User:Sbb/Glossary of photography terms

The following is a list of terms related to photography.

0–9
120 film:

135 film: More commonly known as $35 mm$ format or $35 mm$ film, it is the most popular. The term '135' was introduced by Kodak as a designation for the $35 mm$ photographic film, which is the of the format, 35 mm. The image frame is $36 mm$ wide by $24 mm$ high, with a diagonal measurement of $43.27 mm$. Sometimes used interchangeably with (which is more specifically a  in digital cameras).

18% gray: 18% grey:

4×5:

35 mm:

35 mm equivalent: A lens with a mounted on a camera body with a film format or sensor size different than $35 mm$ format will frame the same subjects at the same distance from the camera (or said alternately, will have the same ) as a $35 mm$ camera mounted with a lens using the $35 mm$ equivalent focal length. For example, a $50 mm$ lens mounted on a camera, with a  of 2 (compared to $35 mm$ format) will produce an image with a similar framing, from the same distance, as a $100 mm$ lens on a $35 mm$ camera.

3CCD: A color digital sensor format that uses a to split the incoming light into three narrower spectra centered on red, green, and blue wavelengths. Each color-separated spectrum is imaged by a dedicated.

3D photography:

A
aberration: A property of a lens or other optical system that causes light to spread out into a blur spot, rather focus to a point. The two general types of aberration are monochromatic and. Monochromatic aberrations are due to the geometry of the lens, independent of the wavelength of light traveling through the system. The effect of chromatic aberrations is dependent upon the wavelength, or color, of the light in the lens.

abstract photography: A means of depicting an image that does not have an immediate association with the object world. Abstract photographs are often created through non-traditional uses of photographic equipment, processes, or materials.

achromat: achromatic lens: A lens that is designed to correct for or. The correction is usually achieved by a achromatic doublet, combining two lens elements of different refractive indices such that the aberration of one is counteracted by an opposite aberration in the other. Achromatic lenses, unless otherwise specified, correct for aberrations at two different wavelengths. correct three wavelengths, and correct four wavelengths.

active-pixel sensor:

Adobe RGB: A developed by Adobe Systems in 1998. Covers approximately 50% of the colors in the color space, with a wider  than.

aerial photography: Taking images from an airborne platform, such as airplane, helicopter, or drone. is a specific type of aerial photography.

AF:

afocal photography: A type of photography where a camera with attached lens is mounted over the eyepiece of another image-forming lens system, such as a telescope, spotting scope, or microscope, with the camera lens taking the place of the human eye.

aliasing:

ambrotype: A positive photograph on glass made by a variant of the wet plate. Viewed using reflected light. Often mistaken for images.

analog photography: Non-digital photography. Usually refers to film photography, but also includes any photography that uses chemical processes to capture images on paper, glass, or plates.

anamorphic format: Primarily used in cinematography, a form of optical lateral compression that is used to capture a wide view of a scene onto a film frame with a narrower. This allowed filming wide-screen movies onto 35&mm film or other formats that had narrower fields of view than typical movie screen formats. The optical lateral compression is achieved through the use of a cylindrical lens element. The lateral compression resulted in characteristic artifacts such as prominent horizontal and vertically-oblong.

angle of view: AoV: The angular extent of a scene imaged by a camera. The angle of view is determined by the film or sensor dimensions, the of the lens, and the projection type of the lens.

apochromatic lens: apochromat: A lens that corrects for and aberrations for three wavelengths of light, as opposed to the more common, which only corrects for two wavelengths.

aperture: The hole or opening through which light travels in a lens or optical system. The amount of light from a constant source traveling through a lens is proportional to the area of the aperture. But most calculations for characteristics such as and are based on the 1-dimensional measure of the aperture (diameter). While most apertures are rotationally-symmetric about the lens's (i.e., circular, or regular polygonal shaped), some apertures exhibit only lateral symmetry (such as ), or no symmetry.

aperture control ring: aperture ring: On a lens, usually the closest control ring to the user, to control the lens's aperture setting. Most modern electronically-controlled aperture lenses do not have an aperture ring; they are controlled from the camera body itself via dial or setting.

