Combining the fundamentals when shooting. With 51 issues of The Art of Photography column so far, there are bound to be some EOS users and other photo enthusiasts alike who may find the whole section to contain too many techniques for them to absorb or remember at one time. Worse, the situation becomes much more pronounced when they are actually shooting something similar to what has been described in this column. Well, the trick is not to try hard to remember which technique is best used for what types of shooting. You only need to know the basic three questions that professionals always ask themselves prior to shooting, as well as knowing all the fundamentals in photography. These are what you really need, actually. Yes, there are articles in this column dealing on how to make better use of your respective EOS models to choosing between the Evaluative, Partial, Spot or Multi-spot metering as well as the numerous exposure modes available in these cameras, and techniques like repetition and how to emphasise the subject's size (in last issue) down to choosing the right lens or film for the job. For the more knowledgeable ones, a closer look at most of the photos that have been used to illustrate the techniques described in all the said articles have one thing in common: how well were the fundamentals of photography utilized to execute the shots. The fundamentals of photography are: Exposure, lenses and focal lengths, shutter speeds, aperture and Depth-of-Field, Perspective, Films and Lighting. Of somewhat less importance are composition and framing. Knowing your exposure is essential in getting the photos perfectly exposed. You also need to know exactly what lenses and their focal lengths are capable of, including both aperture and Depth-of-Field, and the reasons for their functions. The same goes for getting to know what shutter speeds (fast or slow) can do to your pictures. Perspective, whether exaggerated (wide-angles) or compressed (telephotos), is also important for your photography. Films could be the most important aspect to date as they are the ingredients that record the image you have envisioned or visualized prior to clicking the shutter. Of course, with digital photography getting popular nowadays, films are not the only option for recording or storing your precious images. But that's another topic for a future article. Ah, lighting, too, is another important fundamental of photography, as without light, the film cannot be exposed (and neither can we view our own surroundings) and you will have no images to talk about in the first place. << Back to Main . 1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .