Peterson begins his book by explaining the basics of the camera, for example the f-stop, which determines how much light reaches the film.
Peterson says “lighting, which more than any element, establishes the tone of every composition.” He recommends that photographers explore the changing light. He suggests that while on vacation discover how “frontlighting provides even illumination, sidelighting creates a three-dimensional effect, and strong backlighting produces striking silhouettes.”
Overcast Sky Best Time for Color Photographs
Surprisingly according to Peterson an overcast sky and frontlighting is the safest time to take pictures. The reason is because the subject is evenly illuminated. Peterson states that most people stay away from taking pictures during an overcast sky and believes that is most unfortunate due to the fact it is an ideal time to photograph the most popular subjects: People, Flowers, and Forests. However, it is not ideal for black & white photography or for black & white subjects.
The overcast sky results in more natural-looking portraits, richer flower colors, and no longer a problem with the contrast in sunny wooded areas.
Importance of the Aperture
In chapter two Peterson explains the aperture in detail. He says the aperture is important if the photographer wants a successful picture. Peterson states how the aperture works and that it determines how much light the film receives. Each time the aperture or f-stop is changed the amount of light going into the lens changes. Peterson asked, “Why would you possibly want to be able to change the size of the lens opening?” For more light, right, well, that’s not all. The aperture also helps in the depth of the field.
Photo Sharpness Depends on Depth of Field
Peterson defines it as “the zone or area of sharpness within a picture. Once you choose to focus on a particular subject, you’ll notice that some sharpness exists in front of and behind the subject.” Explaining further, Peterson points out how the amateur photographer might have trouble getting the whole picture in focus. For example, “when you focus on the foreground flowers, the mountains go out of focus; then when you focus on the mountains, the flowers go out of focus.”
Controlling Motion with the Shutter Speed
The third chapter is entitled Shutter Speed and described as what controls motion in the picture. There are two types of shutters, the focal-plane shutter or a copal-square shutter. Peterson says most cameras have the focal-plane shutter, however the copal-square shutters are supposed to have a higher sync speed. What this means is it’s the highest shutter speed allowed when an electronic flash is used. When shooting a lot of motion with or without flash the Copal-square shutter is used.
Peterson also gives detail on how to professionally blur a picture. Peterson slowed his shutter speed down to get the blurring effect. His pictures in the book that show his blurring effect are flowers during a rain. Peterson used a small lens and shutter speeds as slow as 1/30 of a second. The pictures are beautiful. The colors are vibrant and raindrops appear on the camera lens. According to Peterson, the blurring effect is quite popular in calendar and greeting card sales.
Telling Stories with Photographs
The last chapter of the book is about technique and how to take a photo story. The term is bracketing and how to use it depends on how creative the photographer wants to be. An extensive depth of field will assist in the story telling imagery. Using a limited depth of field will support the singular-theme shot.
Although the book mentions areas that are not used in the digital world, much of the information is helpful for the photographer who wants to take pictures the traditional way. Peterson displayed photos in order for the reader to understand better the exposure process.
Peterson, Bryan. Understanding Exposure. New York, Watson-Guptill Publications, 1990.
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