Final Post - Cody Barz

Over the course of the semester we have gotten to know each of our own camera’s almost as if it were an extension of our own body. We’ve traveled with them, been through inclement weather with them, and preserved numerous memories and moments with them. We understand they after 3 months better than we did before and have learned to recognize the small functions about traditional cameras that have been lost in the transition to digital. These “manual” methods include things like shutter speed, adjusting the aperture, ISO, depth of field, and the light meter.

The diaphragm acts for the camera much like the pupil in the human eye; it regulated how much light reaches the sensors (film). The larger the aperture (a smaller f-stop number) allows more light to enter the camera exposing the film more. Visa-a-vie the smaller the aperture (a larger f-stop number), less light reaches the film. The f-stop numbers are traditionally listed right on the lens of the camera, the stops are 1.4, 2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22. Some cameras even offer a middle stop between each one of the traditional f-stops; such as the cameras used this semester.

The shutter speed goes hand in hand with the diaphragm as they often balance each other out. The shutter control how long the camera allows light to enter for and burn an image onto the film. A faster setting allows less light to enter, and a slower setting gives the light a lot more time to exposure the film. Camera speeds went from 1 second, ½. ¼, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000. Usually when you have a higher aperture, you are going to want a faster speed, so you don’t overexpose your picture, and vice versa. The ideal setting is a speed of 1/30 with a diaphragm of 5.6, but say you wanted to use a diaphragm of 2.8 you’d offset this change by using a speed of 1/125. With changing your shutter speed, always note that anything slower than 1/30 you’ll want to use a tripod for otherwise the photos will turn out quite blurry.

The depth of field is an important aspect of traditional photography. It is the distance between the subjects of your photograph. The span between what is in the foreground of your picture and what is in the background. A shallow depth of field would only focus on the things closest to you in the photograph, whereas a large depth would include have almost everything you saw in the photo in focus. Your length of lens determines the depth of field of the photo; a long lens (telephoto) gives you a smaller depth of field because it allows you to zoom in more on subject matter, whereas a wider angle gives you a much larger depth of field and farther focal distance.

The ISO is the sensitivity of the film that you use in your camera. For more light situations, you’d use a higher sensitivity ISO, where for a less light situation (like in an opera or play) you’d use lower sensitivity ISO. We used ISO 400 film that is more of a multi-purpose any situation film. As you move high up the ISO scale the film becomes more and more grainy.

The light meter measures how much light is coming in through your lens and how exposed your photo will be when you finally snap the shot. It doesn’t change anything and there is no adjusting it, it is purely informational and very crucial for good photography. It let’s you know what speed and aperture you should set your camera at when taking a photograph in this lighting. Not all cameras come equipped with one inside, so there are handheld light meters as well, that serve the same purpose, if you just hold them up to your subject if will tell you your prime speed and aperture.

There is a lot more to traditional photography that has been lost with the newer generation due to the simplicity of digital cameras, but all good things lie in learning the basic first and understand how things work. This has just covered the unique process of taking the pictures but there is so much more information that we learned this semester in the process of developing and printing your film as well. Traditional photography has been fascinating and has spawned numerous ideas in my head for future photographs digital and traditional. I’m positive this is a hobby that I will not abandon quickly.

Final Post - Cody Barz

Final Post

Review of Basic Film Photography (last post):
By: Jennifer Maldonado


DIAPHRAGM

• The lens opening inside a photographic lens (also known as the aperture)
• Regulates the amount of light that the film is exposed to, when taking a photograph 
• (Indicated by the F-number figures, which are listed on the lens of the camera--i.e. 1.4, 2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22")
• The greater the F-number (the SMALLER the diaphragm) = LESS light enters
• The smaller the F-number (the wider the diaphragm) = MORE light enters

SHUTTER SPEED

• Controls how long light enters the camera (and into the film)
• Slower shutter speed = More light
• Faster shutter speed = Less light
• (i.e. "...8, 15, 30, 60, 125, 250, 500, 1000")

