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I ran out of class tonight along side a couple male classmates to find snacks and use the phone.  Time was about up, so I wandered back upstairs and into the bathroom before going back to class.

I admired the trendy facility, which I had never been in until tonight.  As I exited the stall, to my horror was the fifty-year-old male classmate that I had just walked outside with.   He was facing the wall and didn’t realize I was there, which was a good thing because I was frozen in my spot, all the while trying to process why he was in the women’s room.

In the seconds that followed, every conceivable thought raced through my head. “Is, he in the women’s room, am I in the men’s room…is this a communal bathroom I should know about?” It suddenly hit me, I must be in the men’s room, (although there were no urinals in sight,) and I had no where to run. 

To avoid trying to hide, then getting caught, if saw me trying to duck back into the stall, I blurted out from behind him, “Oh my gosh, I am in the men’s room!” 

He turned around completely startled and started to laugh hysterically at the hilarity of the situation, which was by the way a good thing considering, I was laughing out of control by this point.

I calmly walked over to the sink and proceeded to wash my hands, (and spotted the urinals in an out of the way location.)  Just then a twenty-something came through the door.  I laughed and looked at him, “Sorry, wrong bathroom.  You don’t mind if I finish washing my hands do you?”

He politely smiled and stood there dumbfounded by the door until I was finished.  I walked out with my head up, laughing at myself all the way back to class.  My poor classmate was laughing so hard, I didn’t think he would recover.

Although this was all very funny, it seems like these kinds of things are becoming much more common place.  I’m a bit afraid to find out what I’ll do next.  And no suggestions please. 

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This pose cost me a Tootsie Roll and a Tootsie Pop….oh yeah, and the dental bill.  If she doesn’t start cooperating, she might be in dentures soon.

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After working all day we were feeling a little deserving of an iced coffee, so we took a ride to Dunkin Donuts.  I found this nifty car parked out front.  The owner told me to take it for a spin, but I told him I needed power steering.  And well apparently, this baby has it all.  He must really like his car to do all those updates.

Exposure is the amount of light that hits your camera’s sensor.  In order to get a proper exposure, there are four key ingredients: Aperture, shutter speed, ISO and light.

Today we are going to focus on aperture. 

Aperture, also known as f-stop, is your lens opening.  Its size controls the amount of light entering your camera.  Aperture works in conjunction with your shutter speed, which controls the length of time the shutter is open, allowing the light to hit your camera’s sensor for a longer or shorter amount of time…..

aperture = amount of light.

shutter speed = length of time light enters camera.

50mm - f/2.8 – 1/2000

The larger the opening of your lens, (smaller the f#,) the less time the shutter needs to be open to obtain a proper exposure.  Did you get that? In other words, to obtain a proper exposure you need to have your aperture and shutter speed in harmony so angels will sing. If you are confused, don’t worry, it takes time and practice.

But wait, here comes the hard part.  Hey sorry, I’m just the messenger. 

The larger the f-stop/aperture number, (F22) the smaller the lens opening.  The smaller the number (F2.8) the larger the opening.  Did you get that? Don’t pull your hair out…its OK.  Here is a little diagram to help you visual learners.

It actually seems very backwards, until you understand it and fortunately, for you I found these plumbing analogies to help you along.

Now, for each f-stop, the amount of light is doubled; however, modern cameras often support third, or some even half stops.  Below is a full stop scale and below it, third stop scale, (with full stops in bold,) that you may see when using your camera.  I am not sure how many f-stops are available if you have a point and shoot; however,  I do know there are fewer than on a DSLR.

Standard full stops scale:

2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22

Third stop scale:

1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.4, 1.6, 1.8, 2, 2.2, 2.5, 2.8, 3.3, 3.5, 4, 4.5, 5.0, 5.6, 6.3, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22

Depth of field:

And I bet you thought I was done.…..aperture also controls what is known as depth of field.  This means, the wider your lens opening, the softer your background will be and less of your photo will be in focus.  The smaller your lens opening, more of your photo will be in focus.  Did you get all that?  Here is an example.  Do you see how the background is very blurry and soft?  This was taken with a large aperture, (small f#.)

105mm – f/3 – 1/400

Assignment:

If you haven’t already, turn your camera to Aperture priority mode and start to play around with your aperture settings.  When you are in Aperture priority mode, the cameras shutter speed will be set for you, so it is one less thing you have to worry about.

Take an object, set it on a chair or table in a nicely lit location.  Use a table or tripod, to avoid camera shake.  You will need this when you shoot in smaller apertures, (larger f#’s,) because the shutter speed will be slower, which can result in blurry photos, if you do not use a tripod or a stable spot to prevent camera shake.

Now try different aperture settings from smallest f-stop to largest, upload your results to your blog and come back to link up with Mr. Linky.

Click this photo for a larger view.

This is the quickest and easiest way to understand all the technical things I just rattled off.  It took me a couple of weeks to really wrap my mind around aperture, so don’t be frustrated.  As you practice and view your photos, you will begin to understand the way things work.  There are no shortcuts.  Practice, practice!  

Photographic Inspiration:

Interestingness  – This is one of my FAVORITE sites for inspiration!

Previous Assignments:

Assignment 1 – Getting to Know Your Camera

Assignment 2 – Understanding White Balance

Assignment 3 – Better Composition

Digital frame by K. Pertiet

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Sarah thinks I’m a geek and not cool enough to be carrying this new bag.  But I think she’s wrong.  I’ll have to prove it I guess.