Jul
29
Submitted by Abby on Wed, 2009-07-29 10:52
Getting off auto mode on your camera will certainly help you take much more artistic and creative photographs. Using the aperture is no exception. Once you get the grasp and start using the aperture in your camera your photographs will really come alive.
For me, the aperture is one of the things that makes photography and creative photography really very exciting.
What is the aperture?
The aperture is the size of the hole in the lens when the photograph is taken. The larger the hole, the more light enters the camera. The smaller the hole the less light enters the camera.
Aperture controls depth of field and amount of light entering the camera.
How the aperture is measured.
The aperture is measured in 'F stops'. For example f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6,f/8,f/22 etc. one thing that may seem confusing is that the smaller the F stop number the larger the hole. The bigger the F stop number the smaller the hole. For example F/22 is a very small aperture, a very small hole. F/2.8 Is a large aperture, a large hole.
Changing the F stop doubles or halves the size of the aperture allowing more or less light to enter the camera.
Depth of field
Changing the aperture will impact the depth of field in your photograph. Depth of field will determine the amount of the photograph is in focus. A small depth of field is when only part of the photograph is in focus and the rest is blurry. A large depth of field is when the whole image, everything close and far from your camera, is in focus.
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Using a small aperture will give you a large depth of field. (remember small aperture = large F stop number)
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Using a large aperture will give you a small depth of field.(remember large aperture = small F Stop number)
Yes, its quite confusing at first! I remember the rules of aperture and depth of field like this...Large depth of field, large F stop number and small depth of field small F stop number.
What aperture should I use?
So you know the basics of how the aperture works and what it effects. Here you can see the difference in depth of field.
I took two photographs of the same flower using different size apertures, the one on the left is with a small aperture, f stop 22. You can see the flower and the leaves behind are in focus, the photograph has a large depth of field.
The photograph on the right is with a larger aperture, f stop 4. The flowers are in focus but the background is blurry. This photograph has a small depth of field.
To set the right aperture you have to think about the focal length, the depth of field. Follow these rules when setting the aperture;
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If you want a small depth of field, set a large aperture(smaller f stop number!)
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If you want a large depth of field, set a small aperture(larger f stop number!)
Play with the aperture and experiment with the setting. Remember that most cameras have the mode that allows you to set the aperture and then the camera sets the shutter speed for you, so you get the right exposure. This mode is usually called Armature priority.
Have fun and get some great different shots from your camera!
Abby x
