Aperture in Photography

A Post By: Darren Rowse

What is aperture in photography? How does it work? And how can you use it to capture photos like the pros?

Aperture is an essential camera setting; in my opinion, it’s where the magic happens in photography. So in this article, I’m going to take you through all the ins and outs of aperture, including:

• What aperture actually is (in simple, easy-to-understand terms)
• How you can use aperture to capture artistic images
• How to choose the perfect aperture for landscape photography, portrait photography, and more
• Plenty of other tips and tricks!

If you can master aperture, then you’ll gain a huge amount of creative control over your photography.

Ready to take your photos to the next level?

Let’s dive right in, starting with the most important question of all:

What is aperture?

Aperture is the opening in the camera lens. A larger hole allows more light to hit the sensor, lightening your photos. A smaller hole allows less light to hit the sensor, darkening your photos.

And by adjusting the aperture setting on your camera, you can adjust the size of the aperture (and, in turn, affect a photo’s brightness).

The aperture is that (bladed) hole inside your lens!

Aperture and f-stops

Aperture is measured in terms of f-stops, also known as f-numbers. Like this: f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/22, etc.

As shown in the diagram below, the smaller the f-number, the larger the aperture hole:

As the f-number increases, the aperture size decreases.

Now, each full stop corresponds to a halving of aperture size. So when you go from f/2.8 to f/4, you cut the aperture in half. And when you go from f/4 to f/5.6, you cut the aperture in half again.

(Of course, to double the aperture size, you just go in the reverse direction: from f/5.6 to f/4, and from f/4 to f/2.8.)

So f/2.8 is a much larger aperture than f/22. And f/11 is a much smaller aperture than f/4.

Does that make sense? It can be confusing at first, especially because large aperture sizes correspond to smaller f-stop numbers and vice versa. But stick with it, and it’ll become second nature.

How does aperture affect your photos?

At this point in the article, you should know what aperture is: a hole in the lens that increases and decreases depending on your camera settings (i.e., your f-stop value).

But what does aperture actually do? How does it affect your photos?

In the next two sections, I’ll discuss the primary effects of aperture:

1. Exposure
2. Depth of field

Aperture and exposure

As you may already know, exposure refers to the brightness of a photo.

In general, the goal is to end up with a photo that’s not too dark and not too bright; instead, you want a shot that’s just right, one with lots of detail.

So where does aperture come into play?

Aperture is one of the three key variables that affect your exposure. (The other two variables are shutter speed and ISO.)

Remember what I said above? By widening the aperture, you let in more light, which brightens your image. And by narrowing the aperture, you let in less light, which darkens your image.

So if you’re photographing a beautiful sunset and your photos keep turning out too bright, you can always narrow the aperture to darken down the image. (In fact, using a narrow aperture is often a good idea when shooting sunsets!)

A sunset scene like this will often benefit from a narrow aperture.

And if you’re photographing a forest and your photos keep turning out dark and shadowy, you can always widen the aperture to brighten up the image. (As you might expect, this is a standard low-light photography practice.)

If you’re photographing a subject in the shade, a wider aperture will brighten things up.

Of course, aperture isn’t the only variable that affects exposure. If you want to brighten a photo, you can also lower the shutter speed or boost the ISO. And if you want to darken a photo, you can raise the shutter speed or drop the ISO.

In terms of exposure, widening your aperture by a full stop has the exact same effect as lowering your shutter speed by a full stop or boosting your ISO by a full stop. A key consequence of this: different exposure variables can cancel each other out. Increase your ISO by a stop while decreasing your aperture by a stop, and you’ll end up with an identical exposure.

The point here is that, while aperture does determine exposure, you can’t think about it in isolation. Aperture, shutter speed, and ISO work together to give you a well-exposed (or poorly exposed) image.

Aperture and depth of field

Aperture also affects the depth of field in your photos.

What exactly does that mean? Well, depth of field (DOF) is the amount of your shot that is in focus. So a photo with a large depth of field will have most of the image in focus, like this:

Do you see how sharpness stretches from the foreground to the background? That’s thanks to the large depth of field.

A photo with a small depth of field, on the other hand, will have only a sliver in focus, like this:

As you can see, the effect is pretty artistic; you get a sharp subject but a blurry background. Neat, right? Because a blurry background helps the subject to stand out, this is an effect you’ll often see in portrait photography.

As for aperture, the wider the aperture (and the smaller the f-number!), the shallower the depth of field.

