Basics of Photography

History of Photography The first successful

photograph was produced in June/July 1827 by Niépce, it required eight hours of exposure

Niépce’s partner Daguerre developed photographic plates, exposure time half an hour. DAGUERREOTYPE

Paper Negatives The earliest paper negative we know of was produced in August 1835, by William Henry Fox

He called them Calotypes

An unlimited number of prints could be made

Collodion In 1851 a new era in photography was introduced by Frederick Scott Archer, who introduced the Collodion process.

Exposure time was two to three seconds.

Kodak

In 1888, George Eastman invented the Kodak camera

Enough film for 100 shots

Brownie

1900 - First mass-marketed camera was created

Called Brownie

History of Camera

1913 - 35mm camera

1948 - Polaroid 1969 - first digital images sent from the moon

1978 - Point and Shoot

Digital Cameras 1984 - Digital 1994 - First point and shoot camera affordable for the general public

2000 - First DSLR

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Film Cameras Use negative film to create positive prints

Can also use transparency, or positive, film to create slides

Usually have lenses, with pinhole being an exception

Usually have an internal metering system, with pinhole, Holga, and large format cameras being exceptions

Viewfinder Cameras Viewfinder cameras use a rangefinder system

SLR Cameras SLR cameras use a pentaprism system Pinhole cameras don’t have a viewfinder

system at all Large format photographers look through

a groundglass at the back of the camera.

35mm Camera Lenses 50mm is a “normal” lens A lens longer than 50mm is a “telephoto” lens A lens shorter than 50mm is a “wide-angle” lens Zoom lenses allow you to alter focal length

within one lens Fixed focal length lenses are a set focal length

such as 100mm or 50mm

Minimum Focusing Distance

The closest distance you can be to the subject and still have the subject in focus

Information is usually found within manufacturer’s documentation

Macro settings will usually allow shorter focusing distances

Macro settings on zoom lenses don’t allow as short of focal lengths as macro settings on fixed focal length lenses

Purchasing LensesThings to consider when purchasing lenses:Who made the camera?Who made the lens you’re thinking about buying?

Will that lens work with the mount of that camera? Be careful when you make that purchase!

Additional Considerations

Purchasing a lens shade for the camera

Consider purchasing an ultraviolet (UV) filter to protect your lens

Diaphragm and Aperture Diaphragm: An arrangement

of flat, thin, overlapping pieces of metal within the lens

Aperture: The hole created at the center of the diaphragm to allow light to pass through the lens

F-stop: Focal length of a lens divided by the diameter of the aperture

Typical F-stop Values

f/2.8f/4f/5.6f/8

f/11f/16f/22

F-stop and Aperture Relationships

The amount of light passing through the aperture doubles or cuts in half as you go from one f-stop to the next.

You change the aperture to change the depth-of-field (blur background or not)

Shutter Speeds The shutter speed refers to how long the sensor is active and the shutter stays open.

Typical shutter speeds range from 30 seconds to 1/4000 second

Each doubling or cutting in half of the shutter speed is considered a change of one “stop”

Many 35mm cameras can choose shutter speeds that result in 1/3- or 1/2-stop changes

Lear (iris) shutters are in the lens. Focal plane (curtain) shutters are in the back of the camera.

35mm Digital Cameras Use CMOS (typically) or CCD (in high-end cameras) sensors to collect light information

Light hits the photosites that:Measure the intensity of the lightRecord the red, green, or blue components of the scene via a colored filter over each photosite

Saving Digital Images Digital cameras use memory cards Memory cards come in a variety of sizes from 128MB to 1 gigabyte or more

Cameras must use a specific size Consult the owner’s manual to learn what your camera’s manufacturer recommends

Medium-Format Cameras Made by manufacturers such as

Pentax, Mamiya, and Hassselblad Most common film sizes are:

2-1/4 x 2-1/4-inch, square (6 x 6 cm)

1-5/8 x 2-1/4-inch (4.5 x 6 cm)

2-1/4 x 2-3/4-inch (6 x 7 cm)

Normal Focal Lengthfor medium-format lenses

A lens with a focal length of 80-90mm is considered “normal”

A lens greater than 90mm is considered “telephoto”

A lens less than 80mm is considered “wide-angle”

Plastic Cameras Made by manufacturers

– Holga and Diana Are considered toys,

but can make highly artistic photographs

Pinhole Cameras One of the first types of cameras

built Contains no mechanical or

electronic components Can be built out of common

household objects such as oatmeal boxes

Have glassless fixed holes that allow light to hit the film inside

Large Format Cameras Include 4 x 5-inch field and

monorail styles Include 8 x 10-inch cameras

or larger Allow specific movements of

the front plane independently of the back (film-holding) plane

Normal Focal Lengthfor large-format lenses

A lens with a focal length of 120 mm is considered “normal”

A lens greater than 120mm is considered “telephoto”

A lens less than 120mm is considered “wide-angle”

Cell Phone Cameras Manufactured by Sony/Ericsson,

Motorola, Sanyo, HP, Palm, and Nokia

Very low resolution files Best for sending over the Internet,

not for printing

RGB The RGB color model is

an additive color model in which red, green, and blue light are added together in various ways to reproduce a broad array of colors. The name of the model comes from the initials of the three additive primary colors, red, green, and blue.

CMYK The CMYK color model

(process color, four color) is a subtractive color model, used in color printing, and is also used to describe the printing process itself. CMYK refers to the four inks used in some color printing: cyan, magenta, yellow, and key black.

Tripods/Unipod Tripods and unipods are used to keep the camera steady

Tri-three Un-one

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