Photography 101 Part 1

Photography 101

Part One

Equipment: camera, meter, flash, tripod

This article is a simplified photography course directed at new photographers out there who want to know where to start.

If you really want to learn photography the first thing you need is a good affordable and reliable camera. It must, and I repeat must, be able to shoot in fully manual and fully auto focus modes. (This leaves out any digital cameras on the market right now, sorry.) To really learn photography you must understand the equipment. You'll need to learn how manipulating the shutter speed, aperture, and focus will have a dramatic effect on your photos. Meters, if you have a camera that can work in a fully manual mode it should have an internal meter suitable for what you will be doing. Tripod, you're going to need one whether it's portrait work or landscapes you'll need one eventually. Luckily you don't have to spend a lot here. Just something lightweight and durable. Flash, you can buy a separate camera mounted flash, which is great if you can afford it. Consider what kind of photography that you will be doing though. If you're going to do mostly nature and landscape, you may only need the fill flash that comes with most cameras today. If you plan on doing portraiture alone you will want to consider a camera mounted flash that has an adjustable angle.

Film, film speed to be exact. Slower speeds (25 to 400) are intended for portraiture and landscape photography. Faster speeds (600 and above) are intended for actions shots and photojournalism. So first you need to know what you going out to photograph and make sure that you have the appropriate film for the job.

Now that you have the camera loaded with film consider shutter speed. Do you want to blur motion, or freeze it? If there is no motion at all what shutter speed do you need to expose the scene with natural light. From 1/60th and down to the bulb setting will blur most motion. For example if you want to blur the water in a waterfall, a setting of 1/30th should work. (You'll need a tripod though.) 1/125th is a normal setting for most shots. On many cameras the 125th setting is marked in a different color to make it obvious. If you want to freeze action you'll need to start with 1/500th and work up from there. The faster the motion the faster the shutter speed needed to stop motion. Many cameras go up to 1/2000th of a second. If you're trying to use natural light alone in a scene you will want to determine the aperture first and then see what shutter speed you need to properly expose the scene for available light. (Keep in mind sometimes there isn't enough light.)

Aperture, these are the set of numbers on your lens closest to the body of the camera. They can go from 1.8 to 22, and they are referred to as F-stops. These numbers determine how much light reaches the film inside of your camera. Most internal meters will blink on the appropriate aperture for the shutter speed that you've set, or the speed you've set will blink if your F-stop is correct for the speed. Both the F-stop and shutter speed can be changed to expose the scene correctly. Consider that the faster the shutter speed the more light will be needed to expose the scene correctly. This makes logical sense if you think about it. If the shutter isn't open as long, fast shutter speed, then there is less light able to make it to the film and so the scene must be brighter to expose correctly. To learn, bracket your shots. Take the first shot at the aperture suggested by your meter, move one stop up, take a photo, one down, take another photo.

Flash, I personally like shooting with natural light whenever possible and at most I use a fill flash. But if you're going to do portrait work then most of the time you may be indoors and you will need a flash sometimes. For the amateur the fill flash units that are on the top of most of today's cameras are wonderful for basic work. You will have to read your manual on your particular flash unit to learn what it can and can't do. This is where the camera that is fully manual and fully auto is great for the amateur. You can usually set it so that the camera will meter and set the flash output accordingly and then you still can control the shutter speed and aperture.

This week's assignment: Have several rolls of 400 speed film, find a subject that you can work with preferably something that won't move, and shoot one roll of film. Shoot some of the roll in the morning, afternoon, and evening. Bracket every shot, take notes on time of day and light conditions, and what your settings (aperture) were for each frame, keep the film speed the same for the entire roll. Have the film developed and examine the photos. You should be able to see a difference in each frame. You'll need to repeat this procedure until you feel that you understand the relationship between shutter speed and aperture, and every camera and meter has it's own quirks and differences, you're camera will act differently than someone else's. This way you will learn you own particular camera as well. Once you have a sense of how aperture works you won't need to bracket every shot you take, you may only need to do it in cases where you want to be extra safe on exposing the subject correctly.

