What Are Those Camera Settings All About?
What Is the Purpose of These Camera Settings?
There are numerous options accessible on digital cameras, although they are not dramatically different from those on 35mm cameras.
Several of the settings have a clear correlation with the digital and film technologies, while others are exclusive.
Depending on the camera manufacturer, numerous figures, icons, and numbers will appear upon camera initialization in a variety of formats. The following are some examples:
■ Shutter speed The shutter speed can be expressed as a whole number (250, 500, 1000, etc.) or a fraction (1/250, 1/500, 1/1000). For instance, dividing 1 second into exactly 250 equal parts would yield 1/250 of a second. This option indicates the length of time the shutter remains open. Clearly, the longer the shutter remains open, the more light and motion will be captured.
■ Exposure compensation This image resembles a little ruler with markings extending from the center to 2 stops on the left and +2 stops on the right. Have you ever taken a photograph in brilliant snow when the subject seemed as a silhouette? This was caused by the camera's attempt to adjust for the excessively strong light reflected from the snow, sacrificing the subject's exposure. With exposure compensation, you may cause the camera to underexpose or overexpose the image to any degree you desire.
Select between Manual, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Program, and Bulb modes.
White equilibrium button
To over- or underexpose the camera meter, hold the exposure button and crank the wheel on the back of the camera.
Change ISO settings from here or the menu.
Information window displaying exposure settings
File type
Select single or continuous mode.
A camera's hot shoe permits the attachment of a flash directly to the camera or through an extension cord.
Numerous critical parameters, including autofocus points, ISO, and white balance, can be configured in the camera's menu for the convenience of the photographer. Several of these frequently used settings are accessible via camera buttons, eliminating the need for the photographer to return to the menu. Instead, she can access these settings by pressing one of the camera's several buttons.
■ Aperture Aperture is the changeable lens opening that regulates the amount of light striking the light-sensitive substance. This number will be 1,4, 2,2,8,4,5.6,8,11,16,22, or a fraction between those values. The aperture setting determines the depth of field; the greater the number, the greater the zone of focus (region in focus) from front to back.
Comparable Shutter Speed
Shutter Velocity Aperture Setting
One-second f22
1/4 of a second f16, 1/2 of a second f16
f8 in 1/8 second
1/60 second f2.8 1/125 second f2.0 1/250 second f1.4 1/15 second f5.6 1/30 second f4 1/60 second f2.8
These combinations of shutter speed and aperture produce the same exposure.
The photographer can expand their creative control by adjusting the shutter speed or aperture, which is one of the finest reasons to learn and use manual exposure!
On the following page, there is a snapshot illustrating depth of field. I began with the lens wide open at approximately f2.8 and gradually stopped it down to f22, exhibiting the increased depth of field caused by the aperture. The first image was captured at f2.8, which is
This is the maximum aperture of the 100mm, 35mm lens I used to take these photographs. Notice how the rolls in the foreground and background are out of focus, leaving only the film in the center of the frame in crisp focus. As the lens is progressively stopped down, from f4 in the second picture, to f5.6 in the third, to f8 in the fourth, and finally to f22 in the final image, the depth of field or apparent sharpness increases.
■ ISO setting In the past, when I was shooting film for a big daily newspaper, we carried Tri-X black and white film (this was before daily color usage in the paper) and physically adjusted the ISO setting on the camera (it was ASA back then), which affected the film's sensitivity to light. By increasing the ISO, we could increase the shutter speed.
We would even stretch the film to 12,000 ISO with strange developer mixtures. The grain was the size of a fist, but we were able to picture high school football without a flash in poorly lit stadiums. However, we were limited by the film speed in the camera. If a significant incident occurred in front of me that needed a higher or lower ISO, the remaining photographs on the film would be sacrificed.
With digital, every frame is an independent event. ISO can be adjusted properly for one or several frames.
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1/250 second at an aperture of f2.8
1/125 second at an aperture of f4
1/60 second with an aperture of f5.6
1/130 of a second at f8
1/5 of a second at f11
1/800 of a second at f16
1/5 of a second at f22
I finally found a use for all the rolls of film that had been languishing in the freezer.
Reverted to the previous state This gives the photographer the opportunity to respond in the moment by setting a higher ISO to capture high-speed action in low light or lowering the ISO for improved image quality.
