DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY

FUNDAMENTALS
“The important thing is not the camera
but the eye.” – Alfred Eisenstaed
GETTING STARTED
DIGITAL SLR CAMERA
DIGITAL POINT & SHOOT
CAMERA
WHAT IS A DIGITAL CAMERA?

 Digital camera ﾐ A camera that captures the photo not

on film, but in an electronic imaging sensor that takes
the place of film.
WHAT IS AN SLR?

 SLR - Single Lens Reflex - Means the camera has a viewfinder

that sees through the lens (TTL) by way of a 45°-angled mirror
that flips up when the shutter fires and allows the light to strike
the image sensor (or film).
 NOW WHAT??
 HAS EVERYONE READ YOUR CAMERA MANUAL??
CAMERA MENU FUNCTIONS
FIND THESE ON YOUR CAMERA
NIKON CAMERA CONTROLS
WHICH ONE?
SCENE MODES
PROGRAM
CHARACTERISTICS OF PROGRAM MODE

 Aperture and shutter speed are set by the camera, but can be shifted
using the control dial, with the exposure staying the same

 Unlocks some other settings in your camera that gives you more
control over the final image : ISO setting, white balance, exposure
compensation

 Great for quickly getting a photograph without having to think too

hard about settings
TV-SHUTTER PRIORITY
CHARACTERISTICS OF TV MODE

 TV means time value

 Shutter priority lets you set the shutter speed and calculates the
matching aperture

 Use when photographing moving subjects, such as some sporting

action, you might want to choose a faster shutter speed to freeze the
motion

 Capture movement as a blur of the subject, like a waterfall, and

choose a slower shutter speed
AV-APERTURE PRIORITY
CHARACTERISTICS OF AV MODE

 AV means aperture value

 Manually control the aperture while the camera sets the matching
shutter speed

 Particularly useful to control a stationary object where you don’t

need to control the shutter speed

 Choosing a larger aperture (f/stop) means the lens will get smaller
and it will let less light in so a larger depth of field (more of the area
in focus), but your camera will choose a faster shutter speed and vice
versa
MANUAL
CHARACTERISTICS OF MANUAL
MODE

 Full control over camera settings such: shutter speed, aperture, ISO,
white balance and exposure compensation

 Gives you the flexibility to set your shots the way you want them to
be

 Can result in creative and non-traditional exposures

PORTRAIT MODE
CHARACTERISTICS OF PORTRAIT MODE

 An automatic mode with emphasis on settings for a perfect portrait

shot.

 The ability of the camera to detect if there are faces in the image and
to ensure they are all in focus

 Sets a wide aperture of the lens so that the background behind your
subject is softly focused (shallow depth of field)
LANDSCAPE MODE
CHARACTERISTICS OF LANDSCAPE MODE

 Narrows the aperture, so both the subject and background stay sharp
(deep depth of field)

 Foreground, middle ground, and background are all in focus

 Exposure compensation for entire frame

MACRO/CLOSE-UP MODE
CHARACTERISTICS OF MACRO MODE

 An automatic mode with emphasis on settings for close-up

photography

 Commonly used to photographing flowers, insects and other small

items

 Somecameras may be able to focus when the lens is less than an inch
away from the subject

 Creates a very shallow depth of field

SPORTS MODE
CHARACTERISTICS OF ACTION/SPORTS
MODE

 Represented by an icon of a sprinter, this is perfect for taking

pictures of moving objects

 Also good for shooting children or pets in action

 Can give you higher shutter speeds to stop action, along with a
smaller aperture so that more of the action will be in focus
NIGHT PORTRAIT MODE
CHARACTERISTICS OF NIGHT PORTRAIT
MODE

 Usually symbolized by a figure against a dark sky with a star

 Fires the flash to illuminate a nearby subject and then holds the
shutter open long enough for the background to be exposed
FLASH
FLASH
CHARACTERISTICS OF FLASH MODE

 Auto- Flash Off

 Flash On (mandatory flash, useful for filling in shadows when

shooting in daylight)

 Auto + Red-eye reduction-

 Flash On + Red-eye reduction

 Soft Flash (Diffused flash)

 Slow-sync flash (Second-curtain flash)

USE THE FLASH TO STOP MOTION
OR TO ILLUMINATE DARK AREAS
SLOW SYNC FLASH
DIFFERENT WAYS TO MAKE A GOOD
PHOTOGRAPH

 Control exposure

 Aperture

 Shutter speed

 ISO
EXPOSURE TRIANGLE
 UNDERSTANDING EXPOSURE
 THE WINDOW EXAMPLE

 Imagine your camera is like a window with shutters that open and close.