APEX: Stands for Additive System of Photographic Exposure, designed as a means to simplify computation. The system uses a base-2 logarithmic scale to convert multiplication and division in the camera exposure equation to addition and subtraction of.

architectural photography: A photography sub-genre that emphasizes capturing buildings or other architectural structures in an aesthetically pleasing way. Often requires use of specialized techniques or tools, such as on or  lenses, to capture large subjects at often short distances while reducing or controlling. Problems arising in architectural photography include: capturing the three-dimensional aspect of the subject; light of the subject; rendering of substance and texture; the concept of the architecture; and the environment in which the subject is located.

asphere: aspheric lens: A lens element whose surface profiles are not sections of a sphere or cylinder. The more complex surface profile of the lens element is designed to reduce or eliminate and reduce other optical such as, as compared to a simple spherical-profile lens.

astigmatism: A type where rays that propagate through the lens in two perpendicular planes converge on different foci.

astronomical photography: astrophotography: Photography or imaging of astronomical objects, celestial event, and areas of the night sky. Often involves specialized techniques and equipment to compensate for difficulties and limitations such as atmospheric distortion, low light levels, and the rotation of the earth. Astrophotography usually describes a sub-discipline of amateur astronomy, using cameras and telescopes available to, or made, individuals rather than institutions.

Autochrome Lumière: An early color photography process patented in 1903 by Auguste and Louis Lumière. Autochrome was an additive color mosaic screen plate process.

autofocus: A mode of modern cameras that automatically focused the camera's lens on a selected point or area.

available light: Photography using only the light that is present in the scene and environment. It specifically excludes light added by the photographer with or lighting; however, controlling light via  is usually considered part of 'available light' techniques. 'Available light' photography is usually understood not to include bright outdoor lighting conditions. But any other scenes with natural or artificial lighting, such as indoors with window spill light, lamp fixtures, candle lights; outdoor scenes lit by marquee signs, moonlight, rocket launches, etc.

B
backscatter: The appearance of bright, typically circular unfocused spots in an image, due to camera flash or light directly behind the camera reflecting off of small aerosol particles in the air (such as small water droplets, dust, and smoke particles) back to the lens, between the camera and subject. Backscatter 'orbs' are often the explanation for supposed photographic evidence of paranormal activity.

ball head:

barrel distortion:

Bayer filter:

bayonet mount:

beauty dish:

bellows: An accordion-like flexible folding portion of a camera, or element between camera and lens, to allow the lens to move relative to the camera. In older camera designs, the bellows allowed for focusing the lens. In modern camera designs, bellows are typically used for close focusing purposes.

bellows factor:

black and white:

bleach process: A method to create line drawings from photographs. The drawing is made on the surface of a photographic print. When the silver image is bleached away, only the line drawing is left.

blimp:

body cap:

bokeh:

box camera: Simple cameras with reduced capabilities and controls, and correspondingly reduced complexity, meant for the beginner and inexpensive camera market. While many box cameras had simple two-position focusing (near vs. far), most had non-interchangeable lenses with focus fixed at its to maximize the range of apparent sharpness for most subjects. Most box cameras also had limited aperture and exposure control, although some could should in mode when used with a flash. Similar to modern, the first Kodak box camera came with a roll of film pre-installed; when all of the film frames have been exposed, the camera was sent to Kodak for the film to be processed. Unlike disposable cameras, the Kodak box camera was reloaded with film, and returned to the customer for use.

bracketing:

bramping:

breech-lock: breech mount:

Brenizer method:

bridge camera:

bromoil process: A type of with a medium sensitive enough to light to be used with an, unlike previous oil print processes. The process produces prints in oil pigments on a bromide or chlorobromide base.

bulb:

bulb ramping:

burst mode:

C
C-41 process:

Callier effect: The variation in the of images produced during the production of film images based on the manner of illumination. When light is projected through a film plane through a, the light is highly directional, resulting in points in the photographic film receiving light from only one direction. If instead the light projected through a film plane first goes through a diffuser, the results in points on the photographic film receiving light from wider (diffused) area. The effect is named after André Callier, who investigated and measured the effect in 1909.

