Peter West Carey Photography

Category: Learning

Photography Jargon – Photography Basics
Whew! You survived all three aspects of the Exposure Triangle so let’s take it easy today and go over words and phrases common to photography.

Photography Jargon

This is not in any order because we artistic types often can’t handle linearity nor chronology. These definitions, as they are, are intended for those wanting a simple grasp of new words. Of course Wikipedia will get you much longer, referenced definitions.
- Aperture– Please tell me you know what this is by now. It’s the set of blades near the rear of your lens that close down, like your eye’s pupil, to give a greater depth of focus to the scene.
- ASA – It’s second because it comes after Aperture alphabetically. It stands for American Standards Association and was the standard by which 100 speed film and 200 speed film, etc… was measured and manufactured. It was a standard so you know 100 ASA only needs to be exposed for X amount of hours. Standards are good in this case.
- ISO – International Standards Organization. This may be the only time in the history of the USA that we switched to a better, international standard. ASA became ISO so in a realistic consumer term, they are the same thing.
- Shutter – It’s that thing right before the camera sensor that holds out light and then only lets a precise amount in depending on what the camera is set to. See pretty drawings here.
- Electronic Shutter – Same as above, but not a physical thing. It’s the effective scanning of the camera sensor at a given rate. Prevalent in smartphones, drones, action cameras and mirrorless cameras.
- Curtain – Take a look at that last pretty drawing. There are two per shutter and they hold out the light.
- Element – These are the glass, acrylic and other pieces of focusing material in the lens itself. Unlike the telescopes of old, your lens does not consist of just one front lens and a rear lens. Sometimes there are 25 elements making up a lens, all set to help shape and focus light.
- Pentaprism – Check out the drawing. It bounces light so you can see it in a DSLR eyepiece right side up.
- Hyperfocal – This one has some math, but in essence it is a prime focus point where the maximum amount of objects, near to far, are in focus in an image. It depends on aperture and focal length of the lens.
- Monopod – This is a single legged tripod. It’s lighter and sometimes comes as a hiking stick. It is handy because it is more maneuverable than a full tripod. Check out the photographers on the sidelines of most sports events and a lot will have one because they are great for supporting weight and making the camera a bit more steady.
  Couple sitting near campfire – USA – Washington – Bellingham
- Tripod – A three legged monopod. A nice steady platform to shoot from and great for portrait, landscape and many other forms of photography.
- f-stop – Ack, this one has tons of math. Ignoring that, it is the number given to a certain amount of closure of the aperture. Shutter speed and ISO are nice with their 1/60, 1/30 and 100, 200 to show doubling or halving the amount of light (or sensitivity to light) but when the aperture closes down, it’s not linearly numbered. Just remember, the bigger the number, the lesser the light. Horrible English, but you’ll now remember it.
- stop – A measurement of the amount of light available for a photo. Moving from one stop to another is either halving or doubling the amount of light available.
- Flash card – See Memory Card.
- Memory card – A card for storing images. They often go by the configuration name, such as SDXC, MicroSD, Compact Flash, MicroDrive (remember those things? They were so HUGE at the time), MMC and others. An umbrella term.
- Library Card – Used for finding other great, free photography resources. You can even find a library online.
- Polarizer/Polarizing Lens – Cool lens that can block out light that is not coming from a primary source, such as the sun. It does this because, well, let’s just call it magic for now. Just know that it can do a great job of blocking light coming in at 90 degrees from the source when it is lower in the sky. This will cut reflections in certain glass, off of water and even glare from things like foliage. Get one and try it!
  A woman watches another woman cross a river on a Tyrolean traverse with just ropes and a harness
- Neutral Density (ND) Filter – This is like sunglasses for your camera. It will decrease the amount of light available by a given amount of stops, depending on which you buy. It can be handy when you want a longer shutter speed than is achievable by a maximum aperture. We’ll be covering this topic in the future.
- Graduated Neutral Density Filter – Even doper than the ND filter because it goes from an area of high density on one end and gradually moves to clear on the other end. Very handy in tricky situations. We’ll also be talking about these in the future.
- Diopter – This is a little wheel next to the view finder. Need glasses? The diopter might make it so things look in focus without them, when viewed through the view finder. Check out my post on the topic here.
  Close-up of a man sitting with his legs crossed – USA – Colorado
- Focal Length – This is the length of your lens, as measure from the front element to the rear element. Bigger number, longer lens, more zoomability. It’s a real word.
- RAW- The type of image file which results in the largest amount of data being available for post processing.
- JPEG – A compression technique to make RAW images smaller by throwing out certain information. Widely used and most of your smartphone pictures are JPEG.
- Post-Process – This is all the stuff you do to an image after it has been transferred into your computer. It’s the editing, sizing, fiddling and adjusting. It is a general term and covers a broad scope of activities.
- Histogram – The little graph next to the image in your camera, or maybe in your post-processing software. It shows the intensity of light (and color) distribution across the dynamic range of your sensor. Yep, we’ll cover this soon.
  View of Swayambhunath stupa – Nepal
- Dynamic Range – The amount of stops a certain image represents or a sensor can handle.
- Prime Lens – A lens with no zoom and a set focal length (e.g. 50mm)
- Zoom Lens – A lens with a range of focal lengths (e.g. 70mm-200mm)
- Image Stabilization – A feature on certain lenses which attempts to reduce blur caused by camera shake while hand holding. As much as 1-2 stops of speed can be had by using this technology.
- Mirrorless – Like a DSLR but without the R(eflex). These cameras tend to be smaller and lighter. Some have fixed lenses and some have interchangeable lenses. I carry a small Sony mirrorless camera on family trips and leave the bulky stuff behind, while still being able to take crisp, high resolution images.
- HDR – It stands for High Dynamic Range and means the sensor is trying to exposure properly for both the really bight areas and really dark areas and even make them closer to how our human eye sees them.
I will be adding to this list as the last of the posts come out. And when things pop into my head. Want something added? Drop me a comment below and I’ll do my best to make a credible answer.

Tomorrow’s Topic: Metering Mode: How Your Camera Sees Light

Questions? Pop ’em like Pez in the comments section below. or email me at peter@peterwestcarey.com.

Photography Basics – A 43 Day Adventure, and its companion 40 Photography Experiments, are series written by professional photographer Peter West Carey. The series are designed to unravel the mysteries of photography, helping you can take better pictures. Subscribe here to receive all the updates and bonus material. Your comments are always welcome.