So an image with an f/2.8 aperture will have very little in focus:

And an image with an f/16 aperture will have all of the scene in focus:

Got it? If you’re still struggling to understand – and if you are, don’t be embarrassed! – let me illustrate using two pictures I took in my garden:

The first picture was taken with an aperture of f/22, while the second picture was shot at f/2.8. The difference is obvious, right? The f/22 picture has both the flower and the bud in focus and you’re able to make out the fence and leaves in the background. Whereas the f/2.8 shot has the left flower in focus, but the right flower is less in focus and the background is completely blurry.

That’s all thanks to aperture, which controls the depth of field.

4 simple aperture examples

Here are a handful of additional aperture examples to help you wrap your head around its effects – in particular, how aperture affects the depth of field.

First, take a look at this landscape shot. It was captured with a narrow aperture, which resulted in a deep depth of field and sharpness throughout:

Now take a look at this street photo, which was taken with a wide aperture; it has a shallow depth of field:

And here’s a third example, which has a midrange depth of field. The entire photo isn’t sharp, but the main subject plus some of the surrounding area look crisp:

Finally, here’s one more example with an ultra-wide aperture for an ultra-shallow depth of field:

What’s important to know is that the aperture offers you creative control as a photographer. Want to create a blurry background? Pick a wide aperture. Want to keep your shot sharp throughout? Pick a narrow aperture.

Of course, you also have to remember the effect of aperture on exposure, which is what makes things a bit more complex (but a lot more fun!).

Adjusting the aperture on your camera

Now that you’ve made it this far, you might be wondering:

How can you actually change the aperture on your camera? What do you have to do?

Fortunately, adjusting the aperture is easy. You just set your camera’s shooting mode to Manual or Aperture Priority. Then rotate the relevant camera dial to change the f-number. (The specific dial will depend on your camera model; if you’re struggling, consult your manual.)

Which aperture is best?

When photographers first learn about aperture, this is a question that crops up constantly.

But as you’ve hopefully gleaned from the sections above, there is no single best aperture that you can use all the time. Sometimes you’ll want a deep depth of field or you’ll want to darken down a too-bright shot, in which case you’ll need to use a narrow aperture. Other times you’ll want a shallow depth of field or you’ll want to brighten up a too-dark shot, in which case you’ll need to use a wide aperture.

That said…

There are apertures that get used consistently in certain genres. I’ll cover them briefly below, starting with:

The best landscape photography aperture

Landscape photographers gravitate toward small aperture settings, such as f/8, f/11, and even f/16.

Why?

When you’re shooting a sweeping photo of the land, sea, or sky, you often want to keep the whole shot sharp. That way, the viewer can appreciate every little detail of your majestic scene.

Landscape photos like this one generally require a narrow aperture.

Plus, a deep depth of field makes the shot feel more real, like the viewer could physically step into the scene.

The best portrait photography aperture

In portrait photography, it can be handy to have your subject perfectly in focus but the background nice and blurry. That way, your main subject stands out and the background doesn’t become a distraction.

Wide apertures work great for portraits!

In other words, use a large aperture to ensure a shallow depth of field.

It’s a trick used by family portrait photographers, headshot photographers, fashion photographers, and more.

The best macro photography aperture

Macro (i.e., close-up) photographers tend to disagree over aperture.

Some macro photographers use a very narrow aperture because depth of field gets shallower at high magnifications. And by using a narrow aperture, a macro photographer can ensure that their entire subject is in focus, even if the background is blurred.

This macro photo was shot at f/13; at such high magnifications, keeping an entire insect in focus is tough.

Whereas other macro photographers embrace a shallow depth of field. They use a very wide aperture for a soft-focus effect.

A soft-focus  effect looks great in macro  photography.

Which is the way to go? That depends on your preferences! Both approaches work well, and there are plenty of professionals using each technique, so don’t stress about it too much.

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Golden Hour Photography: A Complete Guide (+10 Tips)

A Post By: Anabel DFlux

What is the golden hour in photography? When is golden hour? And how can you use it to capture beautiful photos?

Golden hour is a special time for photographers. The sun is low in the sky, and the light looks soft, warm, and absolutely magical. By combining proper photographic technique with golden hour lighting, you’re practically guaranteed to capture stunning images – which is what this article is all about.

Below, I’m going to share everything you need to know about golden hour photography. I’ll answer all your burning questions, and I’ll explain how to improve your golden hour images with a few expert tips and techniques.

