Photography Lesson

The other day a friend asked if I could give her a few photo taking and camera tips.  I am far from an expert, but I have learned a few things that qualified me for the task.

I started with aperture priority (A on a my Nikon and AV on her Cannon).   My quest for acquiring more photographic knowledge began with trying to figure out how to blur the background.  I now know that the blurry background is called bokeh.  The aperture is controlled by f-stops.  I am not going to explain this now, other than to say this:

The smaller the f number (e.g. f 2.8) = less of the photo in focus (i.e. creates the blurry background/great for portraits):

The larger the f number (e.g. f 16) = more of the photo that is in focus (great for landscapes). 

By switching to aperture priority mode, you control what is called, 'depth of field'.  This is the information that I gave to my friend.   We had a great time and I was able to capture a few shots for myself!