🎥Cinematography Unit 2 – Camera Basics: Anatomy, Lenses & Sensors

Camera Anatomy 101

• The camera body houses the sensor, shutter, and other essential components
• The lens mount allows interchangeable lenses to be attached to the camera body
• The viewfinder enables the operator to compose and focus the shot (optical or electronic)
• The camera's controls include:
  • Shutter release button to capture the image
  • Aperture and shutter speed dials to adjust exposure
  • ISO settings to control the sensor's sensitivity to light
• The memory card slot stores the captured images or footage (SD, CF, or XQD cards)
• External ports enable connectivity for accessories (HDMI, USB, audio input)
• The battery compartment powers the camera and ensures continuous operation

Understanding Camera Sensors

• The sensor is the heart of the digital camera, converting light into electrical signals
• Sensor size affects image quality, depth of field, and low-light performance (Full-frame, APS-C, Micro Four Thirds)
• Megapixel count determines the resolution and level of detail captured
• Larger pixels on the sensor improve low-light performance and reduce noise
• CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) sensors are commonly used in modern cameras
• Dynamic range refers to the sensor's ability to capture a wide range of brightness levels
• Bit depth represents the number of colors the sensor can record (8-bit, 10-bit, 12-bit)
• Rolling shutter effect can occur with CMOS sensors, causing vertical objects to appear slanted when the camera moves quickly

Types of Camera Lenses

• Prime lenses have a fixed focal length and often provide superior image quality and wider apertures (50mm, 85mm)
• Zoom lenses offer variable focal lengths, allowing for more versatility in shot composition (24-70mm, 70-200mm)
• Wide-angle lenses have short focal lengths and capture a broad field of view (16mm, 24mm)
  • Fisheye lenses are ultra-wide-angle lenses that create a distorted, spherical perspective
• Telephoto lenses have long focal lengths and are used for distant subjects or to compress perspective (100mm, 200mm)
• Macro lenses are designed for extreme close-up photography, capturing fine details (100mm macro)
• Specialty lenses include tilt-shift lenses for perspective control and soft-focus lenses for a dreamy effect
• Cine lenses are designed for video production, with smooth aperture and focus controls, and consistent color reproduction

Aperture and Depth of Field

• Aperture is the opening in the lens that controls the amount of light entering the camera
• Aperture is measured in f-stops, with lower numbers (f/1.4) representing wider apertures and higher numbers (f/16) representing narrower apertures
• Wider apertures allow more light to reach the sensor, enabling shorter shutter speeds and better low-light performance
• Aperture affects depth of field, which is the range of distance in a scene that appears acceptably sharp
  • Wide apertures (f/1.4) create a shallow depth of field, with the subject in focus and the background blurred (bokeh)
  • Narrow apertures (f/16) create a deep depth of field, with both the foreground and background in focus
• Depth of field is also influenced by the camera's sensor size and the distance between the camera and the subject
• Aperture priority mode allows the user to set the desired aperture while the camera automatically adjusts the shutter speed for proper exposure

Shutter Speed and Motion

• Shutter speed is the length of time the camera's sensor is exposed to light, measured in seconds or fractions of a second (1/60, 1/1000)
• Faster shutter speeds freeze motion, capturing sharp images of moving subjects (1/1000 for sports)
• Slower shutter speeds create motion blur, conveying a sense of movement (1/15 for flowing water)
• The camera's shutter can be mechanical or electronic:
  • Mechanical shutters use physical blades to control the exposure time
  • Electronic shutters use the sensor to control the exposure time, allowing for silent operation and faster shutter speeds
• Shutter speed affects exposure, with faster speeds reducing the amount of light reaching the sensor and slower speeds increasing it
• Shutter angle is a term used in cinematography, referring to the portion of a 360-degree rotation that the shutter is open (180°, 90°)
• Shutter speed can be used creatively to control the appearance of motion in a scene (panning, long exposures)

ISO and Light Sensitivity

• ISO (International Standards Organization) is a measure of the camera sensor's sensitivity to light
• Higher ISO values (3200, 6400) make the sensor more sensitive to light, allowing for shooting in low-light conditions or with faster shutter speeds
• Lower ISO values (100, 200) make the sensor less sensitive to light, providing better image quality and reduced noise
• Increasing the ISO can introduce digital noise, which appears as grainy or speckled patterns in the image
• The base ISO is the lowest native ISO setting on a camera, offering the best image quality and dynamic range
• Dual native ISO is a feature in some cameras that provides two optimal ISO settings for improved low-light performance
• ISO can be adjusted automatically by the camera (Auto ISO) or manually by the user to suit the shooting conditions
• It's essential to balance ISO with aperture and shutter speed to achieve the desired exposure and image quality

Focal Length and Perspective

• Focal length is the distance between the lens's optical center and the camera sensor, measured in millimeters (24mm, 50mm, 200mm)
• Shorter focal lengths provide a wider field of view, while longer focal lengths offer a narrower, more magnified view
• Focal length affects perspective, which is the relative size and distance between objects in an image
  • Wide-angle lenses (short focal lengths) exaggerate the distance between the foreground and background, creating a sense of depth
  • Telephoto lenses (long focal lengths) compress the distance between the foreground and background, making objects appear closer together
• The choice of focal length can greatly impact the mood and narrative of a scene (wide-angle for establishing shots, telephoto for intimate close-ups)
• Full-frame cameras have a larger sensor size, which affects the effective focal length of lenses compared to cameras with smaller sensors (APS-C, Micro Four Thirds)
• Focal length multipliers, or crop factors, describe how the effective focal length changes when using lenses designed for full-frame cameras on smaller sensor cameras
• Prime lenses have a fixed focal length, while zoom lenses offer a range of focal lengths in a single lens (24-70mm)

Putting It All Together: Camera Settings in Action

• Exposure triangle: Balancing aperture, shutter speed, and ISO to achieve the desired exposure and creative effect
  • Example: A wide aperture (f/2.8), fast shutter speed (1/1000), and low ISO (100) for a shallow depth of field and frozen motion in bright light
• Shooting modes: Manual, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Program modes allow for different levels of control over camera settings
• Metering modes: Evaluative, Center-weighted, and Spot metering help determine the optimal exposure based on the scene's brightness distribution
• White balance ensures accurate color reproduction under different lighting conditions (Daylight, Tungsten, Fluorescent)
• Focus modes: Autofocus (AF) and Manual Focus (MF) enable the user to control how the camera focuses on the subject
  • AF modes include Single-shot AF, Continuous AF, and Hybrid AF for various shooting situations
• Image file formats: RAW files contain unprocessed sensor data, while JPEG files are compressed and processed in-camera
• Histogram: A graphical representation of the image's brightness distribution, helping to assess exposure and avoid clipping
• Zebra patterns: A tool used in video cameras to indicate areas of the image that are overexposed or approaching overexposure