The Callier factor, or Callier quotient, $Q$, describes the ratio of attenuances between directed ($Ddir$) and diffused ($Ddiff$) bright-fields: $Q = Ddir / Ddiff$. Because diffusion necessarily attenuates light, $Q$ will always be greater than 1.

calotype: An early photographic process invented in 1835 by William Henry Fox Talbot. A negative is produced on paper coated with silver iodide. The process allowed for a high number of prints to be made from a single negative, eventually overtaking the due to the ability to copy the negative so many times, even though the prints were usually of lower quality due to the surface variations and difficulty maintaining the flatness of paper.

camera obscura: lit. 'dark chamber', an optical device that captures an external scene inside a dark, light-tight box. The principle of imaging inside a dark chamber dates at least as early as Aristotle.

camera: A device to capture images on photographic film or imaging sensor.

cardinal point:

CCD sensor: charge-coupled device sensor:

chromatic aberration:

chromaticity diagram:

chromogenic print:

CIELAB:

circle of confusion: The diameter of the area of highest precision or resolution in image space (i.e., on the film or camera sensor) due to refractive properties of light through the optical system. The light rays emanating or reflecting from a point on the focused object can converge to an area of confusion of a certain size. It is the goal of precision optics, and good photographic techniques, to minimize size of the circle of confusion. The circle of confusion is not directly tied to or a result of lens quality, but is most important in determining capability, and therefore.

circular polarising filter: circular polarizing filter:

CLA: Acronym for "cleaning, lubrication, and adjustment" maintenance service by a camera or lens repair technician.

close-up filter: close-up lens:

CMOS sensor:

CMYK:

CoC:

cold shoe:

collodion process: A negative process that required a photographic plate (i.e., glass) had to be coated, sensitized, and exposed while still wet. Thus this process was also known as the wet-plate process. Invented by Frederick Scott Archer in 1851, it was widely used, such as by American Civil War photographer Matthew Brady. was a sub-type wet collodion plate process.

color balance:

color filter:

color filter array:

color fringing:

color management:

color space:

color temperature: A property of radiative light, whereby the color of related light is related to the temperature of the black-body radiator. Lower-temperatures correspond to red and orange color of the light. Higher color temperatures correspond to blueish or whitish color of light. The color temperature should not be confused with the perceptual sense of the light: so-called "warm tones" (reds and oranges) are colder color temperatures than "cool tones" or hues, which are relatively high color temperatures.

coma:

composition: The combination of decisions made prior to capturing an image that allows the photographer to convey their artistic intent. Decisions include camera position and direction (i.e., ; subject-to-camera distance; relative subject-background separation; depth of field; subject compression; ; and filtering; and . Sometimes approached and evaluated based on geometric divisions of the scene and framing, usually from simple ratios, such as the golden ratio, or correspondence to geometrical shapes.

condenser lens:

constant aperture:

contre-jour:

CP: CPOL:

crop: Removal of unnecessary or undesirable portions along one or more edges of an image in order to improve the composition, such as straightening a horizon in the image.

crop factor:

crop format: crop sensor:

cross processing:

cucoloris:

cyanotype:

D
daguerrotype:

darkroom:

definition:

defocus blur:

demosaicing:

depth of field:

depth of focus:

developer:

dichroic prism:

diffraction:

digiscoping:

digital back:

digital SLR:

diopter: dioptre:

dispersion:

DoF:

drop-in filter:

DSLR:

Dufaycolor:

dye coupler:

E
E-6 process:

emulsion layer:

enlarger:

enlarging lens:

entocentric lens:

equivalence:

ETTR: expose to the right:

exposure:

exposure compensation:

exposure value: EV:

extension ring:

F
fashion photography:

fast lens:

field:

field camera:

field curvature:

field of view:

film:

film base:

film bag:

film format:

film gauge:

film holder:

film plane:

film scanner:

film speed:

film stock:

fill flash:

filter:

filter factor:

filter power:

filter thread:

fill factor:

film grain:

fine-art photography:

first-curtain shutter:

fisheye lens:

fixed-aperture lens:

fixed-focus lens:

fixer:

flange focal distance:

flash:

flash shoe:

flash sync speed:

f-number: f/#: Usually denoted $N$, defined at the ratio of the of the lens, $f$, to the diameter of the or : $N = f/D$. Thus a larger f-number $N$ corresponds to a smaller, whereas a smaller f-number corresponds to a larger relative aperture. Lenses with a larger maximum aperture (and thus a small f-number $N$, say, ) are called ; conversely lenses with a smaller maximum aperture, say $N = 6.3$, are called.

focal length: A measure of how strongly a lens converges or diverges light; it is the inverse of the lens's. Usually denoted with a hooked or script $f$, focal length is loosely (and imprecisely) defined as the distance from the lens to the film or imaging sensor when the lens is focused at infinity. Conceptually, this is found from solving the for $f$ when the object distance is set to infinity (∞).

