DSLR Camera Basics

First off, some important things to understand. Photography is all about light. Without light there could be no photos. So how do you make sure that you're capturing just the right amount of light? Well, you've got to understand these three things: Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO.

Aperture: Basically the aperture controls the amount of light that gets to enter the camera. Aperture is specified as an f stop, or sometimes called an f-number. So how do you calculate what f stop to use? Well, unfortunately it involves a little bit of math. Your f stop is calculated by taking your lens length divided by the aperture size. So if you had a 200mm lens and the aperture diameter was 10mm, then you'd need an f stop of f20 or (200/10). This can get pretty confusing, but just remember that the smaller the f-number, the bigger the opening, and the more light you're letting into the camera.

Shutter Speed: The shutter speed is important for determining how much time the light is exposed or let into the camera. This can vary from a couple of seconds to a couple of hours. Shutter speed can be changed to produce a variety of different effects. A fast shutter speed can freeze moving objects, while a slow shutter speed will cause movements to blur. 

ISO: The ISO is your camera's sensitivity to light. A low ISO is around 100 and is common for outdoors, where there's already a lot of natural light. A high ISO would be 3200, and could be used indoors, where situations may be darker and need more sensitivity to light.


So that's the very basics. I've found that reading several beginner DSLR blogs really helped paint a much better picture for me as I was just getting used to my camera. My favorite article is on Point2.com, and I'd encourage you to check out the photos to get a better understanding of what I'm talking about. That's it for now! Stay creative, everyone!