Glossary

Optical defect in a lens.

(A-doe-be photo shop) A computer program used for editing images. Adobe photo shop is the leading program and is used by professional and amateurs.

Auto Exposureⁱ Lock allows you to take an exposure meter reading from part of a scene and to keep the same reading to apply it to the whole image.

Automatic exposure lock. Push button device on some cameras that allows choice of which part of the scene the camera takes its meter reading from, and then t=locks the setting while the image is re framed.

Accessory used for firing a camera from a distance, or for minimizing vibrations when firing. By squeezing a rubber balloon at the end, a jet of air is used to push the trigger.

The image area that the lens covers. Its determined by the focal length, the shorter the focal length the greater the angle of view.

(Ap-a-ture) Is a hole that changes size in your cameras lens. The aperture determines the amount of light that gets to the image sensor.

This is a setting on your camera that allows you to set the aperture. The camera will set the shutter speed for you so you to get the right exposure

The camera will set the right exposure for you.

The camera will focus for you. Some cameras use inferred to measure the distance from you to the object in order to focus.

Also known as AF lock, it allows you to lock the point of focus and change the position of the camera or subject.

This mode will set the aperture, shutter speed, ISOⁱ and flash for you. The camera does all the work in auto mode.

Simply black and white or monotone.

Hinged flaps on the front of studio lights that allows control of the spread of light.

Is a devise that will recharge rechargeable batteries. You usually plug the battery charger in to a mains supply in the wall.

Is a devise that holds multiple batteries that is the used to power your camera. A battery pack will fit onto the camera.

Bitⁱ is the smallest unit of digital data.

Measures the amount of bits in one pixel of an image.

A technique used to soften the light of a flash by bouncing the light off a celling wall or another reflective surface.

A technique used to ensure that the best possible exposure is achieved by taking many shots of the same thing and adjusting the f-stop by half a stop either side of the recommended exposure.

A category of camera between the compact and SLRⁱ in terms of style, size and spec.

Is a feature on cameras that allows you to take many shots very quickly by holding down the shutter button. Burst modeⁱ is also called continuous shot mode.

A cable that allows the photographer to press the shutter button with out touching the camera. This prevents camera shake.

Calibrateⁱ or adjust a display so that it displays neutral colours with out showing colour bias.

Is simply a back pack with especially designed compartments for your camera and lens.

A bag, usually with one shoulder strap, that allows you to carry multiple lens and your camera securely.

A small case that fits only your camera in.

Also know as a cradle or power base, the dock charges the cameras battery and transfers images from the camera to the computer.

Slight movement of the camera when the exposure is being made. Makes the photograph look shaky, blurry and not crisp.

Unplanned and not set up photography. Capturing moments of real life.

A devise that you put your cameras memory card into so that you can plug it into your computer.

Focusⁱ metering mode that will focus on the whole scene but with more attention on the centre of the image.

A term used when a photographer views the photograph immediately after capture on the LCD screenⁱ.

Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor, the light-sensitive image sensor used in digital cameras that converts light into data.

Is how vivid colours are and how much the pure colour is diluted with white or grey.

The spectrum of colours available from which a digital photograph can be made up from.

A measure to determine the colour of light. Measured in digress Kelvin.

The arrangement of the whole picture. Where objects are in relation to each other. The composition is what makes up the picture.

Process for reducing the size of a photographs file by discarding some of its data.

The range of difference in the light and dark colours or shades of grey that are in the image.

An accessory that clips onto the front of a compact digital cameras lens to alter the angle of view. Also known as an auxiliary lens.

To crop an image you change the images size by cutting off sides or edges.

The range of focus in the image. A short depth of field would be if the objects in the foreground are in focus and the background is out of focus. A long depth of field would be if the whole photograph was in focus. (a landscape shot of fields and mountains- everything is in focus=long depth of field)

A feature on almost all digital cameras. Digital zoomⁱ crops the edges of the image and enlarges the centre. This type of zoom often results in grainy images.

Is an adjustment on the view finder that adjusts to common eye glass prescriptions. This means that people shouldn't have to wear their glasses when looking though the viewfinder.

Stands for digital single lens reflex, a type of digital camera that allows you to change the lens, have control over the exposure settings, manually focus and use an external flash.

Is the amount of light that reaches the image sensor. Exposureⁱ is determined by the size of the armature, the length of the shutter speed(how long the shutter is open for) and the image sensors sensitivity to light(ISOⁱ). The intensity of the light source, how bright the sun is for example, also effects the exposure.

The distance that your eye can be from the view finder and still see the whole image through the view finder.

This refers to the number size of the armature. The larger the number the smaller the armature size. Written as f/2 f/8 f/22 ect ect.

The way that a photograph is stored in a file.

A flash that will fill in all shadows. Fill flashⁱ is a way of illuminating a whole image so it looks bright.

A piece of glass that fits on to the end of the lens. A filter changes the light going to the camera to achieve different effects.

Built into your camera that fires a burst of light to illuminant the photograph or subject.

By adjusting the lens you can bring an object in to focus, make it sharp.

Arranging the subject by looking though the viewfinder to frame the photograph.

A flash synchronization technique. This is the default synchronisation. The flash will fire at the beginning of the exposure.

Is a type of sensor that is used in top end DSLRⁱ cameras.

Is free software for editing images and photographs. Gimpⁱ is much the same as Photoshop. www.gimp.org

Shiny-surfaced paper used in making photographic prints.

Is the graph that maps out the brightness of an image.

Is a devise on the top of your camera that holds an external flash. The hot shoe connects the external flash to the camera.

The device in the camera that turns an optical image into electronic information/signals.