focal plane:

focal-plane shutter:

focal point:

focus distance:

focus ring:

focusing group:

focusing screen:

forensic photography:

FoV:

Foveon X3 sensor:

framing: The collection of compositional decisions that give direction and emphasis to the subject. Framing is related to not only what is included in a composition, but also what is excluded, in addition to the placement and apparent relative distances of objects in the scene.

freelens: freelensing:

f-stop:

full frame:

G
gamma: Denoted by the Greek letter $γ$, gamma is a nonlinear relation describing degree of contrast to which an image is developed or produced. It can be considered to be an optical compression (and corresponding decompression, or expansion) factor in the encoding and decoding of an image.

gamut:

geared head:

gelatin silver process:

gimbal: gimbal head:

glamour photography: A type of photography that draws from portraiture, fashion, pin-up, and figure photography, historically primarily capturing women. It usually accentuates and emphasizes the sexual or gender forms of the subject.

GND:

gobo:

graduated filter:

graduated neutral-density filter: GND:

gray card: grey card:

gray scale: grey scale:

An image which displays the of light, irrespective of color information; only shades of gray are represented. A paper, print, or transparency with a series of increasingly darker gray rectangles; or a graduated continuously darker range of gray tones. Used to test sensitometry to produce known exposures, especially for plate or film photography. A specially graded scale for use in the of pre-visualization, developed by Ansel Adams.

ground glass:

Group f/64:

guide number:

gum printing:

H
Harris shutter:

hard-graduated filter:

headroom: head room:

helical focuser:

heliography:

high dynamic range: HDR:

high-key:

high-speed photography: The science and practice of capturing fast-moving subjects such as explosions, projectiles and ballistics, especially so as to appear to freeze the motion of the subject, or of taking images at a high sampling or frame rate. High-speed photography requires sensitive imaging media, fast shuttering mechanisms and timing, and fast and/or powerful lighting sources.

holography:

hot mirror:

hot shoe:

hypercentric lens:

hyperfocal distance: Usually denoted $H$, the that maximizes the, from half the hyperfocal distance to infinity, for a given aperture number $N$, acceptable $c$, and focal length $f$, so that $H = f^2/(Nc)$.

I
ILC:

illuminance:

image format:

image plane:

image stabilization:

incident light meter: A device used to measure the amount of light falling on a subject from the scene. The incident light meter takes its reading from the position of the subject, next to or in front of. Incident light measurement helps the photographer correctly expose a scene because it does not measure or is fooled by the reflectances of objects, or the subject itself, in the scene.

infrared filter:

infrared photography: Photography with films or sensors whose spectral sensitivities extend into the near-infrared spectrum, from around $700 nm$ to $900 nm$ for common subjects (including portraits, landscape, and architecture), up to $1,300 nm$ for scientific imaging. There is no fundamental difference between typical visible-spectrum color or black-and-white photography and infrared photography, and as such is easily accessible to photographers wanting to expand their creative tools and techniques. In the digital era, a camera with the infrared removed is necessary in order to capture the infrared spectrum. Additionally, a so-called is used to block some or all of the visible light spectrum.

instant camera:

instant film:

interchangeable lens camera:

internal focus lens:

K
K-14 process: The most recent version of the Kodak Kodachrome transparency film before its discontinuation.

kallitype: An early form of printing whereby the image is formed from metallic silver, but the actual sensitive medium is iron salt.

key light:

Kirlian photography: A collection of techniques used to capture the phenomenon of electrical coronal discharge.

kite aerial photography: A type of using a kite to lift the camera. The camera is usually mounted to an adjustable rig that is suspended from the kite string at a distance from the kite, reducing movement being transmitted from the kite to the camera.

