Camera Operation

Camera Operation
Focusing
Setting and Understanding Exposure

Why use different Shutter Speeds and Apertures. All photos in this presentation were taken by and are © Drew Loker, www.drewloker.com , unless otherwise noted. However, please feel free to distribute freely this presentation as long as the photo credits stay intact.

Camera Handling

Even a monkey knows how to hold a camera.

Exposure Setting the exposure is like filling a bucket: How much you open the valve is going to determine how long it takes to fill.

Closing the aperture is going to make the exposure time longer.

Exposure

Getting the Right Exposure
Sometimes the lighting is so hard to deal with, you have to use extreme measures, like an umbrella to diffuse the lighting.
Each of the pictures presented in this slide show are examples of difficult lighting.

Different Focusing Grids
Cameras # 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 19 have a Split Field Focusing
Split Field: Horizontal Clear Matte Fresnal: Get the center area sharp. Split Field: Diagonal

5 Types of Meter Conditions of the Pentax k1000
Good
Bad
Dead
Dumb
Broken
* While some of the details in this presentation apply mainly to older cameras, like the k1000, the concepts of proper meter reading apply to the most advanced cameras on the market.

Good Exposure
Put the needle in the middle.
As you move the camera, the needle will react to the brightness of the various light and dark images.
The scene should be evenly lit for the best exposure reading.

Silhouettes
Any time you have the sun in your picture, you are going to have a tough exposure.

3 Types of Meters
Matrix – uses 5 or more zones and averages. Good for off center subjects.
Center Weighted – uses the same pattern as the Matrix, but puts more wieght in the center
Spot Meter – usually uses a smaller center than the center of the matrix or center area.

Various Sensor Patterns

Sensor Scene Recognition

K1000 Meter
Picture of an actual meter INSIDE, on the right, of a k1000
Other models will vary greatly on this…but work on the same principal.

Good Exposure, Maybe
The Pentax k1000 is easily tricked:
60% of the exposure is from the small center area of the screen.
40% is from the rest of the viewfinder.

Good Exposure vs. Dead Battery
The meter reading will be the same for both a GOOD reading and a DEAD battery.
A properly working meter MAY move up and down as it is pointed at different lighting.
A DEAD battery will have a needle stuck in the center.

Bad Meter Reading, Maybe
If the needle is DOWN…there may be TOO LITTLE light.
If the needle is UP…there may be TOO MUCH light.

Shutter Speed + Aperture = Exposure
Just because the METER reads correctly does NOT mean that you have a useful exposure
The meter MAY be in the middle with
1/2 @ f/22 - WAY too slow of a shutter. This is the most common source of errors (too slow of shutter).
1/1000 @ f/2 - lens would be at extreme edge of opening…resulting in soft corners and other lens challenges.
Ideal exposure is 1/250 @ f/8.

Sunny f/16 Rule
Assuming a sunny day, @ ISO 100, your exposure should be:
1/125 @ f/16
The Equivalent Exposures (EE) are
f/22 @1/60
f/11 @ 1/250
f/8 @ 1/500
f/5.6 @ 1/1000
f/4 @ 1/2000
As you increase the light by opening the aperture, you have to decrease the light by speeding up the shutter. More light Less light

Common Base Exposures
Your exposure should be (average):
Location Exposure ISO
Sunny day 1/125 @ f/16 100
Indoors in V61 1/60 @ f/2 400
Indoors in V61 1/15 @ f/2 100
F Hall (near doors) 1/125 @ f2 400
G Hall (dark halls) 1/30 @ f/2 400
G Hall 1/8 @ f/2 100
For the last 30 years, ISO 400 was pretty much the “fastest” (most sensitive) ISO rating you would want to use. In the last year, technology improvements allow for useful ISO ratings of 800, 1600…and even 3200 and 6400 on advanced cameras. The maximum sensor sensitivity will surely increase in the future.

EE vs. Bracketing
EE is SAME exposure…with variation on the SS or Aperture:
1/125 @ f/16
1/250 @ f/11
Bracketing is a CHANGE in exposure…by changing one of the variables.
f/16 @1/500 -2 Stops
f/11 @ 1/500 -1 Stop
f/8 @ 1/500 Metered Exposure
f/5.6 @ 1/500 + 1 Stop
f/4 @ 1/500 + 2 Stops
As you increase the light by opening the aperture, you have to decrease the light by speeding up the shutter. More light Less light

Exposure Slider
Each number represents a FULL STOP
Moving left or right represents either 50% LESS light…or 100% MORE light.
IOW, you are either DOUBLING or HALVING your light.
Question: Moving from left to right on the Shutter does what to the amount of light?

Exposure Slider, Outdoors, ISO 100

Exposure Slider, Indoors, 100 ISO

Exposure Slider, Indoors, 400 ISO

Loading Film
http://scphoto.com/html/loading.html

Grand Teton Morning

The Camera is only as Smart as the Photographer 1/125 @ f/8 1/15 @ f/8 Left: Good sky Exposure. Right: Good Skins Tones…shirt blown out.

Except for the new SMART cameras…then it is as smart as the people in FRONT of the camera.  1/320 @ f/4.5 with fill flash Here the camera balanced the background with enough fill flash to expose for the foreground. Photo by Aimee Loker

Using Exposure Compensation Program and Automatic Exposure Modes do a pretty good job when the subject is evenly lit. But when the subject is off center…or much darker/bright than the back ground, you have to use the Manual exposure mode…or dial +/- Exposure Compensation.

Using Exposure Compensation But which is correct? Depends on what you are looking for? Maybe you want a silhouette. Exposure Compensation is when you CHANGE the base exposure increasing or decreasing the total amount of light.

Using Equivalent Exposure Equivalent Exposure (EE) is different than Exposure Compensation. EE is when you keep the SAME total amount of light…but change the variables to either stop or blur motion, or control your depth of field.

Using Equivalent Exposure Long Exposures allow for creative control. Left: 4 sec exposure allowed for people to blur as the walked through the image. Right: 2 sec exp. Allowed for zooming while exposing. 4 sec @ f/10, 38mm 2.2 sec @ f/10, 112mm

Beach Ghost
A special effect filter was used to produce a LONG 15 sec exposure in bright sun for my wife to stand for 8 seconds…then walk out of the picture.

EE and ISO 1.4 2.8 1/125 1/60 1/30 1/15 1/8 1/4 1/2 4 1/8 1/4 1/2 1 5.6 2 8 4 11 8 16 16 22 12k 6400 3200 1600 800 400 200 100

Depth of Field - DOF 3 Ways to Control
Aperture
F/2 - shallow DOF
F/22 - deep DOF
Subject to camera distance
Close Up = Shallow DOF
Far away = Deep DOF
Focal Length
Wide (18mm) = Deep DOF
Tele (200mm) = Shallow DOF

Conclusion
Be smarter than your camera…know what light you are pointing your camera.
The meter is designed to read AVERAGE light.
If you have a bright object in your view finder, the meter is going to indicate that you have too much light…but you may be ok.
If there are a lot of shadows, the meter may read in the negative end…but you may be ok.

Credits
http://scphoto.com/Notes/Day_11/sld007.htm

Camera Operation

by Drew Loker on Oct 22, 2008

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Camera Operation — Presentation Transcript