Camera Settings Flashcards
Define ISO
What happens to the shot at a higher vs lower ISO and what is the standard
How sensitive the camera is to light, standard is 800 ISO
Higher = more sensitive, makes your shot appear “grainy”
Lower = less sensitive, cleaner image
Why shouldn’t you change your ISO from shot-shot?
Messes up dynamic range of the camera sensor
What’s a Neutral density (ND) filter?
A filter you put in front to darken the lens, one stop ND takes away one F stop of light
What is FPS and what should it be?
How many frames are shown per second, to create a video with smooth motion image you show someone 24/FPS
Define shutter speed, what should it be?
The amount of time the camera sensor is exposed to light, expressed in fractions of a second
Needs to be twice the frame rate (24 FPS) - so 1/50 or 1/48
What do sports games and reality shows do to ensure they can slow-mo detailed and dramatic moments?
Shoot at a high FPS so you can capture high quality details
What happens to the shot with faster shutter speeds compared to slower ones?
Faster - motion appears crisp and in focus
Slower - motion blur
What does the aperture/iris/F-stop mean?
What happens to the shot if the F stop # is low vs high?
How big the aperture/hole is when you take the picture:
Smaller F-stop # → Bigger the hole → More natural light is let in, less in focus/depth of field
Higher F-stop # –> smaller the hole –> less light let in, more focus/higher depth of field
What does stopping up vs stopping down mean?
Stopping up: opening your hole up,(counterintuitively, this brings the actual number down) - allowing more light to reach the sensor
Stopping down: Closing down your F-stop light to reach the sensor
What is the pattern sequence with F-stop numbers?
Every stop down doubles its current number
Every stop up decreases by half the current number
Why do iso and shutter speed typically stay the same? What can you change instead?
If you change your ISO/shutter speed your shots aren’t going to match in motion and graininess
Combo of tweaking lighting, F-stops and ND filters is preferred
Name three aspects on the camera that affect your depth of field
Aperture/F-stops
- lower#/wider hole: less in focus
- higher #/smaller hole: more in focus
Focal Length/Zoom: the more you zoom the less you have in focus
Distance: the closer your subject is to the camera the more will be out of focus behind them
What do you do if you need to stay zoomed in and want your background to appear less blurry?
Stop down, i.e. closing your aperture by one stop
Name the F-stops from 1-64 :)
f1, f1.4, f2, f2.8, f4, f5.6, f8, f11, f16, f22, f32, f45, f64
What is this and what do the sides represent?
The Exposure triangle
Each side represents a different “ingredient” in the amount of exposure in your image
Balancing the triangle is proper exposure - proper exposure is the camera’s best image
What happens to your depth of field if the camera sensor is large and why?
The larger your camera sensor, the more your depth of field decreases. This is because you are forced to move closer to your subject to fill your frame.
*a larger camera sensor indicates a lower F stop number so bigger hole and less depth of field
*this is also why zoom lenses have a smaller aperture - to make the camera sensor less big so the depth of field can remain in better focus?
What’s the approximate average ratio of depth of field from the focus point
1/3 in front, 2/3 behind
What is a prime lens and what is their typical aperture?
A Prime Lens is a fixed focal length lens that doesn’t let you zoom in or out.
Wider aperture: f2.8 - f1.2
What kind of shots are best for a wide angle lens?
Landscapes
Getting close to subjects while still fitting a lot of them in
What length is considered wide angle vs ultra wide angle vs fisheye lens?
Wide angle: 35 to 24 mm
Ultra wide angle: 24 to 18 mm
Fisheye lens territory: <18mm
