This slide show is still in the rough stages...but I wanted to put it on-line.

1. Camera Operation
• Focusing
• Understanding and
Setting Exposure

2. Copyright Notice
• Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike CC BY-NC-SA
• This presentation is for educational purposes only. No money is being made
and is provided with similar allowances for other educators
to use for non-profit, educational purposes.
• Images are from various sources, including many of my own.
If you would like to high res images I have shot, please visit
www.DrewLoker.com for various work online.
• If you are the original author of any of the samples, pictures, text, etc.
please let me know if you object to the usage and I will
remove your material promptly.
Photo by Drew Loker

3. Why use different Shutter Speeds and Apertures.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.

4. Camera Handling
Camera Handling

5. Good pictures start with a steady shot. Be a rock!

6. Remember, even a monkey knows how to hold a camera.

7. 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.

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

9. Components of Exposure

10. 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.

11. 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.

12. Not to be confused with Different Focusing Grids
Split Field: Horizontal
Clear Matte Fresnal: Get the center area sharp.
Split Field: Diagonal
• Cameras # 8,
10, 12, 13, 15,
19 have a Split
Field Focusing

13. Various Sensor Patterns

14. Sensor Scene Recognition

15. 5 Types of Meter Conditions
of the
Pentax k1000
1. Good
2. Bad
3. Dead
4. Dumb
5. 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.

16. 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.

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

18. 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.

19. 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.

20. 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.

21. 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.

22. 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.

23. 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/16 @1/125
– 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

24. 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.

25. 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

26. Exposure Bracketing
• Place the camera on a tripod.
• Meter the scene and take a
picture to get a good overall
exposure.
• Then, increase to +1 on the
exposure compensation. This
will make for a brighter picture.
• Then repeat for +2, -2 and -2.
• If your camera has -/+3 or
more, shoot those as well.
+ 2
+ 1
0
- 1
- 2

27. + 2 + 1
0
- 1- 2

28. HDR Merge – Blending Highlights and Shadows

29. HDR Merge – Blending Highlights and Shadows

30. HDR Merge – Blending Highlights and Shadows

31. • Taking 3 shots at different exposures (or5, 7, or9)
- 1 stop Normal exposure + 1 stop
• Bracket can be set in 1/3, ½ or1 stop increments
• Exposure range can be set to –2 to +2 stops (oreven +5 or-5)
Exposure Bracketing

32. 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?

33. Exposure Slider, Outdoors, ISO 100

34. Exposure Slider, Indoors, 100 ISO

35. Exposure Slider, Indoors, 400 ISO

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

37. Minimum
shutter speed
varies
depending on
the subject

38. Parallax
Error

39. Grand Teton
Morning

40. 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.

41. 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

42. 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.

43. 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.

44. 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

45. 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

46. 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.

49. ISO Options

50. Ranges of various Digital Cameras
Canon A85
• 50
• 100
• 200
• 400
Pentax 100d
• 100
• 200
• 400
• 800
• 1600
• 3200
Nikon D3
• 200
• 400
• 800
• 1600
• 3200
• 6400
• 12800
• 25600
Nikon D40
• 100
• 200
• 400
• 800
• 1600

51. S +/-
AWB

52. EE and ISO
100 200 400 800 1600 3200 6400 12k
22 16”
16 8”
11 4”
8 2”
5.6 1”
4 ½ ¼ 1/8 1/15 1/30 1/60 1/125
2.8
1.4

53. EE and ISO
100 200 400 800 1600 3200 6400 12k
22 16” 8” 4” 2” 1” ½ ¼ 1/8
16 8” 4” 2” 1” ½ ¼ 1/8 1/15
11 4” 2” 1” ½ ¼ 1/8 1/15 1/60
8 2” 1” ½ ¼ 1/8 1/15 1/30 1/60
5.6 1” ½ ¼ 1/8 1/15 1/30 1/60 1/125
4 ½ ¼ 1/8 1/15 1/30 1/60 1/125 1/250
2.8
1.4

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

57. 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.

58. Credits
• http://scphoto.com/Notes/Day_11/sld007.htm
• http://zxm.tripod.com/zxm_test.html