Lesson video

Hello, everyone.

How are you today? I hope you're feeling really, really good.

My name is Ms. Afzal, and I am your art teacher for this lesson.

I'm feeling terrific about it because today we're looking at photography, we're looking at some settings on cameras.

And I love taking photographs and using these manual settings.

Our lesson is called "Picture taking: aperture and shutter speed settings." It comes from the unit of work Foundation workshops: an introduction to the areas of study.

So if you are feeling ready to get into these camera settings and you've got some focus, energy, and enthusiasm, we'll begin our lesson.

The outcome for today's lesson is: I can use aperture and shutter speed settings to control light and blur in my photographs.

We have some keywords in our lesson.

They are aperture and shutter.

So what do these words mean? Well, aperture is the hole through which light travels in a camera lens.

And shutter: the part of the camera that opens to allow light through the aperture.

So these are our two keywords: aperture and shutter.

Let's look out for them.

Let's listen out for them.

They will be coming up in our lesson today.

Today's lesson is called "Picture taking: aperture and shutter speed settings." It has two learning cycles: what is aperture and what is shutter speed? We're going to begin by looking at what is aperture.

Let's start with this question: how can a photographer control the amount of light that enters the camera? Pause here and share with someone.

What do you think? Thanks for sharing your ideas.

I wonder if you came up with something like this.

A photographer can control the amount of light that enters the camera through settings.

The most fundamental of these are aperture and shutter speed.

Which of the following settings can you use to control the amount of light that enters the camera lens? Is it A, shutter speed; B, flash; or C, lens? Pause here while you decide which of these settings can you use to control the amount of light that enters the camera lens.

Well done if you selected shutter speed, this is indeed a way to control the amount of light that enters the camera lens.

Cameras work by letting light in through the lens.

Inside, a light-sensitive film, or digital sensor, capture the light to form an image.

The light-sensitive surface might be a film in traditional cameras or a digital sensor in modern ones.

Pause here and share with someone, have you used a camera which uses film or have you used a digital camera before, or have you used both? Thanks for sharing.

I've used both film cameras and digital cameras, and I've also used some really interesting large format film cameras to give some amazing results.

The aperture control, or f-stop, is the part of the camera that adjusts the size of the hole through which the light enters.

Changing the f-stop makes this opening larger as we can see on the left, or smaller, affecting how much light reaches the sensor or film.

Pause the video and share with someone, have you ever adjusted the aperture control or the f-stop on a camera when taking photographs? Thanks for sharing, and don't worry at all if you haven't.

This is what this lesson is all about.

We're going to be learning how to change the aperture on our cameras.

The lower the f-stop, the larger the aperture.

This is good for shooting in lower light conditions such as at a concert.

What fun.

Pause the video and share with someone, have you been to a concert before or maybe have you watched one on TV or on a video? Thanks for sharing.

My last concert was going to see Beyonce.

Really fun.

And I took some photographs.

And here we can see another image taken with a lower f-stop, as there were lower light conditions.

The higher the f-stop, the smaller the aperture.

This is often better for lighter conditions, such as this wonderful image of someone skiing or this image of shells on the beach.

Check for understanding.

A higher f-stop on the aperture control will: A, result in a larger aperture, allowing more light into the camera; B, open the aperture for longer, allowing more light into the camera; or C, result in a small aperture, allowing less light into the camera.

Pause the video and share with someone, what would the effect of a higher f-stop on the aperture control be.

Thanks for sharing.

Well done if you selected answer C.

Indeed, a higher f-stop on the aperture control will result in a smaller aperture, allowing less light into the camera.

And now it's time for your first task.

I would like you to photograph the same subject three to five times, changing only the aperture.

Ensure your camera is on manual mode and set your aperture as high as it will go.

Take photos of your subject and keep lowering your aperture.

Repeat until your aperture is at its lowest setting, allowing in the most possible light.

Pause the video while you have a go at this task, photographing your subject three to five times, changing only the aperture.

I'll see you when you're finished.

It's great to be back with you.

How did you get on with that task, photographing the same subject three to five times, changing only the aperture? There are many possible outcomes, and it could look like this.

Here's Sofia's photographs of the ice cream.

"I took my photos outside on a sunny day." And here's Andeep's.

"I took my photos from my window at night." And for the next part of your task, I'd like you to note the differences between the photographs you took.

Pause here while you do this.

So how did you get on with noting the differences between the photographs you took? There are many possible outcomes.

Let's hear from Andeep.

"As the aperture gets smaller, higher f-number, more of the picture is in focus, but the image gets darker.

As the aperture gets wider, lower f-number, less is in focus and the image gets brighter." And let's hear from Sofia.

"When I photographed the ice cream with a higher f-number, like f/16, everything in the background was clear, but the photo looked a bit darker.

Then when I used a lower f-number, like f/2.

8, the ice cream stood out sharply and the background went really blurry, but the photo was much brighter." Really interesting differences noted there.

And now we're on to our next learning cycle, what is shutter speed? Along with aperture, shutter speed is another of the ways to adjust the amount of light entering the camera.

While aperture changes the size of the lens opening, shutter speed controls how long the camera's film or sensor is exposed to light.

Let's have a check for understanding.

True or false? Aperture controls how much light gets in, and shutter speed controls how long it gets in for.

Pause here and decide, is this true or false? Well done if you selected true.

A fast shutter speed, like 1/1000th of a second, only lets in light for a very short time, which is great for freezing fast movement such as someone jumping or water splashing.

