The Camera - Aperture and Iris

 An aperture is a hole in the front of the camera through which light enters. Like the pupil of the human eye, aperture controls the amount of light that enters the camera.  

A larger aperture lets in more light, which makes a picture brighter. In the same way, a smaller aperture lets in less light, which makes the picture darker. 


Aperture also affects the depth of field of a picture or video. A smaller aperture or f-stop, puts focus only on the foreground or background, blurring everything else. The larger the aperture gets, the more focus that is put on the entire picture instead of isolating just the foreground or background. 


The right aperture depends upon what type of a photograph one is trying to take. If the picture involves a portrait or and an object that needs to be focused upon and the rest of background can be ignored, a smaller aperture is useful. And if the image is a landscape where every single detail needs to be clearly seen and identified, a larger aperture can help achieve a sharper image. 


The iris of a video camera is similar to the aperture of a DSLR. It controls how much light comes through the lens. As you open the iris and let more light in, the video becomes brighter and as you close the iris and restrict the amount of light let in, the darker the video becomes.  


Camcorder iris examples:




Rack Focus (camcorder and DSLR): 


DSLR photo examples:







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