What Is... Aperture?

When you look at the technical specifications of a digital camera, one of the very first specification mentioned is its maximum aperture and/or its aperture range. What is 'aperture,' what is a good aperture range, and how is aperture relevant when it comes to choosing a digital camera? What Is Aperture? The main function of a camera lens is to collect light. The aperture of a lens is the diameter of the lens opening and is usually controlled y an iris.The larger the diameter of the aperture, the more light reaches the film / image sensor. Aperture is e!pressed as F-stop, e.g. "#.$ or f/#.$. The smaller the "%stop num er &or f/value', the larger the lens opening &aperture'. ()ote* +any camera user manuals today will refer to the aperture in terms of ,aperture value, instead of f/value. I'm not sure when this trend started ut don't get confused etween ,aperture, and ,aperture value., Aperture value, is simply another way of saying f/value.In practice, unless you are dealing with a fi!ed%aperture lens &many simple point%and%shoot cameras have only one fi!ed aperture', the aperture of a lens is usually e!pressed as a range of fstops. When you read the specifications of a camera, the aperture may e e!pressed in a num er of different ways, the following three eing the most common*

+a!imum Aperture*

+a!. Aperture

"#.$

This simply states that the ma!imum aperture for the lens is "#.$.

Aperture .ange*

Aperture .ange

"#.$%"$./

This states the ma!. and min. aperture, the assumption eing that there are standard increments etween them.

+a!imum Wide%Angle and Telephoto Apertures*

Aperture

"#.$%0.1 or "#.$&W'%"0.1&T'

This gives the ma!. aperture for the wide%angle &"#.$' and telephoto &"0.1' focal lengths of a 2oom lens.

It is usually not too difficult to figure out that a stated range deals with ma!imum apertures and not ma! and min apertures* the mimimum aperture should e 3uite small at "$, "44, "45 or "##. A ,fast, lens is one that has a large ma!imum aperture &"#.6, "#./ for current digital cameras7 "4.6, "4.# for 01mm film cameras'. 8uick 8ui2* which lens has a larger opening &aperture'* one with an aperture of "4.$ or one with an aperture of "#.$?
Answer* "4.$ &remem er, the smaller the "%stop, the larger the aperture'

A Good Aperture Range +y personal preference for a 'good' aperture range is* "4.$ % "45

"4.$

"#.$

"6

"1.5

"$

"44

"45

This tells us that the camera has an aperture range of "4.$ to "457 the maximum aperture is "4.$, and the minimum aperture is "45. There are 1 f%stops etween the ma! and min aperture. If your camera's lens is currently set at an aperture of "1.5, closing it y 4 f%stop would mean selecting "$7 opening it up y 4 f%stop would mean selecting "6.

"4.$

"#.$

"6

"1.5

"$

"44

"45

How Is A Large Maximum Aperture Relevant? A large maximum aperture is prefera le to a smaller one since it gives the photographer more latitude in the kind of pictures that can e taken. "or e!ample, it is pretty o vious that the larger the aperture, the etter your digital camera will perform in low-light situations, since a larger lens opening is a le to admit more light than a smaller lens opening. A larger ma!. aperture also allows you to use a faster shutter speed to free2e action. 9o, let's say the light meter in your digital camera calculates that for proper e!posure in that indoor arena, you need an aperture of "6 and a shutter speed of 4/5/ sec.

"6 4/5/

To use a faster shutter speed &say, 4/#1/ sec.' to free2e action, you have to open up the aperture to allow more light in for that shorter amount of time.

"or every shutter speed increment we go up, we need to open up a f%stop of aperture. "rom 4/5/ sec. to 4/#1/ sec. there are # increments, so we open up the aperture y # f%stops, going from "6 to "4.$. )ote that the camera would give proper e!posure at 4/5/ sec. at "6, 4/4#1 sec. at "#.$, and 4/#1/ sec. at "4.$, since all three aperture/shutter speed com inations allow the same amount of light into the camera. (9ome digital cameras provide a ':rogram 9hift' function to allow that very shifting of aperture/shutter speed com inations in tandem.-

"4.$ 4/#1/

"#.$ 4/4#1

"6 4/5/

"1.5 4/0/

"$ 4/41

"44 4/$

"45 4/6

;f course, in a digital camera set on Auto mode, you can select 9ports scene mode, and the camera will automotically select a fast shutter speed and the appropriate aperture. <ikewise, in 9hutter%:riority mode, you can choose which shutter speed you want &fast or slow', and the camera will select the appropriate aperture for proper e!posure. In our e!ample a ove, let's say the lens on your digital camera only opens up to a ma!. aperture of "#.$. If you now select 4/#1/ sec. &in 9hutter%:riority mode', the camera will not e a le to select an aperture larger than "#.$ &in our e!ample, it really needs "4.$'. It would then give you an ,undere!posure, warning. If you go ahead and take the picture anyway, your picture would e 4 f%stop undere!posed &i.e. you really needed to open up the aperture y 4 more f%stop for correct e!posure'. 9imilarly, if you select a shutter speed of 4/6 sec. and the lens only closes down to a min. aperture of "$ &in our e!ample, it really needs "45', the camera would give you an ,overe!posure, warning. If you go ahead and take a picture anyway, your picture would e # f%stops overe!posed &i.e. you really needed to close down the aperture y # more f%stops for correct e!posure'. (=ditor's note* There is a third varia le in the a ove e!ample which we have purposefully not introduced. This is the sensitivity of the image sensor %% the I9;. We'll cover this in a later tutorial.How Is A mall Minimum Aperture Relevant?