 Aperture is the size of the window. If it’s bigger more light gets through and the room is
brighter.

 Shutter Speed is the amount of time that the shutters of the window are open. The longer
you leave them open the more that comes in.

 Now imagine that you’re inside the room and are wearing sunglasses (hopefully this isn’t
too much of a stretch). Your eyes become desensitized to the light that comes in (it’s like
a low ISO)

 .There are a number of ways of increasing the amount of light in the room (or at least
how much it seems that there is. You could increase the time that the shutters are open
(decrease shutter speed), you could increase the size of the window (increase aperture) or
you could take off your sunglasses (make the ISO larger)
APERTURE

 The aperture of a lens is the diameter of the lens opening

 The larger the diameter of the aperture, the more light reaches the
film / image sensor

 Aperture is expressed as F-stop, e.g. F2.8 or f/2.8

 The smaller the F-stop number (or f/value), the larger the lens
opening (aperture) (inverse relationship)

 Controls depth of field

APERTURE
F-STOPS
IS THIS SHALLOW D.O.F?
IS THIS?
SHALLOW OR DEEP D.O.F.?
Depth of Field EXERCISE
 Pick a partner

 Stand away from your partner

 Take a photograph of their face only with your lens unzoomed

 Zoom in and shoot but only fill the frame with their entire face
again

 See the difference in depth of field

SHUTTER SPEED
SHUTTER SPEED

 Shutter speed is the amount of time that the shutter is open

 Shutter speed is measured in seconds – or in most cases fractions of

seconds

 It is not in isolation from the other two elements of the Exposure

Triangle (aperture and ISO)

 Long shutter causes blur and fast shutter freezes motion

Shutter speed is used to stop action
1/1000 sec
Or shutter speed can blur motion
1/15 sec
FAST OR SLOW SHUTTER SPEED?
FAST OR SLOW?
SHUTTER SPEED EXERCISE

 Everyone pick a partner

 Step outside the classroom

 Capture an image of action (jumping, spinning, etc.)

 Stop the action with a fast shutter speed

 Blur the action with a slow shutter speed

ISO SETTINGS

 ISO speed ﾐ A rating of a film's sensitivity to light.

Though digital cameras don't use film, they have
adopted the same rating system for describing the
sensitivity of the camera's imaging sensor. Digital
cameras often include a control for adjusting the ISO
speed; some will adjust it automatically depending on
the lighting conditions, adjusting it upwards as the
available light dims. Generally, as ISO speed climbs,
image quality drops.
ISO SETTINGS
Characteristics of ISO

 Low light conditions use higher ISO

 Action shots use a higher ISO

 Keep ISO lower in bright light

 The higher the ISO number the more noise is generated in your
photograph

 When you enlarge your image you can see the noise
FIND YOUR WB BUTTON
WHITE BALANCE

 The process of removing unrealistic color casts, so that objects

which appear white in person are rendered white in your photo

 Takes into account the "color temperature" of a light source, which

refers to the relative warmth or coolness of white light

 Needs to be adjusted under various light sources: tungsten,

fluorescent, sunlight, cloudy, etc
ADJUST WHITE BALANCE?
ADJUST WHITE BALANCE?
WHITE BALANCE EXERCISE

