Assignment #5

This week we worked on our shutter speed.  This one was a little difficult because I needed a volunteer.  Thankfully I was able to twist the arm of a Belmar beach house friend.  Considering I didn't really sell the experience, she was a really good sport.
Sequence

Stop Action
- I set my camera on a tripod and took pictures of Crystal going by on a bike at multiple shutter speeds.

Shutter Speed 1/30

Shutter speed 1/60

Shutter Speed 1/125

Shutter Speed 1/250

Shutter Speed 1/500

Shutter Speed 1/1000

Now for a couple of fun ones.....

(after taking this one, I really started to crave a bigger zoom lens)

Blur
- If you remember from my Assignment #5 post, there are two types of blur.  I'll start with Static Blur, then move to Panning Blur

Static Blur

Shutter Speed 1/ 125

Shutter Speed 1/ 60

Shutter Speed 1/30

Shutter Speed 1/ 15

Shutter Speed 1/8

I was also suppose to take a picture with Shutter Speed 1/4....but somehow I forgot.  Oops!

Now a few fun ones!

Panning Blur

Shutter Speed 1/30

Shutter Speed 1/ 15

Shutter Speed 1/8

Shutter Speed 1/4

Shutter Speed 1/2

Shutter Speed 1

Now a quick fun one

Next we had to communicate an idea.  This one was a little tricky.  For the next couple of weeks he's going to give us a word and/or phrase and we need to capture in a picture......ugh.

- Portrait of a loved one without them in it

- As time goes by

- Urban jungle

- Will this ever end?

Seriously when will it end??!!

Class #5

Shutter Speed, Time and Motion
Our first couple of classes, our instructor kept telling us "the most important thing to remember about photography is we are representing the 3D world in a 2D medium".  This week we learned the second most important thing about photography "We are creating a flat, motionless and silent representation of a very dynamic world".  We are trying to let the viewer know the things we are photographing are alive, dynamic and moving.  So how do we do this.....

1. Sequence
I'm sure you've all see the below picture.  Eadweard Muybridge's "The Horse in Motion".  As a little history lesson......These pictures were taken to help a friend of Eadweard's with a bet.  The bet had to do with whether a horse in full stride has all four hooves off the ground or not.  Multiple pictures were set up with wires that tripped as the horse ran by.  These multiple pictures describe the passage of time and motion, while also capturing a view the eye was not able to see.  To really capture and measure the movement, add something static in the picture.

2. Stop Action
A fast exposure can stop an action that otherwise would be imperceptible allowing the viewer to study the intricacies of the motion.  The shorter the shutter speed, the faster the action can be stopped. 
How about a little more history.....In the 1940's Dr. Harold Edgerton designed a flash with a duration of less than 1/10,000th of a second that could stop a bullet.
Stop action photos allow the viewer to study an event they can't with the naked eye.  You freeze the moment by increasing your shutter speed.

3. Blur
- Static Camera Blur
First you need to set your camera up on a tripod to hold it steady.  Then allow the action to streak onto your film.  By adjusting your shutter speed you can adjust the amount of blur.  The slower the shutter speed, the more blur.

- Panning Camera Blur
For this method, you're trying to hold a moving object constant in your frame as you pan along the moving objects path.  Again - you can adjust the amount of blur by adjusting the shutter speed.  The trick with Panning is to begin moving the camera with the subject before the exposure then release the shutter when you have smoothly matched the speed. 

When Bad Blur Ruins Good Pictures
A couple of tips
- Do not handhold a camera at less than 1/60th of a second
- For lenses longer than 50mm, select a shutter speed equal to or higher than the focal length of the lens.
- Tripods or cable release can help eliminate blur.  Removing your hands from the camera can greatly improve the sharpness of a picture. 
- The mirror lock up feature allows you to release the mirror and stop the lens down prior to the actual exposure eliminating the vibration.  (I have to do a little research to see if my camera has this feature and how it works)
- Learn the proper way to hold your camera.  It should be cradled in your left hand with the left elbow against the body.  Your right hand holds the camera firmly with the entire palm.
- When taking a picture, don't push the button.....squeeze until it fires

Class #3

Today we learned about lenses and how to operate our camera in Manual mode (adjusting f-stop, ISO and shutter speed).  We scratched the surface with both.....so more to come.

Focal Length and Angle of View
- Your lens is the single most important tool of as photographer.  The camera is just a dark box, while the lens manipulates the light and projects the image to the chip.
- When adjusting your focal length - you are expanding and contrasting the field of view and manipulating the spacial relationship.
- Lenses are measured by their focal length.  This is the theoretical measurement from the center of the lens (nodal Point) to chip when focused at infinity.  The smaller the focal length,  the wider the angle of view.  Longer lenses have smaller angles of view, resulting in a greater image magnification.
   * 20mm lens is a wide-angle lens with an angle of view about 90 degrees
   * 50mm lens is considered a normal lens because the angle of view is roughly that of our vision - 45 degrees
   * 300mm lens has an 8 degree angle of view

- Wide Angle - Show more of a scene than a normal lens.  They exaggerate and expand perspective by making foreground objects large and distant objects small.  Wide lenses can distort lines close to the edges further adding to the illusion of perspective.

- Normal Lens - You are pretty much showing the viewer what they would see through their eyes.  A Normal focal length is around 35mm.

- Long lenses (telephoto) - Pull subjects closer to the camera.  Long lenses tend to compress the scene making objects appear closer to one another than they are.  They have have less ability to maintain focus in front of and behind the main subject.  This sharpness fall-off can help to restore the illusion of depth.

Manual Exposure Fundamentals
To find the correct exposure for your picture, you need to find a balance in the amount of light in your scene to the amount of light your chips needs to capture the tones and colors accurately.

- f-Stop or Aperture - This is the diaphragm of your lens just before you release the shutter button.  The "f" in f-stop stands for factor, as the number is the result of dividing the focal length of the lens by the actual size of the opening.  All you really need to know is - the bigger the number, the smaller the hole.

- Shutter Speed - This is the amount of time the shutter stays open.  It is expressed as fractions of a second.  So 125 is 1/125th of a second.  The important thing is - a slower shutter speed can cause blur.

 - ISO - This is the numerical expression of your chip's light requirement....or adjusts the sensitivity of your chip.  This is the amount of light that the chip needs to accurately represent tones and colors.  The higher the ISO - the more electricity and more robust charge.  This can also create noise in your picture (more next week).  For low light scenes you'll want a higher ISO, starting around 1600.  For sunny days, start with an ISO around 200.

- Meter - To make sure you're reaching the correct balance of light - you need to read your light meter.  The light meter reads the amount of light in your scene and guides your selection of the shutter speed and f-stop selection - after you've set your ISO.