ISO can also be used creatively, with ISOs of 3200 or higher producing an ethereal, grainy (referred to as noise in the digital age) image. According to my buddy John Knaur of Olympus, "Film ISO is the industry standard for describing the light sensitivity of film." Upon the introduction of digital cameras in the early 1980s and late 1990s, it became standard to define the imagers' (sensors') light-gathering capabilities using ISO language known to consumers. Consequently, cameras displayed equivalent ISO settings, such as ISO 100, ISO 200, etc. In reality, the imager has a natural light sensitivity, which is sometimes represented as the lowest comparable ISO. This setting, such as ISO 100, determines the sensitivity of the imager chip. In order to enhance the ISO sensitivity, the gain of the imager is increased in increments, such as +1, +2, etc. This is comparable to turning up the volume on your television or audio player. The greater the volume, the more hiss or noise there is. Similarly, when the camera's gain is increased, the image's noise becomes more apparent, and so the noise is higher.
The "ISO" settings 1600 and 3200. To control noise in digital photography, noise reduction technologies have been created to combat this issue.
■ WB indication This may display as a little icon, such as a cloud or a light bulb, signifying the white balance setting or Auto mode setting for the camera. This topic will be discussed in greater depth later in the chapter.
File extension indicator Wonder what SHQ, HQ, and TIFF stand for? These indicate the type of file being saved by the camera. The picture compression standard JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) is supported by the majority of point-and-shoot cameras. In addition, cameras typically supply raw files, and a number of manufacturers no longer offer TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) support. SHQ represents Super High Quality, while HQ represents High Quality. Each of these file types contains photos with distinct dimensions and capabilities.
Understanding MAPS Settings When examining the controls of a camera, you may notice a dial with the options M, A, P, and S. (MAPS). Is this a compass instrument? Nope. M allows you to control the settings manually, A is for aperture priority, S for shutter priority, and P for program mode. They are all rather simple to use, so let's examine them.
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Manual mode is frequently chosen by photography enthusiasts, advanced amateurs, and professionals. In this mode, you have complete control over the camera. You must understand the fundamentals of exposure in order to use this setting effectively. Modern cameras all have built-in meters, and Manual is one mode in which you will use the meter rigorously. You set the shutter speed and aperture based on the meter and then fire the camera.
Aperture priority mode is a semi-automatic mode that enables you to select the aperture (the f-stops) while the camera determines the appropriate shutter speed. Numerous professionals I know frequently utilize this setting. You may control the depth of field, which is influenced directly by the aperture. The greater the lens aperture, the greater the depth of field created in photographs. For example, if you are photographing Aunt Martha in a field of flowers and you want the flowers in the foreground to be in focus, the more you "stop down" the aperture, the more in focus will be the flowers closer to the camera as well as those on the opposite side of Aunt Martha. When viewing through the camera's viewfinder, the display will indicate the shutter speed and aperture. The shutter speed consists of the numbers 1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, and 1/1000. The aperture, or f-stops, will appear as f2, f2.8, f4, f5.6, f8, f11, f16, and f22. These figures indicate the actual size of the opening through which light enters the camera.
The length of the blades of a lens is proportional to the length of that lens. The greater the number, the more tightly the lens is closed and the deeper the depth of field.
Each f-stop doubles or halves the amount of light that strikes the digital chip. Additionally, broader lenses offer a greater depth of field than telephoto lenses. Consider photographs you may have seen in Sports Illustrated of a receiver leaping for the ball as the background is out of focus. These photographs are obtained with extremely long lenses, frequently with the aperture wide open or adjusted to a lesser value. Look a little further for a full explanation of depth of field.
The Program mode allows the camera to choose the optimal shutter speed and aperture. Other parameters, including ISO and white balance, are frequently under your control.
Shutter priority setting permits you to manually slow down the shutter speed. You have control over the shutter speed and can delegate the f-stop and aperture settings to the camera. This enables you to slow down the shutter speed, for example to 1/60, in order to track and photograph a runner passing by, creating a cool blurred background while keeping the subject in great focus. This is an effective method for conveying motion in a static shot. Set the shutter speed to around 1/1000 of a second.
Because the blades are not moving, a shot of a helicopter flying overhead will make it appear as though it is ready to crash.
Additional Shooting Modes
Designers of contemporary digital cameras have realized that many of their clients do not want to deal with the apparent complexity of the controls outlined thus far; therefore, they have introduced scene modes. These settings optimize the camera for the photography style represented by the icon.
My Mode/Custom, or anything similar, allows you to create and save specific camera settings for future use. You can use this setting, for instance, to create a shortcut for switching to black-and-white mode or a higher ISO (to be able to shoot in lower light).
