Photography - Digital camera controls

Digital Camera Controls

• Mode dial: On most cameras this is a round dial on top of the camera. This is the shooting mode dial. On Canon cameras, the dial is on the left side when you hold the viewfinder to your eye and take pictures. On Nikon cameras, it’s on the right side. You use the dial to choose the desired shooting mode.
• Shutter button: You press this button to prefocus the camera and take a picture.
• ISO setting: You use this feature to change the ISO setting of the camera. The ISO determines how sensitive the sensor is to light. You use higher ISO settings to take pictures in low light conditions. A dial or a menu command is used to change the ISO setting.
• Aperture setting: The aperture determines how much light enters the camera. When you choose Aperture Priority as the shooting mode, you use a dial to change the aperture, and the camera automatically selects the shutter speed to properly expose the image.
• Shutter speed setting: The shutter speed setting comes into play when you shoot in Shutter Priority mode. After choosing Shutter Priority for the shooting mode, you use a dial to change the shutter speed, and the camera automatically selects the correct f/stop to properly expose the image.
• Exposure compensation setting: This is used to increase or decrease the exposure. You increase or decrease the exposure when the camera gets it wrong.
• Flash control: If your camera has a built-in flash unit, you push this button to pop the flash unit up and enable it. You can use flash to light the scene or add additional light known as fill flash.
• LCD panel: This panel shows you all the current settings. When you change a setting such as the shutter speed or ISO setting, the panel updates to show you the new settings. If your camera doesn’t have an LCD panel, these settings are visible in most camera viewfinders.