soulgrind, titan, kurt angle, etc - camera questions

[Paul2]

what is iso, shutter speed, f-stop?  oh, what is aperture?

nearly 15 1/2 years ago, i had photo class and i think i understand what iso, shutter speed, and f-stop means.  but the next day or so, i kind of forgot and got confused.  especially iso and shutter speed, i didn't understand what it means.  i think head injury on the left side of my head make me become that retarded.

so soulgrind, titan, kurt angle, and anybody else, hopefully you guys can shed some light to these.

[Titan]

ISO: It's the sensitivity of the image sensor to light. The higher the number, the more sensitive the sensor is to low light situations. The lower the number, the less sensitive. For example, in bright sunlight, you want to use an ISO of 100 or 200. Indoors without a flash, you want to use something like 1600. But, the higher the ISO number, the more noise (graininess) to the photo. The general rule of thumb is select the lowest one possible in the lighting situation you are shooting in to make sure you don't have excessive noise.

Shutter speed: How fast a shutter opens and closes. They go in 1/x of a second. The higher the number, the faster the shutter will open and close. This allows less light in the camera and freezes action. The lower the number, the longer the shutter is open to let more light in. Helpful in lower light situations. For example, I shoot in lower light situations generally at a minimum of 1/60 of a second. But when I'm trying to freeze action (like catch a bee's wings when flying), I'll try to shoot at 1/250 of a second.

The aperture is the opening on the back of the lens. They are blades at the back of the lens that open or close a certain amount depending on the f-stop you choose.

F- stop is the measurement, or rather the ratio, of the opening of the aperture blades. This is where it gets confusing. The lower the f-stop number (1.8 for example), the more open the aperture. The higher the number (16 for example), the more the aperture is closed. Lower apertures let more light in the lens and gives you a lower depth of field (meaning less of the background in focus). A higher aperture lets less light in and allows more of the photograph to be in focus.

What's funny is F stop and aperture are used interchangeably in photography jargon. When I was on shoots, photographers would say "What's your f-stop at" or "What's your aperture".  But basically, the F stop is the number of how open or closed the aperture will shoot at and the aperture is the physical hole at the back of the lens.

It also gets confusing and overwhelming when learning about ISO, shutter speed and f-stop because they are all related to each other when taking a photo and different settings of each when taking a photo correlate to how you set your camera up. It takes a lot of practice to learn the relationship between the 3. But this post is more of a broad overview. I can explain more with specific questions

[Paul2]

thanks for the help.  it does overwhelm me somewhat.  i understand is somewhat better after you explain it to me, and it makes me feel like damn, maybe its not so bad to shoot in auto mode after all, lol.

i am not sure what else to ask you but just now i could think of some.  can you post pictures that you took as examples of what settings you use (iso, shutter speed, f-stop) for the pictures?

another question i have is the mm i see on the front of the lens, say like mine which is 16 - 50 mm.  this past few years, i know the optical zoom of those numbers say like 16 to 50 mm means i have an optical zoom of 3.125 times, or about 3x optical zoom by dividing 16 from 50 or 50/16.  but what exactly is 16mm and then up to 50 mm?

last question i can think of now is filter diameter.  i think the bigger the filter diameter is, the better the pic?  mine mirrorless camera has a filter diameter of 40.5 mm.

[Titan]

thanks for the help.  it does overwhelm me somewhat.  i understand is somewhat better after you explain it to me, and it makes me feel like damn, maybe its not so bad to shoot in auto mode after all, lol.

Lol. Auto is fine when just starting out. But what worked for me is then using the Av (aperture priority) and Tv (shutter speed priority) modes on the camera. Hell, even in some pro shooting that I do I use those. Basically, Aperture priority (Av on the dial on your camera) means that you set the f-stop then your camera will choose what shutter speed to use. Tv, you select the shutter speed and the camera chooses what aperture to use in the situation. Again, another thing you get used to with experience. But to learn photo composition just starting out, there is nothing wrong with using Auto. I know a few pros who use it to be lazy. But if you want to get better, don't use it for too long.

i am not sure what else to ask you but just now i could think of some.  can you post pictures that you took as examples of what settings you use (iso, shutter speed, f-stop) for the pictures?

