Tuesday, May 24, 2011

vocab list


Single Reflex Lens Camera: a camera that typically uses a semi-automatic moving mirror system that permits the photographer to see exactly what will be captured by the film or digital imaging system (after a very small delay), as opposed to pre-SLR cameras where the view through the viewfinder could be significantly different from what was captured on film.
Focal-Plane shutter: a type of photographic shutter that is positioned immediately in front of the focal plane of the camera, that is, right in front of the photographic film or image sensor.

ISO ASA film speed: the measure of a photographic film's sensitivity to light, determined by sensitometry and measured on various numerical scales.
Depth of field: the distance between the nearest and farthest objects in a scene that appear acceptably sharp in an image.
Sync speed:  the firing of a photographic flash coinciding with the shutter admitting light to photographic film or electronic image sensor.
Aperture: a hole or an opening through which light travels.
Shutter: a device that allows light to pass for a determined period of time, for the purpose of exposing photographic film or a light-sensitive electronic sensor to light to capture a permanent image of a scene.
Strobe:  device used in photography producing a flash of artificial light (typically 1/1000 to 1/200 of a second) at a color temperature of about 5500 K to help illuminate a scene.
Focal Length: an optical system is a measure of how strongly the system converges (focuses) or diverges (defocuses) light.
Bracketing: the general technique of taking several shots of the same subject using different or the same camera settings.
Exposure: the total amount of light allowed to fall on the photographic medium (photographic film or image sensor) during the process of taking a photograph.
Hot shoe: a mounting point on the top of a camera to attach a flash unit.
Lens flair: the light scattered in lens systems through generally unwanted image formation mechanisms, such as internal reflection and scattering from material inhomogeneities in the lens. 

Resolution: the detail an image holds.