If you enjoy the series, consider learning photography first-hand on a professionally led international photo tour in Nepal or Bhutan. More information can be found at Far Horizon Photo Tours.
October 10, 2018
And Then, ISO – Photography Basics

Shutter Speed and Aperture. Check!

ISO, The Sensitive Side of Exposure

When it comes to the last side of the Exposure Triangle; you need to be nice, because it’s sensitive. ISO is sensitive. REAL sensitive.

As a matter of fact, it is the only thing in your camera that handles the sensor’s sensitivity to light.

It works like this: Low ISO (50 or 100) is less sensitive to light and thus, needs more of it to make an exposure. As you move up the scale to 200, 400, 800, the sensor on your camera becomes more sensitive to light and needs less of it.

You might think this is awesome. Just jack up the ISO to 128,000 and shoot in the dark! Wahoo!

Your Camera’s Sensor, Up Close

Look, you’re camera is not a bunny and does not eat carrots (needed to get a bunny reference in). There is a consequence for being more sensitive to light; your sensor is more sensitive to noise as well. Let’s take a look at how a typical camera sensor collects light. I’ll try to make this easy.

Pretty, isn’t it? That’s the sensor in your camera, be it DSLR, smartphone, etc…. It is made up of all these dots. MILLIONS of them (that’s the Mega in Megapixel). This image is looking straight at the sensor and there are various patterns to these dots, it’s ever evolving. Let’s turn it on its side.

This is looking at the side a row. Over each actual light sensor is a color filter to only let in red, green or blue. Above that is a microlens to focus the light. Look at your keyboard and pick four keys in a box shape, 2×2. Now imagine 10-30+ million of these sensors in that space. Amazing, simply amazing.

How Does ISO Work on a Sensor?

Storm clouds churned up by Hurricane Irene unleash their power over Zihuatanejo Bay in Mexico.

Each sensor is energized with electricity to accept light and record when it is struck (when the shutter opens to let light hit it on a DSLR, or all the time on other devices). All of those sensors are energized. And that’s where the limits come in.

When set to a low sensitivity (ISO 100), there isn’t much current passing through the sensor area. This lack of sensitivity is overcome by letting in more light, either by a longer Shutter Speed or a fully open Aperture.

But when you adjust the ISO to around 400 or 800 something else starts to happen. That sensor area needs to become more energized to detect the lower level of light. As it becomes more and more energized, with electricity, every sensor gets so energized that little bits of electrical current get lose and starts to bug their neighbor.

Not only are the sensors sensitive to light, they are are sensitive to electrical current (as that is how they measure and transfer the light information). Think of this neighbor pestering as akin to static on a radio. If you run a blender while the radio is going (humor me and pretend you have an actual radio that still gets an analog signal) that electrical current can cause static on the radio. And a mean margarita.

Noise is Not Good

That ‘static’ causes noise when the camera computer gets all the info from every sensor and things aren’t 100% as they should be. There are a couple of types of noise and I’m not going to get into all of them.

Noise (not grain, like in the film days) is ugly, should be shunned and possible fed to wolves. Noise is caused be the increased sensitivity required to capture lower levels of light. And it captures the electrical interference from neighbor sensor. Remember your keyboard? 10-30+ MILLION of these suckers in that space. Not a lot of elbow room.

If you want an exhaustive study of noise, Leica has a great explanation and better diagrams.

Revenge of the Stops

Guess what we call the 50, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, etc… of the ISO scale? Stops. If you guessed it right you get a +50 bonus (oh yes, you get to keep score).

100 is twice as sensitive as 50. 200 is twice as sensitive as 100. Finally the math gets easy! This means 100 needs half as much light as 50 for the same exposure. Ha ha ha ha….you walked right into that one.

I know, 50 to 100 is twice as much, but it needs half as much light? That’s the way it goes. Here’s the last piece of the puzzle.

At ISO 3200 the images will be brighter than at ISO 100 (if you leave shutter speed and aperture the same). High ISOs are great for fast objects and capturing action. Lower ISOs are ideal for scenic shots as they will have less noise (and typically aren’t moving fast or at all).

How Much Is Too Much?

How much noise is ok for you is something you need to discover yourself. For me and my Canon 7D Mark II I’m ok with 1200 at times, but the lower the better. It also matters on the subject as dark solids can tend to show noise more readily than mixed light color areas. Try to use the lowest ISO you can for the most noise free images.

Let’s put them all together on one card.

You are welcome to download the image as long as it is only used for personal information. You may not do commercial things with it, post it on the internet without a link back here or do other things I do not like. Or print it to keep with you for reference sake. You may print an extra copy to send to your Mom. She called today and is wondering why you never write letters any more.

Some High ISO Noise Examples

Click on an example below to view them nice and large with all the ugly noise you would want.

Costa Rica – ISO 10,000

Phobjeka Valley – Bhutan – ISO 12,800

Smithsonian Museum – Washington, D.C. – ISO 51,200

Utah – Mesa Arch – Canyonlands National Park – ISO 12,800

What is your ISO limit? Is it 1600 or 6400 or what?

Here’s an experiment to help you learn your own limit from the comfort of your home: ISO Limits Of Your Camera

Wahoo! We’re Done With The Exposure Triangle!

And that is the end of the Exposure Triangle. Shutter Speed affects blur. Aperture affects Depth Of Field. ISO controls the overall sensor sensitivity to light. They all need to be in balance to make a proper exposure.

But not before a Pop Quiz!! How many stops of light difference is there between 1/60 f/8 ISO 400 and 1/15 f/8 ISO 100? And how many difference between 1/60 f/8 ISO 400 and 1/15 f/8 ISO 3200?

The answer will be revealed tomorrow.

Up Next: Photography Jargon

Questions? Pop ’em like Pez in the comments section below. or email me at peter@peterwestcarey.com.

Photography Basics – A 43 Day Adventure, and its companion 40 Photography Experiments, are series written by professional photographer Peter West Carey. The series are designed to unravel the mysteries of photography, helping you can take better pictures. Subscribe here to receive all the updates and bonus material. Your comments are always welcome.

If you enjoy the series, consider learning photography first-hand on a professionally led international photo tour in Nepal or Bhutan. More information can be found at Far Horizon Photo Tours.

October 9, 2018
What Is An Aperture? – Photography Basics
Welcome back from the weekend! As a refresher, we are starting in on the The Exposure Triangle and Friday started with Understanding Shutter Speed.

What is an Aperture?

Aperture affects Depth Of Field. Do you still hate math? You might hate it more after this. Check it out.

