Exposure- Exposed

When correctly exposed, a photograph will have an entire spectrum of values
Highlights ... Shadows ... Medium values

image by Ansel Adams, a master of exposure.

THE ZONE SYSTEM

Ansel Adams, along with Fred Archer, formulated a technique which they termed the Zone System. It is a method which assists the photographer in calculating the most precise exposure to any given circumstance.
A photographer knows the difference between freshly fallen snow and a black horse, while a meter does not.
The Zone System assigns numbers from 0 through 10 to different brightness values, with 0 representing black, 5 middle gray, and 10 pure white; these values are known as zones. (source: Wikipedia)

Your internal camera meter renders the middle value/tone of the over all image. This is another reason (besides white balance) why I recommended you all obtain a gray card. Have you ever taken a picture of a person in all black or in all white and the photo turned out to be too light or too dark? This is because your camera keyed into the light reflecting off the the black (or white) and rendered it as medium gray instead of black (or white).
The Zone System provides a straightforward method for rendering these objects as the photographer (YOU) desires, and not as the internal camera meter dictates.
Using your gray card, you can guarantee that you’ll have each value fall where it should (either on the shadow end or the highlight end).
Place your gray card in front of your subject, with the same amount of light falling on it as your subject. Now use your gray card to determine the correct exposure for your photo- keeping an eye on the internal light meter in your camera. Your gray card will help you obtain the correct combination of your shutter speed and aperture for the image to be accurately exposed. At this point, you can take one picture with the gray card still in the image for post-processing white balance customization. And now, having your exposure set you can start shooting. If, at any point, your light source or direction/amount of light changes, you'll want to revisit your exposure and meter again so that you're accurately exposing every frame.

Suggested workflow:
Set your ISO
Choose your meter mode (you can adjust this, refer to your user manual or use google to figure out how to make these specific adjustments on your camera). I recommend using the "spot meter" mode.
Set your camera to “M” mode
Place your gray card in your scene facing the lens
Take a meter reading by pressing the shutter button halfway
Pay attention to the internal meter reading, adjust your camera so that the exposure bar is in the middle
Compose your subject, making sure that your exposure adjustments haven’t changed
Focus and take the picture
Take one version of the photo with the gray card in it (for accurate white balance readings) and another without the gray card

Key Terms
Underexposure: Too little light or too dark
Overexposure: Too much light, washed out, too light

REMEMBER: You will always get the best results if you start off by making an accurate exposure!!!

Now that you have the necessary tools, you can begin to manipulate scenes to achieve various results that shooting on “auto” wouldn’t give you. You can use your knowledge of metering, shutter speed, aperture, ISO, and white balance etc to be able to render a mood to your photographs that you wouldn’t have been able to other wise. This is the part where photography can start to be super expressive and fun. Where you will begin to see light and will begin to capture it according to your artistic vision!!

Shutter Speed

The following are a few notes from a lecture given on September 13th, 2012.

The shutter has two main functions
1. It controls time (the length of time/exposure to light the image sensor receives)
2. It controls motion (ie: sharp or blurred)

Additionally, the shutter (like the aperture) controls the amount of light that gets through to the sensor.

Shutter speed is measured in seconds
Or in most cases fractions of seconds. The bigger the denominator the faster the speed (ie 1/1000 is much faster than 1/30) In most cases you’ll probably be using shutter speeds of 1/60th of a second or faster. This is because anything slower than this is very difficult to use without getting camera shake. Camera shake is when your camera is moving while the shutter is open and results in blur in your photos. If you’re using a slow shutter speed (anything slower than 1/60) you will need to either use a tripod or some some type of image stabilization (more and more cameras and lenses are coming with this built in).
Shutter speeds available to you on your camera will usually double (approximately) with each setting.
As a result you’ll usually have the options for the following shutter speeds – 1/500, 1/250, 1/125, 1/60, 1/30, 1/15, 1/8 etc. This is good to keep in mind since aperture or f/stops also double the amount of light that is let in. This is important to keep in mind because knowing how shutter speeds and apertures relate will give you the ability to adjust both for desired effects in your photography. Something that regular camera-hobbyists don't necessarily know.

When considering what shutter speed to use in an image you should always ask yourself whether anything in your scene is moving.
...and how you’d like to capture that movement. You can freeze the moment or let the moving object intentionally blur (this gives your photographs a sense of movement).

To freeze movement in an image:

You’ll want to choose a faster shutter speed
and to let the movement blur
You’ll want to choose a slower shutter speed.
The actual speeds you should choose will vary depending upon the speed of the subject in your shot and how much you want it to be blurred.

Remember that thinking about Shutter Speed in isolation from Aperture and ISO is not really a good idea. As you change shutter speed you’ll need to change one or both of the other elements to compensate for it.

image found here.

Understanding Camera Care and Basics to your camera

This semester you're going to learn a lot about your camera. Make sure that you take good care of it and treat it well. It will be an important tool. Clean your lens with an appropriate lens cloth and cleaner and protect your camera against dirt, shock, and water.

A few basics:

WHITE BALANCE
The subject of the color of light, and the techniques of dealing with it, are referred to as white balance. Your camera has various white balance presets which serve as a tool to help achieve the most neutral color tone, regardless of what temperature of light you may be shooting in. It is important to learn how to appropriately change this as you photograph in various situations.

JPEG vs RAW
Raw is an “uncooked” digital photo. It is a pure capture, and is equivalent to a digital negative - an unprocessed image that you can adjust to your heart's desire before you make a print.
JPG is a processed image. All of the processing takes place inside the camera before the camera saves the photo onto a memory card.

ISO
It is a setting on your camera which determines how sensitive the camera sensor is to light. The higher the ISO, the more sensitive to light, allowing you to take photos in dark conditions without using flash or tripod. High ISO also causes noise (or “grain”), and reduces image quality. It also is a term used for negative film, but a digital sensor acts in the same way and so the concept is used digitally as well.
Always try to use the lowest ISO setting (equals best picture quality. Adjusting the ISO will help you take photos in low light, without needing a tripod. Remember that your ISO can be used in addition to the other camera controls for specific effects.