 Pick something or someone and take photographs of them while

adjusting the WB on your camera to it’s various settings

 Notice the difference in lighting

TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT YOUR CAMERA
CONTROLS
VIEWFINDER MENU
FOCUS MODES
SELF TIMER
CAMERA MENUS
CAMERA MENUS
WHAT MAKES A DIGITAL PHOTO?
 Pixel ﾐ Picture Element: digital photographs are
comprised of thousands or millions of them; they are
the building blocks of a digital photo.
CHOOSE JPEG or RAW
 RAW
 uncompressed (an 8 megapixel camera will produce a 8 MB Raw file)

 the complete (lossless) data from the camera’s sensor

 higher in dynamic range (ability to display highlights and shadows)

 lower in contrast (flatter, washed out looking)

 not as sharp

 not suitable for printing directly from the camera or without post processing

 waiting to be processed by your computer

 JPEG
 compressed

 fairly small in file size (an 8 megapixel camera will produce JPEG
between 1 and 3 MB’s in size)

 lower in dynamic range

 higher in contrast and sharper

 immediately suitable for printing, sharing, or posting on the web

 processed by your camera

PROS AND CONS

 RAW files are bigger and take more space on your memory card

 RAW files need post production

 RAW files are better quality

 RAW files give you much more control over how the image will
look

 Better for professional photographers

 JPEG files are smaller in size and take less space to store

 JPEG files do not need any post production

 JPEG files loose richness, detail (sharpness), color range

 JPEG files give you less ability to control the final image

 Better for snapshots

FIND YOUR EV
EV-EXPOSURE COMPENSATION
CHARACTERISTICS OF EV

 EV means exposure value

 The range over which you can manually over or underexpose to

lighten or darken the image

 Usually, the range of adjustment goes from +2 to -2 EV in 1/3 steps

AEB- AUTOMATIC EXPOSURE
BRACKETING
CHARACTERISTICS OF AEB

 The camera automatically takes three or more shots with a different

exposure for each frame

 One image at the camera measured exposure, a second at a negative

exposure compensation (usually -1/3 EV, though some cameras
allow you to specify the amount), and a third at a positive exposure
compensation (usually +1/3 EV, though some cameras allow you to
specify the amount)

 Useful option for taking HDR scenes

VIEWING MENU
IMAGE METADATA
HISTOGRAMS
HISTOGRAM

 Simple graph that displays where all of the brightness levels

contained in the scene are found, from the darkest to the brightest

 Displays a photographs dynamic range

 In camera light meter

READING THE HISTOGRAM
HIGH KEY
LOW KEY
WHAT MAKES A GREAT PHOTOGRAPH?
MAKE GREAT PHOTOGRAPHS

 THOUGHTFUL TIMING

 COMPOSITION (RULE OF THIRDS)

 PERSPECTIVE
PHOTOGRAPHS CREATE MEANING
SNAPSHOP VS. PHOTOGRAPH
RULE OF THIRDS
RULE OF THIRDS

 Refers to the placement of the subject within the frame of your

photograph

 Places the main subject off center and away from the center of the
frame. As a result, photos can look more dynamic and interesting

 Place points of interest in the intersections or along the lines

PLACE OBJECTS AT INTERSECTIONS
RULE OF THIRDS
PERSPECTIVE

 Perspective is the way that an object appears to the eye

 Dependent on focal length and picture angle

 Creative way of looking at your photographic subject

 Example ALEXANDER RODCHENKO, BILL BRANDT, HENRI

CARTIER-BRESSON
PERSPECTIVE
PERSPECTIVE
 IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS

 Practice photography on a regular basis

 Avoid common photographic mistakes like over exposure, under

exposure, or blur

 Look at photographs of others to inspire

 Read your manual and learn about your camera functions

 Learn better compositional techniques

 Don’t be afraid to experiment

PERSPECTIVE EXERCISE

 Find an object/subject

 Shoot 36 different ways (using rules of perspective and composition)

 Get creative with angles

 30 minutes
COOL PHOTOGRAPHY QUOTES
A LITTLE ABOUT ME…
 B.A. & M.F.A. Photography
 Professor of photography/online lecturer
 TRAVEL & FREELANCE photographer
 Worked in Brazil, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Hong Kong, Macau,
Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and Central America, Canada, Europe (all over)
and USA
 www.inthefray.org
 www.favelite.com Paris Metro Project with Brazil
 www.alexandracopley.com
 www.taquerias.blogspot.com
 www.youramexica.blogspot.com book called ‘Transmigrants’
THANKS!
 Connect with me!

 TWITTER, FACEBOOK, FRIENDFEED (ALEXANDRA COPLEY)

 www.twitter.com/alexandracopley

 www.facebook.com/alexandracopley

 www.alexandracopley.com