Yeah. That’s Depth Of Field (from Wikipedia). There’s also the Circle Of Confusion. And all that is likely to make your head spin, so let’s break it down to simple terms.

Getting back to yesterday’s diagram:

The aperture on a camera is actually located in the lens. It is behind all the elements (the pieces of glass or plastic in the lens that do the focusing of light) and closest to the camera.

Before light leaves the lens, it passes through the Aperture. Most Apertures are made up of a number of blades which effectively make a smaller and smaller hole for the light to pass through. Why? Because it will increase Depth Of Field as it does so. It looks, more or less, like this:

From left to right, the aperture is open, closing, closed as far as it will go.

Most smartphones and drones have a fixed Aperture, meaning you can’t change the value or close the Aperture. Although things are changing with those cameras. The same is true with action cameras, but most mirrorless cameras have an adjustable Aperture.

Let’s Diagram How Aperture Works

Now, it doesn’t actually block the field of view as it might seem, it’s blocking light that isn’t coming into focus at a given plane. Let me try a diagram.

Light comes from a source, let’s say the sun, hits the bunny and bounces into the camera lens. In this simple diagram, one element in the lens is then moved front to back to focus (just like a magnifying glass). That’s the Focusing Lens in the diagram. Focus means the light from the bunny hits the plane of the sensor evenly (front to back), in a two dimensional way.

Another horrible way to think of focus with a lens is frying ants with a magnifying glass. I know, it’s gross, but if the glass was too far away, the light would not be properly focused and no ants would be harmed.

In this diagram, the aperture is open all the way. This focus is only good for the bunny, for how far away the bunny is from the camera. The Bunny Plane™ if you will.

More Diagraming

If the bunny moves or the camera moves or the focus is changed, this happens.

Because the focal plane is not on the sensor and is way behind behind the camera, the bunny will be blurred. Bad for you and the bunny.

It’s a fact that you can only focus on one plane at a given distance with your lens. Maybe that bunny is 15 feet away. In the top diagram the focus was set to 15 feet. In the bottom one, maybe it was set to 20 feet and thus, the focal plane (Bunny Plane™ = focal plane) was off of the sensor.

IMPORTANT NOTE: ALL of the bunny light is still hitting the sensor. It is just hitting it while being focused on a plane past the sensor. If the light (in these diagrams) is not focused on the plane of the sensor, it is blurred.

Different Distances and Focal Planes

“Well then,” you may be asking, “how the heck do I get things in focus that are different distances away from the camera?”

Aperture! First let me show you what it looks like having different objects at different distances as the light comes into your camera.

The camera lens can only focus on one distance or plane. You chose to focus on the Bunny Plane™ in this example. Who wouldn’t?

In this case then, the tree and the Yeti, being further back and having the aperture open all the way, do not have their light focused on the correct plane of the sensor. They come out blurred. Now let’s use the aperture and close it a bit. I’m going to remove the bunny for a moment. Don’t freak out, the Yeti doesn’t get her.

Here is what the light coming from the tree looks like. Same as above. Now, close the aperture…

With the aperture partially closed, as represented by the increased darkness around the edge of the aperture, that ‘extra’ light is cut off and only the light that will come to a high focus is let in. From this point forward, the tree will continue to be in focus. This can be a hard concept to illustrate in two dimensions.

When you close down the Aperture, you cut out the extra light from an object that was not going to hit the sensor in sharp focus and are attempting to only let in the light that will be in focus.

More Stopping

Aperture settings are often called f-stops. Remember when I mentioned stops yesterday? These function the same way, letting in half as much light as the f-stop goes from one setting to another and doubling the amount of light hitting the sensor when changed in the opposite direction.

In the case of the Aperture, the sequence looks like f/1, f/1.4, f/2, f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/11, f/16, f/22, f/32, f/45 and so on. The f-stop number is a function of the lens focal length and the size of the hole the Aperture makes (which is the same concept as how your pupil works, by the way). The smaller the Aperture/pupil size, the less light. Because we are working with fractions again, and the equation looks like it does at right (thanks Wikipedia): the higher the number, the less light.

The higher the f-stop number, the less light and the greater the depth of field.

Depth of Field

Depth Of Field (DoF) simply means the the number of planes (or things, if that makes it easier), front to back, that can be in focus.

Written another way DoF = amount of stuff, front to back, in focus.

If we focus on the bunny and use f/1.4 for instance, the Depth of Field might only be a foot. Meaning from the point you are focused, maybe the bunny’s nose, the only objects that will be in focus will be .33 feet in front of that point and .67 feet behind that point = 1 foot total. (Side Note: This 1/3 in front and 2/3 behind ratio is true of your eye as well, but that’s a lot more boring physics than we need here)

Now change the aperture to the next stop, f/2 (which, as it is another stop, lets in half as much light) and you might have increased the Depth Of Field to 2 feet. .66 feet in front of the nose and 1.34 feet behind it. Can you see how more and more things will come into focus as the f-stop is increased?

Here’s another piece of the puzzle:

The person at top is to represent portrait work, where a wide open aperture and its shallow depth of field is often desired to help the person stand out from the background. The mountain scene at the bottom represents a time when you might want many things, front to back, in focus and thus a smaller aperture is desired.

Rarely do you shoot at the extremes, so in reality that portrait might be at f/4, for instance and the mountain scene will be at f/11 maybe.

Keeping Balance

While changing to a higher f-stop number does give a greater Depth Of Field, it lets in less light. What does that do to the Exposure Triangle? It means either Shutter Speed needs to change to compensate for a good exposure, or ISO does.

Knowing what you do about Shutter Speed and how it works with stops, can you now see how if you change the Aperture by one stop darker, you need to change the Shutter Speed by one stop more light? (We’ll get to ISO tomorrow, for now we’ll keep it simple with Shutter Speed and Aperture.)

It’s those Teeter Totters Of Doom in action! If Aperture goes one way to make the Depth of Field deeper, then the Shutter Speed needs to go the other way to compensate.

An Example

What does this look like in the real world? Here’s a series shot of things I found already on the floor in my house. Each object is about 6″ away from the one in front of it. Focus is locked on the golf ball in all shots. Click on a picture for a larger image.

Aperture f/5.6 Shutter Speed 1/160

Aperture f/9.0 Shutter Speed 1/40

Aperture f/14 Shutter Speed 1/15

Aperture f/36 Shutter Speed 1/3

Can you see how you more and more of the objects (and dirt on my floor) come into focus as the Aperture gets smaller and smaller (remembering that as the aperture itself gets smaller, the f/ number gets bigger)? Do you also notice what happens to the Shutter Speed? It gets slower and slower to let in more light to compensate for the aperture.