Let’s dive right in!

What is the golden hour in photography?

The golden hour refers to (roughly) the first hour after sunrise and the last hour before sunset. It’s a time that’s great for photography; hence, the golden hour is also referred to as the magic hour.

During the golden hour, the sun hits the world at a lower angle – and because the light must travel a greater distance to reach the earth, it looks softer, more flattering, and redder. (Compare this to sunny midday lighting, which beams down from directly overhead to produce hard, generally unflattering illumination.)

Here’s a typical golden hour photo:

Notice the beautiful yellow hues and unbelievably flattering light? That’s what golden hour offers for photographers.

When is the golden hour?

While the standard definition of the golden hour – see above! – emphasizes the hour or two before sunset and after sunrise, the golden hour actually fluctuates over the year, and its length depends on your geographical location.

If you live near the equator, the golden hour tends to last one or two hours, and the time won’t change too much as you go from winter to summer and back. But if you live closer to the North or South Pole, you’ll notice a massive change in the golden hour timing, and the golden hours often last far longer.

Really, if you’re serious about taking advantage of beautiful golden hour light, I’d just recommend paying careful attention to the sun for a few days. Ask yourself: When does it rise? When does it set? When does the light start to get warm and soft in the evening? And when does the light start to get hard in the morning? While you can calculate exact golden hour times using astronomical charts, it’s often best to simply observe the light; pretty soon, you’ll be very attuned to the sun’s changes, and you’ll know when you can (and can’t) expect magic-hour lighting.

Why is the golden hour so special?

I’ve already emphasized the low, soft, warm light produced by a magic-hour sun – but what makes it so great for photography?

Well, generally speaking, soft light is a photographer’s best friend. It doesn’t create harsh shadows and it tends to decrease the dynamic range of a scene, so the resulting images don’t feature dark shadows or bright highlights.

Plus, the warm color temperature produced by the golden hours can look beautiful and flattering, as shown in this next photo:

And a low sun hits the subject more directly, so there are fewer shadows produced under subjects’ eyes, noses, and chins.

That said, the golden hour isn’t great for all types of photography. While portrait photographers, wildlife photographers, and landscape photographers love magic-hour light, street photographers generally prefer to shoot around midday, when the hard light of the sun produces lots of crunchy contrast and shadows. And many macro photographers prefer to shoot when the sky is overcast; that way, they can capture saturated colors and lots of detail.

So don’t feel like you must work during the golden hour. Just know that it’s a great way to enhance many types of photos. Got it?

The golden hours vs the blue hour

If you’re just diving into photographic lighting, you may have come across the term “blue hour” in addition to “golden hour.” So what’s the difference?

While the golden hour is the hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset, the blue hour is the opposite: It’s the hour before sunrise and the hour after sunset.

In other words, the blue hour refers to the time when the sun is just below the horizon. During the blue hour, the sky turns beautiful cool colors – blues and purples – which look great in landscape and even portrait photos. Unfortunately, the lack of strong light during the blue hour can cause technical problems, but if you choose the right gear, set your ISO carefully, and/or use a tripod, your photos will be spectacular.

Five key lighting techniques for golden hour photography

The golden hour offers five powerful lighting techniques:

Front light

Front lighting is when your subject faces directly into the sun:

During the golden hours, front light offers a warm, flattering effect that’s perfect for photographing people, wildlife, and birds. (And because the sun isn’t too bright, portrait subjects won’t need to squint!)

Just point your shadow at your subject, let the sun fall over your shoulder, and have fun shooting.

Backlight

Backlight occurs when the sun is behind your subject. And during the golden hours, backlight creates a soft, warm, hazy, glowing effect, like this:

Golden hour backlight works great, but you need to be careful; it’s easy to accidentally underexpose your subject and end up with a partial silhouette. To avoid this problem, make sure to meter off your subject, not the background.

Rim light

Rim lighting is when the sun creates a halo around your subject:

(This halo will be especially prevalent when your subject is positioned against a dark background.)

While you can create rim lighting with backlight, the sun doesn’t need to sit directly behind your subject. The background just needs to be (relatively) dark, and the sun just needs to come from (roughly) a back angle. You’ll have to move around until you find a sweet spot, though getting down low is a good start.

Sun flare

When stray light hits your lens, you’ll often get a sun flare effect, like this:

And during the golden hour, the sun is at the optimal height for beautiful flare.

