One of the most confusing things about photography for amateurs and beginners is the abundance of technical terms. Read on for explanations of some of the most common and useful terms.
ISO
Technically, this stands for "International Standards Organization" but that isn't the definition we are looking for. For us, ISO stands for a sensor on a digital camera that determines how sensitive to light the sensor is. There are cameras that can range in sensitivity from ISO 50 to ISO 3200 or higher, doubling each time. A camera with a low ISO value means the sensor is less sensitive to light. This allows for taking pictures in low light more problematic, but gives the picture a higher quality in return. The higher ISO value means taking photos in low light is easier, however the drawback is your photos are subject to digital 'noise' or random dots of color found mostly in the darkest areas of the photo. Unfortunately, this will limit the size of which the photo can be printed.
Note that in Automatic mode, your camera will choose what ISO to use by itself. It will generally choose a low ISO wherever there is sufficient light.
Zoom Range
Zoom range determines how wide and how zoomed-in a photo you can take. When you turn your camera on, it will be set at the widest angle by default. You can use the controls to zoom in on something small or something far away, so that it fills the frame.
Zoom range is quoted either in 35mm terms (i.e. 35-175mm), or in a multiple (i.e. 5x), where the widest settings times the multiple is the longest setting (for example, 5 x 35 = 155).
Most cameras come with a zoom of 28-35mm and can zoom 4x to 5x. However, if you are able, select a camera that offers the widest possible range. This feature is very useful for indoor photography as there usually isn't enough room to back up in order to fit everything you want in your photo.
Megapixel
Just like the display on your computer monitor, a picture is made up of many different dots. So the term 'megapixel' refers to a million of these dots. It is said that the higher the megapixels, the higher quality photo.
When a camera is listed as having a certain number of megapixels, this refers to the maximum number of pixels a photo can be comprised of. A higher megapixel camera will allow the photographer to take pictures comprised of more pixels than a lower megapixel camera.
Pictures that have been taken with a higher megapixel camera can then be viewed and enlarged to any capacity without a drop in the quality of the photo. While this is highly useful, it is important to note that 6 megapixels are more than enough for the average consumer, although salesman try to convince you otherwise, this is truly not the case.
ISO
Technically, this stands for "International Standards Organization" but that isn't the definition we are looking for. For us, ISO stands for a sensor on a digital camera that determines how sensitive to light the sensor is. There are cameras that can range in sensitivity from ISO 50 to ISO 3200 or higher, doubling each time. A camera with a low ISO value means the sensor is less sensitive to light. This allows for taking pictures in low light more problematic, but gives the picture a higher quality in return. The higher ISO value means taking photos in low light is easier, however the drawback is your photos are subject to digital 'noise' or random dots of color found mostly in the darkest areas of the photo. Unfortunately, this will limit the size of which the photo can be printed.
Note that in Automatic mode, your camera will choose what ISO to use by itself. It will generally choose a low ISO wherever there is sufficient light.
Zoom Range
Zoom range determines how wide and how zoomed-in a photo you can take. When you turn your camera on, it will be set at the widest angle by default. You can use the controls to zoom in on something small or something far away, so that it fills the frame.
Zoom range is quoted either in 35mm terms (i.e. 35-175mm), or in a multiple (i.e. 5x), where the widest settings times the multiple is the longest setting (for example, 5 x 35 = 155).
Most cameras come with a zoom of 28-35mm and can zoom 4x to 5x. However, if you are able, select a camera that offers the widest possible range. This feature is very useful for indoor photography as there usually isn't enough room to back up in order to fit everything you want in your photo.
Megapixel
Just like the display on your computer monitor, a picture is made up of many different dots. So the term 'megapixel' refers to a million of these dots. It is said that the higher the megapixels, the higher quality photo.
When a camera is listed as having a certain number of megapixels, this refers to the maximum number of pixels a photo can be comprised of. A higher megapixel camera will allow the photographer to take pictures comprised of more pixels than a lower megapixel camera.
Pictures that have been taken with a higher megapixel camera can then be viewed and enlarged to any capacity without a drop in the quality of the photo. While this is highly useful, it is important to note that 6 megapixels are more than enough for the average consumer, although salesman try to convince you otherwise, this is truly not the case.
About the Author:
Tobias Sterling is a keen photography enthusiast who is passionate about writing and sharing his photography knowledge about Basic Photography Tips and Camera and Shutter speed on Clivir.com.
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