Experiment Time

Whew! I know that is a lot to take in and it is one of the harder topics for people to grasp. To make it very basic: Aperture affects Depth Of Field.

And with all that reading, it’s time to put it into practice!! Here is an assignment for you to try at home to help reinforce the ideas of Aperture and Depth Of Field:
- Depth Of Field – Changing Aperture
Tomorrow we dive into the last part of the Exposure Triangle: ISO.

Questions? Pop ’em like Pez in the comments section below. or email me at peter@peterwestcarey.com.

Photography Basics – A 43 Day Adventure, and its companion 40 Photography Experiments, are series written by professional photographer Peter West Carey. The series are designed to unravel the mysteries of photography, helping you can take better pictures. Subscribe here to receive all the updates and bonus material. Your comments are always welcome.

If you enjoy the series, consider learning photography first-hand on a professionally led international photo tour in Nepal or Bhutan. More information can be found at Far Horizon Photo Tours.
October 8, 2018
Understanding Shutter Speed – Photography Basics

Now that you know how your camera, any camera, works, let’s get into the nitty gritty of the The Exposure Triangle.

Shutter Speed

NOTE: Even if you don’t have a physical shutter in your camera (smartphone, action camera, drone and mirrorless owners), this information is vital for taking great photos.

Shutter Speed affects blur. Get that into your noggin right now.

View of market area – Kathmandu, Nepal

It does some other things, of course, but the biggest effect it has on the average photo is stopping motion, or not stopping motion, depending on how it is used. Motion can be in front of the camera or the camera itself moving. Of course, blur will occur if things aren’t in focus, but let’s assume everything is in focus.

Shutter Speed is the speed at which the shutter inside your DSLR (not smartphones, drones, mirrorless or action cameras as they scan of the sensor from top to bottom instead, which functions the same, essentially) opens and closes to let in light. That amount of time is expressed as, well, time. 1″ is one second of open shutter. 5″ is five seconds of open shutter. 1/60 is one sixtieth of a second of open shutter.

I know some of you out there hate math, but it will come into play regardless. Here’s one example. Which let’s in more light, 1/10 or 1/100?

Answer: 1/10. Remember: Larger denominator (that number on the bottom of the 1/ fraction) = less light = faster shutter speed. 1/10 lets in more light that 1/100 than 1/1000. There’s a diagram at the bottom to help with this memorization.

I know that is over simple for those that enjoyed or at least ‘got’ math, but I have taught this enough to know many out there outright hate math.

The Physical Shutter Inside Your Camera

So where the heck is this shutter and just how does it work? Let’s look at, what is loosely called, a diagram of a camera:

When the camera shutter release (aka: The Button) is not pressed, this is how DSLR camera stays. Light comes in through the lens, is focused, passes through the aperture, bounces off the mirror, bounces twice off the pentaprism and then through the eyepiece so you can see it. Do you notice the shutter is in a bunch of pieces? This is to represent the two curtains of the shutter; front and back. I used four pieces but yours might have more or less. For the curious, here’s a picture looking in through the front of my camera.

That bright thing at the top is my thumb holding the mirror up and out of the way. What you are looking at is the front curtain of the shutter. Notice the individual blades (four of them). Behind this curtain is an identical curtain. When you press the shutter release all hell breaks loose.

The mirror flips up out of the way (without the aid of my thumb). While it is doing that, the shutter curtains performs a little dance that looks like this:

That’s how the shutter functions. When things get going reall fast, the second curtain follows the first curtain, only letting in a smidge of light to expose the sensor for the set time, such as 1/200th of a second. Like so:

The faster the shutter speed, the more action in front of the camera is stopped. The slower the shutter speed, the more things in front of the camera can blur. To break blur down a bit further, let’s think about how you see things.

How You See Things

You see things because light bounces off of them and hits your eye (please don’t make me draw an eye…..you won’t like it, but it is a lot like a camera). You aren’t seeing the bunny, per se, you are seeing the light bouncing off of it. This plays into White Balance, covered later.

Blur is represented in the camera when light bounces off of an object and, because of a slow shutter speed where light is allowed to hit the sensor for (relatively) long periods of time, hits the sensor in two or more spots. (Again, I’m only talking about movement blur, not out-of-focus blur.) If that shutter is left open for, say, one second as in the first shutter diagram, the bunny can move a lot and light will bounce off of it and hit different parts of the sensor. Multiple images so close that sharp edges look blurred.

Here’s an example of moving the camera with the shutter open for 1.6 seconds.

Now this isn’t necessarily bad. It can be used for some cool effects and we’ll cover Pan Blur, Light Trails and long exposures with flash later on in the month.

For instance, hold the camera steady (or use a tripod) and let the action move for five seconds, like this scene from Cusco, Peru, and you get some interesting light trails.

Does This Make Sense?

Moving objects need a faster shutter speed (1/1000 is faster than 1/60 is faster than 1″) to be able to make them appear sharp and not blurred. This is also true of you, the camera holder, moving. If you aren’t still and you move the camera while shooting and the shutter speed is slow, say 1/10, then things will blur. We’ll go over How To Hold A Camera later as well.

Nice, crisp stopped action:

A couple playing with their dog on beach at sunset, Whidbey Island, Washington, USA Shutter Speed: 1/400th of a second

An osprey dives for its lunch. Shutter Speed: 1/8000 of a second

Golden Retriever dog shaking off water after swimming in pool Shutter Speed: 1/1600th of a second

An important thing to know about shutter speed is it is linear in the amount of light hitting the sensor. Meaning 1″ is twice as fast as 2″. 1 is half of 2. 1″ lets in half as much light as 2″. 1/2″ lets in half as much light as 1″. 1/4″ lets in half as much light as 1/2″. 1/8″ lets in half as much light as 1/4″. 1/15 (there is some rounding in cameras these days) lets in half as much light as 1/8″. 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000 to the highest most cameras will go of 1/8000.

Stop Now, Wait A Minute

Each of these halvings of light (or doubling of light if you go the other way on the scale) is called a stop. A stop is a very important concept and it will come up again and again.

In this case, going from 1″ to 1/4″ is two stops less light. That is, 1″ to 1/2″ was half as much light (1 stop) and 1/2″ to 1/4″ was half again as much (1 stop) = 2 stops. Those good with math can just divide or multiply the fractions by 2 for each stop of light.

