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(Click to see more) Before reading this post, I recommend you to read our post on the parts of a camera for better understanding. But I will try my best to keep it simple. All pictures are essentially made up of light. The Shutter is an internal part of the camera that opens and closes to allow light to enter the camera and get captured by the sensor. The following gif shows how, when clicked, the shutter opens and closes. The green reflective plane that is exposed when the shutter is opened is the sensor which forms the image. The three main parts in question are the mirror, shutter and the sensor. They are arranged as shown. Before a click, the mirror is used to reflect the light to the viewfinder. None of the outside light is able to pass through the mirror and shutter to reach the sensor. When the button is clicked, first the viewfinder moves up followed by the shutter. This is the reason why the viewfinder goes blank while taking a shot. After the mirror and shutter have moved away from the path of the sensor, light reaches the sensor and the sensor forms an image of the light. After the image is formed the shutter closes followed by the mirror. This is the crux of the process of capturing an image. Now, shutter speed, simply defined, is the amount of time for which the shutter is open( or the amount of time light falls on the senor). It is measured in seconds. However, the amount of time in question is generally very small. Usually, a fraction of a second. The shutter opens and closes in less than a second(most of the time). A faster shutter speed means less amount of time; a slower shutter speed means more amount of time. In most DSLR cameras the shutter speed can be adjusted between 30 seconds and 1/4000th of a second. You are likely to have a slider that can control the shutter speed. For simplicity and for lack of space, shutter speeds that are less than one second are denoted as just the denominator. For example 1/100th of a second shutter speed is shown as 100, and 1/4000th of a second is shown as 4000. Shutter speed that are a second or more are denoted with a quotation mark. For example, 2 second long shutter speed is denoted as 2", and 10 second long shutter speed is shown as 10". Light Shutter speed can be used to adjust the amount of light in a picture(brightness). This is because more light enters the camera if the shutter is open for longer and vice versa. In other words the lower the shutter speed, higher the brightness; higher the shutter speed, lower the brightness. When shooting pictures in low light decrease the shutter speed for brighter pictures. Motion Another important aspect of shutter speed is motion. One second is a very long time in photography. Since the image is continuously forming on the sensor, any movements of objects will result in a blurry picture. In both the pictures the skateboard was in motion. However the two pictures look entirely different because of a difference in shutter speed. For the first picture the camera was set at a shutter speed of 1/30th of a second. That means the image was forming for 1/30th of a second. During that time, the skateboard moved a long enough distance for it to look blurry. For the second picture the camera was set at a shutter speed of a faster 1/100th of a second. In that time the skateboard did not cover a significant amount of distance and therefore, was sharp in the image.(Also, notice the difference in brightness of the two images). You may have seen pictures where light is elongated such as car light trails. These are taken by setting a slow shutter speed. This picture was taken at a shutter speed of 3/10th of a second. Tripod Using a tripod is the most important thing if you want sharp images. It becomes even more indispensable when shooting at lower shutter speeds. We know that when objects move we get a blurry image; the same is true when the camera moves. Always use a tripod when shooting at shutter speeds slower than 30. What if I don`t have a tripod? If you don`t have a tripod then a simple hack is to place the camera on a stable surface and click slowly.

(Click to see more) These are NOT rules Before going through the "rules" of composition it is important to note that you do NOT have to follow all of these rules. You are welcome to break these rules to compose the picture however you think is right. But that said, the following are a number of guidelines that generally help make your pictures look better. Rule of Thirds Rule of thirds is essentially the idea that the main subject of a picture should not be centered. Although this may sound counter-intuitive, pictures in which the main subject is off center tend to look better. Start by imagining the picture as a 3x3 grid as shown below. Rather than placing the subject in the center box, try placing it at one of the four blue points, which I like to call "hotspots". Placing the main subject at a hotspot reduces the dominance of the subject while giving more prominence to the background. Generally, people prefer the second picture over the first. 1/250 sec. f/14 40mm Similarly, when shooting landscape photography, try to place the horizon at one of the two horizontal lines. This is essentially dividing the picture into 3 strips and assigning 2 strips to the object that you want to highlight. In this case the water is given more importance than the sky for the reflection of the water. Moreover, the reflection is also along a vertical line following the rule of thirds. Leading lines Lines are a fantastic way to redirect the attention of the viewer. When used to the right effect lines can make a regular picture more artistic. Because we have a tendency to see across a line it is possible to make the viewer "travel" across the depth of the picture. 1/125 sec. f/5.6 105mm In this picture the viewers` attention will always be lead toward the line at the center of the leaf no matter where they start. 1/250 sec. f/5.6 105mm In some cases, such as the road, lines can be used to create depth in the picture. The viewers feel as if they are travelling further into the picture with their eyes. 1/30 sec. f/14 70mm Filling the frame Sometimes it is better to fill the entire shot rather than leave space for other distractions. Filling the frame also gives the viewer a clearer view of the subject. Moreover, if you are filling the frame with the subject it is likely that the entire picture will be of a similar color; this again helps to avoid high contrast to reduce distractions and be soothing to the eye. 1/13 sec. f/32 58mm When there are a large number of similar objects, filling the frame is a good option. Filling the frame can be used to make the subject look larger while emphasizing its color and texture However, if you feel the picture seems boring with only one type of object, try and mix it by adding a different object to the picture. The viewer`s attention will now be directed mostly towards the different object because it becomes the subject of the picture. The flower in the following picture becomes the subject of the picture. 1/250 sec. f/5.6 105mm Symmetry and pattern Humans love pattern and symmetry. There`s just something satisfying in watching a perfectly symmetrical picture. To put it another way, it is somewhat annoying to see a picture that is unsymmetrical. 1/100 sec. f/6.3 62mm Symmetry is most often used in architecture photography. Viewpoint It is very important to put thought into where the picture is shot from. It is easy to fall into the trap of taking pictures from the same viewpoint(eye level). Try to take pictures at different or, sometimes, even unusual angles to give the viewer a fresh perspective. 1/100 sec. f/5.6 18mm When taking pictures of your dog or cat, why not take the picture at their height? 1/40 sec. f/5.6 18mm Framing the picture Look for ways to add a frame to the picture using objects around the subject. This way there is more emphasis on the subject. Adding a frame is a way to ensure that upon first glance, the viewer`s attention is directed at the subject. However, the viewer also gets additional context as to where the picture is being taken from. Framing the picture can be used to break free from the sharp corners and rectangular frame of a regular picture, while also adding a stylistic element to it. 1/250 sec. f/14 25mm Depth of field Depth of field can be used to create the Bokeh effect. This reduces background distractions and gives emphasis to the subject. 1/200 sec. f/7.1 105mm By isolating the subject the picture is able to direct the viewers' full attention towards the subject. Note: although it is called depth of field, it is implied that it means shallow depth of field 1/125 sec. f/5.6 105mm Background Although it may seem convenient and tempting to blur the background using a shallow depth of field, pictures are sometimes more informative and relevant with a background. Particularly in journalism photography, the background can tell a lot more about the subject than the subject itself. 1/25 sec. f/5 32mm