Fundamentals

Here are 4 fundamental concepts to improve your photography skills!

Exposure, White balance, focus point, and Composition are fundamental photography skills everyone should master. What do all those things mean and why are they important?

Let's dive in!

1. Exposure

Exposure is the amount of light that reaches the camera's sensor or film, it's an essential element of photography, as it determines how light or dark an image will appear. Proper exposure is critical to capturing a clear, detailed, and visually pleasing image.

If an image is underexposed, it will appear too dark and lack detail in the darker areas. On the other hand, an overexposed image will appear too bright and lack detail in the brighter areas.

Exposure is important because it directly affects the visual quality of your image, it can make the difference between a good and a great photo. A proper exposure allows you to capture the tonal range of the scene you're photographing, whether it's a landscape, portrait, or action shot. It also plays a critical role in creating mood, emotion, and storytelling in your images.

To achieve the desired exposure, photographers can use the exposure triangle which is made up of aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. By adjusting these three elements in combination, you the photographer can control the amount of light entering the camera, and get proper exposure for the scene you're photographing.

2. White Balance

White balance is the process of adjusting the colors in an image so that neutral tones, such as white and gray, appear neutral in the final image. This is important because different light sources can cast different colors on the objects in a scene, making them appear warmer or cooler than they actually are.

For example, incandescent bulbs emit a warm yellow light, while daylight has a cool blue tone. Without adjusting the white balance, an image shot indoors under incandescent lighting may appear yellowish, while an image shot outside on a sunny day may appear bluish.

White balance is important because it helps to ensure that the colors in an image appear true to life and natural. By adjusting the white balance, you can make sure that skin tones appear natural, whites are truly white, and other colors are accurately represented. This in turn creates a more pleasing and natural-looking image and enhances the visual quality of the picture.

Most digital cameras and editing software have white balance presets and manual controls that allow you to adjust the white balance as needed. While it's possible to adjust the white balance in post-processing, it's generally better to get the white balance correct in camera, as it helps to minimize the amount of editing required later.

In this image used a cool 2500k temp white balance to make the scene blue to simulate night, used a orange gel on a flash to simulate light from the flame illuminating the subjects face. The orange gel on the off camera flash turned the blue 2500K white balance back to correct color.

3. Focal points

Focus points refer to the areas of an image that are in sharp focus, while the rest of the image is out of focus or blurred. This can be used to draw attention to a specific part of the image and create a sense of depth and dimension.

There are several ways to control focus points in a photograph. One way is to use the camera's autofocus system, which can be set to focus on a specific area of the frame, such as the center, or on a specific subject or object. New cameras have auto-focus tracking. Set the camera to track the subject's eye to never miss focus on a subject's nose or cheek if you or they move.

Another way to control focus points is by using manual focus, which allows you to adjust the focus manually by turning the focus ring on the lens. This can be useful in situations where the autofocus system may struggle, such as low light or fast-moving subjects.

An aspect of focus point is the depth of field, which refers to the range of sharpness in a photograph. A shallow depth of field means that only a small portion of the image is in focus, while a large depth of field means that more of the image is in focus. This can be controlled by adjusting the aperture, which is one of the three elements of the exposure triangle. Wide aperture f/1.4-f/4 is great with single subjects while small aperture f/5.6-f/16 works well with small groups to large groups. Selecting the correct aperture for the subject and composition is imperative.

Proper focus points are important in photography because they can be used to direct the viewer's attention to the most important part of the image and add depth and dimension to the image. This, in turn, can help to create a more visually pleasing and impactful photograph.

4. Composition

Composition refers to the way elements in a photograph are arranged. It is an important aspect of photography as it helps to create a visual hierarchy, drawing the viewer's eye to the most important elements in the scene and creating a sense of balance, and stability, creating drama, telling a story, or creating tension and unease. Here are some composition techniques that can help you create visually appealing photographs.

Rule of Thirds, Horizon Lines, Rule of Evens, Rule of Odds, Rule of Triangles, Rule of Space, Frame Within a Frame, Leading lines, and Symmetry is all composition techniques you can use to create appealing photographs that draw the viewer's eye to the most important elements in the scene.

Thank you for taking the time to read! I hope these 4 fundamentals help you improve your photography. Remember to experiment and have fun and see what works best for you and your style. Let me know if you have any questions.

Get out there are take some pictures!

-Thomas Martinez