The picture of a movie camera indicates that the camera is in movie mode. Numerous cameras provide a movie mode that may record MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) video. The duration of a movie is restricted because the sensor generates heat as the current is transferred through the circuitry. The incorporation of high-definition (HD) video capabilities into still cameras is a rising industry trend.
Landscape mode is represented by a mountain image. This option optimizes the camera's settings for maximum depth of field, sharpening the foreground and background equally. Be alert,
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Mode indicator
However, if the photo is taken at dusk or in other low-light settings, the shutter speed will decrease and you should consider using a tripod.
Numerous cameras tailor the color settings to favor blues and greens, assuming that you are photographing nature.
Sports mode is typically represented by a running person icon. In order to "freeze" motion in the image, the camera will set the exposure by increasing the shutter speed to its maximum level and exposing the scene.
Portrait mode is represented by an image of a human head. The camera will automatically adjust the aperture to reduce the depth of field, blurring the backdrop. This will distinguish the topic against a "soft" background. Try to zoom out the lens and fill the frame with the subject, as the closer you are and the wider the lens aperture, the shallower the depth of field will be.
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Night mode is represented by a crescent moon and/or a star. The camera will operate at slower rates than usual, allowing you to photograph San Francisco at night and catch fine details. Typically, this can be used with flash, so that both the flash-illuminated foreground and background will have perfect exposure, resulting in a more engaging photograph. I frequently observe individuals taking flash photographs of persons in the front while using the Auto or Program modes, which do not properly adjust for the backdrop. The resulting image resembles a person floating in a sea of black because the camera exposes for the flash but sets a shutter speed, possibly 1/60, that does not expose the backdrop adequately. Frequently, this option will also adjust for "hot pixels" that appear in certain long exposures. Due to the heat buildup in the chip caused by a lengthy exposure, these hot pixels appear as bright spots in your photograph. In actuality, the camera will make a "second" exposure, identical to the first but capturing only black, to diminish or eliminate the effects of the extended exposure. Quite cool.
Landscape and Portrait modes are typically represented by a mountain and a face variant. This will keep both the foreground and backdrop in sharp focus, so both the person in the foreground and the area behind will be clear. This is accomplished by decreasing the aperture to increase the depth of field.
I frequently hear amateurs discuss decreasing quality to fit more images on a memory card.
a card. Why would you get a 10 to 24-megapixel camera if you're not going to utilize the large, gorgeous chip? The price of CompactFlash cards and other media is falling, and you will never be able to raise the quality of that small file you shot in order to take more pictures. What if you take a once-in-a-lifetime photo with a camera set to collect 640 480 images? You can never print anything larger than a wallet-sized image.
Image Sizes: Two Different Chips
10MB Camera
Smallest JPEG
Approximately 0.1MB Medium-quality JPEG 5.3MB
Optimal quality JPEG 6.8MB
Raw 11MB
22MB Camera
Smallest JPEG 2.2MB
Medium quality JPEG 11MB
Highest quality JPEG 21MB
Raw 21MB
When capturing the same image with different chip sizes, the image quality varies.
Eventually, the camera industry must "put an end to the madness" of the megapixel race. I have printed wonderful 30-by-40-inch photographs from a 5-megapixel camera; however, if you are a business photographer who shoots images for billboards, you may require the most recent and highest-resolution megapixel equipment. These enormous files have a negative influence on storage, requiring you to purchase additional storage space and significantly slowing down your editing program. However, if your shooting percentage is 98
% of the market and a 16 20 print is the end objective, a 10 to 14 megapixel camera (a DSLR) will be more than adequate. Be aware that not all megapixels are created equal: a 10 megapixel point-and-shoot camera with a smaller sensor and smaller pixels to fill that smaller space will not produce a picture of the same quality as a full frame or four thirds camera (camera with a 4:3 aspect ratio) with a larger sensor.
A high-quality JPEG will enough, as a general rule, unless you're aiming for extremely high-quality reproduction or printing. TIFFs are often four to five times larger than JPEGs, yet suffer none of the compression issues that plague JPEGs. Every time you open a JPEG image, make a modification, then save that change, the file quality degrades and information is lost; this is not the case with a TIFF.
A raw file consists primarily of raw data. The white balance, sharpness, and other camera processing parameters do not apply to this file type. The raw format most closely resembles an undeveloped color negative that may be redeveloped until satisfaction is reached, and thus provides you the most control over your image. When viewing a raw file in a raw converter for the first time, a photographer will grasp the potential of this file type: many corrections are accessible, allowing the image to be rectified to near perfection.