the slr camera content... · always have a lense or body cap in place. the dslr camera basic parts...

THE

DSLR

CAMERA

Before we Begin

For those of you who have studied photography the chances are that in most cases you have been using a digital compact camera. This has probably involved you turning the camera on and then going off to take photographs.

This has given you a good introduction to the world of photography, however there are other important and fundamental camera functions and skills that you must learn if you hope to reach your full potential as a photographer.

A sound understanding of how and what the camera functions do combined with the knowledge of what to use and when, plus an understanding about image composition will result in you producing very powerful and eye catching images.

There are no short cuts so lets start at the beginning.

The Digital SLR (DSLR) Camera

DSLR’s are generally not as robust as traditional film based cameras and for this reason alone you need to take additional care.

They should never be handled roughly and all care should be taken to prevent them from being dropped.

So – 1.Where possible carry the camera in its bag.

2.When using the camera have the strap around you neck.

3.When using a tripod make sure the legs are secure and set up so that the camera is as level as possible.

Sensor Care

The sensor is one of the most fragile components of the camera and is also the most expensive component to replace.

It is important to know how to care for the sensor to prevent an expensive repair bill.

1. Don’t go looking for it unless you really need to.

2. Avoid poking fingers or other objects in and around the front of the camera.

Sensor Care

1. Air born dust is the major cause for maintenance to be carried out to the sensor.

2. Sensors tend to build up a static charge and attract small dust particles. To remove them the sensor needs to be carefully cleaned. This is not a simple task and requires knowledge, care and specialized cleaning equipment.

Sensor Care

To reduce the amount of dust

that can enter the camera

1. Limit the amount of times that you need to change lenses.

2. When changing lenses face the camera down towards the ground.

3. Never leave the camera body uncapped. Always have a lense or body cap in place.

The DSLR Camera

Basic Parts

Shutter Release Button/ On/Off

Button

Lens Zoom Adjustment

Focus Adjustment

Lens Release Button

Mode Dial

Flash Hot Shoe

View Finder

Depth of Field Preview Button

Exposure Compensation and Aperture Value Button

Popup Flash

Manual Focus /Auto Focus Switch

Raw Button – Changes the file format temporarily to Raw and saves both Jpeg and RAW files

Mode Dial

Shutter

View Finder

Menu Button

Function Button

Shutter Speed Dial

E-dial – Adjusts

Shutter Speed, Aperture and Exposure Value Compensation

Shake Reduction Button

Diopter Adjustment Lever

Play Back Button

Before We Begin Taking

Photographs Before you even consider taking photographs

you need to setup the camera by setting up the –

a. ISO

b. White Balance

c. Motor Drive Options

d. Popup flash Options

e. Image Quality Setting

f. Install the batteries and the SD media card

You may also need to format the SD card to

make sure you have room for your images

The Function (Fn) Button

The ISO, White Balance, Motor Drive and

Flash options can all be adjusted using the

Fn button on the back of the camera.

The Function (Fn) Button

To adjust press the Fn button, select your

options using the arrow keys and once you

are happy with your choices press OK

Fn

Arrow Keys

ISO (International Standards Organisation)

The DSLR has the ability to have the sensitivity of the image sensor adjusted.

The major advantage is that you can adjust it as often as you need to depending on the lighting conditions etc. This is a great feature to be aware of and make use of.

ISO settings on most digital cameras range from 200iso to 1600 or 3400iso.

ISO

The higher the ISO the better the

sensor is at capturing images in

lower light.

The trade off is an increase in noise

(a multi coloured pixel effect). This

is most obvious when the image is

enlarged and it is not always

desirable.

White Balance

You need to select the White Balance for the type of lighting that you will be taking photographs in. If you are in any doubt select AWB (Auto White Balance)

Motor Drive

Motor Drive options range from single frame, continuous shooting, time exposures, bracketed exposures and more. In most cases the single frame option will be most desirable

Flash Options

There are a number of flash options that control the popup flash and accessory flashes. My preference is to turn off the auto flash option and make the decision to use the flash myself and manually raise the flash.

