Digital Photography Techniques: Aperture and Shutter Speed Basics
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One of the things you need to master in order to take terrific photographs is your camera's exposure controls. Learning the correct way of using it need not be a challenge. Here are a few photography techniques you can use to make your photos into something amazing.
The aperture is the size of the lens opening; by adjusting the size you can get different effects. With a small aperture, you can sharply focus on one object, but the focus on the other objects that aren't the same distance away from the camera will seem blurry; this is due to the depth of field. So if you use a small aperture, you will get a narrow depth of field. This is great if you want to take pictures of flowers. To get really sharp images using a small aperture, the subject needs to be approximately 12" to 15" away from the camera.
If you use a larger aperture, both the objects that are close and not so close to the camera can stay in focus. Using a large aperture you can have objects in focus from a minimum of 3" to as far as the eye can see. However, to keep the subjects in focus when taking a picture, the camera also needs to adjust its shutter speed as well . In modern digital cameras, the shutter speed is automatically adjusted to compensate for the adjustments in aperture size.
If you want to take close-up pictures of subjects, like a flower, using a small aperture with a slow shutter speed is recommended. The photograph will turn out extra-sharp. But if the subject of your photo is in motion, you need to use a shutter speed that is fast enough to stop its motion somewhat. The speed needs to be at least 1/125th of a second if you're following the subject with the camera. Doing this will keep the subject of the photograph in focus but the background will be blurred. If you are holding the camera steady keep the speed from 1/250th to 1/1000th of a second, but when you increase the shutter speed there is less time for light to enter the lens, which is why you need to increase the aperture as well in order to compensate.
The best way you can learn to use your cameras aperture and shutter speed controls is to practice at home. When you practice shooting without any pressure you learn faster. Don't wait until you've gone to an exotic location to know how to use the controls properly. You can practice by having a friend do a couple of poses for you, both stationary shots and motion shots. Take several photos using different settings. Review the result . Observe the effects that you get using the different aperture and shutter speed settings so you will know which setting you need to use for getting a particular shot.
Learning to take really great pictures isn't that difficult , especially with these simple photography techniques. All you really need to do is to know your camera inside and out, so you will know what settings to use in different situations. |
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Author Resource:-
Kellie is an expert when it comes to Photography Tips and Ideas. To find out the latest News and Tips on Photography, visit Greg White Photography at http://gregwhitephotography.com/.
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By :
Jessie Stone
Submitted
2010-09-27 03:39:24 |
Article From Article Mayhem
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