UNIT 4

The Camera

Lesson 1. Historical Development of Camera

The history of the camera can be traced back much further than the introduction
of photography. Photographic cameras evolved from:

1. the camera obscura

2. Daguerreotypes
3. calotypes
4. Used of dry plates
5. Used of film and
6. digital cameras.

1. Camera obscuras

-Photographic cameras were a development of the camera obscura, a device

dating back to the ancient Chinese and ancient Greeks, which uses a pinhole or
lens to project an image of the scene outside upside-down onto a viewing
surface.

- Before the invention of photographic processes there was no way to preserve

the images produced by these cameras apart from manually tracing them. The
earliest cameras were room-sized, with space for one or more people inside;
these gradually evolved into more and more compact models such as that by
Niépce's time portable handheld cameras suitable for photography were readily
available. The first camera that was small and portable enough to be practical for
photography was built by Johann Zahn in 1685, though it would be almost 150
years before such an application was possible.

2. Daguerreotypes and

Louis Daguerre and Joseph Nicéphore Niépce (who was Daguerre's partner, but
died before their invention was completed) invented the first practical
photographic method, which was named the daguerreotype, in 1836. Daguerre
coated a copper plate with silver, then treated it with iodine vapor to make it
 sensitive to light. The image was developed by mercury vapor and fixed with a
strong solution of ordinary salt (sodium chloride).

3. Calotypes

William Fox Talbot perfected a different process, the calotype, in 1840. Both used
cameras that were little different from Zahn's model, with a sensitized plate or
sheet of paper placed in front of the viewing screen to record the image. Focusing
was generally via sliding boxes.

4. Dry plates

Collodion dry plates had been available since 1855, thanks to the work of Désiré
van Monckhoven, but it was not until the invention of the gelatin dry plate in
1871 by Richard Leach Maddox that they rivalled wet plates in speed and
quality.

5. Kodak and the birth of film

The use of photographic film was pioneered by George Eastman, who started
manufacturing paper film in 1885 before switching to celluloid in 1889. His first
camera, which he called the "Kodak," was first offered for sale in 1888. It was a
very simple box camera with a fixed-focus lens and single shutter speed, which
along with its relatively low price appealed to the average consumer. The Kodak
came pre-loaded with enough film for 100 exposures and needed to be sent back
to the factory for processing and reloading when the roll was finished. By the
end of the 19th century Eastman had expanded his lineup to several models
including both box and folding cameras.

35 mm
Leica I, 1925

Argus C3, 1939: 135 mm film

TLRs and SLRs

the single-lens reflex camera twin-lens reflex cameras

The first practical reflex camera was the Franke & Heidecke Rolleiflex medium format
TLR of 1928. Though both single- and twin-lens reflex cameras had been available for
decades, they were too bulky to achieve much popularity. The Rolleiflex, however, was
sufficiently compact to achieve widespread popularity and the medium-format TLR
design became popular for both high- and low-end cameras.

Digital cameras
Digital cameras differ from their analog predecessors primarily in that they do not use
film, but capture and save photographs on digital memory cards or internal storage
instead. Their low operating costs have relegated chemical cameras to niche markets.
Digital cameras now include wireless communication capabilities (for example Wi-Fi or
Bluetooth) to transfer, print or share photos, and are commonly found on mobile
phones.

The arrival of true digital cameras

Nikon D1, 1999

The first true digital camera that recorded images as a computerized file was likely the
Fuji DS-1P of 1988, which recorded to a 16 MB internal memory card that used a battery
to keep the data in memory. This camera was never marketed in the United States, and
has not been confirmed to have shipped even in Japan.

