Photographic

TerminologyJustin Fox-Rothwell

Unit 57: Photography and Photographic Practice TerminologyP1, P2, M1, M2

Shutter Speed

Shutter speed is measured in seconds, fast shutter speeds freeze movement, Slow shutter speeds tend to blur movement, and so can be used for creative effects. The slower the shutter speed, the more motion blur in the image you take.

If you’re photographing handheld you’ll need a fast enough shutter speed to make sure camera shake doesn’t cause blurred shots, make sure you shoot at around 1/250 sec or faster.

Shutter Speed

Fast Shutter Speed Slow Shutter Speed

Iso

If there is very little light ISO should be increased so that the image is clearer and doesn’t blur the image. Other reasons where you might want to increase ISO are when you need to get fast shots, like animals e.g. the picture on the right

Lower ISO is for when there is enough light so extra light would distort the image.

ISO

High ISOHigher ISO settings are generally used in darker situations to get faster shutter speeds. For example an indoor sports event when you want to freeze the action in lower light. However the higher the ISO you choose the noisier shots you will get

Low ISOThe lower the ISO the less light needed to use By reducing the I.S.O. to the lowest, I can maybe save a few shots whilst enhancing the colours.

Also when shooting images that I want to be rich in colour such as a beach scene with blue skies and deep blue water for a holiday magazine, you would use the lowest ISO possible

Aperture & Depth of Field

Depth of field

Depth of field (DOF) is the distance between the nearest and farthest objects in a scene that appear acceptably sharp in an image. Although a lens can precisely focus at only one distance at a time, the decrease in sharpness is gradual on each side of the focused distance, so within the DOF, the unsharpness is imperceptible under normal viewing conditions.

Aperture & Depth of Field

Narrow Depth of Field

In optics, particularly as it relates to film and photography, depth of field (DOF) is the distance between the nearest and farthest objects in a scene that appear acceptably sharp in an image.

In some cases, it may be desirable to have the entire image sharp, and a large DOF is appropriate. In other cases, a small DOF may be more effective, emphasizing the subject while de-emphasizing the foreground and background. In cinematography, a large DOF is often called deep focus, and a small DOF is often called shallow focus.

Wide Depth of Field

Rule of thirdsPerhaps the most well know principle of photographic composition is the ‘Rule of Thirds‘.

The “Rule of Thirds” is the basis for well balanced and interesting shots.

I will say right up front however that rules are meant to be broken and ignoring this one doesn’t mean your images are necessarily unbalanced or uninteresting. However a wise person once told me that if you intend to break a rule you should always learn it first to make sure your breaking of it is all the more effective!

Examples of Rule of thirds The rule of thirds is created with a

grid system it’s so that when taking a picture you can maximise the space used in an image. In this image on the left to persons face is directly in the middle grid, the aim is to have the main focus on the face and nothing else