Camera Specifics

Aperture Size - Deals with the amount of light let in. Acts a lot like our retinas.
  • The larger the aperture, the more shallow the DOF (Depth of Field)-
    • End result - only one portion of image may be focused, the rest is blurred
  • The smaller the aperture, the deeper the DOF
    • End result - more of the image is sharp and defined within a certain limit.

Shutter Speed - Deals with the amount of time the light of an
                               image  is exposed to the Recording medium.
  • Can Range from 1/8000th of a second, to 2+ whole seconds of exposure.
  • More exposure - More vibrant colors, but anything that moved will have blur
  • Less exposure - Crisp no-blur picture, but image may be less vibrant
  • Watch video from 0:50 until 3:50 to see this for yourself!

ISO - Deals with how sensitive the sensor is
  • Lower ISO - sensor needs more exposure
  • Higher ISO - Sensor need less exposure

Resolution - Deals with the number of pixels each axis of an image
  • Common Standards:  144p, 240p, 480p, 720p SD, 1080p HD
  • Today there is also 4k(Ultra High Def.) Capability for cameras

Auto Focus

Auto focus has made taking a picture much easier. The old way of twisting a lens is not needed anymore (unless you have a professional camera). For the basic camera that a consumer can buy at the store or the camera that is on all our smart phones, auto focus is included.
There are three methods that can be used for auto focus. 
  1. Sonar - usage of sound to determine the distance of what object is in the camera view.
  2. IR lasers - using the infrared lasers to determine the distance and focus needed on the object.
  3. Image contrast - measuring contrast within sensor field, does not involve distance but uses the light of object to determine                                      focus

Auto focus is a great and useful tool.but can be a pain at times. At times it may be focusing on an object that you may not want it to. it may focus on the closer object although you intended for it to focus on a object that was further away.

EXIF (Exchangeable File Format)

Picture
Most digital cameras save images as JPEG files, along with the photo there is much more information that is saved,automatically information is stored along with the photo.
(Excangeable Image Format (EXIF))
There is information about the camera and photo included in the file.
The information is saved so it is easier to tell what was going on throughout the shot.
For example, it allows you to view the settings that were used even if they were not manually set.

  3 ways EXIF can be used:                                                                                                          
  1. If you are into photography you can see what someone else’s settings were like when their shot was taken. (Flickr.com)
  2. You can see what settings you used for the shot without manually recording what was done. 
  3. if something is wrong with your camera than it is easier to see where it went wrong using the EXIF information.
 
  GPS LOCATION
    As many people may know, location settings on cameras and especially phones can be used for many things.
  • Using location on a phone or camera can be DANGEROUS
  • When a photo is posted on social media (Facebook) the EXIF is wiped out. 
  • There is possibility that someone may be able to see your location if the location settings are on.
 So upload your photos with caution knowing that there is more information uploaded than you want people to know.