Any modern camera, in which there is a possibility of manual shooting settings, has the ability to control exposure. Exposure is the ratio of shutter speed to lens aperture that will achieve the desired shooting quality or intended artistic effect. The same concept also includes setting the desired sensitivity of the film or matrix (ISO).
Exposure control is an essential function of all serious cameras. Despite the significant development of automatic systems in modern cameras, the ability to adjust exposure remains essential for both professional photography and advanced amateur photography. An automatic camera in some cases is not able to correctly assess the shooting conditions and makes the exposure deliberately incorrect. An example of this would be shooting a bright subject against a dark background at night. The exposure selected by the camera will be such that a bright object is visible against a dark background. If the subject itself is filmed normally, the background will look more like a black sheet.
If we are talking about artistic photography, then the automation is simply powerless there. For example, if a photographer decides to take a beautiful shot with an emphasis on the model's face, then he will need to set the maximum aperture size and choose a suitable shutter speed to exclude the light from the frame. This technique will produce beautiful bokeh with a low depth of field in the background.
If the photographer is planning to achieve significant success and go to the professional level to make money in photography, then you should carefully understand the concept of exposure. This is the most important concept in all photography techniques. Photographers are very sensitive to the concept of exposure and often argue about this, evaluating each other's work.
Three whales of the exposition
For ease of perception, This is a regular equilateral triangle. Figuratively, points were marked at the vertices of the triangle: aperture, matrix (film) sensitivity and shutter speed (shutter speed). If you change the position of only one of these values, then the corresponding vertex of the triangle will inevitably shift to one of the sides, and the triangle will cease to be equilateral. This example demonstrates that changing one of the parameters violates the entire exposure picture and can ruin the whole balance in the photograph. The concepts of aperture, shutter speed and sensitivity always go together and require joint editing. These are three whales, without which any photograph becomes something meaningless.
To adjust the exposure, it is worth setting all three of these parameters correctly.
What is aperture
Aperture is literally the size of the aperture that is used when shooting with a lens. Most modern lenses have a variable aperture set. The size of this hole is adjusted using petals that fold in and out according to the photographer's preferences. On large lenses, the aperture size and movement can be seen directly through the front lens.
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Diaphragm. The higher the number after the letter f, the smaller the hole size is set. An aperture of f1.4 is a large aperture and f22 is a small aperture.
A large aperture size allows for shallow depth of field and bokeh. Only the areas on which the lens has focused will be clear in the finished photograph, and other objects (before and after the focusing point) will be blurred. This technique is applied when shooting portraits and in subject shooting. An example of a light bulb shot at a large aperture is below.
A small aperture size, on the contrary, makes all objects in the frame sharp. This vision works well for panoramas and landscapes.
a large aperture size often allows you to achieve the ability to use a fast shutter speed, which eliminates blurring of the frame. However, the danger here arises in the excessive blurring of the frame. With this kind of shooting, sometimes the model's nose is sharp, and the eye is already blurred.
What is shutter speed (shutter speed)
Shutter speed is the time at which the shutter is held open. The longer the shutter speed, the brighter the photo is, since the amount of light is proportional to the time the shutter opens. At slower shutter speeds, a flare effect is often observed, i.e. the appearance of white areas in the photo or overexposure. An example is shown in the photo below. This type of defect is the most difficult to fix.
The correct selection of the shutter speed allows you to obtain the optimal quality of the photo. The longer the shutter speed, the more likely it is to get a blurry frame, etc. shake. Therefore,. They shoot landscapes and static compositions in this way. Moving subjects are shot at low shutter speeds.
Exposure is indicated by a regular number or ratio. The higher the number, the longer the shutter speed. For example, a shutter speed of 1/1000 is 1/1000 of a second, and a shutter speed of 16 is respectively 16 seconds.
… It would seem that if the frame turns out to be dark, then you can simply increase the shutter speed. But this option does not always work. Indeed, in this case, everything. Pay attention to the example below, where a moving steamer is captured. Therefore, in such cases, they look for the optimal ratio of aperture, which will preserve the desired depth of field, and shutter speed. An example of such a complex symbiosis is shooting football in a gym with natural light.
What is sensitivity (ISO)
There is another important practice to master. It's about management
This is the third whale in the concept of an exhibition painting. Without its designation and understanding, the information will be incomplete.
Most digital cameras have an adjustable set of sensitivity values. For example, ISO 100 to 6400. This parameter determines the ability of the matrix to register light.
When shooting at night with a sensitivity of 6400, you can use the same shutter speed and aperture as used during the day. Accordingly, photos will not be blurred. It would seem that the question arises as to why discussions of shutter speed, aperture and shooting with a tripod are generally needed. But. The higher the ISO is, the more grainy the photo is and the so-called digital noise appears.
Therefore, photographers try to use a moderate ratio of shutter speed, aperture and sensitivity, because surplus here everywhere is extremely harmful and spoils the exposition picture.
Correct exposure
To build the correct exposure, you need to take into account three parameters at once - shutter speed, aperture and light sensitivity. Such a picture is individual for each frame. Photographers are very demanding about this ratio of values and the result in the photograph.
It is possible to choose the exposure for each frame only experimentally. With experience, the photographer learns to determine the optimal shooting mode practically by eye.
High-quality photography is impossible without a fundamental understanding of exposure. To simplify perception, any modern digital camera has a built-in exposure meter. By setting the indicators recommended by them, you can find a suitable mode much faster.
