Question

Explain how the following elements and terms affect the quality of a picture: ○ Light—natural light/ambient, flash. ○ Exposure—aperture (fstops), shutter speed, depth of field. ○ Composition—rule of thirds, leading lines, framing, depth. ○ Angle of view. ○ Stopping action

Answer 1

1.LIGHT

Types of Light

1.Hard Light

Hard light is when the light source is small relative to the subject.Hard light creates very bright and very dark areas in the same scene. You can see this on a very bright and sunny day.Often hard light can create very dark shadows.You can also see this when people use a flash on someone against a dark background.The result is often a very bright subject with a very dark background.You can soften the shadows using a fill flash.

2.Soft light

Soft light refers to light that tends to "wrap" around objects, casting diffuse shadows with soft edges. Soft light is when a light source is large relative to the subject.Think of a large shaded area or what its like to be outside on a cloudy day.There are no harsh shadows or extreme bright spots.

The hardness or softness of lights depends on
1.Distance: The closer the light source,the softer it becomes.
2.Size of light source: The larger the source,the softer it becomes.

Natural light is comprised of sunlight or skylight. The former will produce distinct shadows, sharp delineation and enhances subject textures if it comes from one side. This can emphasize the perception of depth in the scene. Direct sunlight often forces people to squint while the photographer places the sun behind his back. Without the use of corrective filtration, subject colors can shift towards warm hues quite noticeably when under direct sun in the early morning or late evening.

Skylight on the other hand, produces softer shadows and less delineation or texture enhancement. A slight color shift towards blue may be noticed since the sky color is closer to the balance of color film or digital sensors than the color temperature of direct sun. However, skylight can have one drawback when used for outdoor portraiture.

2.EXPOSURE
Exposure is controlled by ISO,aperture and shutter speed.

1.ISO(International Standard Organisation)
ISO Speed is how sensitive your camera’s sensor is to light, each value of the rating represents a “stop” of light.

The lower the ISO rating, the less sensitive the image sensor is and therefore the smoother the image, because there is less digital noise in the image.

The higher the ISO rating (more sensitive) the stronger the image sensor has to work to establish an effective image, which thereby produces more digital noise

2.Aperture
Aperture controls the lens’ diaphragm, which controls the amount of light traveling through the lens to the film plane.

The aperture determines which areas of the image will be focussed.
A lens’s aperture is the opening in the diaphragm that determines the amount of focused light passing through the lens.

At a small f-stop, say f/2, a tremendous amount of light passes through, even at a fraction of a second; but at f/22, when the diaphragm is perhaps at its smallest, only a tiny amount of light is let in

3.Shutter Speed
Shutter Speed indicates the speed in which the curtain opens then closes. This is essentially how long light is permitted to hit your camera’s sensor once you hit the shutter-release button.

The shutter speed controls how long light enters the lens and hits the image sensor or film plane. The shutter speed enables you to capture the world in split seconds, but it can also absorb the world at speeds upwards of three and four

Snapping the shutter in a fraction of a second, also gives you control on how motion is recorded. If the shutter speed is faster than the object or background, then the image will be tack sharp. If the shutter speed is slower, then you’ll get blurred objects.

3.COMPOSITION-Rule of thirds
Using the rule of thirds means that the subject isn’t centered in the image.By placing the subject off center, you also embrace more blank space. The rule of thirds is also helpful for highlighting an interesting background. Off-centered subjects tend to convey more of a feeling of motion than centered ones.

If the subject is looking in a certain direction, leave the empty space in the same direction that they’re looking towards.
If the subject is moving, leave the empty space in the direction that they are moving in. This gives the subject a sense of moving forward, and allows the viewer to see a little of where they’re headed.
In a landscape photo, place the horizon on one of those horizontal grid lines, instead of dead center in the photo.

4.ANGLE OF VIEW

Angle of view is a measure of how much of a scene or subject a lens can take in. Expressed in degrees, the angle of view can be measured horizontally, vertically or diagonally across an image.The angle creates an effect as you capture a subject.

Angle of view determines how a scene can be framed and composed. Long lenses with focal lengths of 200mm, 300mm or 400mm and beyond offer narrow angles of view that make it easier to isolate objects within a wider scene.

The drawback to having an angle of view of just a few degrees is that it's equally easy to lose track of a subject, as a slight shift in the position of the camera can have a dramatic effect on which area is picked out by the lens. This problem is compounded if you're following a moving subject.

5.STOPPING ACTION
Capturing a freeze moment in time.
The camera's shutter speed determines how the action in a photo is recorded. A fast shutter speed can freeze action.A slow shutter speed can let action blur or even make a moving subject seem to disappear.