The Camera: History and Information

"The Camera" 

1. Around 500 BCE, Chinese and Greek philosophers used the first cameras through the "camera obscura" effect, which included using a hole like a lens and projecting the light onto the opposite wall of a dark chamber.
2. In the 17th century, Isaac Newton and Christian Huygens modified the glass lens and perfected the optics.
3. The parts of the first modern camera were a glass lens, a dark box, and film.
4. The process of making a photograph has never changed despite how much today's digital cameras differ from Niepce's camera. Light enters through a small hole, the lens, and projects onto the film to create the photograph. Both Niepce's camera and today's cameras are also portable.
5. Today's digital cameras use an electronic sensor, CCD, to capture the photos and then store them in memory chips. 

"Camera Modes"

1. In Auto Mode, the flash and exposure is maximized to its full potential, as to where in Program Mode, the flash and the exposure are adjustable (as are other settings). 
2. Portrait Mode blurs out the background by using the fastest aperture.  This can bring more attention to the subject instead of focusing on the background.
3. Sports Mode are for action shots. The highest shutter speed is used in order to "freeze" the object/person that is in motion without blurring it. 

"The Half Press"

1. Using the "half-press" technique on the trigger button will shorten the shutter lag (and cause a quicker response time) as well as cause the camera to  lock its focus (focus lock) on the subject before the shot is taken (good for experimenting with composition). These are all a result of the "half-press" technique when the camera knows that you are preparing to take a shot.

"Controlling Flash"

1. This symbol means that the flash has been disabled. Sometimes it's better to use the natural light of your surroundings instead of the artificial light from the camera's flash setting.

2.  This symbol means that the camera is on "Auto Flash Mode". If your surroundings are too dark, the camera will automatically use flash to capture the photograph without  darkness obscuring the photo. 

"Introduction to Exposure"

1. If there is too much light in your photo, it can obscure the details and cause the photograph to look like a brightened blur or blob. You probably don't want this.
2. If there is not enough light in your photo, it will be hard to see the details (again), and you probably generally won't be able to make out the photo at all. 

"The Universal Stop"

1. "Stop" in photography terms is the measurement of light - or how much the light has changed in brightness.
2. If there were two suns, the new planet would be 1 stop brighter.
3. If there were four suns, the new planet would be 2 stops brighter.

"Shutter and Aperture"

1. The shutter prevents light from reaching the film until the photograph is taken. A longer shutter speed causes more light to be exposed to the film
2. A shorter shutter speed causes less light to be exposed.
3. The aperture acts like a pupil and reduces the brightness as the light passes through it before exposing the film. It controls how much light is exposed.
4. You can adjust the aperture to increase the amount of light by adjusting the settings so that the aperture  has a larger opening.