Photography theory and equipment

Photography 101

Exposure, Focus & Composition

Great photo's all have several things in common. One is the proper exposure, another is tack sharp images and of course, great composition. Telling a story and having a defined point of interest is key. If you master and combine these skill sets, all that is required then is to apply the law of averages - shoot as many photo's as you possibly can !. Seriously though, the law of averages will help but getting better images requires careful analyses of your results on an ongoing basis

Exposure

Manually setting certain values is usually better than letting the camera take full control. Proper white balancing and shooting in Shutter [TV - Time Value] or Aperture [AV - Aperture Value] priority is important and necessary to get great photos. Exposure is a function of shutter speed, Aperture and ISO setting. A good camera will have a histogram (graphical exposure display) which you should refer to to help guide you. "Expose the the right" is general advice when dealing with the histogram and you should invest some time reading about histograms as they offer invaluable feedback

TV
Shutter speed will dictate how long the aperture stays open. Waterfalls for example, would often be shot at slower shutter speeds of 1/4 second of slower. Sports need to be shot at at least 1/500th of a second or better yet 1/800th. or more - expect blurry images with slow shutter speeds. A general rule is the shutter speed should be at the very least the reciprocal of your focal length. For example, If you are zoomed in to 135 mm, your shutter speed should be at least 1/135th. (1/160th of a second as here is no 1/135th setting). Of course "IS" [Canon "image stabilization] and "VR" [Nikons "Vibration Reduction"] can give up to a 4 stop reduction to this rule so that you might be able to get handheld sharp shots @ 1/15 th. 4 Stops means that at 1/15th, you could actually achieve a shutter speed of 1/125th - of course this would apply to static objects only

ISO
ISO is the electronic speed of the sensor. ISO settings will often be set higher in situations with low light. The downside is, the higher the ISO, the more noise [grain] you will see in your photos. Additionally, Dynamic Range takes a hit as well and will be reduced as ISO settings are increased. Newer cameras are always improving sensor technology so that clean images can be captured at 800 and 1600 ISO settings. Even 3200 ISO images are clean on some newer full frame cameras. These high ISO settings are key in getting shots under poor conditions. Remember, OOF [out of focus] images are all but useless. Keeping shutter speeds up - at the cost of increasing ISO settings - may not allow for the cleanest shots, but at least they will be in focus

Aperture

The last variable of exposure is Aperture. The wider the aperture is open, [lower number] the greater its light gathering ability. However, this is at the cost of depth of field [focus range]. Portraits are often shot at a 2.8 F-stop or wider aperture settings which will blur the background [bokeh] and create an image pop of the subject. This is very effective and a great reason why manually controlling your camera is key

Of course, focusing is trickier as the aperture opens up because of the narrow band of focus - best to use a single focus point and focus on the eyes for example and then recompose. At smaller apertures or F-stops [ie F11, f16, f22 etc] the range of focus or depth of field increases dramatically. This is great for landscape photography when you want everything in focus - foreground, mid ground and background. Generally focusing 1/3 into the scene can produce a photo that is completely in focus. [search "hyperfocal point" for more]

Remember, lenses have sweet spots [usually 3 or so stops from fully open] so shooting with settings like 5.6, 7.1, and 8 will usually give the sharpest shots. As the aperture value increases [aperture closing down] diffraction increases because the light bends to reach the sensor. This will degrade the quality of the final image and can become evident at values as low as F8. Canon L lenses are coveted because they allow for sharp photos wide open

Putting it all Together
Shutter Speed, ISO and Aperture are all intertwined . If you are to progress in the hobby, these relationships need to be fully understood. For example, if the shutter speed increases, the Aperture and/or ISO must be opened/increased to obtain a proper exposure. Once again, a wider aperture allows more light in and the faster ISO setting [400, 800] captures this light quicker

Remember you can't always have it all. In other words, a 1/400 th. shutter speed with a F8 aperture and 100 ISO setting is not going to be available very often. If one of the settings needs to be increased to obtain the proper exposure, ISO is the best choice. It adds noise but will allow faster shutter speeds or a larger focus range enabling you to produce a sharp photo. Remember, post production can be quite effective at cleaning up noise, but cannot turn an OOF [out of focus] photo sharp

For one more practical example, lets say we were photographing a wide landscape shot where we would require everything to be in focus. This means the aperture would have to be closed down allowing less light in but providing a greater depth of field (F11+). As a result of this, less light is getting to the sensor. The shutter speed and/or ISO would need to compensate. With shutter speed, it would have to slow down [1/40th perhaps] as being open longer will allow more light in. Likewise, the ISO could be raised to capture that light more quickly. Again, the goal for ISO is to always keep it low [100 or 200] but available light will not always allow this - knowing how to quickly manipulate the settings for best results takes practice

Remember, photographers will manipulate all these setting to achieve the desired result whether it be everything in focus or shallow depth of field with great bokeh. Of course these technical skills need to be mastered, but at the end of the day, good photography requires a lot of effort, great patience and analytical practice. Additionally, you must know your camera's settings and capabilities backwards and forwards

Camera Equipment

Once you get into photography, you quickly learn that it is a money pit - similar to koi keeping I suppose. The picture right shows some of the equipment I have which will help you attain better photographs

Flash
My camera is a Canon 50D. It is a pretty nice prosumer camera currently selling for about $1400 CND. Although it comes with a built in flash, this will not deliver the performance of a dedicated unit like the 580 exII flash illustrated. Additionally, taking photo's in portrait mode with the built in flash will place the flash to the side of the camera , not above it

A flash will look the best when it comes from above the camera on a higher angle to the subject. Similar to natural light of from the Sun. To achieve this with portrait shooting you need to buy a "flash bracket". The one pictured is a "stroboframe camera-flip". It works well but is far from the best on the market. See "JustRite Brackets" and "Custom Brackets" for top notch models. To operate a dedicated flash with a bracket you need either a flash cord, wireless trigger or a camera w/built in flash control. ie Canon 7D

The photographer vs. equipment debate that exists on online forums is an interesting one with some suggesting its all about the photographer, no matter what the equipment. It goes without saying you can't buy talent - that's true of any endeavor. But lets face it, without good equipment the pictures will lack the technical quality [ie. resolution, dynamic range, shutter speed] that top flight equipment provides. Talent will show through in composition and timing with any camera, but you need good equipment that doesn't limit your capability

Tripods
A tripod is a must have item if you are to capture sharp images with slower shutter speeds. This includes landscape and flashless indoor photos where the light is typically poor. There are a lot of cheap tripods on the market and many seasoned photogs have 3-4 of these buried in their closets. Buy a good tripod from the start. I personally have a carbon fibre Gitzo which cost 10x more than my other junk tripods but it is rock solid, lightweight and feature rich. Bogen/Manfrotto are another top brand you should consider

Good tripods start @ about $500.00