If you are a novice to photography, the equipment may appear very confusing, particularly the camera. It was difficult enough working out the terminology before the digital revolution, but now it is practically impossible. Digital cameras are dedicated microcomputers and just as difficult for the inexperienced to understand. Here are some common terms.
The aperture is the size of the lens and the bigger the aperture of the lens, the more light that is let in and the more light that is admitted, the better the quality of the photo and the less likely it is that you will need to use a flash, which brings its own problems with it. So, look for a camera with a large aperture.
The shutter speed is important for taking photos in different qualities of light and for employing special effects. Shutter speed in combination with aperture size gives more control over the final photograph. For instance, a wide aperture will allow enough light in a very short time, so that the shutter can open and close very quickly, which will permit you to capture a part of a second like water droplets splashing.
Therefore, if the aperture is big enough, you can have a wider range of shutter speeds which will permit you to use special effects while taking your photos. Although the shutter speed is chosen automatically on digital cameras, on some it can be manually selected if so required. The shutter speed is connected to the camera’s capability to take motion pictures.
Memory is the camera’s equivalent of a computer’s RAM. It is the temporary storage space for your photos and the amount you require is closely linked to the resolution of the photos and how many you want to take without resort to memory cards.
Most digital cameras have at least one slot for a memory card. Memory cards can raise your camera’s memory capacity by five, six or even ten times.
There are quite a few different sorts of memory card and not all cameras can take all kinds. Therefore, when you buy your digital camera, check what sort of memory card it takes and then check that that type or card suits you. When you have your camera, you are restricted to which cards you may use.
Memory cards will embrace your photos until you empty them, so if you want to take plenty of photos, say, when on holiday, take a few cards with you and process them once you arrive home. When you have downloaded the images onto your computer, you can wipe the cards clean and use them again.
SLR and DSLR refer to single-reflex lens and digital single-reflex lens. This is a very important idea for a photographer, because it means that you will get a photo of exactly what you see in your camera’s view-finder. The situation with most cheap cameras is that the camera ‘looks out’ of the lens, but the photographer looks through a view-finder.
These two lenses come from slightly different angles. This is not much of a problem for medium to long distance photography, but can cause optical errors in close ups. Therefore, professional and dedicated amateur photographers will always buy an SLR or DSLR for their important work.
However, the technology in these cameras makes them more expensive, heavier and more bulky than most amateur snappers would want to put up with.
Owen Jones, the writer of this article, writes on many topics, but is currently involved with tips for product photography. If you have an interest in photography, please visit our website now at Photography Studio Cameras