See below for an example and explanation.

another question i have is the mm i see on the front of the lens, say like mine which is 16 - 50 mm.  this past few years, i know the optical zoom of those numbers say like 16 to 50 mm means i have an optical zoom of 3.125 times, or about 3x optical zoom by dividing 16 from 50 or 50/16.  but what exactly is 16mm and then up to 50 mm?

What those numbers mean is that is the focal length range of that particular lens. Let me break it down for you. A 50mm lens is considered a "normal" lens. This means that the angle of view of that lens is what your eye can perceive. Anything less is considered a "wide angle" lens, meaning more is in the field of view. Anything above (say 75mm or 100mm) is considered a "telephoto" lens. What your lens is saying to you that your lens is a wide angle-normal zoom lens, or field of view. The lens I use most of the time is a 28mm-128mm. I hate it but it's a great, what we call in photography, "walk around lens". Meaning, it can handle situations you need a wide angle and telephoto lens. I use it probably the most in my professional endeavors.....but I hate it so much, lol.

This is easier to show what field of view means with diagrams. Sorry bud but you'll have to Google "field of view" since I can't draw on this forum to show you. I'll have to get you comparison samples together but I'm busy with my condo stuff so it'll take me a while to put something together for you.

last question i can think of now is filter diameter.  i think the bigger the filter diameter is, the better the pic?  mine mirrorless camera has a filter diameter of 40.5 mm.

Meh. Don't worry about filter diameter at your stage. What the filter diameter is means the front of the camera lens is 40.5 mm so if you want to put a filter on (like a UV filter or a circular polarizing filter), you have to buy a 40.5 mm filter to screw onto the front. Don't worry about filters at this stage. Though I do recommend putting a UV filter on the front of any lens you own just to protect it. Fun story, I used to sell cameras like 8 years ago. I went out on a nature shoot and just put a UV filter on. Nothing fancy, you just want something cheap to protect the glass of the lens. I walked into a rusty barbed wire fence and scratched the shit out of the filter. Unscrewed the filter and screwed my back up on (I always carry a backup filters). A 10 dollar filter saved me hundreds in a new lens I also sold a shit ton of UV filters after that because I showed customers that scratched up filter

As for the picture below. This is an example of a low aperture shot (f-stop was something like 2.8 or some shit like that. Honestly don't remember and been drinking so don't feel like checking the EXIF data because beer makes me lazy). But you see how the hornet's nest is in focus and everything behind it is blurry? Had I shot this at like an F22, you could see the trees behind it in focus. I chose a low F-stop to make sure that the details of the hornets nest is what draws your eye and not the background. The nest is the focus, I wanted nothing else to be the focus

[Paul2]

thanks for the help.  it does overwhelm me somewhat.  i understand is somewhat better after you explain it to me, and it makes me feel like damn, maybe its not so bad to shoot in auto mode after all, lol.

Lol. Auto is fine when just starting out. But what worked for me is then using the Av (aperture priority) and Tv (shutter speed priority) modes on the camera. Hell, even in some pro shooting that I do I use those. Basically, Aperture priority (Av on the dial on your camera) means that you set the f-stop then your camera will choose what shutter speed to use. Tv, you select the shutter speed and the camera chooses what aperture to use in the situation. Again, another thing you get used to with experience. But to learn photo composition just starting out, there is nothing wrong with using Auto. I know a few pros who use it to be lazy. But if you want to get better, don't use it for too long.

i see.  sorry for late reply, this past couple of days, i been oversleeping. i slept a total of like 16 to 18 hours a day including naps in this past 2 days.  must be the medication or something that makes me sleep that much.  right now, if i am going to take pictures, chances are i will use the auto mode since its much easier.  there might be a good chance i will try out the av and tv that you describe if i am not tired and in the mood.  btw, why did they call it Tv and Av though?  say like Tv when the letters isn't even an abbreviation for shutter speed priority.

another question i have is the mm i see on the front of the lens, say like mine which is 16 - 50 mm.  this past few years, i know the optical zoom of those numbers say like 16 to 50 mm means i have an optical zoom of 3.125 times, or about 3x optical zoom by dividing 16 from 50 or 50/16.  but what exactly is 16mm and then up to 50 mm?

