Page 126 - Convergent Journalism an Introduction Writing and Producing Across Media

DIGITAL VIDEO PHOTOGRAPHY

photographers the liberty of many different focal lengths without
having to carry a case full of lenses.
Every camera needs to have some type of imaging device. Most
cameras these days use a CCD. The CCD owes its heritage to film and
the vacuum imaging tube. The camera’s electronics convert the light to
digital information. The ones and zeros can then be recorded on tape,
disc, or some other memory storage device.
Beyond the basic parts, the camera has numerous controls that can
be used to optimize the image and adjusted to each user’s preferences.
No matter what camera you use, it’s vital you become familiar with its
operation. A good photographer can adjust the camera without looking
at the buttons and switches.

White and Black Balancing

You need to be able to adjust the exposure and focus in addition to
both white and black balancing the camera. A white balance is how
116 the camera adjusts for different types of light. If you tell the camera
what white is, all of the other colors will fall correctly into place. First
you need to select the correct filter for the type of light at the scene.
Often, position 1 on the filter wheel is no filter and is used for indoor
or tungsten light at 3,200 degrees kelvin. Position 3 is usually selected
for outdoors under daylight at about 5,600 degrees kelvin. You want
to make sure that you manually white balance (and not rely on the
automatic white-balance feature many cameras have) before you begin
to shoot. If you fail to get a correct white balance, your images may
appear to be blue or reddish. Either way, it’s not the natural look you
want for news coverage.
To set the white balance on most cameras, you aim the camera at
a white object in the same location and lighting as your subject, and
press a switch momentarily. In the field, reporters typically would use
a piece of white printer paper or a page from a notebook. The camera
will automatically adjust and often tell you the exact color temperature
of the light reflecting off the white. Many cameras also have a factory
preset white balance that is useful for most situations such as natural
daylight or artificial light.
A black balance is similar, except that it should be performed before
you white balance. The black balance establishes a correct output level
for the camera. You don’t need to find a black object because the