Pop Quiz: How many stops less light is there between 1/60 and 1/1000? Use the scale above to help. I’ll reveal the answer tomorrow.

Now then, before we wrap this up, below is a piece of a puzzle which will be revealed next week. It’s meant as a quick reference and helps some people remember their shutter speeds and what they do. The arrow represents more light hitting the sensor down to less light hitting the sensor.

If you want to take pictures of slugs, you can get by with slower shutter speeds. If you want to take pictures of bunnies on scooters, you’ll need faster shutter speeds. The word Blurry is to indicate if you are hand holding a camera, or if there is movement in front of the camera, your photo is likely to be blurrier at the top of the scale. Of course, this scale extends past both 1″ and 1/250

Wrapping It Up

I hope you have enjoyed this first week of posts. On Monday we’ll start up again with What is an Aperture?

Until then, I have a Weekend Experiment for you to try. These experiments are changes to go out and practice and learn firsthand. The first experiment is about Speed & Light. Give it a try and post your results.

Questions? Pop ’em like Pez in the comments section below. or email me at peter@peterwestcarey.com.

Photography Basics – A 43 Day Adventure, and its companion 40 Photography Experiments, are series written by professional photographer Peter West Carey. The series are designed to unravel the mysteries of photography, helping you can take better pictures. Subscribe here to receive all the updates and bonus material. Your comments are always welcome.

If you enjoy the series, consider learning photography first-hand on a professionally led international photo tour in Nepal or Bhutan. More information can be found at Far Horizon Photo Tours.

October 5, 2018
How Your Camera Works – Photography Basics
Yesterday’s topic was: The Exposure Triangle

Before we dive too deep into other subjects, I thought it best to explaining how your camera works. While not all the mechanics are the same for DSLR, smartphones, mirrorless, drones, etc… the principles are the same.

We’ll use this DSLR image for reference:

How Your Camera Works

First, there is light. Let’s say it is coming from the sun and it hits our demonstration bunny here. Next, the light bounces off that bunny (she’s a tough bunny) and scatters in every direction.

Next, some of that scattering light comes in through our lens. The lens will have a number of elements, some made of glass and sometimes some made of acrylic or other materials. All these elements (think of them as type of lenses, like a contact lens) help to focus the light. A focus ring on a lens, as well as the auto-focus capabilities of the camera, will move one or more elements front to back ever so slightly in order to achieve focus. Think here of using a magnifying glass to get something into focus.

As light comes into the camera it is flipped vertically because of the convex shape used to concentrate the light into the sensor area (think of looking at your reflection on the inside part of a spoon). You’re now taking a foot tall bunny and shrinking it down to the size of the sensor. Poor bunny.

Detour For DSLRs

Before the light passes out of the lens and into the camera body, it goes through the Aperture (explained next week) which, as you read yesterday, reduces the amount of light passing through to increase Depth Of Field. It then hits the reflex mirror (DSLR stands for Digital Single Lens Reflex, meaning it only has one lens and a reflex mirror that pops out of the way) and bounces up.

Next, it passes through the focus screen. To put it mildly, different cameras are different. On average, the focus screen is a transparent screen often with an overlay showing actual focus points and other stuff overlayed in your viewfinder. This screen is the same distance away from the mirror as the sensor and this is the main reason the SLR became so useful. There was not a need to keep film out of the way, focus, put film in, expose, remove film as in the days of large format cameras (those ones with the big bellows and Ansel Adams come to mind).

Let Me See The Light

After passing through the focus screen, the light will bounce around the pentaprism (crudely drawn in this diagram; here’s a better version on Wikipedia) which will flip the image the correct way for presentation at the eyepiece. Tada! Some cameras will have a light meter above the eyepiece, reflected with a transparent mirror. Other cameras will have the light meter behind the main mirror, which is also semi-transparent. Don’t get too hung up on where yours is.

Now For Some Action

When you press the shutter release (or ‘button’ as a lot of people call it) your camera locks in the focus and light metering settings before flipping up the mirror. As later explained in the Shutter Speed post, it then activates the shutter (and closes down the Aperture to the appropriate size) to let light hit the sensor, which has had its sensitivity set by the chosen ISO. The shutter closes, the mirror drops back down. Below we have the shutter in action.

What About My Smartphone, Mirrorless, Drone Or Action Camera?

The biggest difference between all the cameras listed above and a DSLR is the lack of all the stuff to bounce the light. They look, more or less, like this.

Most of the cameras listed above have a fixed aperture. Other than that, the light still comes in and gets flipped but now the sensor is hooked to the screen on the back (except for drones and some action cameras) and the software flips it back around so you can see it.

In smartphones, action cameras, drones and some mirrorless cameras, there is no physical shutter to block light. Instead the camera scans the sensor very quickly to simulate a shutter. Sometimes it doesn’t scan fast enough if something is moving very fast, which is why you get images like this iPhone shot:

Pretty funky, huh? That doesn’t happen with DSLRs.

More On The Actions

Blue Morpho Butterfly (Morpho peleides), Costa Rica

Most cameras come to life when you press the shutter release half way down. At that point auto-focus (if engaged) and light metering become active. These two functions control most of the camera when in Auto and Program mode. Shutter and Aperture modes follow suit and we’ll cover these modes next week as well. If a lens has vibration reduction or image stabilization, it will turn on as well.

After light hits the sensor and the image is captured, the information drops into a buffer. A buffer is a holding pen for information. Inside the camera are one, two or more processors, just like in your computer and, eventually, toaster. The processors need a bit of time to crunch the raw information from all those millions of pixel sensors. The buffer allows a space for incoming images to hold up until the processors can work. then it will dump the images onto your memory card. Light goes:

Subject->Lens->Sensor->Processor->Buffer->Memory Card

Think of your buffer as those long, long, swerving holding pens….errr….lines at Disneyland. If more people come into the line than the ride can load at one time, eventually the line gets full. Pretend no one else is let in when the line is full. That’s what happens with the buffer.

Shooting at eight frames a second will fill a buffer and the shooting speed of the camera will slow to the point where a new picture can only be taken when another has been written to the memory card and removed from the buffer. Don’t worry though, they keep coming up with faster and faster processors (although they also keep coming up with bigger and bigger sensors which fill more space!).

NOTE: Camera memory (both internal and memory cads) has gotten to the speed that there isn’t much buffering with smartphones, action cams and drones these days. Even DSLRs can shoot almost continuously in certain modes.