What those numbers mean is that is the focal length range of that particular lens. Let me break it down for you. A 50mm lens is considered a "normal" lens. This means that the angle of view of that lens is what your eye can perceive. Anything less is considered a "wide angle" lens, meaning more is in the field of view. Anything above (say 75mm or 100mm) is considered a "telephoto" lens. What your lens is saying to you that your lens is a wide angle-normal zoom lens, or field of view. The lens I use most of the time is a 28mm-128mm. I hate it but it's a great, what we call in photography, "walk around lens". Meaning, it can handle situations you need a wide angle and telephoto lens. I use it probably the most in my professional endeavors.....but I hate it so much, lol.

This is easier to show what field of view means with diagrams. Sorry bud but you'll have to Google "field of view" since I can't draw on this forum to show you. I'll have to get you comparison samples together but I'm busy with my condo stuff so it'll take me a while to put something together for you.

i understand it much better after you explained it.  after you said you are busy with your condo, i understand it too, so take your time.  i can wait.

last question i can think of now is filter diameter.  i think the bigger the filter diameter is, the better the pic?  mine mirrorless camera has a filter diameter of 40.5 mm.

Meh. Don't worry about filter diameter at your stage. What the filter diameter is means the front of the camera lens is 40.5 mm so if you want to put a filter on (like a UV filter or a circular polarizing filter), you have to buy a 40.5 mm filter to screw onto the front. Don't worry about filters at this stage. Though I do recommend putting a UV filter on the front of any lens you own just to protect it. Fun story, I used to sell cameras like 8 years ago. I went out on a nature shoot and just put a UV filter on. Nothing fancy, you just want something cheap to protect the glass of the lens. I walked into a rusty barbed wire fence and scratched the shit out of the filter. Unscrewed the filter and screwed my back up on (I always carry a backup filters). A 10 dollar filter saved me hundreds in a new lens I also sold a shit ton of UV filters after that because I showed customers that scratched up filter

As for the picture below. This is an example of a low aperture shot (f-stop was something like 2.8 or some shit like that. Honestly don't remember and been drinking so don't feel like checking the EXIF data because beer makes me lazy). But you see how the hornet's nest is in focus and everything behind it is blurry? Had I shot this at like an F22, you could see the trees behind it in focus. I chose a low F-stop to make sure that the details of the hornets nest is what draws your eye and not the background. The nest is the focus, I wanted nothing else to be the focus

i see.  how about using the lens's cap to protect the lens?  i can see you use a low f-stop to get the hornet's nest in focus.  btw, why did they called it f-stop?  what does f means and what exactly is "stop"?  and those numbers say like f-stop 2.2 to like f-stop 22 that you mentioned,  who come up with those numbers as measurements?  is it like a ruler with numbers on it to measure those f-stop?  say like a ruler that have like 1/4th inch to 1/2 inch to 1 inch measurements or 1 mm increments measurement on ruler.

[Titan]

i see.  sorry for late reply, this past couple of days, i been oversleeping. i slept a total of like 16 to 18 hours a day including naps in this past 2 days.  must be the medication or something that makes me sleep that much.  right now, if i am going to take pictures, chances are i will use the auto mode since its much easier.  there might be a good chance i will try out the av and tv that you describe if i am not tired and in the mood.  btw, why did they call it Tv and Av though?  say like Tv when the letters isn't even an abbreviation for shutter speed priority.

Using auto is fine when just starting out. I did too many years ago. You just have to have the desire to learn, then the power of your camera really comes out.

Who knows why they call it that. I actually had to look up what the abbreviations stand for. Certain camera companies use A for aperture priority and S for shutter priority. I use a canon and they use Av and Tv. Av stands for 'aperture value' and Tv stands for "time value".

i see.  how about using the lens's cap to protect the lens?  i can see you use a low f-stop to get the hornet's nest in focus.  btw, why did they called it f-stop?  what does f means and what exactly is "stop"?  and those numbers say like f-stop 2.2 to like f-stop 22 that you mentioned,  who come up with those numbers as measurements?  is it like a ruler with numbers on it to measure those f-stop?  say like a ruler that have like 1/4th inch to 1/2 inch to 1 inch measurements or 1 mm increments measurement on ruler.

