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Photography101 Photography101 Technical Mumbo Jumbo Exposure in photography is measured in “stops.” A stop is twice the amount of light. So if you are increasing the exposure by one stop then you are doubling the light hitting the sensor. If you are decreasing by one stop then you are halving the light that is reaching the sensor. The exposure that your camera makes is controlled by 3 factors: shutter speed – how fast a cover over your camera’s sensor opens and then closes again to allow light to hit the sensor 1/60 of a second shutter speed lets in twice as much light as a shutter speed of 1/120 because the shutter is open twice as long. Aperture – an opening in the lens that can be adjusted larger or or smaller to allow more or less light to pass through. The size of the opening is measured in f-stops and a lower number equals a larger diameter. For instance f/2.8 is a larger or wider aperture than f/4, which is considered to be one stop smaller than f/2.8. ISO – ISO is a measure of the sensitivity setting of your camera sensor. A larger number equals greater sensitivity. 400 ISO is one stop more sensitive (or twice the light sensitivity) than 200 ISO. These three factors are all controlled either manually by the photographer (M mode on your camera), automatically by the camera (Auto or P for “program”) or a combination of those (A/Av, S/Tv). Composition Rule of thirds: Divide your picture into thirds both horizontally and vertically. Place key components on those lines or at intersections of those lines. The dots are examples of such placement. Avoid “bull’s eye” composition. The Rule of Thirds is the most basic and perhaps most important foundation for better photographic composition. It creates visual interest and keeps eyes moving around the scene. Fill the frame – This often means either zooming in or getting closer Viewpoint - Experiment. Get lower, get higher, don’t go with 1st choice Horizon lines – keep it straight or straighten it in processing, rule of thirds Negative Space – area in the picture that is NOT the subject Symmetry – creates visual interest through precision and simple beauty. Space – This goes with the rule of thirds.. If your subject is moving in a specific direction looking in a specific direction then leave space on that side of them. Patterns – patterns can create interest by showing orderly quantity or implying a kind indefinite continuity of the subject matter. Lines – converging lines create a vanishing point which creates depth and they can also converge on the subject thus leading the eye to it; In general lines of many types can be used to lead the eye to the subject or through and around the photo Frames (or “frame within a frame”) – add depth or interest by framing your subject within something else in the picture Color and Contrast Complimentary colors can often be found on opposite sides of the color wheel. They work together well in photos. In many photos the brightest object or the object of greatest contrast draws the eye first. Lighting Photography is all about capturing light. The lighting in your photo can make it a hit or a miss. Don’t be afraid to add light or to find the right light. Some ways to add light to your subject: Reflectors – This could be as simple as a light colored wall or ceiling, a piece of white poster board or a device designed for photographers. It’s a great tool that should be in every photographer’s bag. You can buy a collapsible 43” 5-in-1 reflector for as little as $15 from Amazon. Flashes/strobes/monolights – A simple detachable flash can open up a whole new world of lighting for a photographer. Strobes are larger, more powerful lights that run off of power packs. Typically the different brands of strobes are not interchangeable between different power packs. Monolights are more powerful lights that just plug into any wall socket. Reflections from available surfaces – Often you can get wonderful light by placing someone just inside a shadow next to a large reflective surface. For instance across the street from a building with a white wall that is direct sunlight. Sidewalks, walls, driveways and even asphalt will reflect some light. You can often make great portraits right at the entrance of your garage. Place the subject in the shade facing the open garage door. Get near a window – window light can be some of the nicest natural light. A north facing window will almost always have nice light during day time. If you can diffuse window light with thin white curtains that is even better. Flashes Small flashes have the benefit of being relatively cheap, flexible and affordable. They can be used attached to the camera, bounced, held in a hand, mounted on a stand, clipped to a chair or even taped directly to a wall and you can fit 2 or 3 of them in a bag to set up an instant studio just about anywhere. One of the things you can do with a small flash that will make the most dramatic difference in your photography is get that flash off of the camera. There are many ways to do this. One of the cheapest is to buy a generic brand TTL cable. These are camera specific so get Nikon for Nikon cameras and Canon for Canon. You can get these up 50 feet or longer. The advantage is they are cheap, reliable and if you want you can let the flash stay in TTL Mode which means the camera and the flash work together (ideally) to decide just the right amount of flash to apply to the subject but the disadvantage is that you are tethered to the flash. Another option is radio triggers. These range from the professional standard Pocket Wizard brand to cheap Chinese triggers such as those made by Yongnuo, Cactus and Cowboystudio. These use a radio frequency to send a signal to the receiver to activate the flash. The cheap triggers all require you to set the flash manually. There are more expensive options that send a TTL signal to the flash. Another option is if your flash has a “dumb” optical trigger you can set it so that when it sees ANY other flash going off it will also go off at whatever level you have manually set it to. Lastly, the name brand cameras have a method of communicating with each other that uses IR signals and/or preflashes to send TTL information to a remote flash. It’s very convenient but these flashes tend to be pricier and it doesn’t work as well at long distances and outside on a sunny day. “Rules” of flash The closer the light the softer it will be (because it becomes relatively larger). The larger the light relative to the subject the softer it will be. A small flash shining on a cricket will be softer than a small flash shining on a face because the flash is relatively much larger than the cricket but smaller than the face. When you bounce the flash off of something the reflecting object becomes the light source. Therefore you have created a larger light source. Shadows will be larger and more defined with a light source that is smaller and farther away. Generally speaking your shutter speed controls how much ambient light gets to your sensor and your aperture controls how much flash gets to your sensor. Slower shutter speed equals more ambient light. Flash can “freeze” action at shutter speeds that normally would not freeze action. Resources: To learn how to shoot in manual mode: Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson (available at the Waco Public Library) To learn more about composition, color, etc..: Look at lots of your favorite photos! The Photographer's Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos by Michael Freeman; Learning to See Creatively by Bryan Peterson; Within the Frame: The Journey of Photographic Vision by David DuChemin To learn about flash and lighting: strobist.com (go through the free Lighting 101 and 102 courses there); The Moment it Clicks by Joe McNally (Available in the Waco Public Library) Also check out McNally’s other books The Hot Shoe Diaries and Sketching Light. They are wonderful and easy reads. Lastly if you are very technically minded then check out Light: Science and Magic which is also available in an older edition at the library. Recommended Gear: Flashes – if you need a flash dirt cheap then check out Yongnuo flashes. The quality isn’t as good as the major brands but it flashes light for cheap and is better than average in its price range of $50 - $60. Available on Amazon or Ebay. Nissin is the oldest flash manufacturer in Japan and some of their models can be a nice alternative to Nikon or Canon for a little cheaper. The just-released Phottix Mitros flash has the same power and features as the Nikon and Canon flagship flashes but for about $250 less. Nikon and Canon’s flashes tend to be the best you can get and fairly pricey. Flash triggers – Yongnuo RF-603 set is about $30 and very reliable. Manual flash only. I use Phottix Strato triggers sometimes for my manual setups. Pricier but very good quality comparable to Pocket Wizard. Lately I have been using a Phottix Odin trigger setup. This is a radio-controlled trigger but you can adjust the flash power from the camera without even touching the flashes and it can also use the TTL or auto mode of the flashes and let he camera decide how much power they need to emit in each situation.
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