If you have some specific questions please visit my Photography Forum at: http://kellypaalphotography.com/v -web/bulletin/bb/index.php

Copyright 2004 Kelly Paal

Kelly Paal is a Freelance Nature and Landscape Photographer, exhibiting nationally and internationally. Recently she started her own business Kelly Paal Photography (www.kellypaalphotography.com). She has an educational background in photography, business, and commercial art. She enjoys applying graphic design and photography principles to her web design.

---

Birthday Party Photo Tips ? How to Make Yours Truly Stand Out

How many of the birthday party pictures you've seen are... Read More

Top of the Line Digital Cameras

If you think that digital cameras are for snapshots only,... Read More

Move Up to the World of the Digital SLR Camera

A digital SLR camera or a single lens reflex (SLR)... Read More

Diffusion & Softening of Digital Photography Images

Like many people who've made the switch from film cameras... Read More

Disposable Cameras for Weddings

Disposable wedding cameras (also called single-use cameras) will never replace... Read More

Digital Camera Auto Exposure and Auto Focus

The digital camera being a fantastic and technologically advanced device... Read More

Taking Professional Quality Pictures

By now I'm sure you've used Either a digital or... Read More

The Benefits of Underwater Digital Cameras

Underwater digital cameras are fun and easy to use under... Read More

Let Those Digital Photos Out! (You Don?t Have To Print Them Yourself)

What have you done with the photos you've taken with... Read More

Digital Camera Reviews and Ratings De-Mystify the Choices

Shopping for a new digital camera can be quite frustrating... Read More

Elephants in the Sky and Four Poems

Elephants in the Sky[1980s, Lee Evens in Mali, Timbuktu/Africa]Advance: Lee... Read More

Transfer The Digital Camera Images To Your Computer

There are a few very important tasks associated with using... Read More

Taking Panoramic Landscapes - The Easy Solution

I love panoramas. There's something very appealing about their shape.... Read More

Home Run Baseball Photography Tips

Strike one! Strike two! Strike three!Baseball! America's Pastime, and a... Read More

Photography - Things to Consider Before Buying a Camera

Before you are able to take the kind of photos... Read More

Optimize Your Photos for the Web

It doesn't matter if your emailing photos of your grandson... Read More

How Many Megapixels Do We Need?

Are you having megapixel envy each time you walk by... Read More

Making Money With Digital Photography And Live Events

A few years ago I became interested in digital photography,... Read More

7 Things You Must Do If You Want To Make That Perfect Camera Shot

Saturate yourself with your subject and the camera will all... Read More

Wedding Photography: How to Become a Successful Wedding Photographer

Once in while I receive e-mails or phone calls from... Read More

The Primer on Digital Camera Printers

Once you have clicked photos through your digital camera, then... Read More

Photographs Everywhere, But Is It Really Art?

I once heard a lady say to a photographer that... Read More

The Well-Dressed Photographer - Summer

Outdoor photographers shoot year round. That includes the hot summer.... Read More

Digital Photography: The RAW vs JPG Debate

If you use a digital camera (I use a Canon... Read More

Kodak Digital Cameras - The Giant Comes To Digital

George Eastman, founder of Kodak is world renowned today. Digital... Read More

Top 10 Digital Cameras - What You Need To Know About Them

There are a large number of top 10 digital camera... Read More

Who Had The Better Brushes Leonardo or Michelangelo?

Ordinary photos of dull subjects do actually sell, but the... Read More

How To Become A Digital Photography Pro

Being a professional digital photographer is a dream many people... Read More

How Can I Preserve My Lifetime of Memories in Photographs?

Like most folks you have probably have organized and sorted... Read More

Getting Your Photos Ready for Sharing

One of the main reasons people buy digital cameras is... Read More

Exposure Compensation

The digital camera is in reality a great possession with... Read More

Photography Poses ? The Missing Ingredient

You've read all the "best digital camera" articles, got the... Read More

Market Your Photography Business

Setting up your own photography business it easy, you don't... Read More