Process All The Things

Running Hippo (Hippopotamus amphibius), Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania.

Information processes before it hits the buffer, making JPEG files, with their smaller size, take up less space in the buffer. Again, different cameras are different. If you are shooting in RAW mode, the information will essentially be written to the memory card untouched while a companion file is saved along with it. This companion file has all the information about the image when it was shot, including what the white balance was, which shooting mode was used, the metering mode at the time, how sweaty your palms were as the crazed hippo was charging your truck….

In JPEG mode, the RAW information compresses to save space. Some cameras have another processor that just compresses files, creating the JPEG files. I discuss RAW vs. JPEG later this month. For now it will suffice to say that RAW files can be 3-5x larger than JPEG and that’s why they take longer to handle.

Lastly, the information writes to a memory card and your image is saved!

I know this information might be basic to some of you and thank you for bearing with me, as I want to make sure the basics are covered. We’ll begin to pick up speed from here and and get into the meat of Photography Basics.

Experiments For You To Try

Now that you know how your camera works, try these experiments at home:
- One Subject, Ten Photos
- Get Low
- Shooting The Full Moon At Moonrise
Tomorrow we will cover Understanding Shutter Speed.

Questions? Pop ’em like Pez in the comments section below. or email me at peter@peterwestcarey.com.

Photography Basics – A 43 Day Adventure, and its companion 40 Photography Experiments, are series written by professional photographer Peter West Carey. The series are designed to unravel the mysteries of photography, helping you can take better pictures. Subscribe here to receive all the updates and bonus material. Your comments are always welcome.

If you enjoy the series, consider learning photography first-hand on a professionally led international photo tour in Nepal or Bhutan. More information can be found at Far Horizon Photo Tours.
October 4, 2018
The Exposure Triangle – Photography Basics
With our law and rules finished, let’s jump into how to make a photo.

The Exposure Triangle

First, there is The Exposure Triangle. It balances all things. Makes things right in the Universe. Or maybe it is just a handy metaphor.

To be honest, the Exposure Triangle, to me, is better explained as two Teeter-Totters, which isn’t nearly as sexy as a triangle. What the Exposure Triangle is trying to tell you, is there are three things which have an impact on proper exposure of an image on film or on a camera sensor:
- Shutter Speed
- Aperture
- ISO
We’ll be going over each of those in more detail in the following days.

Shutter Speed

Tree Amongst Rock Formations, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, USA, North America

Essentially, this is how fast your camera blinks. Remember the days of film and how you were never, ever, ever, ever supposed to open the back of the camera while the film was loaded? That’s because film reacts to light and if you don’t control how much light hits it, it freaks out and exposes EVERYTHING. Much cursing typically ensued.

So the shutter does the blinking of the camera (from closed to open and back to closed). Everything is dark inside the camera and then “BLINK”, the shutter lets in how ever much light it is told to. More on this tomorrow.

Aperture

The Aperture is analogous to the pupil in your eye. It’s a hole that lets in light and can be changed in most cameras and even some smartphones.

Let’s use an analogy. It’s pitch-black inside this room the is 20′ x 20′ and you are standing in the center. Outside the room is daylight. Are you with me?

Next to you is a 40 ton, 8′ wide wrecking ball. You’ve been working out and are feeling destructive so you swing the ball forward and BAM! 8′ wide hole in your wall. How much light do you think is coming in right now? Tons.

Now back up and let’s do this again. Instead of a wrecking ball, let’s use a 1” wide drill bit on that wall. POP! Hole is in and, if you are standing back 10′, how brightly lit is the room now?

Can you see now how Aperture affects how much light comes into the room? More on how the aperture does other cool stuff on Friday.

ISO

The ferry boat Kittitas approaches a dock in a high key photograph

People often ask what ISO stands for; International Standards Organization. I get blank looks after that answer or “Oh, ok” looks followed by, “Huh?”. Wikipedia has thousands of words on ISO as it relates to photography, but in short, we’re talking about sensitivity here.

It’s the exact same sensitivity as if I punch you. If you’re a body builder, you’re not that sensitive to a punch. But if you’re….oh jeeze, now I need to come up with an example where I punch something sensitive…a cute, fluffy bunny. Sorry bunnies. Chances are, with the same punch the bunnies would yelp and jump a mile because of the guns I’m packing on this 6’1” frame. (sorry, obscure, and sometimes old, pop culture internet references may come up this month)

Better yet, let’s go back to the wrecking ball analogy. You’re in the pitch black room before the ball smashes an 8′ hole in the wall. If you’ve been in the pitch black room for an hour, your eyes are far more sensitive to light, aren’t they? Your pupils are open wide, trying to gather as much light as they can.

BAM! The ball smashes a hole and ARGGHHH!! You sensitive eyes don’t like all that light.

Same scenario but this time, before the ball strikes, we’ve been holding a flashlight pointed into your eyes for 10 minutes. By ‘we’ I mean me and the bunny you made me punch. Your eyes are now constricted and not so sensitive, are they?

BAM! Hole in the wall and you think, “Eh, not so bright”. Your eyes were less sensitive.

ISO will be covered on next Monday.

Got all that? Shutter speed = how long light hits your camera sensor. Aperture = how wide is the hole letting in light. ISO = how sensitive the sensor is to light.

Visualize

Here’s where the triangle comes in. Visualize it like this:

Except for the bunny, it’s a nice balanced triangle. However, the moment one of those corners changes, let’s say you change the ISO from 100 to 400, then the triangle gets all fuddled up and is not in balance any more.

If one, or both, of the other variables aren’t moved as well, the bunny picture won’t come out properly exposed. And by properly exposed I’m talking about an ideal here. After you learn the rules through these 43 days, you’re welcome to break them as mentioned yesterday. But until then, we’re shooting for properly exposed images.

Revisualize

Another way to think of it is:

With the Exposure Teeter Totters Of Doom, if ISO wants to move up or down, one of his buddies (or possibly both) needs to go in the opposite direction to make all things even. This is all in regards to the amount of light hitting the camera sensor. Any of the three could be in the middle and if it is changed, one or both of the other two needs to change to keep exposure proper and level.

Silhouette of mountain with trees at sunset – East Africa – Tanzania

Currently a lot of smartphones, action cameras and drones have a fixed Aperture, so you only have two settings to play with; ISO and Shutter Speed. Most DSLRs and point-and-shoot cameras can adjust all three.

