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One of the most basic controls to master in a camera is exposure. It will allow you to determine how your photograph will look in terms of technicality or creativity. There are two major factors to consider. We discuss them briefly today.
Aperture
Aperture allows one to control the depth-of-field in an image.
Light will essentially reach the aperture opening before it gets captured on the sensor. Just like our pupils, the aperture controls how much light it will restrict or allow to pass through.
More importantly, the choice of aperture allows a shooter to control the depth-of-field in a given picture.
Depth of field, to the uninitiated, refers to the appreciable area of sharpness in front of and behind the subject that the lens is focused on
Manipulating depth of field is something that enables the creative use of contrasting focus sharpness between the subject, foreground and background.
The diagram above will visually explain how aperture works. Aperture is described in F-Stops.
For example an f4 to f2.8 setting is a single-stop brighter whilst an f5.6 to f8 is a single-stop darker. The light transition gradient in the diagram will also indicate the levels of brightness.
Depth-of-field is explained through the use of symbols in the diagram.
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| High depth of field and shallow depth of field (below). |
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You’ll notice the sharpness of an image increases as the aperture increases. An f2.8 DoF has significant “bokeh” or blurring, usually between foreground and background with the subject having a very narrow range of sharpness in a particular area.
In a stark contrast, an f8 DoF will look very differently as the range of objects would appear generally sharp throughout.
Tips & Tricks
For most still photography of cars, you can generally start with an f5.6 Aperture setting.
For group shots of cars or when the entire car’s bodywork needs to be in focus, use a higher f8 and above aperture setting.
Stylistic interpretations would typically use extremely shallow DoF settings.
Shutter Speed
To understand how shutter speed works, imagine that your camera’s shutter is like a set of window blinds.
When you take a picture, the shutter speed then determines how long the sensor is exposed to the light.
Naturally, the longer the shutter is opened, the brighter the photo becomes.
The light transition visual in the diagram above should succinctly demonstrate the brightness again.
Shutter speed is described in stops/exposure.
For example, a 1/2 exposure is one-stop brighter than a 1/15 exposure, whilst a 1/250 exposure is one-stop darker than a 1/125 exposure setting.
Shutter speed is used primarily in motor-sports or high-speed action where the object remains in focus and the foreground/background looks defocused.
This gives the image a sense of speed.
Rig/motion shoots also utilise long-exposure settings for that effect.
Fast shutter speeds on the other hand are used on bright daylight(inversely underexposed conditions with flash support) or to freeze high-speed action.
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| Slow shutter speed. |
Tips & Tricks - Most handheld shots will range between 1/60 and 1/160 shutter speeds depending on the time of day. Use a tripod for a sharper focus and creative interpretations with long/multiple exposures.
Balancing act
Determine how your photo will look beforehand with a combination of aperture and shutter speed settings using a basic inverse relationship.
Put simply, if you increase the aperture by a stop, balance the photo by reducing shutter speed by an exposure stop down and vice versa.
Next, fine-tune the image by adjusting the aperture/shutter speed settings to suit your application. Give it a try and watch your photos start to improve.
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| High shutter speed. |