L
landscape:

landscape photography: A form of photography that draws from the traditions of landscape art, developed from the landscape as a backdrop to and contextualize the subject, into a style that emphasized the landscape itself as the subject of the art.

lantern slide:

large format: A camera (typically ) using film size or larger, including 5×7 (5 x), 8×10 (8 x), and other.

last-curtain shutter:

latent image:

lead room:

leaf shutter:

lens axis:

lens board:

lens cap:

lens element: An individual piece of glass in a compound lens. Real-world lenses consist of multiple lens elements that are sized, shaped, and chosen for their optical properties (such as ), to work together such that when combined, the compound lens performs better than a single-element lens of equivalent could perform.

lens hood:

lens flare:

lens mount:

lens plane:

lens power:

lens speed: A synonym for describing a lens's aperture. A fast lens has a comparatively wide maximum, corresponding to a lower, therefore allowing more light through it, enabling a to achieve the same. Conversely, a slow lens has a comparatively narrower maximum aperture and larger f-number, thus requiring a shutter speed to achieve the same exposure value.

lidar:

light meter:

light field camera:

live view:

lomography:

long exposure:

low key:

lumen:

luminance:

lux:

M
macro filter:

macro lens:

macro photography:

manual focus:

medium format: A camera using a film or sensor size larger than $35 mm$ format (24 x) and smaller than 4×5 format (4 x) or larger s.

metering mode:

microlens:

microprism:

middle gray: middle grey:

mirrorless camera:

modulation transfer function: MTF:

moiré:

monochromatic aberration:

monolight:

monopod:

mordançage:

motion blur:

movement:

movie projector:

multiple exposure:

mustache distortion:

N
nature photography: A broadly-defined field of photography that overlaps or encompasses genres such as bird photography, flower photography, insect photography, wildlife photography, mountain photography, underwater photography, and techniques such as portraiture and macrophotography. Nature photography is often distinguished from other forms, such as fashion photography, as an appreciation of, rather than posing and staging the subject for a more appealing aesthetic.

ND filter:

ND grad:

near-camera reflection:

Neues Sehen:

neutral-density filter:

night photography: The techniques and art of photographing outdoors between dusk and dawn. Night scenes are typically characterized by the lack of general lighting, and the high contrast between subjects and background that may not be as apparent during daylight. Often surfaces such as bright walls, wet surfaces and puddles, and other reflective areas are used as to provide the otherwise lacking light in a scene.

no-parallax point:

nodal point:

nude photography: The creation and art of photographing the nude human form or any part that would be considered nude or semi-nude. Photographing the nude body may be for artistic and creative purposes, or for commercial purposes. The display, presentation, and distribution of nude photographs can be controversial, and can overlap with and the laws governing it.

O
objective lens:

optical axis:

optical density:

optical image stabilization:

optical power:

optical transmission:

P
pan head: pan-tilt head:

panning:

panorama: A scene with a wide field of view, typically accomplished with a (usually, special-purpose, or by stitching together several shots that cover the scene. When stitching individual shots together, best results are achieved when the camera is rotated about its , in order to minimize parallax / perspective shift.

paper negative: A photographic process where a negative image is created on a paper, to create the final print of a photograph, rather than from film base. Paper negative process is relatively simple and accessible process for amateur photographers.

parallax:

The difference in the relationship between objects or planes in a scene due to differences in viewpoints. Cameras such as, those with s, and have different points of view between the and the photographer's viewfinder or eyepiece. Similar to above, but due to taking multiple images of the same scene, but from a slightly different, such as when stitching but not rotating the camera about its. Three-dimensional photography, called, relies on the parallax from images taken a lateral distance apart and presented separately to each eye, in order to produce a three-dimensional spatial effect.

paraxial approximation:

parfocal lens:

PC connector:

pedestal:

pellicle mirror:

pentamirror:

pentaprism:

pericentric lens:

perspective: The basis of the appearance of three-dimensionality in the two-dimensional plane of a photograph. Perspective is the basis for mapping space to planes, and controlling of the scene of view based on the position of the viewer.

perspective control:

perspective distortion:

petzval curvature:

photodiode:

photo finish:

Main article: Photo finish. In sports races, when two or more contestants cross the finish line at nearly the same time. Named after the photo finish photography technique. Especially photo finish photography, the tools and techniques developed to capture finish-line photographs to identify the order in which contestants crossed the finishing line. Developed for, and primarily associated with horse racing.

photofinishing:

photogram: A photograph created without a camera, by placing objects directly onto photosensitive paper and exposing it to light. The term Rayograph is named after one of the earliest and most prolific proponents of photograms, Man Ray.

photogrammetry:

photographic processing: The commercial or at-scale development of film, using development machines or process equipment.

photographic plate:

photogravure:

photojournalism:

photolithography:

photometric exposure:

photosite:

Picavet suspension: A self-leveling cross-shaped camera mount suspended via several loops on a single line or string, used in.