A small minimum aperture is prefera le to a larger one since it also gives the photographer more latitude in the kind of pictures that can e taken. 9uppose we want to take a picture of flowing water. As mentioned a ove, to depict flowing water, we usually want to use a slow shutter speed so that the water lurs. It is this lurring that makes the picture so effective in depicting water motion. 9o, let's say the light meter in your digital camera calculates that for proper e!posure on a right sunny day, you need an aperture of "$ and a shutter speed of 4/4#1 sec.

"$ 4/4#1

Well, if you decide to use a slower shutter speed &say, 4/0/ sec.', this means that you have to compensate y closing down the aperture to allow less light in.

It makes sense really. 9ince you have increased the time the shutter remains open to allow light in, you must compensate y allowing less light in to e!pose the image sensor in that longer amount of time, if you still want a properly e!posed picture. >ut, what if the lens on your digital camera closes to a minimum of "$? ?ou're stuck at the shutter speed of 4/4#1 sec. If you use 4/0/ sec. at "$, your picture will e overexposed, i.e. urnt out. At 4/4#1 sec. and "$, your picture will e properly e!posed ut the fast shutter speed will free2e the water motion and you won't o tain the lurring effect you desire. If the lens in your digital camera closed down to "45, presto, your pro lem is solved@ 4/4#1 sec. at "$ is e3uivalent to 4/0/ sec. at "45, which means that you would have a perfectly e!posed purposefully% lurred%for%effect flowing water shot. (If your lens does not close down to "45, you could use a )eutral Aensity &)A' filter to reduce the amount of light coming into the lens, and thus allowing you to use a slower shutter speed.-

"4.$ 4/#,///

"#.$ 4/4,///

"6 4/1//

"1.5 4/#1/

"$ 4/4#1

"44 4/5/

"45 4/0/

(=ditor's note* There is a third varia le in the a ove e!ample which we have purposefully not introduced. This is the sensitivity of the image sensor %% the I9;. We'll cover this in a later tutorial.Aperture and !epth of Field "!#F$ We mentioned this a ove ut feel it is important enough to repeat in its own paragraph. The Aepth of "ield is the distance wherein o Bects are in focus. There are times when you desire a great depth of field, i.e. where o Bects oth close to you and far from you are in focus. This is especially true when you are taking a landscape picture and want as much as possi le to e in crisp focus. Then there are times when you want to isolate your su Bect, as when you are taking a portrait and want your su Bect to e in sharp focus ut the ackground to e out of focus. In this case, you desire a shallow depth of field. ;ne way to influence A;" is y selecting the appropriate aperture. The rule of thum is this*

9elect a large aperture &or small f/value or small aperture value', e.g. f/#.$, to o tain a shallow A;" 9elect a small aperture &or large f/value or large aperture value', e.g. f/$./, to achieve great A;"

Cere are some real images that demonstrate the use of aperture to influence A;"*
Aperture and !epth of Field "!#F$ A" area is on yellow pistils of flower in front 9hallow A;" Dreat A;"

)ote how the use of a large aperture &small aperture value' throws the flowers in the ackground out of focus. "ocus has to e precise. 6F.$ mm, Av, 9pot, 4/0/ sec., f%&'(, G/.H=I, +acro, Tripod used

Esing a small aperture &large aperture value' e!tends the A;" from the foreground all the way to the ackground. 6F.5mm, Av, 9pot, 4/1 sec., f%)), G/.H=I, +acro, Tripod used

)ote* 9ince we are on the su Bect of A;", A;" also changes with focal length. Ese a small focal length to increase A;", a longer focal length o tain a shallower A;". I.=. if you 2oom, the A;" decreases. (;J, to e technically correct, focal length does not really affect A;", ut gives the effect that it does. And, that's good enough for us since that's what we're after. We'll cover A;" in a later tutorial.Aue to the small image sensors used, digital cameras use such small focal lengths that it is very difficult to o tain shallow depth of field even when using a large aperture. In the e!ample a ove, we used a large aperture A)A a long focal length &telephoto macro' to achieve a shallow A;". Re*ap A large maximum aperture is a good thing. It allows more light to reach the image sensor, and so allows you to use a faster shutter speed. A faster shutter speed free2es action and negates the effect of camera shake, resulting in pictures that are not lurred. Another advantage of a large ma!imum aperture is to provide a shallow depth of field. This allows the ackground to lur nicely thus isolating your su Bect &especially effective when taking portraits'.

A small minimum aperture is also a good thing. It allows you to use a slow shutter speed on a right sunny day. A slow shutter speed allows you to depict motion. Another advantage of a small minimum aperture is to increase the depth%of%field. An increased depth%of%field allows you to take landscape pictures where as much of the picture in the foreground and reaching all the way to the ackground &usually, 'infinity'' is in sharp focus.