digital photography and editing basics

Digital Photography and Editing Basics

Types of digital cameras

• Webcams/phone cams

• Point and shoot

• Intermediate

• Advanced Consumer

• Prosumer dSLR

• Professional dSLR

Camera lenses

• Wideanglezoom

• Standard

• Superzoom

• Telephoto zoom

• Macro

• Fisheye

PixelsWhat are pixels? The word "pixel" means a picture element. Every photograph, in digital form, is made up of pixels. They are the smallest unit of information that makes up a picture. Usually round or square, they are typically arranged in a 2-dimensional grid.

Setting the Right F-Stop

for Your Digital Photo

• Use an almost-wide-open f-stop to boost sharpness.

• Adjust your depth of field by moving f-stops.

• Avoid too-small f-stops.

Shutter SpeedThe unit of measurement which determines how long the shutter remains open as the picture is taken. The slower the shutter speed, the longer the exposure time.

The shutter speed and aperture together control the total amount of light reaching the sensor.

Shutter speeds are expressed in seconds or fractions of a second. For example 2, 1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000, 1/8000. Each speed increment halves the amount of light.

• A prefix on film speed ratings that stands for International Standards Organization, the group that standardizes, among other things, the figures that define the relative speed of films.

What makes a good photograph?

Composition

• Rule of Thirds

– The rule of thirds is the simplest rule of composition. All you do is take your frame and overlay a grid of nine equal sections. This means you split the vertical space into three parts and the horizontal space into three parts.

Perspective

• Photographing your subject straight-on is sometimes the right choice, but you can create visual impact by moving the camera left, right, above, and below.

Light

• Manual settings

• Natural light

• Indoor lighting

• Consider all options!

FOCUS

• Auto focus

• Focus Points

http://photographylife.com/dslr-autofocus-modes-explained

Location

• Indoor

• Outdoor

• Landscape mode?

• Portrait mode?

• “Frame” the image

Size of subjects

• Consider settings

• Lens type

• Tiny?

• Giant?

Considerations

• Skin tones

• Hair and makeup

• Eyeglasses/sunglasses

• Other details?

Tagging and Descriptions

• Tags are “Subject headings” (flickr)

• Tagging someone (Facebook) - considerations

• Image descriptions, titles, etc.

Emailing images

• Consider image size

• Make a call to confirm

• Only send 2-3 images per email

• Best option: upload to site and share URL via email

• NOTE: you can share photo albums from Facebook to those not on Facebook!

Editing Digital Images with PIXLR

Choosing the right camera for your needs

• Best Reviews

– http://bestreviews.com/best-digital-cameras

• CNET

– https://www.cnet.com/topics/cameras/best-digital-cameras/

• If price is an issue, check out eBay for DSLR kits of older models.

http://www.canonoutsideofauto.ca

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWxo6Dl3E14

DSLRswww.digitalslrphoto.com

Thank you!

Dr. Curtis R. Rogers

Communications Director

803-734-8928

crogers@statelibrary.sc.gov