Photography — How do I get started? — Part 2 (the concept)
In this article, I will take you through the technical concept of how a camera works by knowing the basic elements of photography. Understanding this helped me a lot in operating my camera.
With this understanding, we will also see the differences between a DSLR camera and a mirrorless camera which would give us a perspective on each type of camera.
The Elements of Photography
The Light
Photography is the art of capturing light. Light is what makes an image possible. Without light, there would be no image.
The Sensor
The camera sensor is a sensitive piece of equipment that captures the light and turns it into an image. The sensor is made up of millions of tiny photo-sensitive cells. These cells are what capture the light and turn it into an electrical signal. The electrical signal is then sent to the camera’s computer, which interprets the signal and turns it into an image.
The sensor capacity is measured by the number of pixels. A pixel is a single point in an image. The more pixels there are, the more detail the image will have.
The cover image used above for this article shows the sensor of a mirrorless camera.
The Lens
The lens is what focuses the light onto the sensor. The lens is made up of a series of glass elements that bend the light as it passes through them. The lens focuses the light onto the sensor, which captures the light and turns it into an image.
The focal length of the lens is the distance from the lens to the sensor. The focal length determines the field of view of the lens. A shorter focal length (wide-angle lens) will capture a wider field of view, while a longer focal length (telephoto lens) will capture a narrower field of view.
The Aperture
The aperture is a hole in the lens that allows light to pass through to the sensor. The size of the aperture (which is controllable) determines how much light is allowed to pass through the lens and onto the sensor.
Aperture is measured by ƒ-stop numbers. The lower the ƒ-stop number, the larger the aperture. For example, ƒ/2.8 is a larger aperture than ƒ/5.6. Here ƒ is the focal length of the lens used while taking the picture.
The aperture also affects the depth of field, which is the amount of the image that is in focus. A large aperture (small number) will result in a shallow depth of field, which means that only a small part of the image will be in focus. A small aperture (large number) will result in a deep depth of field, which means that most of the image will be in focus.
The Shutter
The shutter is a curtain that covers the sensor. When the shutter is open, light can reach the sensor and an image can be captured. When the shutter is closed, light is blocked from reaching the sensor and no image can be captured.
The shutter speed is the amount of time that the shutter is open. A longer shutter speed will result in more light reaching the sensor, which will result in a brighter image. A shorter shutter speed will result in less light reaching the sensor, which will result in a darker image.
Shutter speed usually ranges from 1/8000th of a second to 30 sec. The longer this duration, the more light gets captured by the sensor.
There is a bulb mode in the camera to have the shutter open for as long as you hold it. There are also accessories like remotes available to open and close the shutter with button clicks.
The ISO
ISO is a measure of the sensitivity of the sensor. A higher ISO setting will result in a sensor that is more sensitive to light, which will result in a brighter image. A lower ISO setting will result in a sensor that is less sensitive to light, which will result in a darker image.
ISO is typically measured in numbers such as 100, 200, 400, etc.
The ISO also affects the noise in the image. A high ISO will result in more noise in the image. A low ISO will result in less noise in the image.
The White Balance
The white balance is the setting that determines how the camera interprets the color of light.
Different lighting conditions will require different white balance settings. For example, a picture taken indoors under fluorescent lights will require a different white balance setting than a picture taken outdoors in sunlight.
The white balance can be set to auto, which means that the camera will automatically adjust the white balance for the current lighting conditions. The white balance can also be set manually.
The Exposure Triangle
The exposure triangle is the relationship between the three main settings that control the exposure of an image: aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. The exposure triangle shows how these three settings work together to create an image.
Aperture, shutter speed, and ISO all work together to create an image. The aperture controls the amount of light that passes through the lens and onto the sensor. Shutter speed controls the amount of time that the shutter is open, which determines how much light reaches the sensor. ISO controls the sensitivity of the sensor.
The exposure triangle shows how these three settings work together to create an image. Aperture, shutter speed, and ISO all affect the exposure of an image. Changing one setting will require the other two settings to be changed to maintain the same exposure.
For example, if the aperture is increased, the shutter speed must be decreased to maintain the same exposure. If the shutter speed is increased, the aperture must be decreased to maintain the same exposure. If the ISO is increased, the aperture and shutter speed must be decreased to maintain the same exposure.
The exposure triangle is a relationship between the three main settings that control the exposure of an image: aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. The exposure triangle shows how these three settings work together to create an image.
DSLR vs mirrorless
How does a DSLR camera work?
When a shutter button is pressed, the mirror flips up. This allows the image sensor to be exposed to the light coming through the lens. The image sensor is a sensitive surface that converts light into electrical energy. The image sensor sends the electrical energy to the camera’s computer. The camera’s computer processes the electrical energy into an image. Once the image is processed, the mirror flips back down. It is reflected by the pentaprism in the viewfinder. The image is seen through the viewfinder.
Hence the name, Digital Single Lens Reflex (DSLR). It uses a mirror and a prism system to reflect the image onto the viewfinder.
How does a Mirrorless camera work?
A mirrorless camera does not have a reflex mirror or pentaprism. Because of that feature, the image sensor is always exposed to light. When the shutter button is pressed, the image sensor is activated. It sends the electrical energy to the camera’s computer. The camera’s computer processes the electrical energy into an image. The image is seen on the LCD screen and also on the electronic viewfinder. The size of mirrorless is also smaller because there is no need for a reflex mirror and a pentaprism.
DSLR cameras have been the traditional choice for professional photographers. But mirrorless cameras are becoming more popular because they are lighter, smaller, and offer features that DSLR cameras don’t have.
Conclusion
That’s it for Step 2. So we understood the basic elements of photography are the light, the sensor, the lens, the aperture, the shutter, the ISO, and the white balance. All these elements work together to create an image. And a professional camera gives us better control over these elements so that we can play around with them and be more creative in capturing moments of life.
Now that you know the basics of photography, it’s time to put them into practice. Get your camera out and start taking some pictures! Experiment with the different settings, and combinations and see what effects you can create. Visually understand how the image shapes up with each change.
Feel free to follow me on medium to go through the journey of photography step-by-step. I plan to cover interesting photography basics and deeper concepts in the upcoming articles.
You can check out the photos I’ve clicked on my Instagram page. You can follow this page too if you like the content:
https://www.instagram.com/hemanth.vaddi/
Plan for the next article
In the next article, let us pause the theoretical definitions, and learn how to use our cameras to play with light by adjusting the aperture, the shutter, the ISO, and the white balance.
