photographic terminology guide for dummies

[0bli0]

i posted this on another board and someone suggested i post it here.

i've noticed there are a lot of new faces and lots of people who are new to photography, so i thought i'd put together an easy to understand guide - ultimately with as many example photos as i can. ideally, people can check here to look up some of the frequently used terms. it's also clear that some people have been using these terms incorrectly, thus adding to the confusion.

please feel free to contribute as i'm sure the community as a whole could benefit.


front focus

front focus is when the primary subject is out in front of other potential subjects. this is often used in motorsports and athletics.


back focus

back focus is where the subject of an image is a person’s back. this may be intentional or accidental. lenses are often erroneously blamed for back focus.

softness

softness is when the subject is soft. opposite of sharpness. often cheap lenses contribute to softness, because there is money left over to buy stuffed toys. some people feel softness makes a person look younger

sharpness

sharpness is when the subject of a photo is sharp. opposite of soft. there are different amounts of sharpness

low-key

low-key is the opposite of high key. the key to this style of photography is to get down low.

high-key

high-key is the opposite of low key. this is when the key is not down low.

depth of field (DOF)

depth of field relates to the depth of vegetation in any given field. where depth of field is high, shooting conditions may be adversely affected. a shallow depth of field is generally preferred. see also bokeh.

bokeh (bo-kay)

bokeh is when any shot has a floral theme, it is said to have a nice bokeh. often related to depth of field (sometimes not by choice).

 

[0bli0]

blown highlight

a blown highlight is when the highlight of the shot is blown - either through fault of the shooter, or subject.

out of focus (OOF)

out of focus is when a subject is not focussed on their activity, and generally produces unsatisfactory results. see also: blown highlight

digital noise
(no photo)

digital noise is the artificial shutter sound added to camera phones


shooting to the right

shooting to the right is used in various sports - this is the art of predicting where a shot will be. a higher percentage of keepers can be had by shooting to the right. the player shot to the (keeper’s) right.

fisheye

fisheye is a type of photo where the image involves the ocular organ of a fish.

colourspace

colourspace is the place generally set aside to for colouring

monochrome

monochrome is when only one subject in the image has chrome. generally used in automotive photography.

raw

raw is when the subject is not cooked. it is recommended to work with cooked subjects prior to experimenting with raw.

photoshop

photoshop is a place to purchase photographic equipment. (photoshopping | photoshopped)

 

[0bli0]

full frame

full frame is placing/sizing a print so that it goes to the edge of the frame. full frame has no crop factor (see also)

crop factor

crop factor is used to determine how small to print an image to fit within a frame matte. full frame has no crop factor.

levels

adjusting levels ensures straight horizons. although it can be adjusted later, it’s best to get it right ahead of time.

post processing

post processing dates back to the film days. often, it was necessary to send in rolls of film to be developed. now with the advent of digital photography, post processing is almost a thing of the past. it is still used today for sending prints to (internet challenged) family members


tripod

a tripod is a device that supports music files, video, *and* digital photos

 

[tinksdad]

DUDE!!! That REALLY made me laugh!!! Good thing I wasn't drinking anything!!!


Well Done!!

Think I'll go shoot a half pound of RAW.......

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Just one thing: that RAW picture is scaring me. What is it??

 

[0bli0]

minke whale meat...

 

[jann1033]

thanks oblio..i feel much better prepared to meet my photographic day today.


(hehe, so the title does apply to me)

 

[Amy]

Great thread!

 

[pixie dust 112]

I was all excited when I found this thread... and then I just cracked up! This is so funny! thanks!

 

[Groucho]

Looks like April Fool's Day came a bit early this year................

 

[mabas9395]

Educational threads like these should be made stickies.

A good reference piece for newbie photogs everywhere, at least they'll know where NOT to turn for advice!

 

[tinkspark]

 

[Steve's Girl]

Oh, thank you! I needed that today! It's a very dreary midwest winter day and a little sunshine sure does go a long way!

 

[barrie]

 

[handicap18]

Some people who are brand new to DIS come to realize that they have to have a minimum number of posts in order to add a link or image to any posts they make:

I belive this is the starting point for that (please correct me if I'm wrong, its been a while since I was new, size and placement of the post is up to the individual poster):

 

[wannabatwdw]

I am glad to have a post to check for newbies like me. I was so excited to find a thread that explains things with pictures...Is it possible to cover zoom, and jpeg?

 

[Groucho]

Zoom is photography from a moving vehicle.

You have to be careful when using zoom, though, or else!

J-Peg is actually the little screw thing that goes in the bottom of your camera when attaching it to a tripod, so named because it's the 10th generation (the first nine versions - the A-Peg through the I-peg - were too flimsy.)

 

[wannabatwdw]

Thanks Groucho! Good thing I asked. I am going to have to be careful, my husband just bought me a zoom lens to play around with for Christmas.

 

[jann1033]

J-Peg is actually the little screw thing that goes in the bottom of your camera when attaching it to a tripod, so named because it's the 10th generation (the first nine versions - the A-Peg through the I-peg - were too flimsy.)

actually according to Wikipedia it originated as the name commonly used by paparrazi for this woman's sister Peg http://www.starpulse.com/Actresses/Lopez,_Jennifer/Pictures/

 

[DueyDooDah]

Telephoto

An image of any telecommunications device

Telephoto lens

An image of a telecommunications device that contains a lens