Art of Lighting - Pat 1 (Universal rule)

"If I feel something strongly, I make a photograph. I do not attempt to explain the feeling." said Ansel Adams

I wish to share some of the basic things that I have learned to ‘make’ (not just ‘take’) photos look GREAT to you and your intended viewers!

Equipment doesn’t matter! Whether its a film or digital camera, a point and shoot or the latest digital SLR, a still camera or a video camera, the basics remain the same. Always!

• Understand your equipment:

Every camera has to have these basic things to record an image.

1. Lightproof box: This is what camera is.


2. Lens: The optical glass that gathers rays of light entering from a tiny hole in the anterior of the lightproof box and focuses them to form a well defined image on the film.


3. Film: A light sensitive material that reacts to produce dark and light spots.


4. Viewfinder: It shows the approximate image that will be recorded on the film. In many cameras, it’s just a viewing glass while in SLRs, it’s actually the image that the film also sees.


5. Focusing Control: It enables adjusting sharpness of an image on the film by varying the distance between the lens and the film.
   


6. Shutter: It’s the mechanical or the electronic device that enables the lens to receive light only for the predetermined amount of time.


7. Diaphragm/Aperture: This controls the amount of light that can reach the film to form an image.


8. Film advance: This is the mechanism that allows moving over to the next film once an image is recorded on the current film.
   

While the above may be simple to read, a detailed study of your camera's manual is a must to completely understand its capabilities and limitations.

• Universal rule:

Before taking ANY picture, ask yourself three questions.
1. What’s my subject and theme?
"There is nothing worse than a sharp photograph of a fuzzy idea." Ansel Adams

2. Have I focused attention on my subject using the techniques that I know?
"I am not a scientist. I consider myself an artist who employs certain techniques to free my vision." Ansel Adams

3. Have I excluded all things from the frame that would distract the viewer’s attention from my subject?
"Photography is bringing order out of chaos." Ansel Adams.

That’s it! Following these three simple rules can make your photos look great. Lets try to understand these rules with some examples.

	What is the subject? Clearly, the rose.
	How is the subject focused? The with good Depth of field, all petals in the viewing frame is focused with greater DOF.
	Are there any distracting elements present in the picture? By avoiding any any other part of the flower, there are no distracting elements.
	What's the subject? The gondola operator
	How is the subject focused? By blurring the background and including only things necessary it is shown that the operator is a Gondola (cable car) operator
	Are there any distracting elements present in the picture? All the elements included in the picture are necessary to show that the occupation of the man.
	What is the subject? The shift!
	How is the subject focused? By blurring the background and including the parts that are unnecessary.
	Are there any distracting elements present in the picture? None!
	What's the subject?
	How is the subject focused?
	Are there any distracting elements present in the picture?
	What's the subject?
	How is the subject focused?
	Are there any distracting elements present in the picture?

Try to get the answer for the last two by yourself

Watch out for the next issue...

Note: Though many things are mentioned keeping SLR in mind, we can still derive the equivalents to other types of cameras. Some cameras may not have some of the things mentioned in this article. Once you get to know the basics, its easy to apply them to different cameras and get the best shots from them keeping the limitations in mind.