THE CAMERA

FOCUS

Exposure Two controls adjust the amount of light that reaches the camera’s sensor:

THE SHUTTER and THE APERTURE

The combination of an aperture and a shutter speed is an EXPOSURE, which must be “correct” so your picture is neither too light nor too dark

Adjusting the length of time the shutter remains open controls the amount of light that reaches the light sensitive surface

Shutter speeds are denoted in time, usually in fractions of a second. ( generally thought of as progressing in “stops”)

A general preset range is 1 second to to 1/1000 of a second or higher.

1 second is a “slow” shutter speed 1/1000 is fast

(Bulb (B) or Timed (T) is used for exposures longer than 1 second)

A slower shutter speed = more light

A faster shutter speed = less light

BASIC IDEA: SHUTTER = TIME

SHUTTER

WHY SHUTTER SPEED? Because it Controls Motion

Fast Shutter speed stops a moving subject Slow shutter speed blurs a moving subject

(also depends on direction subject is moving)

APERTURE The Aperture controls the brightness of the light that reaches the light

sensitive surface

An “F STOP” refers to the size of the Aperture

A general preset range is F2.8 to F64

Reverse Logic: The Smaller the number, the wider the Fstop, letting in more light

The larger the number, the smaller Fstop, letting in less light

Each preset “stopped down” (F8 to F5.6) allows TWICE as much light in.

Each preset “stopped up” (f5.6 to f8) allows HALF as much light in

•  BIGGER NUMBER LESS LIGHT(f22)

•  SMALLER NUMBER MORE LIGHT(f2.8)

WHY APERTURE?

For Depth of Field

Depth of Field is the part of a scene that appears acceptably sharp in a photograph (only loosely related to Focus)

Smaller aperture = greater the depth of field

larger aperture = less depth of field

EXPOSURE Exposure = Intensity (aperture) x Time (shutter speed)

Both shutter and aperture are measured in stops, and combine reciprocally to produce the desired effect in an image

Each exposure has a reciprocal equivalent of either shutter speed or aperture

YOUR CAMERA, APERTURE, AND SHUTTER SPEED

“Aperture Priority” (A) will allow you to pick an aperture, while the

camera picks a shutter speed usually for desired depth of field

“Shutter Priority” (T) will allow you to pick a a shutter speed, while the camera picks an aperture usually for stopping motion

“Manual” will allow you to pick both aperture and shutter speed

Auto will pick everything for you ( we don’t like this, because we want creative control)

METERING

All exposure settings assume an overall reading of a subject with average tones.

A photographer’s average is 18% gray or “middle gray”

LIGHT METERS

3 Types:

Reflective: Measures the amount of light reflecting off of a subject

Incident: Measures the amount of light falling onto a subject

Spot: will measure the amount of light reflecting off of a particular “spot” in your image (this is technically a type of reflective meter)

Most in-camera metering is done with a reflective light meter

Measures the amount of light reflecting off of your subject

Reads for 18% gray

Usually “center weighted” or “averaging”

If your subject does not have average tones, you will need to compensate

How to Meter Choose your exposure mode based on desired outcome (A, S, M,)

Evaluate your subject’s tonal range.

Is it average? Is it bright? Is it dark?

Choose desired light meter (center, average, spot)

“Activate” the meter

When and How

to Compensate