SD Cards

SD Cards are fitting in the side of the camera. You need to make sure that the card is not locked or camera will not be able to write the image files to it.

The Menu Button

To format the SD card you need to enter the

camera menu settings and follow the path to

the ‘format’ option.

Menu

Most of the time the image quality will be preset for you at the highest Jpeg option so you will not need to change this.

What Comes Next

Now that the camera is setup we can move

on and look at the important parts of the

camera that control image exposure, depth

of field, focus and the overall way that your

image will look.

So what happens when you

take a photograph?

At the moment that you press the shutter

release button a series of events occur inside

of the camera that ultimately result in an

image being recorded.

The mirror lifts, the aperture closes to the

chosen settings and the shutter opens. At

the end of the exposure time the actions take

place in reverse.

The basic operation of a digital SLR camera are the same

as a film SLR camera. The major difference is that the film

is replaced with an electronic sensor to capture the image.

1. Lens Optics

2. Mirror

3. Focal Plane Shutter

4. CCD Sensor

5. Focussing Screen

6. Condensing Lens

7. Pentaprism

8. Eye Piece

How Much Light Does the image

sensor (CCD) Need?

To produce a correctly exposed image, a measured

amount of light is required to reach the cameras CCD

sensor.

Modern day cameras are designed to help us achieve

this, by telling us when the settings we have chosen

will create the correct exposure.

However they do not take into account what we are

photographing or when we are photographing.

The information may be correct to expose the image

properly but it may be the wrong information for what

we are trying to photograph.

Now Lets begin to look at

how these controls work

with one another to let us

take photographs

Iris Diaphragm

The iris diaphragm is located inside of the lens and

it is made up of a series of overlapping metal or

plastic leaves that together create an opening called

an aperture.

The aperture controls the volume of light that is

allowed to reach the CCD / film.

Iris Diaphragm

On older style lenses the size of the aperture can be

adjusted by turning the aperture control ring to let more

or less light pass through, in a similar way to the pupil in

the human eye.

Most modern cameras have control wheels on the

camera body that can adjust the aperture settings,

making the process a little easier and as a result new

lenses no longer are fitted with aperture control rings.

Iris Diaphragm

Controls the size of the aperture opening

Iris Diaphragm

To assist the photographer a universal series of numbers is used to define the size of the aperture opening. These are known as ‘f’ numbers or f-

stops.

The number sequence runs as follows –

2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22, 32 It will be important that you become familiar with the

number sequence and understand what the relationship between the number and the size of

the aperture opening.

Iris Diaphragm and Aperture So how do they work and what do they do?

The bigger the aperture opening the lower the

f-number and the smaller the aperture opening the

greater the f-number.

The bigger the aperture opening, the greater the amount of light that can pass through.

F- Stop Settings

f22 f16 f8

f3.5 f5.6

These are the typical

settings seen on the lens

aperture ring of a standard

lens.

Note the difference between the standard lens (on the right) and the newer lense design (on the left) – No aperture ring on the newer lense. Rather than manually adjust the aperture we can now use the camera controls.

Note that the aperture ring needs to be locked into the A position when using it on a DSLR

We are going to use some of the

cameras technology to

assist us to make the correct choices.

You must then check that the

image is in sharp focus before releasing the

shutter

To correctly expose an image, a combination of an

aperture setting and a shutter speed must be

correctly selected.

To adjust the Aperture settings the camera needs to be in the ‘M’ mode (Manual) or ‘Av’ mode (Aperture Value).

E- Dial Mode Dial

Adjusting Aperture Settings

Note that the Aperture number selected will be underlined when you check settings inside of the viewfinder

To adjust the Aperture settings when the camera is in ‘M’ mode (Manual) press the ‘Av’ button near the shutter release hold it down whilst turning the ‘E-Dial’. The light meter will need to be set in this mode to achieve a correct exposure.