That’s it!! That’s the Exposure Triangle. It’s not a huge mystery, really. It is simply an attempt to keep all things in balance for a proper exposure. Those three things, explained more fully over the coming days, are what determine a proper exposure. ISO, Shutter Speed and Aperture.

Experiment With It

Here are a few practical experiments you can try at home to help the concepts take form:
- ISO Limits Of Your Camera
- Depth Of Field – Changing Aperture
- Look At The Light
Tomorrow we will cover How Your Camera Works.

Questions? Pop ’em like Pez in the comments section below. or email me at peter@peterwestcarey.com.

Photography Basics – A 43 Day Adventure, and its companion 40 Photography Experiments, are series written by professional photographer Peter West Carey. The series are designed to unravel the mysteries of photography, helping you can take better pictures. Subscribe here to receive all the updates and bonus material. Your comments are always welcome.

If you enjoy the series, consider learning photography first-hand on a professionally led international photo tour in Nepal or Bhutan. More information can be found at Far Horizon Photo Tours.
October 3, 2018
9 Rules You Should Learn To Break – Photography Basics

All About Rule Breakers

Welcome back! If you missed Day 1 and the one law you can’t break, you can find that post here.

Now that we have the law out of the way, let’s look at the rules.

Photography is a subjective art. There’s no real right or wrong way to do it, but if you want to get consistent results and learn, it’s helpful to follow some rules. Once you learn those rules and how and when to apply them, you can choose to ignore them as you experiment.

That’s the wonderful thing about digital photography; you have a near endless supply of “film” with which to play. So take the time to learn these rules as we go through the lessons, but don’t forget, you’re welcome to break them once you understand them.

1. The Rule of Thirds

In this series you will learn about the Rule of Thirds. Take the time to learn it well enough that you can apply it when the situation is right. It’s a helpful tool if you haven’t studied art or photography in the past and it will jumpstart your composition skills.

Then ignore it at will. Because the Rule of Thirds is great at producing pleasing compositions or portraits, landscapes, architecture, etc… But you won’t always want pleasing or balanced or perfect symmetry. Sometimes you’ll want to challenge your viewers or highlight some other aspect of a scene.

2. Fill the Frame

Some photographers will tell you to fill the frame with your subject. It’s a reliable technique for helping viewers focus on what’s important, just like the Rule of Thirds.

Here’s an example of a filled frame.

Now take a step back.

And a few more steps back.

It helps put the subject in context and is important in certain photography, like wildlife or environmental portraits.

3. 1/Focal Length

1/Focal Length is a simple trick to help you deliver non-blurry photos. And it’s helpful for sure.

The times when it comes in handy to ignore this rule are when you don’t have enough light (so should you not shoot at all?), when you want to induce some blur or when you’re getting creative with abstracts.

We’ll learn more about this rule on Day 10, so just hold tight.

4. Your Photos Need to be Tack-Sharp

Hand-in-hand with the last rule is one stating your photos need to be tack-sharp. In other words, some people freak out of if there is one thing in your photo that is a slight bit blurry.

Ignore those people. While, generally speaking, you will want your images to be in focus and sharp, it’s not alway advised.

Sometimes you might want to highlight movement, like this:

Or you might be capturing a fleeting moment, as in this image:

5. Never Center Your Subject

Art is subjective. Have I mentioned that?

It really is and as you start to develop your own style you might find you fall in love with certain ratios. But for some, we love our subject front and center.

The Rule of Thirds says this is a big no no. As do a bunch of other ratios (Golden Ratio/Fibonacci Spiral being another favorite you should take the time to learn). Sometimes breaking these rules can produce halting results.

6. Separate Your Subject From the Background

Sure, this rule is helpful in portrait work when you want your subject to stand out. But what about when you want a subject to blend in? Or what about when your subject can’t be separated from the background?

Don’t let that stop you from shooting!

7. Lead The Viewer Into the Frame

I wrote about this rule over on another blog I contribute to: Digital Photography School.

It’s a fine rule. Once you learn to do it well you can mix it up and keep your viewer off balance. Like this.

While viewers like to be led into the frame, our mind does not like being led off the frame into the abyss. Who knows what’s outside of the frame! Probably dragons.

It also doesn’t like things close to the edge. But so? Maybe you’re in an off-the-edge kind of mood one day while shooting!

8. How to Hold Your Camera

This is a hard one for me to admit because I have been dogmatic about this rule for far too long. It’s hard to come to grips with it, but I was wrong all those years.

In my workshops and individual instruction I profess the “best” way to hold a camera. Heck, I even go over it in this series on day 8. But I’ve learned it’s not the only way.

If you want to hold your camera like every extra paparazzi in every movie, that’s just fine. Hand on the side, the top, two fingers only, press the shutter release with your middle finger…. go ahead.

I will be happy to show you a comfortable way to hold your camera and if it doesn’t work for you, try your own. As long as you’re comfortable and getting the shots you want, go for it.

9. Always Shoot With The Sun at Your Back

Special thanks to my friend Greg for suggesting this rule on my Facebook page.

This one is just silly. I have been told a number of times, while around other photographers at a popular spot, to line up the sun so it is at my back. Don’t shoot toward the sun or with angled sun. This just seems like crazy, limiting advice.

Here are some examples of the sun not being at my back.

The Grand Canyon as seen from the South Rim – Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, USA

A happy looking Golden Retriever dog is frozen in midair as he runs toward the camera in a suburban backyard.

View of mountains in fog – USA – California

A Man Stands Before The Taj Mahal As The Sun Comes Up Behind It, Agra, India, Asia

Wrapping It Up

Undoubtedly there will be readers who comment that any one of the examples I posted here does not work for X, Y and Z reasons. They might even go beyond the English alphabet and start using emojis. Just remember; If the photo works for you, it works.

History is littered with great artists who both followed the rules and those who broke them. There’s no one right way to photograph a scene. Anyone who tells you otherwise is likely trying to sell you something.

Learn the rules. Know the rules. Then start developing your own style that might break a few. Keep at it and sooner or later you’ll find someone else who connects with your images. That’s the joy of photography; Communicating the scene in front of you in a way that helps your viewer connect with it too. Rules be damned.

Tomorrow we will cover The Exposure Triangle and really dive into some learning!

Questions? Pop ’em like Pez in the comments section below. or email me at peter@peterwestcarey.com.

Photography Basics – A 43 Day Adventure, and its companion 40 Photography Experiments, are series written by professional photographer Peter West Carey. The series are designed to unravel the mysteries of photography, helping you can take better pictures. Subscribe here to receive all the updates and bonus material. Your comments are always welcome.

