What is Aperture and How Does it Work? - Lesson 25 Phone to Camera Course
For exclusive insights, behind-the-scenes stories, and to connect with our growing community, join me over on Substack:
https://kevinlj.substack.com/ For $2 you can download the PDF for the practical exercise for Lesson 25 here.
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/kevinlj/...
You’ve already learned that there is an opening in every camera lens called the aperture. This helps control the amount of light that can enter the camera and affect the sensor. Managing the aperture setting helps you expose your photos well so they are not too bright or too dark.
Lenses in most phones have a fixed aperture. You have no control over the size of the opening. The exposure is managed by controlling the shutter speed and ISO.
The aperture in your camera lenses is made up of a number of blades that control the size of the hole. The bigger the hole, the more light can enter the camera.
You can control the aperture setting when you have your camera’s exposure mode set to Aperture Priority or Manual Mode. In Aperture Priority when you adjust the aperture, the camera sets the shutter speed to balance the exposure. In Manual Mode, you must set he aperture, shutter speed and the ISO.
The size of this opening is measured in F stop numbers. Lower the F stop numbers represent wider aperture openings. Higher numbers represent narrower openings.
On most lenses the narrowest aperture (highest F stop number) will be around F22 (or sometimes higher). Regular kit zoom lenses will have a widest aperture of about F4 to F6.3. The widest aperture setting on prime lenses (lenses that do not zoom) is usually wider than on zoom lenses. 50mm F1.4 or 1.8 are popular standard primes lenses as they are not as expensive as other wide aperture lenses.
- -
Making the switch from taking photos with your phone to using a camera requires some changes. Phone cameras make it easy to take snapshot images. To use a camera well, you need to control it and understand how to take great photos. Using a camera is so much more fun and the quality of your photos will improve dramatically ... once you know what you're doing.
This course contains 30 lessons and practical exercises designed to get you started using your camera. I focus on the differences you can expect between using your phone and your camera to take photos. No matter what camera you use, taking photos happens the same way. Light enters the camera (or phone camera) through a lens. The right amount of light must enter to record a well-exposed photograph with the camera's sensor. With your phone, this process is fully automated and generally produces bland, uncreative results.
Using your camera you can control the light, timing, focus, composition, and more. With this course, I'll teach you all about how to enjoy doing this. I've been taking photos since I was a teenager, most of my working career I've been a professional photographer. I also have many years of experience teaching new and experienced photographers about their cameras and the craft of photography. You'll see how I work when I'm demonstrating the practical exercises that accompany every lesson.
Each exercise has a .pdf document to help guide you through what to do to complete it. I designed this course so you can complete it easily in one month and change your photography experience in just a short amount of time. Each lesson is short and concentrates on a single topic. There's a clearly explained practical exercise with each lesson. Take as long or as little time as you like to complete the exercise and you're sure to experience growth and development in your photography. You'll see the results in the photos you're taking. You'll easily retain what you learn and put it into practice every time you use your camera.