E- Dial

Set to ‘M’


in ‘M’ (Manual) Mode


‘Av’ Button

To adjust the Aperture settings when the camera is in ‘Av’ mode (Aperture Value)

turn the mode dial to ‘Av’ and then adjust the settings by turning the ‘E-Dial’. The camera will automatically set the light meter to produce a correct exposure.

E- Dial

Set to ‘Av’


in ‘Av’ (Aperture Value) Mode


Shutter Speed

The Shutter Speed indicates the amount of time that the camera

shutter will be allowed to stay open.

The shutter works like a blind. When it is shut no light can reach the

digital sensor (also known as the Charge-Coupled Device or CCD ).

The shutter is a timing device that controls the amount of time that light is allowed to reach the CCD

The Shutter Speed

The Shutter Speed Numbers are also a universal

sequence and measure time in seconds or fractions

of seconds.

The sequence is as follows –

B(bulb), 1sec, ½, ¼, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60,

1/125, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000

So if the camera was set to 1/1000 (one thousandths of a second) you would need to take

1000 photographs to capture 1 second of time.

This is also a sequence of number that you will need to

become familiar with.

To adjust the Shutter Speed settings the camera needs to be in the ‘M’ mode (Manual) or ‘Tv’ mode (Time Value). You can then use the e-dial to make your shutter speed adjustments.

E- Dial

Set to ‘M’ or ‘TV’

Adjusting Shutter Speed

settings

Note that the Shutter Speed number selected will be underlined when you check settings inside of the viewfinder

To adjust the Shutter speeds when the camera is in ‘M’ mode (Manual) you just need to use the ‘E-Dial’. Turning it left and right will increase or decrease the shutter speed. The light meter will need to be set in this mode to achieve a correct exposure.

E- Dial

Set to ‘M’


settings in ‘M’ (Manual) Mode


To adjust the Shutter speed settings when the camera is in ‘Tv’ mode (Time Value) turn the mode dial to ‘Tv’ and then adjust the settings by turning the ‘E-Dial’. The camera will automatically set the light meter to produce a correct exposure.

E- Dial

Set to ‘Tv’


settings in ‘Tv’ (Time Value) Mode


End of Part 1

Part 2

In part 1 we looked at the major camera parts,

setting up the camera, aperture and shutter

speed settings.

We then explored some of the different modes

on the camera and learnt how to use them.

During part 2 we need to spent some time

making some sense of the aperture and shutter

speed settings, learn how and what to use and

then practice.

How much light does the CCD

(Charge-Coupled Device) need?

There are many combinations of shutter speed and aperture setting that can be used that will produce a correct exposure.

When one is found the camera light meter will let you know, or if you use the Av or Tv modes the camera will make some of the selections for you and try to automatically set the light meter.

This all sounds wonderful

BUT!! Shhhhhhh!! Cameras are quite Dumb

A Camera is just a machine.

It does not have a logically thinking

brain, therefore it is dumb.

It is up to the photographer to interpret the

information that the camera gives us and know

what is right and wrong.

Teaching you this is one of my key goals.

Lets look at this concept using an everyday set of

objects. A Tap, a hose and a bucket.


need? - continued

CCD / Film


need? - continued

The tap represents our timing device (the shutter).

The various sized hoses, our apertures

The bucket is the CCD / film.

The aim is to fill the bucket exactly to the top.

CCD / Film

So back to the question! How much light does CCD / film need? - continued

Connect a big hose and it only takes a short time to

fill the bucket.

Connect a small hose and it takes much longer.

It works the same way

with any digital camera,

or film camera.

CCD / Film

How do we know when

we get it right?

Modern day cameras are fitted with a light

measuring device called a light meter. There

are various configurations but they all do the

same job.

The light meter indicates when your camera

settings would achieve the correct exposure

for the CCD / film.

They also indicate when it would be incorrect.

