television, changing the landscape of media further.
    • Digital Technology: The current era allowing for sophisticated digital capturing and recording of images through light.

Key Elements of Photography

Aperture and F-stops

  • Aperture: The variable opening in a camera lens through which light passes to the film or sensor.
    • Commonly measured in F-stops (e.g., f/2, f/4, f/8). The F-stop system expresses the size of the aperture.
    • Comparable to the behavior of pupil in a human eye, adjusting by opening up or closing to control light intake.
    • Historically, f-stops included physical clicks to ensure consistency in exposure settings.
    • Example: If an aperture is set to f/11, one can replicate this by turning to the same click setting for consistent results.

Shutter Speed

  • Shutter Speed: The speed at which the camera's shutter opens and closes during an exposure, determining how long light is allowed to hit the sensor.
    • Fast shutter speeds (e.g., 1/2000 seconds) freeze motion (e.g., of a running deer or birds in flight).
    • Slower speeds (e.g., 1/4 second or longer) result in motion blur.
    • In sports photography, a shutter speed around 1/500 seconds is often optimal, though higher speeds may be used for faster action.
    • In contrast, photographing flowing water for artistic effects may require a slower shutter speed (around 1/4 second).
    • Tripod Usage: Recommended for lower shutter speeds to avoid camera shake, especially if shooting at speeds less than the focal length of the lens (e.g., a 50mm lens at 1/30 seconds).

ISO Sensitivity

  • ISO (International Standards Organization): Indicates the sensitivity of the camera's sensor to light.
    • Higher ISO settings (e.g., 4000 ISO) allow for shooting in lower light conditions but increase noise in images.
    • Lower ISO settings are recommended when shooting in brighter conditions to preserve image quality.
    • Historically, ISO was determined by the film speed, and changes were cumbersome; differentiating from current digital flexibility.

Concepts of Exposure

  • Exposure: The total amount of light reaching the sensor, determined by three main elements: shutter speed, aperture, and ISO settings.
    • Reciprocal Relationship: Changes in one element necessitate adjustments in the others to maintain proper exposure.
    • Understanding and teaching these concepts is crucial for effective photography, especially in various situational light conditions such as contrasting light sources (e.g., outdoors in snow).

Exposure Compensation

  • Exposure Compensation: Allows photographers to adjust the camera’s automatic exposure settings to correct over or under-exposure, often through a plus/minus control.
    • Particularly useful in scenarios with extreme lighting (e.g., shooting in snow) where a camera’s light meter may misinterpret the actual scene lighting.
    • Adjustments typically occur in third stops (0.3, 0.7, and full stops) up to a range of ±2 or ±3 stops.

Bracketing

  • Bracketing: The practice of taking multiple images of the same scene at varying exposure settings to ensure at least one properly exposed image.
    • This method is often used in HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography.
    • When bracketing, it is generally recommended to adjust shutter speed rather than aperture to maintain depth of field control.

Camera Resolution

  • Camera Resolution: Measured in megapixels, indicating how many millions of pixels make up the image.
    • Example: A Canon D6 camera has a resolution of 5472 x 3648 pixels, which results in approximately 20 million pixels.
    • More pixels correlate to the ability to produce larger prints without losing quality.
    • However, the resolution is distinct from the quality of the image, which can be affected by the file format (e.g., JPEG quality vs. raw file compression).

File Formats and Quality

JPEG vs. RAW

  • JPEG: A compressed image file format that reduces file size at the expense of some quality. Saving options in JPEG allow for adjusting quality settings, typically rated from 0 to 12, affecting the final image size and quality.

  • RAW: Represents the complete, unprocessed image file amounting to vast data. Each camera brand has its own raw format.

    • Shooting in RAW is preferable for retaining maximum information in the image, allowing for significant post-processing versatility.

Lens Types and Selection

Zoom Lens

  • Zoom Lens: A lens with variable focal lengths allowing the photographer to zoom in or out on a subject.

Prime Lens

  • Prime Lens: A lens with a fixed focal length; typically allows for wider openings (lower f-stops) than zoom lenses, resulting in better low-light performance and depth of field control.

Macro Lens

  • Macro Lens: Used for extreme close-ups, achieving significant detail such as in nature photography. Alternatively, macro filters can be affixed to regular lenses.

Normal and Telephoto Lenses

  • Normal Lens: Typically a 50mm lens, approximating human vision.
  • Telephoto Lens: A lens with a focal length longer than 50mm, allowing for a narrow field of view and closer framing of distant subjects.

Full Frame vs. Crop Sensor Cameras

Image Sensors

  • Full Frame: Refers to a 35mm sensor size as the standard; generally offers superior image quality due to larger sensor size.
  • Crop Sensor: More common in affordable cameras; smaller than 35mm sensors, resulting in a crop factor which affects the focal length perception.

Remote Control Triggers

  • Remote Control Triggers: Devices that allow photographers to take photos without physically pressing the camera’s shutter; available in wired and wireless forms, including Bluetooth options for modern cameras.

Ambient Light and Light Patterns

  • Available Light: Natural or artificial light present in a scene, influencing how subjects are perceived in photographs.
  • Light Pattern: Refers to how light falls on a subject, greatly impacting the shadows and depth of field in a photograph.

These notes encapsulate key theoretical underpinnings and practical applications of photography principles, including detailed technical aspects that aspiring photographers need to master.