Sikes Digital photography 101

Digital Photography I

Painting with Light

Julie Sikes-Speir

Why take pictures?

• To tell a story

• To share information

• To change someone’s mind or heart

• To show the world as you see it

This photo helped make child labor illegal in the US

Lewis Hine

When were the first photographs taken?

1900

1864

Md. Allan Pinkerton, President Lincoln,

Maj. Gen. John A. McClernand

1862

Antietam

First successful Permanent Photograph“View from the Window at La Gras”

by the French inventor, Joseph Nicéphore Niépce.

It was produced on a polished pewter plate in 1826. Niépce captured the photo with a camera obscura focused onto a sheet of 20 × 25 cm oil-treated bitumen. As a result of the 8-hour exposure, sunlight illuminates the buildings on both sides.

1826

This presentation is not a replacement for Study of your camera manual. Instead, it will assist you in learning how to understand the general functioning of digital camerasas well as compositional strategies to help you take better photographs. Every typeand model of camera is different, thereforeyou must study your own individual manualin order to glean the most benefit fromthis course.

Don’t forgetCharge Battery and Insert Memory Card

Be sure your camera battery is charged.

Insert a memory card and format it before use in a new or different camera. Formatting will permanently erase all Information from the card.

Viewfinder

An SLR cameral will show about 95% of the entire picture. Cameras other than SLR cameras will show only show80 to 90 percent of entire picture. Viewfinders are handy when there's too much glare on LCD screen.

Shutter Release Button

When pressing the shutter release button It is important to make every effort to prevent camera shake. Plant feet squarelyon the ground, elbows down and hold a still as possible whenpressing the shutter and waiting for the camera to finishtaking the picture by closing the shutter.

A good rule of thumb to prevent blurry photographs is to never use a shutter speed of more than 1/60 of a second when usinga hand held camera.

Light

Light•The best light is natural light..

•The best time of day to takephotographs is during the “GoldenHours” which are an hour after sunriseand an hour before sunset.

• Overcast skies create an giant lightbox which make color bolder and cuts down on the intense shadows created by the sun whenit is high in the sky.

On Camera Flash

•Can cast strong shadows•Can flatten or blowout a photograph

If a sharp picture can be taken without flash, the photo will look more natural without the flash.

If the natural light is not sufficient to create a sharp imagethen flash must be used to “freeze’ the image and prevent It from being fuzzy.

Pop up on camera flash

On Camera Flash

•Flash can be activated by a buttonOn the side of the lens.

•Flash can be cut off by using the mode selection dial on the top ofthe camera

Outdoor Backlighting

Sunlight shining frombehind the subject can give a very pleasing effect.If intense, it creates a silhouette.

Sunset Backlighting

Tahiti

Outdoor Backlighting

Daylight backlighting

Sunlight shining frombehind the subject can give a very pleasing effect.If intense, it creates a silhouette.

Chattanooga, TN

Indoor Backlighting

Sunlight shining frombehind the subject can give a very pleasing effect.If intense, it creates a silhouette.

Indoor Backlighting

Artificial indoor backlighting addsdrama to this shot

Backlighting and Fill Flash

To avoid silhouetting of people, set your camera to auto flashand make sure the subject is within flash range. Flash used in bright conditions to eliminate facial shadows is calledfill flash.

Evidence of Backlighting

Fill flash removes the dark shadows from herFace.

Backlighting and Lens Flare

Shooting into thelight can also causelens flare.

To avoid lens flareuse a lens hood oryour hand to shade the lenswhen shooting into thesun.

Backlighting

Caution: Shooting directly at a bright sun can damage yourcamera sensor as well as your eyes. Telephoto lens (zoom)intensify this.

When shooting sunset, wait until the sun is low in ht sky.

Sanibel Island

Intense Sunlight

Undesirable for people and pets because it causes squinting.

Sun was so intense thatit blacked the background.at midday.

Bright Midday Sun

It can also cause harsh shadows.

The higher the sun is in the sky,the harsher the shadows will be.

ShadowsBlowout

Outdoor Front Light

Font light is good forarchitecture shots.

Indoor Front Light

Flash that is too close to the subject can cause a blown out photograph.

Side Light

Side light is the best light forportraits.

The shadows give a 3-D effect to the face.

Shadows are not always bad

Side Light

Light SideDark Side

Side light gives dimension to the face

Shadows

Shadows can add drama to a photograph.

Shadows

Shadows can add drama to a photograph.