How does it work? Simply angle your camera and lens so that your subject is partially covering the sun. Then move around (sometimes you only need to move an inch or two left or right) until you can see flare coming out from around your subject:

(Another way to achieve a flare is to position your lens and camera so the sun is just outside of the frame.)

Silhouette

A silhouette is created when your subject is rendered black against a bright background:

It’s pretty easy to achieve a silhouette during the golden hours. Just get down low, and photograph your subject directly against the light. (Make sure to expose for the background, not the subject, and don’t be afraid to add extra contrast in post-processing!)

10 golden hour photography tips

There are several ways to take advantage of the golden hours and achieve consistently stunning images. Here are my best tips to help you out:

1. Observe the sky the day before your photoshoot

As I mentioned in a previous section, the best way to figure out when the golden hour will be at its peak is through simple observation!

So the day before your scheduled photoshoot, peek out of the window. See how the sun moves and how the light changes. The sun’s position and timing change very little from one day to the next, so you can assume that two back-to-back days will feature fairly similar lighting angles.

Then make sure you’re on location and are ready to shoot when the light looks its best.

2. Plan your shoot in advance

No one wants to feel stressed, anxious, or rushed when doing photography, so be sure to plan your golden hour photoshoot well in advance.

If you can, begin setting up for your shoot at least 60 minutes before the golden hour starts. That way, you have plenty of time to ensure that your subject is feeling relaxed and your equipment is ready for that perfect moment.

3. Watch out for clouds!

Depending on the level of cloud coverage in the sky, the golden hours can change or even fail to appear. Clouds can enhance the brilliant sunrise and sunset, or they can block the light entirely.

So before you head out, check the weather forecast. And when you’re shooting, be sure to frequently analyze the light. Make careful decisions that take into account the volume of the cloud cover! (Pro tip: If you’re shooting quickly and the sun keeps passing behind clouds, consider using a semi-automatic shooting mode such as Aperture Priority or Shutter Priority. It’ll help keep the exposure even as the light changes.)

4. Set your white balance to Cloudy or Shade

Your camera’s white balance is designed to correct for color casts – but did you know that you can actually use white balancing to create artistic effects? You see, by shifting your white balance, you can emphasize the warm colors of the golden hour.

Both the Cloudy and Shade white balance settings will add more warmth to your photos. Don’t be afraid to use them to enhance that stunning magic-hour look. (And if you forget to apply a warmth-enhancing white balance setting while shooting, you can always add the effect in post-processing!)

5. Shoot with a wide aperture

Golden hour light can create incredible background blur (i.e., bokeh). But you’ll need to use a wide aperture, such as f/1.8, f/2.8, or f/4 (which will require a relatively fast lens; here, prime lenses are your friend!).

A wide aperture, combined with the dazzling yellows, reds, and oranges of the golden hour, will produce a rather exceptional backdrop:

6. Don’t stop photographing

During the golden hour, the sun is setting…

…and as the sun sinks on the horizon, the light changes constantly.

Light at the start of the golden hour can look wildly different from light at the end – so once you bring out your camera, keep shooting and don’t stop! Pay careful attention to the quality of the light, and try to savor each new moment.

7. Try different angles and positions

The sun flares, colors, and intensity of the light are all affected by how you angle your lens.

So experiment constantly. Try as many different positions as humanly possible. To get the most out of the golden hours, manipulate the light as much as you can!

8. Subtly underexpose to add more vibrance

Did you know that it’s harder to darken an overexposed image than to lighten an underexposed image?

It’s true. It’s easy to recover lost details in a too-dark shot, but if you overexpose dramatically, then you’ll lose lots of detail. Plus, brighter images tend to look washed out.

So if you want to guarantee plenty of detail, and you want to bring out the beautiful vibrancy of sunset or sunrise, then don’t be afraid to subtly underexpose.

9. Explore HDR photography

HDR photography involves capturing multiple exposures, then layering them on top of one another in post-processing. The idea is to preserve detail in the shadows and highlights, and the results can look amazing!

One tip: Make sure you use a tripod, and if you’re photographing people, make sure they remain as still as possible. When you blend together the images, excessive movement can cause major problems.

10. Experiment in post-processing

I’ve offered lots of tips and tricks to help you get great results while shooting – but a lot of the magic happens behind the scenes, during the post-processing period.

So use your favorite editing program to enhance the colors in your images. Have fun bringing out hues and adding elaborate color grades!