Pause the video and share with someone, what else would a really fast shutter speed, like 1/1000th of a second, be really effective for photographing? Some other kind of fast movement.

Thanks for sharing.

I've really enjoyed using a fast shutter speed for photographs of animals in movement, like a dog running across a beach, that made a beautiful photograph or also of people dancing.

It's quite fun.

A slow shutter speed, like one second, allows more light in over a longer period, which can be useful in low light conditions, or for capturing motion blur like light trails or soft flowing water.

Pause here and share with someone, what could you use a slow shutter speed, like one second or even longer, to capture? Thanks for sharing.

I've used this to capture water like a waterfall and also the movement of clouds.

Check for understanding.

A slow shutter speed.

Finish the sentence.

Is it A, allows more light in over a shorter period; B, allows more light in over a longer period; or C, allows less light in over a longer period? Pause here while you decide, what's the correct way to end that sentence? Well done if you said that a slow shutter speed allows more light in over a longer period.

Both aperture and shutter speed work together to affect exposure and creative effects.

Balancing them is essential when taking well-lit, intentional photographs.

Shutter speed controls how long your camera sensor or film is exposed to light.

This setting also has a huge impact on blur, especially when subjects are moving.

Slow shutter speed equals more blur.

A slow shutter speed means the camera shutter stays open for longer, e.

g.

one second, or 1/10th of a second.

Any movement either from the subject or the camera during that time creates motion blur.

Photographers who are known for their use of slow shutter speed are: Alexey Titarenko uses slow shutter speed to transform bustling city scenes into ghostly, poetic images.

Yoshiki Nakamura uses slow shutter speed to create painterly images that capture the motion and atmosphere of natural landscapes.

Rachel Bigsby uses slow shutter speed to reveal the graceful movement and hidden beauty of British birdlife.

And Ernst Haas used slow shutter speed to blur motion in colour photography, creating expressive images that capture movement.

So we can see there are a number of photographers known for their use of slow shutter speed there to inspire us.

Fast shutter speed equals sharp images.

A fast shutter speed, e.

g.

1/500th of a second or 1/1000th of a second captures a split second of action.

This freezes movement, resulting in clear, sharp images with no blur, as we can see on the screen there.

Photographers who are known for their use of fast shutter speed are: Samer Mohdad uses fast shutter speed to capture fleeting dynamic moments that vividly convey the realities of conflict and identity.

Jodi Frediani employs fast shutter speeds to capture the dynamic and fleeting moments of marine life.

Nadine Ijewere uses fast shutter speeds to capture vibrant moments that celebrate diversity and beauty in fashion photography.

And Jaida Grey Eagle employs fast shutter speeds to capture the dynamic and intimate moments of the lives of the Lakota people.

Check for understanding.

Which of these demonstrates a fast shutter speed? Is it A, B, or C? Pause the video while you decide.

Well done if you selected answer A.

Indeed, a really fast shutter speed there has captured that movement of the water and all the water droplets.

And now it's time for your next task.

Experiment using shutter speed.

You could choose a variety of subjects, including both moving and static.

Use a range of shutter speeds.

How long can you set this before your pictures become too light? Adjust your aperture to help control how light and dark your pictures are, particularly when your shutter speed becomes too long or short.

Keep your camera steady as you work, particularly when photographing with longer shutter speeds.

You could place or rest your camera on a still surface or use a tripod.

Pause here while you have a go at this task and enjoy experimenting using shutter speed.

I'll see you when you're finished.

It's great to be back with you.

How did you get on with that task, experimenting using shutter speed? There are many possible outcomes, including this fabulous image on the screen.

Let's hear from Andeep.

"Using a fast shutter speed in bright daylight froze any movement of the lily, making the image super sharp.

It might have come out quite dark if I hadn't adjusted the aperture too." That's great, using both of those settings in tandem.

And here's Sofia.

"Using a fast shutter speed in bright daylight froze the football players mid-action so every movement, like kicking or jumping, looked super sharp." So helpful in sports photography using these camera settings.

Pause the video and share with someone your impression of Sofia's photograph taken using a fast shutter speed.

Thanks for sharing your impressions.

And here's Andeep.

"I used a slow shutter speed for a bird flying over the lake in low light.

I captured the soft lighting and the motion of the bird.

A fast shutter wouldn't have picked up as much light or atmosphere from the scene." You're absolutely right.

And Sofia: "I used a slow shutter speed to photograph the clouds moving across the sky.

The longer exposure created a smooth, blurry effect in the clouds, showing their movement over time." Oh, I could really get lost in that.

I love that effect of the slow shutter speed.

Pause here and share with someone, what's your impression of this photograph that Sofia has taken of the clouds using a slow shutter speed? Thanks for sharing your responses, and I hope you enjoyed experimenting with a range of shutter speeds.

In our lesson, "Picture taking: aperture and shutter speed," we've covered the following.

Cameras work by allowing light to pass into a camera and onto a light-sensitive surface.

The f-stop or aperture controls allow us to change the size of the opening.

The shutter speed allows us to control how long the aperture is open.

By using both of these, we can control how light or dark our photographs are and can reduce or manipulate blur.

Well done, everyone, for joining in with this lesson.

It was great to explore taking photographs and looking at these two settings of aperture and shutter speed and then playing around with them, exploring and taking some wonderful photographs.

I love photography so much, so I really, really enjoyed this lesson, I hope you have too.

And I look forward to seeing you at another art lesson soon.

Until then, stay creative.