Creative Use Of Camera Control

This report provides information obtained through literature review, regarding the creative use of camera control. This report will pay particular attention to shutter speed and movement, focus and aperture, choice of exposure, and changing focal length. Elaboration of each topic will highlight definitions, functions, importance, as well as suitable examples of the topics stated. These controls are important in order to take good quality photos in different situations.

One of the most dominant camera controls is shutter speed. Shutter speed is the duration of time the shutter is open, and is measured in seconds or fractions of a second. The main functions of the shutter speed control are changing the brightness level of the photo and creating dramatic effects by freezing the object or person in motion. For this segment, shutter speed in relation to the movement was emphasised. Different shutter speeds create different effects for the moving subject, for example, fast shutter will ‘freeze’ the subject, while a slower shutter will create a more subtle blur effect in the photograph. The enables the user to capture a picture in motion while adjusting the brightness of the photo.

Next is focus and aperture. In every picture taken there will be a plane of focus, a region in space with the possibility of looking as sharp as possible, (Cox,2018). Glass elements in the camera move to adjust the optical path of light rays thus changing the plane of focus to the user’s preference, whether front or back. On the other hand, aperture is the opening of the lens to let in more light, much like the human eye pupil, but measured in f stops on the camera. Changing the size of the lens opening can adjust how much light enters the photograph. This is extremely useful when taking photographs indoors, at night, or taking photos such as portraits, where the object is focused and the background is blurred. Similar to the focus control, aperture is able to create dimensions in the photo by blurring the background and creating depth.

Another significant creative camera control is exposure. Exposure is the amount of light reaching the camera sensor, and is dependant on three other settings, aperture, shutter speed and ISO. These three settings combine to provide the correct choice of exposure for a photograph. The importance of choosing a good exposure for a picture is that if the exposure is too high, the picture would have no tone definition and the highlights would be white and overwhelming. Vice versa, the picture would be too dark and without shadow detail, (Eissman, 2010). Exposure is something every photographer should learn to master, as it takes skill to balance the depth of field from the aperture setting, image speed from the ISO and the motion blur from the shutter speed, and adjusting one setting changes the other so technically a balance has to be achieved to be right for the situation, whether light or dim.

Lastly, is changing focal lengths. The focal length is the distance between the lens and the image sensor when the subject is in focus, and stated in millimetres. The term in relation to focal length is the angle of view, which is defined by the width of the angle that allows the size of the picture to change. Focal length is crucial because the photographer would know the distance needed between the camera and the subject. Changing the focal length of the camera, changes the view in the picture. The shorter the focal length, the wider the angle of view and the longer the focal length, the smaller the scene becomes and the subject appears larger. For instance, when taking a photograph of a group, the focal length can be changed to become smaller, so all the subjects can fit into a frame.

Reference

1. Understanding Focus in Photography, Spencer Cox (2018) https://photographylife.com/understanding-focus-in-photography#what-is-focus
2. Digital Photography Foundations, Katrin Eissman (1st November 2010) http://www.peachpit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=1644832&seqNum=2