Starting down the path of learning to "drive" that new camera

Often when I see people with new DSLR cameras I see that they are shooting in auto.   Although auto is an easy way to start to use your new camera, it has some significant limitations.   What you'll find is that your camera will use the pop-up flash frequently in auto.   You'll also end up using a lower ISO, despite your camera being capable of nice results at higher ISO values.  

I just realized, I may be jumping the gun a bit.   ISO... what's this?   

Let me take a step back and get down to some basics.   The fundamental function of a camera is to record light.   In digital cameras, the light is recorded by a sensor.   How light is recorded is determined by exposure.   There are three key elements that make up exposure:   Aperture, Shutter Speed, and Sensitivity.

Aperture is the size of the opening which lets light into the camera.

Shutter Speed is the length of time that the shutter is open to allow light to hit the sensor.

Sensitivity (ISO) is how sensitive the sensor is to light (think of this as volume for now.)

Each of these elements work together to determine the exposure of an image.   If set wrong, your image might be over-exposed (too bright) or under-exposed (too dark.)   Understanding how you can control these three settings to get to a properly exposed image is the key to better "technical" images.

Note that I said "technical" image quality.   You can have a perfect technical image, but still have a bad photo.   You can also have a poor technical image, but have a very pleasing photo.   We will get into that more in future posts.

Before I go back to the "why not to shoot auto" topic, I'll focus on learning about Aperture, Shutter Speed, and Sensitivity (ISO.)