The Editors of Popular Photography - The Complete Portrait Manual: 200+ Tips & Techniques for Shooting the Perfect Photos of People

PHOTOGRAPHY BASICS

There are tons of camera types on the market todayfrom cheap point-and-shoots to mirrorless interchangeable-lens (ILC) models, from tiny action cams to the camera on your smartphone. But for many dedicated shooters, the obvious first choice in equipment is still a digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera. Why? First, DSLRs allow a shooter to frame pictures with precision fairly easily. Second, the sheer number of lens types available lets one camera perform many functions. Like any new piece of equipment, function and controls can take some getting used to. Heres an overview of the main controls, as well as a quick peak at whats going on inside the camera itself.

MANUAL FOCUS RING Dont want your camera to decide where to focus? Turn this ring. Want to make fine manual focus adjustments while using autofocus? Again, turn this ring.

ZOOM RING When your DSLR is fitted with a zoom lens, use this ring to adjust for desired focal lengthand determine how close or far away a subject in your shot appears.

IMAGE STABILIZATION SWITCH Located on your lens or the body of your camera, this switch kicks image stabilization on and off. This function allows you to get sharper images of static objects without a tripod or in lower light than might be possible without it.

HOTSHOE While it sounds like a dated dance move, its actually where you attach a flash or other accessory to your camera. A lot of times, DSLRs come with covers to shield the hotshoe when its not in use.

MODE DIAL Use this dial to pick a shooting mode. Cede control of exposure settings to the camera in fully automatic mode, be a control freak in fully manual, or try one of the many preset program modes.

ISO BUTTON This button controls the light sensitivity of your cameras image sensor. If youre shooting in ultrabright light, use a low ISO (50200), and increase ISO in lower light. FYI, the higher the ISO in use, the more noisevisual distortion, often in the form of grainy or blotchy appearanceyour image may have.

AUTOFOCUS BUTTON Press this button to tell your DSLR to pick which elements in your shot should appear the sharpest.

VIEWFINDER Peek through the viewfinder to make choices about how to compose and frame your shot. Through it, youll see a corrected (read: right side up) version of the image that reflects off your cameras reflex mirror.

SHUTTER Essentially a mechanical curtain, the shutter serves as a movable barrier between a cameras image sensor and its lens. Open the shutter, and your cameras reflex mirror pivots up, allowing an image to hit the image sensor.

PENTAPRISM Not unlike the brains visual cortexthe part of your brain that converts images your eyes see as upside downthis pentagon-shape prism flips an image out of reverse before sending it the viewfinders way.

IMAGE SENSOR A device covered with pixels (light-sensitive cells), an image sensor measures the intensity and color of an image that has passed through the shutter. Last, the image sensor converts these measurements into digital formultimately capturing your shot.

REFLEX MIRROR When an image enters a lens, its upside down. The reflex mirror reflects that image through a focusing screen, in the direction of the pentaprism.

LENS Detachable lenses change your cameras capabilities by narrowing or widening a circular openingthe size of which is called the apertureto control the amount of light that enters. Light passes through the lens on its way to the reflex mirror.

Weve already covered the anatomy of your camera; now its time to dig a little deeper into a few standard functions and features of most DSLRs. Getting a solid grasp of these functions will only enhance your abilities as a portrait photographer. Of course, not all DSLRs have all of these featuresand the ones that do can vary in location (touch screen options vs. external controls) and capabilities. When in doubt, consult your cameras user manual.

IMAGE QUALITY AND RESOLUTION CONTROLS If youre taking candids at the beach or the park, save your memory card by shooting lower-quality images at higher compression settings. If youre shooting for art, save high-quality, low-compression images. This is also where you can choose to shoot RAW (capturing all the data in an image with zero compression for easier editing), JPEG, or RAW + JPEG.

IMAGE SHAPE CONTROLS These controls adjust pretty much exactly what they sound likethe shape of your image. While most DSLRs have a default shape, use these controls to set a shape that fits your vision.

AUTOEXPOSURE MODE A DSLRs program setting shifts responsibility for the three main controls of exposure (ISO, aperture size, and shutter speed) onto your camera based on a scenes ambient light. You can also take control of one or more of these settings, while autoexposure takes the reins on the rest. Two popular modes for portraiture are aperture-priority which allows you to choose aperture while the camera picks shutter speedand shutter-priority, which lets you control shutter speed while your camera sets an appropriate aperture.

AUTOFOCUS MODES Single mode is best for still subjects, while continuous lets you track those who are on the go. Use your viewfinder and LCD screen to select autofocus points.

WHITE BALANCE Auto white balance tells your camera to dictate how whites look in certain lighting, adjusting all other colors appropriately. If youre shooting in mixed lighting, set a custom white balance.