Lesson 2. Mechanisms of Camera

1. Shutter mechanisms
a. Focal-plane shutters- Almost all contemporary SLRs use a focal-plane shutter
located in front of the film plane, which prevents the light from reaching the
film even if the lens is removed, except when the shutter is actually released
during the exposure.

b. Rotary focal-plane shutter- One unusual design, the Olympus Pen half-
frame 35 mm SLR system, manufactured by Olympus in Japan, used a rotary
focal-plane shutter mechanism that was extremely simple and elegant in
design. This shutter used titanium foil but consisted of one piece of metal
with a fixed opening, which allowed electronic flash synchronisation up to
 and including its maximum speed of 1/500 of a second – rivalling the
capabilities of leaf-shutter systems

c. Leaf shutters-Another shutter system is the leaf shutter, whereby the shutter
is constructed of diaphragm-like blades and can be situated either between
the lens or behind the lens. If the shutter is part of a lens assembly some other
mechanism is required to ensure that no light reaches the film between
exposures.

2. Focusing Mechanism- the mechanism that estimates the appropriate objects

distance from the camera to form a sharp focus or clear image of the photograph.

a. Focusing ring- the outer ring of the lens which is rotated or adjusted to
obtain sharp focus.

b. Distance scale- the focus index or range of sharp focus

3. Diaphragm- the “window”, the eyes of the camera which controls how much
light reaches the film

a. F-STOP Ring-diaphragm ring

4. ASA Dial- film speed dial

5. Flash unit - It flashes light on to the target in dark situations.

6. Lens- Brings in light and focuses it to film or a sensor.

7. Shutter- opens real quickly to let in a certain amount of light, can be controlled to
let in more light.

8. Memory- takes the picture and stores it on a chip.

9. Aperture-The hole the shutter creates to let the light in

Lesson 3. Part Of The DSLR Camera

* DSLR is a digital single lens reflex, which is a camera with a digital system (using
the processor, chip, memory, and technological sophistication in capturing the image)
which uses a single lens mounted on the camera body. Reflex mirror inside the camera
will go up when you press the shutter button and at the time the image sensor in the
camera will record an image.
 1. Eyepiece = holder to our eyes when look into the viewfinder.

2. Viewfinder (viewfinder) = viewfinders pentaprism method (pentagon shape) is

placed over the optical path through the lens onto the image sensor plate. Incoming
light then reflected upward by mirror (mirror reflection) and about pentaprism.

3. Pentaprism then reflect light several times through the viewfinder (viewfinder).
When the shutter button is released, the glass opens the way for the light so that light
can directly on the image sensor.

4. Image sensors (sensors capture images) = a sensor that is used to process and capture
an image contained within a camera.

5. Flash = flash is usually used to help us in taking pictures in the dark.

6. Hotshoe (flash external holder) = a holder for an external flash that is usually located
in the middle of the camera body.

7. Lens (lens) = a lens mount that is embedded in the camera body (lens body can be
removed and replaced) that serves to light up focus capable captured by the image
sensor.

On the outside of the lens usually there are three rings, namely:

1. ring focal length (for variable type lenses),

2. aperture ring and
3. focusing ring.

8. Lens hood = an extra on the lens to reduce excess light, the impact of flares and a
protective front surface of the lens, and also as an addition to the display lens to look
more frightening. * Remember: the use of hood that does not comply with a series of
lenses will cause vignetting (vignetting = black spots on the sides of the tip of the
picture).

9. LCD monitor (LCD display) = to see the image and monitor modes that we use to
take pictures.
 10. Focus points = if you look into the viewfinder, then you will see a small dots
scattered (the number of points depending on the type and model of camera), at which
point the focus is to help you find focus images would be taken.

Lesson 4. Basic Parts of the Single Lens Reflex Camera

* Body - Made of high grade plastic or metal, this holds all the other parts together as
well as provide protection to the delicate internal parts of the camera.

* Lens - A proper term for this part should be Lens Assembly, this consists of several
layers of lenses of varying properties providing zoom, focusing, and distortion
correction. These lenses are mechanically interconnected and adjustment is controlled
electronically by the camera's body.

* Shutter Release Button - This is the "trigger" of the camera. In most cameras, a half-
press activates and locks the auto-focus, and a full press initiates the image capturing
process.

