Dimming Down: Ten for Tuesday

1.

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

Gosh, where did this week go?

Seems just like yesterday that

I was squirming in my chair at

the Art Center, my blogging buddy

next to me, as the teacher flashed

up my homework on the large

screen in our classroom.

In a few hours, it will be time

to do it all, again.

This is our teacher, Carl.

I'll be attending my fourth of

eight photography classes today,

and as promised, I want to share

last week's lesson theme and

homework assignment with you.

This week, we focused 

on two things:  ISO and 

The Rule of Thirds.

2.

In digital cameras, there is an

image sensor, instead of film,

to capture an image.  ISO refers

to how sensitive the sensor is

to different light conditions.

On my camera, the ISO settings

go from 100 {when in bright

light} to 3200 {when it's dark}.

3.

I like to think of the ISO selection like

a dimmer switch.  If the room

was really dark, you would turn the

dimmer UP {larger number}.

If the room was very bright, you

would turn the dimmer DOWN

{smaller number}.

4.

The Rule of Thirds, aka

The Golden Ratio,

is based on an age-old composition

principal which breaks a picture down into

thirds, both vertically and horizontally.

{Actually, it breaks it down into a 

ratio of 1:1:618, to be precise.}

When framing a picture, you want the

most dominant aspect of your image

to be placed where these lines intersect

for the most pleasing picture.

In this example, taken from here,

you will see that the horse's slightly more

prominent eye is on one of the intersections.

This draws your eye into the picture.

5.

I attempted to apply the Golden Ratio, here : )

We had days last week with temps as

 low as -25 F, so I was in hunker down

mode and not sure what I was

going to use to explain ISO to

you!  I must have had good karma,

because the most lovely request

came my way on Friday.....The perfect

assignment to put ISO to the test!

6.

Could you please shoot some 

pictures of our new candlelight

church service this Sunday night?

You can bet I didn't miss a beat

when I enthusiastically said YES!

Only later, as I realized that I've 

done very little picture-taking in

low-light situations did I say to

myself, Why did I say YES?

7.

I was so worried that I locked

myself with camera, tripod and

 three candles in our powder 

room with the little window shade

drawn and the door shut.  There, I

fiddled with ISO for over an hour,

sure that this would enhance my

picture-taking at the church.

Here, my camera had the

ISO {dimmer} on 100, or

turned down low....

Here, my camera had the

ISO on 3200, or turned

up as high as it would go.

In this photo you can 

see more of the candle's flame

and the image is a bit crisper.

When I arrived at church for

my candlelight assignment, I was 

reminded that what our minister 

really wanted was closer shots with 

a soft background, to capture the 

warmth and intimacy of this service.

O-Kaaaaay.

Hmmmm.

Suzanne, I'm counting on you to bring us soft backgrounds.
{No pressure or anything!}

You might remember from week one

 of Ten for Tuesdays that soft,

buttery backgrounds come from 

adjusting the camera's aperture.  

Since I was shooting in a candlelight

situation, I turned my f-stop way

up, to the largest setting/fraction that

my camera would allow in Aperture

Priority.  Like shutters on a window,

I was throwing them wide open to

let in more light, while creating less

depth of field, in order to focus on

the person or object in front of the 

camera and obtain more blur 

in the background.

8.

In the Aperture Priority setting, 

when I select the aperture, the camera 

chooses the proper shutter speed

and ISO. 

9.

Could I have managed the low light

by manually setting the ISO?  Yes.

But I wanted to deliver that soft,

blurred background, so I chose

to manage the light by selecting a

large aperture, instead.

And don't forget....

There's always Photoshop 

to tweak those images, too : )

Have a wonderful day.

I'm posting a give away later

in the week, so please stop

by for a cup of tea....We can

chat ISO, shutter speed and

aperture, right?

xx

Suzanne

PS:  Don't forget to visit my
friend, Becky

and join her Thrive Project!

You may win one of her

inspiring bracelets like the

one in my picture, above.....