A printer that works by jetting ink through tiny nozzles onto the paper to create the photograph or image.

Traditionally used to measure film speed and light sensitivity. The higher ISOⁱ, the faster the film speed and the more sensitive the film is to light. Now in digital photography ISO is used to determine how much light gets to the image sensor. The higher the ISO number the more light sensitive the image sensor is.

iStockphoto.comⁱ is a photographic website were people sell and buy royality-free stock photos.

(jay-peg) is the primary file format that is used by digital cameras. JPEGⁱ is also the most used file format for images on the internet. When a camera converts the photograph into a JPEG it keeps the file size low and takes care of colour correction such as white balance, tint and exposure.

Is a setting on a digital camera. The setting saves the photograph in both JPEGⁱ and RAWⁱ format.

Also known as the "main light." The key light is the main or brightest like in the scene.

Is used to describe the style of image. Landscapeⁱ is when the longest side of the photograph is horizontal and the shortest side is vertical.

This is a setting that you can use that will make greens and blues more vivid. The setting will also give you a longer depth of field.

Stands for liquid crystal display. Its the display screen on almost all digital cameras.

Is the devise that collects and focuses light coming from a sharp image onto the image sensor or film. The lens works by using one or more pieces of optical glass.

Is used to block or manipulate angles of light entering the lens. It is a devise that screws onto the end of the lens. A lens hood will also stop glare from the sun.

Is a lens that allows the photographer to photograph extreme close up shots.

One million pixels.

A card that stores all photograph information. The card can be removed for the camera.

This is how the cameras auto exposure devise reads the light in the image.

Is a piece of equipment used to hold the camera still or in a fixed place. A mono pod has one leg and the camera screws onto the top.

This is when the camera gives a very small armature and a long shutter speed. Multiple exposureⁱ allows subjects to move in the image giving the effect that the photograph has been exposed many times.

Is when the photograph looks grainy. Noiseⁱ is usually created in an image when a high ISOⁱ is set.

Is a collection of a photographers photos on the internet.

Is the piece of glass on the camera that the photographer looks though to set up and compose the photograph.

Is the traditional method of zooming. The lens brings the subject closer and shortens the depth of field.

Is when there is too much light getting to the light sensor of the film. The results of over exposure is a photograph looking very pale and washed out.

Is usually a landscape shot. Panoramaⁱ is a very broad photograph. Some digital cameras have a panorama mode where it stitches a series of photographs together.

Is a very simple camera with no lens. A small pin sized hole is used for the armature. Light from the scene passes though the pin hole and projects the image on the opposite side of the inside of the box. The pin hole camera needs a long shutter speed because of the tiny aperture.

A digital photograph is made up of millions of small squares, or pixels, each one being a different colour.

Is the name given to compact cameras. Point and shootⁱ camera settings are usually auto and set exposure and focus for you, all you have to do is point and shoot.

Is a piece of glass, a filter, used to manipulate light going into the lens of a camera. A polarizing filter will reduce reflections and glare.

Is used to describe an image where the longest side of the photograph is vertical and the shortest side is horizontal.

Is a setting on a camera that will focus on faces and soften skin tones.

The term used for photographs of people.

Portraits style can range from posed to a person in action or doing something. All photographs of people are known as Portraits.

The Quasi fish eye lensⁱ fills the whole film frame with the fish eye effect. A true fish eye has a circular image with in the film frame.

A feature that most top end cameras have, its a format of saving photographs. RAWⁱ format dose not compress or process an image. A RAW file is much bigger than a JPEGⁱ file and take up more space on the memory card.

Is when the flash synchronization fires the flash at the end of the exposure.

Is when light from the flash bounces off the retina of a person or animals eye and causes the eye too look red. Most digital cameras have a red eye reduction setting that reduces this effect.

The amount of information or quality in an area. The higher the resolution the better the quality.

Is when a photographer imagines there is a grid made up of 3 vertical lines and 3 horizontal lines across the image. When the photographer is setting up the photograph they place important subjects on the lines.

A cameras automatic settings that are designed to set auto settings for specific scenes.

Allows you to shoot a photograph with a time delay.

Is the button on the camera that opens the shutter. You press the button to take a photo.

Also known as 'time value' is a semi automatic setting that allows the photographer to set the shutter speed. The camera sets the right aperture to achieve the correct exposure.

Is the length of time that the shutter stays open. The longer the shutter stays open the more light enters the camera.

Stands for single lens reflex, a type of camera that allows you to change the lens, have control over the exposure settings, manually focus and use an external flash.

Is an attachment that fits onto the flash. It extends out to about 6-8 inches and has a white panel of glass at the end which is used to soften the light of the flash.

Is a metering mode that basses the exposure in the centre of the image only.

Is a feature that sticks lots of images together to gain a panorama photograph.

A lens that magnifies and zooms in on an image.

Is a setting when the camera takes a photographs with certain intervals, for example every 5 minutes. This is used to capture an event happening over a period of time such as the suns movements over a day.

Is a piece of equipment that has 3 legs, the camera screws onto a platform at the top of the legs. A tripod is used to hold the camera still when using a long shutter speed.

Is a digital camera that is the size of a credit card.

Is when not enough light is getting to the image sensor or film. The result of underexposure is a photograph that looks very dark.

Stands for universal serial bus. Almost all digital cameras come with a USBⁱ lead that plugs the camera into a computer.

Is the small window of glass that the photographer looks though to compose the photograph.

Adjusts the camera to compensate for the type on light that is hitting the subject being photographed. Stops unwanted colour casts that come from certain lights such as florescent lights.

Is a lens that has a wide field of view. Allows the photographer to shoot much wider photographs.

A lens that can zoom into a subject from a long distance.