Class 1: January 8th

Topics covered today:
Basic camera functions,F-stop & shutter speed, ISO, White Balance, RAW vs. JPG

Inside the DIGITAL CAMERA:
Part 1:
First we'll go over the homework from last week. Each student was supposed to bring in 6 RAW images. Discussion will cover the differences in White Balance settings using natural light as well as how Fstop affects your picture.

Part 2:

Demo of RAW vs JPG


Part 3:

Dissecting the digital camera:

F-stop
F-stop is the same as aperture. This is the hole or opening inside the camera that lets light in. If this hole is "Wide Open", this will be a low number, like F2 or F3.5. If the hole is very small or closed down, the F-stop will be a big number like F16 or F22.
Depending on what lens you have, the lowest F-stop you camera may go is 3.5. Some lenses go lower, such as F1.8.



Shutter speed
Shutter speed= time. It's measured in fractions of seconds. It is the amount of time that "hole" stays open to let light in. A very long exposure may be 1 second. A very fast one may be 1/500 of a second.

Lenses
Long lenses are usually considered to be more than 100mm. A wide lens is usually around 18mm. A standard zoom lens is 18-70mm or 18-200mm. The length of the lens is measured in millimeters.

Deleting images vs. Formatting
After downloading photos from a card, always FORMAT your memory card instead of "deleting all". This prepares it to be able to shoot again, and wipes the slate clean. It's not great to use memory cards in different cameras if at all possible. If you have to, always format the card before using it in a different camera.

Part 4:
Shooting outside in each of the camera's modes
Shooting modes: A, S, M, P
Setting up the digital camera correctly
Click on the image below to enlarge and see an example of 6 images shot in a row on "Aperture Priority (A)". You select the aperture or Fstop and the camera selects the shutter speed. Notice how the depth of field changes.


DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY CHECKLIST:

35mm Digital SLR Camera (highly recommended for this class)
Suggestions:
Canon Rebel, Canon 5D, Nikon D40, Nikon D300

Memory Cards (buy at least 4G cards)

Photoshop CS4

A card reader

External Hard Drive (at least 250G- Lacie is a good brand)

An Epson Color Printer, or a good relationship with a print lab.

Labs I use: Print Space & Adorama

USEFUL DIGITAL TERMS:

Sensor
Useful Article: http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/camera-sensors.htm

Full Frame

High Resolution or "hi-res": 300ppi (PPI, pixels per inch, determines image quality and size)

RULES OF THUMB:

-Always Shoot RAW
-Always save at least one copy as TIFF.
-Tiffs can have layers in Photoshop, JPGs are always flat
-Always save things at a 300 resolution
-Once you reduce the size of an image, you cannot make it big again without losing quality