pictorialism:

pincushion distortion:

pinhole camera: A basic camera, without converging or diverging optical elements, such that light entering a small hole in an opaque thin sheet will produce an inverted and reversed on a plane a distance beyond the pinhole. A larger pinhole (i.e., ) lets in more light, resulting in a brighter image, but also less sharp. A smaller pinhole will result in a darker but sharper image. Pinholes cannot be made arbitrarily small, as the light passing through the pinhole interferes with itself, due to the light interacting with the edges of the pinhole.

pinhole projection:

pixel:

polarising filter: polarizing filter: A type of filter placed in front of the lens (or for some lenses, in a slot) in order to darken skies, manage reflections, or suppress glare from the surface of water. Because reflections and sky light tend to be partially linearly polarized, a polarizing filter can be used to change the balance of light in the photograph. A polarizing filter can also enhance the appearance of vegetation by reducing reflected light, and can make water appear more transparent by removing reflections of the sky.

pornography:

portrait:

portrait photography: portraiture:

post-mortem photography:

press camera:

prime lens:

principal plane:

principal point:

print:

print permanence:

print toning:

process lens: A lens used in the reproduction of graphic arts, to create color-separated negatives. They are usually used around 1:1, at low apertures ( and smaller), with focal lengths in the range of 12 - 24 in. Process lenses are corrected for very flat field of view (see ), and with elements to correct for for.

projection:

pseudo-solarization:

pull: pull processing:

pupil magnification: pupil ratio:

push: push processing:

Q
quantum efficiency:

quick-release:

R
rangefinder camera:

reciprocity:

reciprocity failure:

rectilinear lens:

rectilinear projection:

red eye:

redscale:

reflective light meter:

reflector:

refraction:

register: registration distance:

Rembrandt lighting:

rephotography:

resolution: Main article: angular resolution. Main article: display resolution. Main article: image resolution. Main article: optical resolution. Main article: printing resolution. Main article: sensor resolution. Main article: spatial resolution.

resolving power (of lens): A characteristic of a lens, describing the minimal distance two points can be focused on and still separately identifiable in the image plane. This is dependent solely upon the wavelength of the light entering the lens, the diameter of the aperture, and the focal length of the lens. Even a so-called "perfect" lens, without imperfections or distortions, can only reproduce a point source of light as bright blurry spot with concentric blurry circles, known as the. The minimal distance two airy disks are separated and still identifiable as distinct objects is the resolving power of the lens, roughly proportional to the wavelength $λ$ and the focal length $f$, and inversely proportional to the aperture diameter $D$: $\text{Resolving power} \propto {\lambda f \over D} \propto \lambda N$

retrofocus:

reversal film:

reverse GND: reverse graduated neutral-density filter:

RGB:

RGBG:

rollout:

rule of thirds:

S
Sabattier effect:

safelight:

scanning back:

scanography:

Scheimpflug principle:

schlieren photography:

selfie:

sensel:

sensor:

sensor format:

sensor plane:

sensor-shift image stabilization:

sensor site:

shift movement:

shutter:

shutter advance:

shutter curtain:

single-lens reflex:

single-lens translucent:

slide photography: Also historically referred to as "lantern slides" or "magic lantern", during the consumer photography film era, slide photography was a common way to capture and share photos with friends and family. Images were usually captured directly on, so that when it was developed and framed onto slide film carriers, could be displayed by a onto a screen or wall, usually in a darkened room, so that groups of people could enjoy the same image at the same time.

slide projector:

slit-scan:

slow lens:

slow motion:

SLR:

SLT:

snoot:

softbox:

soft-graduated filter:

solarization:

speedlight:

spherical aberration:

split prism:

sports photography:

sRGB:

stereoscopy:

still camera:

still-life photography:

stock photography:

stop: a

stop bath:

stop-down metering:

stopping down:

straight photography:

street photography:

strip photography:

strobe:

subject distance:

sun printing:

superachromat:

swing:

sync:

T
taking lens:

telecentric lens:

telephoto lens: A lens that is shorter from the front of the lens to the image plane than its own. This is achieved with a at the front of the lens consisting of a positive lens element followed by a negative lens element. A telephoto lens cannot be made as or as well-corrected for  as an ordinary lens of the same focal length.

telephoto group:

thin lens formula:

throat diameter:

through-the-lens metering:

tilt–shift:

time-lapse:

