Shane Behn

Professor Andaluz

English 100

12 March 2019

Three Principles of Photography

Getting started in the world of digital photography today can seem overwhelming. ​Using

a DSLR (​Digital Single Lens Reflex) ​camera for the first time can be frustrating and

intimidating. ​Cameras today have more buttons, dials, and menus than any person can keep track

of. T​o let the camera see what you see, you have tools controlling how much light reaches the

camera sensor: the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. These are the three main elements of

photography.

The first element of photography is the aperture. ​If you look into a cameras' lens, you will

see a set of blades that form a hole in the middle to let light pass through. That hole is the

aperture, and the lens moves those blades to make the hole smaller or larger. The larger the hole

in the middle, the more light gets through. This will create a brighter image. When the hole in the

middle is smaller, less light will get through. This will cause the image to be darker. Changing

the aperture can also change how much of the photo appears in focus. For example, imagine that

you’re taking a portrait of someone standing in front of a plant with flowers on it. If you take the

picture using the smallest aperture, the flowers in the background will also be relatively in focus.

However, if you take the photo using the largest aperture, the flowers in the background will be

very blurry. This effect is known as Depth of Field. Below you will see a diagram that illustrates

the aperture and depth of field.

 Fig. 1

The next element is the shutter speed. The shutter is the curtain in front of the camera

sensor that is closed until you take a picture. When the camera fires, the shutter opens exposing

the camera sensor to the light that has passed through your lens. After the light passes through

the camera sensor, the shutter closes immediately, stopping the light from hitting the sensor. The

button you push to take the picture is called “shutter” or “shutter button” because it opens the

shutter when you push it. The shutter speed is the length of time your camera shutter is open.

Basically, it’s how long your camera spends taking a photo. The shutter speed has a few

important effects on how your images will appear. When you have a long shutter speed it

exposes the camera sensor for a significant period of time. If you a taking picture of moving

objects using a slow shutter, there will be motion blur. Motion blur is when a fast-moving subject

is blurry. When using a long shutter speed the image will be brighter. A long shutter is used to

photograph things such as the Milky Way and for slow exposures of water or light. However,

shutter speed can also be used to freeze motion. When you use a fast shutter you can eliminate

motion from the object. A fast shutter is used to photograph things such as birds in flight, or cars

driving past. Fast shutter speed will also produce a darker image. Below you will see a diagram

that illustrates the shutter speed and motion blur.

 Fig. 2

T​he last most important element is ISO. ISO stands for International Standards

Organization, which is the organization that standardizes sensitivity ratings for camera sensors.

ISO measures how sensitive the camera sensor is to the light. When you raise the ISO you are

adding more light to the image, which will make the image brighter. When you lower the ISO

the image will be darker. The downside of using a high ISO is there will be more grain in the

image. This means the image will not be as sharp. For example, imagine you are photographing a

sporting event inside were light is limited. Your subject will be moving really fast, so you need

to use a fast shutter speed. Using a fast shutter speed will make the image darker, so you need to

use a higher ISO to make the image brighter. Below you will see a diagram that illustrates the

ISO.

Fig. 3
 As you just have learned, these are the three most important elements of photography.

There are many more things to learn in photography but these are the basics. Now that you have

an understanding of how the basics work, I encourage you to pick up a DSLR and go take some

pictures.

Fig.1. Harikrishnan. “Aperture Diagram.” ​Indiahikes.com,​ Indiahikes, 18 July 2018.

Fig.2. CARROLL, BARRY O. “Shutter Speed Diagram.” ​Petapixel.com,​ Petapixel, 25 June

2016.

Fig.3. CARROLL, BARRY O. “ISO Diagram.” ​Petapixel.com,​ Petapixel, 25 June 2016.