Camera Light Meter - on the Pentax K100D and K200D Camera

• The light meter can be seen on the right hand side as you look through the camera when it is in (M) manual mode. The aim is to have it set to 0.0 for a correct exposure.

• It will not be visible in Tv or Av modes the camera will automatically try to produce a setting that achieves a correct exposure.

• An incorrect exposure will be indicated by a number up to +3.0 or -3.0. If the exposure is out of range the light meter will flash on and off.

But What If??

The problems begin when either too much or too little light reaches the CCD.

If too much light reaches the CCD the image it will be too bright. The term used to describe this is OVER EXPOSURE. It would be like over filling the bucket and the light meter would indicate this as follows.

If too little light reaches the CCD the images will be too dark. The term used to describe this is UNDER EXPOSED. It would be like under filling the bucket and the light meter would indicate this as follows.

CCD CCD

Getting It Right

Getting the combination of Shutter Speed and Aperture Correct will allow you to produce the best results. The image will be neither too light or too dark and this makes the printing process much easier. Correctly exposed images are very desirable.

CCD

It’s Time to Practice

Now lets practice using some combinations of Shutter Speeds and Aperture Settings to get a better understanding about what we have covered.

Multiple Combinations

It is important to realize that there can be

many combinations that will produce a

correct exposure.

Lets see how this works

Working Out the Combinations

B (Bulb), 1, 2 , 4, 8, 15, 30, 60, 125, 250, 500, 1000, 2000, 4000

f32, f22, f16, f11, f8, f5.6, f4, f2.8, f2, f1.4

Lets say for example that you discover that a combination of 1/125 (shutter speed) and f8 (aperture) will produce a correct exposure.

What other shutter speed and aperture combinations will also result in a correct exposure?

Lets change the shutter speed and see what aperture settings will achieve this.

1/60 f11 1/8 1/500

1/30 1/125 1/1000

1/15 1/250


B (Bulb), 1, 2 , 4, 8, 15, 30, 60, 125, 250, 500, 1000, 2000, 4000

f32, f22, f16, f11, f8, f5.6, f4, f2.8, f2, f1.4




1/60 f11 1/8 1/500

1/30 f16 1/125 1/1000

1/15 f22 1/250


B (Bulb), 1, 2 , 4, 8, 15, 30, 60, 125, 250, 500, 1000, 2000, 4000

f32, f22, f16, f11, f8, f5.6, f4, f2.8, f2, f1.4




1/60 f11 1/8 f32 1/500 f4

1/30 f16 1/125 f8 1/1000 f2.8

1/15 f22 1/250 f5.6

Knowing What to Use

Although there can be many

combinations of Aperture and Shutter

Speed that will produce a correct

exposure, some will not be suitable to

use.

Getting it wrong can ruin your great

photographs.

Whilst there are many combinations that will work for us,

some would require us to use a tripod to avoid ‘camera

shake’ and others may be unsuitable for the type of subject

that we are photographing.

For example, the following three pictures have been given an equal amount of light, but the f-stop and shutter combinations make each one unique.

Avoiding Camera Shake

A Safe Shutter Speed Guide

As a guide never use a shutter speed below

1/60 if you hand holding the camera.

Where possible use Shutter Speeds higher

than 1/60.

1/125 – 1/500 are ideal.

• If you need to use shutter speeds below 1/60 always set the camera up on a tripod.

A Safe Shutter Speed Guide

The ideal settings

So Now What

This isn’t the end but it is now your turn to

practice and begin to understand how to get the

best from the camera.

It is absolutely vital that you have a good

working knowledge about how to use the

camera using the –

‘M’ (manual) mode, the

‘Tv’ (Time Value) mode and the

‘Av’ (Aperture Value) mode.

Reviewing This Power Point

You can review this power point at any time

by visiting our web page and following the

link on the first task sheet.

It is located under -

task 1 – Camera and Printing Basics

GOOD LUCK

the slr camera content... · always have a lense or body cap in place. the dslr camera basic parts...

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