Indoor Low Light

If there is not enough light and you cannot use a flash, use ahigher ISO if possibleor a tripod.

We will discuss ISO next week.

A higher ISO was used to eliminate the flash.

Shutter Speed•Shutter Speed controls the length of time the camera allows in light.

•Shutter speeds slower then 1/60 second requires a tripod or other camera support.

•To freeze action set the shutter at a higher speed…1/250 or 1/500 or higher.

Autofocus (AF)

Camera focuses on what it thinks is the main subject.This is usually what is in the middle of the frame.In order to focus

Autofocus may be turned off using the auto/ manual switchbutton on the lens of most cameras.

Reframe

What if your want your main subject not to be in the center of the

photograph?

Reframing

•Place your meter point where you want to meter. •Hold the shutter release halfway down.•Place your autofocus point over your subject.•Wait until autofocus locks on.•Press and hold the AF-lock button.•Recompose•Fully depress the shutter release to take the picture

Reframing

Oakhurst, West Point, GA

Camera Modes

Point and Shoot Modes

Creative Modes

Portrait Mode

Produces softly focused backgroundsfor flattering portraits

Portrait Mode

The portrait mode can be selected by rotating the dial on top of your Canon camera. This normally has a picture of a face. This is ideal for photographing people. Portrait mode can be used to set the color tones so that they areperfect for skin tones.

Landscape Mode

Designed to keep both near and far object in sharp focus

Landscape ModeInfinity Mode

Landscape mode is also available on all Canon cameras.This can be selected by choosing the option which looks like mountains. This is used when photographing landscapes suchas mountains or beaches.Large depth of field and puts everything into focus.

Macro Mode

Close-up Mode

Produces softly focused backgrounds especiallySuitable for close-up of flowers and other nature subjects

Macro Mode

Macro or Close up can be used to photograph something small up close. If you want to take a photo of a flower, for example,which fills the whole frame then you will need to use this mode. This allows you to capture small objects in outstanding detail.Macro mode is almost always shown as a small flower. For taking photos of from 1” to 1’ from the subject.( check camera manual)

Sports Mode

Selects a faster shutter speed to capture moving subjects without blur.

Spots Mode

It's also possible to select sports mode which can be used to capture fast moving objects. This is perfect for people running or animals moving quickly.Sports mode is normally shown by a picture of a man running.Freezes the action.

Spots Mode

Light freezes action. One photo wastaken in bright daylight and the other at night. The daylight picture is sharper

Night Portrait Mode

Same as Portrait mode, but combines flash with a slow shutter speed to produce softer

lighting and brighter backgrounds.Use a tripod to avoid camera shake.

Night Mode

If you want to photograph people at night or in low lightconditions then you will need to use night portrait mode.

Night Mode

If you want to photograph people or objects at night or inlow light conditions then you will need to use night portrait mode. Tripods or other camera support are almost necessary to getquality night shots. This was a time lapse photo.

Flash Off Mode

Same as full automatic except there is no flash

Flash Off Mode

There are many different modes which can control the flash.This is perhaps the most useful. By putting the camera in this mode you will be able to force the flash to never switch on. This is useful when you are not allowed to use the flash or do not want to use it to achieve a desired effect.

On Camera Flash

•Flash can be activated by a buttonOn the side of the lens.

•Flash can be cut off by using the mode selection dial on the top ofthe camera

Flash on(Speed light flash)

Flash is on but I used the zoom and was about 4 feet away from the subject.This distance allows uniform lighting but does not “blowout” the subject.

Full Automatic Mode

Completely automatic photography.The camera analyzes the scene and tries to choose

settings that produce the best results.

Automatic Mode

This makes your camera a

Point and Shoot camera.

Homework

Take photographs using semi-automatic settings:•Portrait mode•Landscape mode•Sport mode – Motion•Macro mode•Night portrait mode•Flash Off mode•Flash on (built in flash)

If possible, send photos in low resolution (72 dpi) to me and we will look at them next week.julie@julieartstudios.com

Manual Modes

These AV preset modes are available on all Canon cameras. These make using the camera very quick and easy. However,it's also possible to make various adjustments to manual settings.Put your camera in a completely manual mode. Then you willbe able to adjust the ISO, shutter speed and aperture as desired.If you do ever experience problems then you can always resetthe camera to its default settings. This makes it possible to restart your camera back to the state when you brought it.

Next Lesson

End of Lesson 1