I have no idea why the call it an f-stop. Just the way it is. Just like how they came up with the numbers. Someone did the math and all that shit and that's the scale you use now. The f-stop is more of a ratio than numbers on a ruler.

[Paul2]

oh i see.  interesting.  cool.

[Paul2]

this past one month-ish, i have another question about the camera.  what is the difference between iso and exposure?  say, if the image is too dark or too bright, i can adjust it by cranking up or down the exposure to get the proper exposure.  how is that difference than cranking up or down iso setting?

[Titan]

What do you mean cranking up the exposure. In the camera or on the computer?

ISO is the number that determines how sensitive the sensor is to light. See my above post:

ISO: It's the sensitivity of the image sensor to light. The higher the number, the more sensitive the sensor is to low light situations. The lower the number, the less sensitive. For example, in bright sunlight, you want to use an ISO of 100 or 200. Indoors without a flash, you want to use something like 1600. But, the higher the ISO number, the more noise (graininess) to the photo. The general rule of thumb is select the lowest one possible in the lighting situation you are shooting in to make sure you don't have excessive noise.

Exposure would be increasing or decreasing the shutter speed or opening or closing the aperture to let in more or less light, brightening or darkening an image respectively. You can also fine tune an exposure on the computer in Photoshop or Lightroom if you need to. My rule of thumb is get the exposure as close to right as possible the first time

[Paul2]

What do you mean cranking up the exposure. In the camera or on the computer?

in the camera.

Exposure would be increasing or decreasing the shutter speed or opening or closing the aperture to let in more or less light, brightening or darkening an image respectively. You can also fine tune an exposure on the computer in Photoshop or Lightroom if you need to. My rule of thumb is get the exposure as close to right as possible the first time

thank you for shedding some light to these.  i didn't know the exposure buttons on the camera adjust the brightness by increasing or decreasing the shutter speed or by opening or closing the aperture to let in more or less light.  now i do.

speaking about lightroom?  how good is it and is it user friendly?  how much does this software cost?

over a year ago on 4th of july of 2016, i tried to record video of fireworks outside my house with a mirrorless camera , when i played it back on the laptop, i find the shadow detail looks light gray instead of black and i suspect the camera probably cranked up the iso in auto mode to lighten the video and maybe that is why very dark black shades at night time look somewhat light gray and i can see the shadow detail of the neighborhood houses when i real life the shadow details are nearly pitch black.  so i think the higher iso brighten and lighten the dark area but at the cost of video noises.  so maybe if i manually adjust the iso and crank it down a bit in the camera at night, i will get less noises and more natural dark shadow details.  i haven't tried it yet though but will someday.  hopefully soon.

[Titan]

Lightroom is a good tool to have. Though, there is a learning curve, I'm not gonna lie. It will take a little time to learn and grow into it. I rarely photo edit anymore. Whenever I jump back into it, it takes me a hot minute to reacquaint with it. Youtube is a good source to learn it though. Once you get the hang of it, it's not too bad. I bought Lightroom for like a hundred bucks back in the day. But that was when they sold standalone software discs. I still use Lightroom 4. Now it's a subscription. Just looked up the monthly plan for Photography and it's 10 bucks a month for Lightroom CC and Photoshop CC. I really hate their subscription models.

Random post, but for anybody on this site who does these types of things, CNC, Machining, fabricating etc. how did you get involved in doing this type of work? I am clueless about it but would like to learn more about it because ive always been fascinated by it. В What kind of schooling is required, etc, things like that.В 

[Titan]

Random post, but for anybody on this site who does these types of things, CNC, Machining, fabricating etc. how did you get involved in doing this type of work? I am clueless about it but would like to learn more about it because ive always been fascinated by it. В What kind of schooling is required, etc, things like that.В

Definitely was a random post, lol. In the future, please start a new topic.

You'll have to go to a trade school. I'd start by looking into trade schools in your area. I'd start by looking into Community Colleges in your area and talk to them. If they don't have programs (which would be weird if they didn't) start Googling trade schools.