Photography creates compelling artwork by telling stories and evoking emotions. It captures life's precious moments and preserves memories for generations to come. Knowing the functions of your camera can help you appropriately capture these pictures every time.
The multiple elements of a camera work together to create a quality image. Professional photographers often manually and independently manipulate the various elements to create the desired image. Fortunately, most digital cameras have easy to use settings which automatically adjust the elements to create the desired effect.
Autofocus: One of the most convenient features of a digital camera is its ability to autofocus. It utilizes a sensor, control system and motor to manipulate the lens in order to focus on a subject. Eliminating the need to manually adjust the lens makes focusing a digital camera with autofocus a breeze.
Image Effects: Image effects manipulate an image after it is captured to create a desired result. Typical image effects include sepia tone and grayscale (black and white). Additional image effects may be available through editing software. A full list of the image effects and how to set them will be found in your camera's instructional manual.
Scene Modes: Most digital cameras offer scene modes that optimize the camera's settings for specific photographic conditions. The elements that can be manipulated include the flash, lens, shutter and aperture. Typical scene modes include landscape, night, action and portrait. A full listing of the scene modes and how to set them will be found in your camera's instructional manual. Most cameras also offer you the ability to adjust some of the elements independently. For example, most digital cameras allow you to control the flash regardless of the scene mode.
Self-Timer: The advantageous self-timer creates a delay between when the shutter button is activated and when the camera actually takes the picture. This is ideal in situations where the photographer wants to be included in the picture. It also can be used to reduce movement when the image is taken by setting the camera on a non-moving surface. In most cases, the self-timer can be adjusted to various times.