TLR:

toy camera:

tripod: tripodus lit. 'three-footed'; a three-legged stand to support a camera or other equipment. Tripods come in a wide range of materials and sizes, depending on height, supported weight, or stability requirements. Small, inexpensive, or consumer-oriented tripods usually have a captive 1/4-20 UNC bolt to mount a camera directly. Heavier, professional-oriented tripods usually have a 3/8-16 UNC stud (or sometimes a 3/8-16 UNC threaded insert to screw in a compatible stud), to mount a such as a or, which the camera can mount to.

tripod head:

T-stop: A transmission-corrected f-number. Light is reflected, scattered, and absorbed by every interaction with lens elements and parts, resulting in less light transmitted through the lens than its f-number indicates. The T-stop $T$ of a lens is given by the f-number $N$ divided by the square root of the lens's transmittance: $T = {N \over \sqrt{\mathrm{transmittance}}}\,.$ For an ideal lens with perfect transmittance, $T = N$. For real lenses, the transmittance will be less than 1 (i.e., less than 100%), and therefore $T > N$. T-stops are very important in color-separation process photography, as well as in movie and video production.|undefined

twin-lens reflex camera:

U
ultrawide-angle lens:

ultraviolet filter:

ultraviolet photography:

underwater photography:

UV filter:

V
variable ND: variable neutral-density filter: A type of attached to a lens that provides controllable amounts of light reduction through the lens. This is achieved by using two at different polarization axes to partially block light transmission. Variable neutral-density filters are mostly used in videography, instead of using a matte box with a variety of large dedicated neutral density filters.

varifocal lens:

veiling glare:

vernacular photography:

video head:

view camera: A camera with a ground glass focusing screen that allows the photographer to see through the lens to adjust focus and composition. View cameras are mounted on tripods, and focus by moving the lens closer to or away from the focusing screen, with a bellows blocking light not entering the lens. View cameras are noted for having such as lens tilt or swing; front rise, fall, or lateral shift; rear tilt or swing; and rear rise, fall or lateral shift.

viewfinder:

vignetting:

W
warm-up filter:

Waterhouse stop:

wedding photography:

wet plate process:

wide-angle lens:

wildlife photography:

Woodburytype:

A photomechanical process patented by Walter B. Woodbury in 1866. It used an alum-hardened photorelief to produce non-photochemical print reproductions from a metal printing plate. The resulting print was essentially a shallow bas-relief of the plate's image. The process was used extensively for about 10 years, until it was replaced by more convenient photochemical processes. A print that is produced as a result of the Woodbury process.

working distance:

X
Xerox art: An art form that began in the 1960s, created by putting objects on the glass, or platen of a photocopier and by pressing "start" to produce an image. Similar to.

Z
zebra patterning: zebra stripes: Primarily videography. A feature found on some consumer and most professional video cameras to aid in correct exposure. When the feature is enabled, areas of the image over a certain threshold are filled with a striped or cross-hatch pattern to dramatically highlight areas where too much light is falling on the.

zone plate: Christmas with zone plate.jpg

A plate with concentric rings alternating between opaque and transparent, used to focus light by instead of the more common used in most lenses. A zone plate is used in place of a for a soft-focus image. The transparent area of a zone plate is much larger than the area of a pinhole, thus the effective of a zone plate is lower than for a corresponding pinhole, allowing for decreased exposure time.

zone system: A technique for determining optimal and, formulated by Ansel Adams and Fred Archer. Provides photographers with a systematic method of precisely defining the relationship between the way they visualize the subject and the final results. There are 10 zones, with black corresponding to Zone 1, and white corresponding to Zone 10.

zoom lens: A type of lens for which the (and thus the ) can be varied, as opposed to a fixed focal length, or, lens. Developed in the 1930s by Dr. Frank Back, zoom lenses are usually denoted by their focal length range, for example, $100 mm$. Cameras such as point-and-shoot and, which do not have often describe their zoom lenses by the ratio of the longest to shortest focal lengths. The previous $100 mm$ example would be described as a 4:1 or "4&times;" zoom. A true zoom lens, also called a, maintains focus when its focal length changes. A lens that does not maintain focus as it zooms is called a.

zoom ring: Ring on to control the of the lens. Some older zoom lenses did not have a dedicated zoom ring; instead, the zoom function was controlled by pulling or pushing the towards or away from the camera body, causing the lens to contract or extend as necessary to move the lens elements.