Slow Shutter Speed

Fast Shutter Speed

DEPTH OF FIELD

• The distance between the foreground & background of the subject that appears to be in focus
• There are 2 types of depth of field:
1. Shallow depth of field-- One point in the foreground is in focus, and the background is blurred
2. Great (maximum) depth of field-- Nearly everything is focused
• Determined by the length of the lens
• Larger aperture & closer focal distance (long lens) = Shallower depth of field (i.e. A telephoto lens)
• Smaller aperture & farther focal distance = Greater depth of field

(Blurred Foreground and Focused Background)

Shallow Depth of Field (Focused Foreground and Blurred Background)

ISO 

• Film sensor sensitivity (related to the amount of light you have)
• Higher sensitivity = More light (can take pictures in the dark with a very high ISO)
• Lower sensitivity = Less light (You will need to open the diaphragm to obtain more light)

• Greater ISO = grain :(
• Low ISO minimizes the effect of noise in the photograph!

High ISO (Sensitivity)

Low ISO (Sensitivity)

KELVIN

• Color temperature (a measurement of the lighting)
• Warm = Low
• Cool = High
• Normal daylight = ~5,500 degrees Kelvin

Kelvin Color Temperatures

LIGHT METER

• Measures how much light is coming into the camera (determines the exposure of the photograph)
• There are 2 types of light meters: 

1. Hand-held light meter
2. Built in light meter

• Used to produce the desired exposure levels

Hand-held light meter (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Digital_ambient_light_meter.jpg) 

FILL IN FLASH

• Used in bright light to reveal details in darker, shadowed areas
• Can also be used when a shot is backlit (bright light behind the subject)
• Used frequently outdoors and helps produce photographs with brighter colors! 
• Indicated on the Minolta 35 mm camera on a dial (i.e. -2, -1, 0, +1, +2)
• Use the negative numbers if...There are bright lights in front and it is darker in the background (i.e. Theater photography)
• Use the positive numbers if...There is a bright light behind the subject (the subject is in a shadow)

By: Jennifer Maldonado


Sources of Photographs:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/SStYiZcF6RPL8-vT6_-kbw
http://www.frigidlight.com/2010/02/08/2nd-round-of-prints-f-stop-and-depth-of-field/
http://frigidlight.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/Herro.jpg
http://thephotobox.yuku.com/topic/4020
http://www.flickr.com/photos/konaboy/72845202/
http://www.digital-photography-school.com/shutter-speed
http://www.cameracity.info/panasonic-lumix-fz35
http://www.photoreview.com.au/guides/digitalslr/iso-and-white-balance.aspx
http://thediscerningphotographer.com/2009/08/16/kelvin-temperature-in-photography/

This semester in Basic Film Photography

Film Photography

Allison Garlick

ISO

·      Indication of how sensitive a film is to light.

·      Measured in the numbers 100, 200, 400 & 800.

·      Lower the number means it has a lower sensitivity to light.

Film Exposure- amount of light allowed through the camera lens and onto the film. This is controlled by the intensity of light, or aperture, and length of time, or shutter speed.

Aperture

·      Refers to the opening and closing of the diaphragm inside the camera lens.

·      The hole or opening formed by the diaphragm inside the lens or the opening in a camera lens through which light passes to expose the film.

·      Aperture size is usually measured in f-stops

·      On my camera: f/1.8, f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/11, f/16, f/22

·      Large aperture size (open diaphragm) = smaller f/stop number

·      Small aperture size (closed diaphragm) = larger f/stop number

Diaphragm- The size of the diaphragm in a camera lens directly regulates the amount of light that comes through onto the film when the shutter curtain opens during an exposure process.

Shutter Speed

·      Duration (timing) at which the shutter curtain opens up and closes during an exposure process.

·      It controls the degree of movement in your pictures

·      Film cameras have a shutter speed dial on the top of the camera body to adjust shutter speed.

