Chapter 1 - Camera Handling

Handling your 35mm camera with skill and ease can make the difference between getting the picture and being too late. It can also make the difference between getting a sharp picture and one that is blurry. The greatest photo opportunity in the world can quickly vanish if the photographer fumbles with the camera, sets exposure controls improperly, doesn't focus carefully, or jiggles the camera while depressing the shutter release. When camera handling becomes a natural action, the results are consistently better photographs.

CAMERA HOLDING

The way you hold your camera when you release the shutter is important for sharp pictures. Camera jiggle is the most common cause of unsharp pictures—not the obviously blurred pictures, but those lacking the needle sharpness that indicates the touch of a skilled photographer.

The best way for you to hold your camera is the way that´s both comfortable and steady. Try to keep your arms against your body—not suspended in air. Place your feet firmly on the ground, slightly apart. Hold the camera tightly against your face. Take a breath, hold it, and gently squeeze the shutter release. Chances are excellent that you´ll make a picture free of camera movement.

Golfers practice their swing. Target shooters practice squeezing the trigger. Photographers can practice their handling techniques.

CAMERA TYPES

The two basic types of 35mm cameras are single. lens. reflex (SLR) cameras and compact cameras. Compact 35mm cameras (also known as lens/shutter cameras) include non. SLR auto focus, fixed focus, range finder, and "bridge" (hybrid) cameras.

With most of these, you view your subject through a viewfinder that is separate from the camera lens. These relatively small cameras have become increasingly popular, and they commonly include features such as automatic film advance and rewind, automatic exposure, and automatic focus. Having virtually point. and. shoot capability, a compact 35mm camera is an excellent choice for casual photography. Single. lens. reflex cameras are also extremely popular. One of the major reasons for this is that they accept interchangeable lenses. When you look through the viewfinder of an SLR camera, you´re actually looking at your subject through the camera´s picture. taking lens. In this way, you can change from one lens to another and immediately see in the viewfinder the image that will be recorded on your film. This also means that you´ll see in the viewfinder some of the perspective changes we mention in the section on lenses. A direct optical viewfinder can be made to show approximately what will be included in the picture with various lenses. But it´s more difficult to appraise the effect of the lenses on perspective.

A good, simple 35mm camera makes picture taking easy­ all you do is point and shoot!

Auto focus SLR cameras have all the convenience of snapshot cameras and the flexibility of accepting a variety of interchangeable lenses.

EXPOSURE CONTROLS

The two controls on adjustable cameras that regulate the amount of light reaching the film are shutter speed and lens opening (also called aperture or f. stop). Setting these two controls correctly lets you take properly exposed pictures. With manual cameras, you adjust the shutter speed and aperture controls until the camera´s meter indicates you have set the proper exposure.

Automatic cameras, on the other hand, adjust the shutter speed or lens opening (or both) automatically, after determining an optimum exposure setting. Automatic cameras equipped to handle film with DX. encoding designations even set themselves for the speed of the film you´re using.

Whether your camera uses a built. in meter to guide you in setting aperture and shutter speed or sets them itself, you should understand the basic premise behind shutter speed and aperture to gain greater control over image quality. The shutter speed controls the length of time the film is exposed to light. Shutter speeds are indicated by the numbers 1, 2, 4, 8, 15, 30, 60, 125, 250, 500, 1000, and 2000. The speeds may be marked on a dial or shown on an LCD panel atop the camera or in the viewfinder. Your camera may not have all of these speeds. The numbers represent fractions of a second (except 1 second) and mean 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/15 second, and so on. You can use the B setting to make time exposures—the shutter will stay open as long as you press the shutter release. For more precise control of time exposures, some advanced cameras allow you to set electronically timed shutter speeds of up to several minutes.

Changing from one shutter speed to a speed that is twice as fast, for example 1/60 to 1/125 second, allows the light to strike the film for half as long; therefore, half as much light reaches the film. Changing to a shutter speed that holds the shutter open twice as long, for example 1/60 to 1/30 second, lets twice as much light strike the film.

The size of the lens opening on your camera is the other factor that controls the amount of light that reaches the film. The different sizes of lens openings are indicated by f–numbers. These numbers form a series, such as 1.4, 2, 2.8, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, and 22, marked on the camera lens or shown on an LCD panel. The smallest f–number refers to the biggest opening. The largest f–number is the smallest lens opening.

When you change from one lens opening to the nearest number, you´re adjusting the lens by 1 stop. If you move the setting to the next larger one, for example f/11 to f/8, the area of the opening is doubled, so you expose the film to twice as much light. Changing from one lens opening to the next smaller one, for example f/11 to f/16, cuts the light by half. Automatic. exposure cameras dominate the camera market. Electronic sensors and microprocessors have not only taken the guesswork out of correct exposure, but the labor as well. The camera sets the shutter speed and aperture the instant you press the shutter release. Cameras that measure the light reflecting off of the film itself can even adjust these settings as the exposure is occurring.

CHOOSING THE BEST COMBINATION OF SHUTTER SPEED AND LENS OPENING

1. To reduce the effects of camera motion. A good, general. purpose shutter speed to achieve this is 1/125 second. A higher shutter speed of 1/250 second may produce even sharper pictures. With telephoto lenses, even higher shutter speeds may be necessary.

2. To stop action. A shutter speed of 1/125 second helps stop the action of someone walking, for instance. However, there may be times when you want to use a higher shutter speed to stop fast action, such as a person running.

3. To control depth of field. By using a small or a large lens opening with the appropriate shutter speed to maintain the correct exposure, you can increase or decrease the range of sharp focus, or the depth of field.

DEPTH OF FIELD

Depth of field is the distance range within which objects in a picture look sharp. As you gain a sound understanding of depth of field, you can use it as a very effective control for making better pictures. What are the primary factors affecting depth of field, depth of field varies with the size of the lens opening, the distance of the subject focused upon, and the focal length of the lens. Depth of field becomes greater as

• the size of the lens opening decreases.
• the subject distance increases.
• the focal length of the lens decreases and subject distance remains unchanged.