* Mode Dial - Contains several symbols (slightly different on various camera models),
this dial allows you to select a shooting mode, automatic or manual or a choice between
one of the pre-defined settings.

* Viewfinder - A small viewing window that shows the image that the camera's imaging
sensor sees. This can either be an optical view finder, which shows the actual image in
front of the camera through a peep hole or through mirrors, or an electronic view finder
which is simply a small LCD display.

* Aperture Ring - Found around the old manual lens of SLR camera this is used to select
an aperture opening. In modern lenses, the aperture is controlled electronically through
the body.
* Focusing Ring - This can also be found around the lens of a DSLR camera. This is
turned to manually focus the lens.

* LCD Display - In some compact cameras this acts as the viewfinder. This is a small
screen (usually 1.8" diagonally or bigger) at the back of the camera which can be used
for framing or for reviewing the recorded pictures.

* Flash - Built-in on the body of most compact and some DSLR cameras this can either
be fixed or flip type, it provides an instantaneous burst of bright light to illuminate a
poorly lit scene.

* Control Buttons - Usually includes a set of directional keys and a few other buttons to
activate certain functions and menus, this is used to let users interact with the camera's
computer system.

* Power Switch - Turns On or Off the camera. This may also contain a Record / Play
Mode selector on some cameras.

* Zoom Control - Usually marked with W and T, which stands for "Wide" and "Tele"
respectively, this is used to control the camera's lenses to zoom-in or zoom-out. For
DSLR cameras, the zoom is usually controlled by a zoom ring in the lens.

* Battery Compartment - Holds the batteries. Depending on the camera model, this
varies in size and shape.

* Memory Card Slot - This is where expansion memory cards are inserted. The proper
position of the card are often indicated. A mechanical catch usually holds the card in
place and a spring helps it eject.

* Flash Mount (Hot-Shoe) - Standard holder with contact plates for optional Flash
accessory.

* Diopter Adjuster - Usually available in mid to high end sub-compact cameras and
DSLRs located besides the viewfinder. This varies the focal length of the lens in the
viewfinder to make even people wearing eyeglasses to see clearly through it even
without the eyeglasses.

* Tripod Mount - Here is where your standard Tripod or Monopod is attached for
added stability.

Lesson 5. Aperture
 - The aperture value of the lens controls the amount of light that is permitted to
go to the camera’s sensor.

- Aperture values are expressed in f-numbers or f-stops (i.e. f/2.0, f/2.8, f/3.5
and so on).

- The lower the aperture value, the bigger the opening is (more light is
permitted); the higher the aperture value, the smaller the opening is (less light
is permitted).

- The aperture, along with shutter speed, regulates the amount of exposure to
light.

- Aperture is also responsible for controlling the depth of field (DOF).

- The aperture mode of a camera is used if you want to emphasize a certain

object or subject.

The photo below shows different aperture values and their corresponding
opening sizes. Notice that as the aperture value gets larger, the opening gets
smaller.

Lesson 6. Depth of field (DOF)

 - depth of field (DOF) is controlled by the aperture of the lens.

-A lower aperture value (i.e. f/2.0) would exhibit a shallower (or decreased)
DOF. The object focused upon will be emphasized since it will be the only sharp
entity and everything else will be blurred.

- Using a low aperture value is very effective if you don’t have total control of the
environment. If there are lots of distracting objects in the background, utilizing a
shallow DOF certainly helps.

- A higher aperture value (i.e. f/16 and above) would exhibit a deeper (or
increased) DOF. As the aperture value increases, more and more objects will be
sharp.

Lesson 7. Shutter speed

- The control of shutter speed is used to convey motion.

- You will have to use a tripod in order to capture photos using slow shutter
speeds.

- Controlling shutter speed is extremely effective with lights and liquid-related

objects such as water. Capturing a waterfall with a slow shutter speed results
in a smooth water transition. When a fast shutter speed is used, the water
appears rough and abrupt.