·      From slowest to fastest shutter speed: 2 seconds, 1 second, ½ second, ¼ second, 1/8 second, 1/15 second, 1/30 second, 1/30 second, 1/60 second, 1/125 second, 1/250 second, 1/500 second & 1/1000 second.

·      A 1/125 setting means the shutter curtain open and close within one hundred and twenty five of a second while 1 means an one full-second the shutter opens up during exposure to absorb the available light source onto the film to form an exposure.

Depth of Field

·      The zone of acceptable sharpness in front of and behind the subject on which the lens is focused

·      Factors affecting depth of field:

·      Aperture

·      Focal length of lens

·      Distance to subject

·      The wider the aperture + the longer the focal length + the closer the focused distance = the less the depth of field.

Final Post by Mary Capaldo

Diaphragm: The diaphragm opens and closes to allow light to reach the film plane or sensor. The size of the diaphragm in the lens regulates the amount of light that enters the camera and reaches the film or sensor. 


Depth of Field: This is determined by the length of the lens.  Depth of field refers to the distance between the closest object in an image and the farthest object in an image and their sharpness. Portraits usually have a very shallow depth of field, while landscape and architectural photographs typically have a very wide depth of field.

Open diaphragm -> Smaller depth of film
Closed diaphragm -> Larger depth of film
Closed diaphragm -> Less light 
Good Picture = Right combination 


Shutter Speed: This determines how much light goes into the camera. It determines the length of time light reaches the camera's sensor or film. The shutter speed is indicated in terms of fractions of a second. A shutter speed of 1/125 means the shutter curtain opens and closes in 1/125th of a second. A shutter speed of one means the shutter opens and closes in one second. The minimum is 1/30 and the maximum is 1/1000. A fast speed = less light. Wide angle = depth of field increase. 

ISO: Sensor sensitivity. How the film reacts to light. Low ISO = less light. 
ISO 100 or 200 film speeds are best for bright lighting conditions and outdoor photography.
ISO 400 film speed is a great all-purpose film that can be used for most situations. 
Fast speed film will result in the grainiest photographs but is great to use when shooting fast-moving subjects in low light conditions.   


Low speed = more light
High speed = less light
High sensitivity = more light
Low sensitivity = less light
High ISO (1600+) = grainy 


Light Meter: Measures how much light is coming in the camera.


The measurement of color temperature is in Kelvin degrees.


Fill flash or "fill-in flash" describes flash used to supplement ambient light in order to illuminate a subject close to the camera that would otherwise be in shade relative to the rest of the scene. 

FINAL

Final will on Monday the 13th in via del Mattonato from 15:00 to 17:30
See you on Monday
Best
S.A

The semester in short by Claudia Rotondo

Diaphragm:
The diaphragm, located in the lens, is what allows more or less light into the camera, depending on how wide or small the opening is. The numbers on the diaphram go (smallest to largest) 22, 16, 11, 8, 5.6, 4, 2.8,2, 1.4.

The shutter speed is how fast the shutter stays open, dependsing on how much light is entering the camera. The more light there is, the faster the shutter speed. The less light there is, the longer the shutter speed. The slowest speed one can use while using a hand/held camera is one thirtieth of a second. The shutter speeds are 2, 1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, and 1/2000.

Depth of field - the longer the lens, the less depth of field and vice versa. This is the contrast between a focused part of the picture and an unfocused part, and the length of space between them in relation to the size of the aperture.

The ISO is the how sensitive the film is to the light. The lower the number, the less sensitive the film is to the light. Also, the lower the number the finer the grain. Higher numbers, such as 1600 ISO, are very sensitive to the light and the grain is much more coarse looking.

The temperature of color is measured in kelvin. Indoor light is 3200 K and outdoor light is 5600 K. 

The light meter measures how much light the picture should be taken with, depending on the size of the aperature and the shutter speed.

Claudia Rotondo