If you enjoy the series, consider learning photography first-hand on a professionally led international photo tour in Nepal or Bhutan. More information can be found at Far Horizon Photo Tours.

October 2, 2018
The Number One Law Of All Photography – Photography Basics

Welcome to Day 1!

Let’s jump right in with the fundamental law for all photography; You take pictures of light, not things.

That’s it! Why is it law and not a rule? For one thing, we’ll see tomorrow that all the rules of photography can be broken in one way or another for creative reasons. But laws? Laws have dire consequences if they are broken.

By way of example, let’s see if you can spot the difference in the next two photos for Bhutan.

This is Dochula Pass with 108 Buddhist chortens overlooking the Himalayan mountains. Glorious light from our sun is radiating down on Earth and bouncing off of all the things and scattering in every direction. One of those directions happens to be right down the barrel of your camera.

Now, let’s suppose that glorious sun went out. Poof! Besides all the other horrible consequences involved, there is now no light (let’s also suppose all earthbound light sources are wiped out at the same time). Now what does the scene look like?

The stuff is still there, but the light is all gone.

Your camera has a fundamental need for photons. Fundamental to the light we see, photons bounce off of things and entering your camera’s lens, be it a DLSR, smartphone, drone, etc… This is what interacts with your camera’s sensor to produce an image (more info on photons here). While technically not all light contains photos, almost everything you’ll ever photograph will require them.

That’s the long and the short of it.

Without light, you can’t take photos. And even with light, the subject can look different in different types of light.

A little later on I will be giving you some challenges to try out on your own as a way of reinforcing the ideas. And because practice is essential to improving in photography. For now, let me show you a simple example.

These are the same peppers in the same bin. The only difference is the angle of the light.

In the first image, the light is coming from in front of (and above) the peppers. In the second image, the light is coming from behind (and above) the camera.

Just a matter of taking two steps forward to shoot a different angle, but the result is dramatic. From ugly, almost colorless peppers to wonderfully red-orange delights.

I think it’s important enough of a law of photography to repeat it one more time, but with larger letters.

You take pictures of light, not things.

That’s the lesson for today. Nice and easy, but fundamental to understanding all of what is coming over the next 43 days of this adventure into photography.

Tomorrow we will cover 9 Rules You Should Learn To Break.

Questions? Pop ’em like Pez in the comments section below. or email me at peter@peterwestcarey.com.

Photography Basics – A 43 Day Adventure, and its companion 40 Photography Experiments, are series written by professional photographer Peter West Carey. The series are designed to unravel the mysteries of photography, helping you can take better pictures. Subscribe here to receive all the updates and bonus material. Your comments are always welcome.

If you enjoy the series, consider learning photography first-hand on a professionally led international photo tour in Nepal or Bhutan. More information can be found at Far Horizon Photo Tours.

October 1, 2018
Photography Basics – A 43 Day Adventure
If you’re new to photography or just want a better grip on the basics, you’re in the right place. Smartphone, DSLR, mirrorless, drone…it doesn’t matter what you shoot with, the next 43 days will take you through a learning adventure and improve your skills. Just take it one day at a time and you will see a positive change in your photos!

My name is Peter West Carey and I’ve been teaching photography since 2008 after starting in wedding photography in 1990. I love helping anyone and everyone get hooked on photography.

Now then, roll up your sleeves and subscribe to this blog to receive a six week’s worth of fun, enlightening photography education. I’ll be right here the whole time, so feel free to ask questions in the comments section of each post or send me an email directly at peter@peterwestcarey.com.

Additional Content: If you want some experiments to help this knowledge sink in, try my other series of posts 40 Photography Experiments.

Core Photography Concepts
- Day 1 – The Number One Law Of All Photography
- Day 2 – 9 Rules You Should Learn To Break
- Day 3 – The Exposure Triangle
- Day 4 – How Your Camera Works
- Day 5 – Understanding Shutter Speed
- Day 6 – What Is An Aperture?
- Day 7 – And Then, ISO
- Day 8 – Photography Jargon
- Day 9 – Metering Modes: How Your Camera Sees Light
- Day 10 – Camera Modes
- Day 11 – White Balance: Making Colors Correct
- Day 12 – How To Take A Shot
- Day 13 – Exposure Compensation/Bias: A Very Powerful, Easy Tool
- Day 14 – The Magic Of Histograms
- Day 15 – The Rule Of Thirds
- Day 16 – A Rule Of Thumb To Help Stop Photo Blur
- Day 17 – RAW & JPEG Can Coexist
- Day 18 – How To Hold A Camera
- Day 19 – Flash Basics
Creative Photography Ideas
- Day 20 – Sunsets
- Day 21 – Waterfalls
- Day 22 – Go Wide, Get Close
- Day 23 – Panning Blur & Capturing Motion
- Day 24 – Shooting Photos At Night
- Day 25 – Cityscapes
- Day 26 – Moon Photos
- Day 27 – Travel Portraits
- Day 28 – Fun With Light Trails
- Day 29 – Low Angles
- Day 30 – Fill Flash And Good Times To Use It
- Day 31 – Bounce Flash
- Day 32 – How I Edited It
- Day 33 – Photography: Doing It With A Drone
Photography Gear Ideas
- Day 34 – Help Me Choose A Good Camera
- Day 35 – Picking A Lens(es)
- Day 36 – Why You Might Want A Reverse Graduated Neutral Density Filter
- Day 37 – Travel Gear Recommendations
- Day 38 – Traveling With Gear
- Day 39 – Neutral Density Filters – A Primer
- Day 40 – The Difference A Tilt-Shift Lens Can Make
- Day 41 – Tripod Use and Abuse
- Day 42 – What Do DSLR, Mirrorless, etc… Mean
- Day 43 – An Example Of Why You Might Want To Use A Polarizing Filter At Sunrise In Seattle
Bonus Material
- Day 44 – Multiple Exposure
- Day 45 – Negative Space
- Day 46 – Storytelling in 3 pictures
- Day 47 – Shooting Abstracts
- Day 48 – Do’s and Don’t’s
Weekend Experiments
- Weekend 1 – Speed & Light
- Weekend 2 – Find Some Light
- Weekend 3 – Moody
- Weekend 4 – Panning Blurrrrr
Don’t miss a Day! Subscribe to the blog by email:

If you enjoy the series, consider learning photography first-hand on a professionally led international photo tour in Nepal or Bhutan. More information can be found at Far Horizon Photo Tours.
September 28, 2018