AE Automatic Exposure metering, i.e. the camera measures the light and sets shutter speed and aperture (either or both).
AE lock (AE-L) Locks an automatic exposure setting in the camera’s memory.
AF Auto-focus.
AF lock (AF-L) Locks an auto-focus lens at its present focus distance.
Aliasing The jaggy edges that appear in bitmap images with curves or lines at any angle other than multiples of 90°.
Angle of view The extent of the view taken in by the lens. It varies with focal length for any particular format size. The angle made at the lens across the image diagonal.
Aperture (of lens) Size of the lens opening through which light passes. The relative aperture is calibrated in f-numbers, being the diameter of the beam of light allowed to pass through the lens, divided into its focal length. Widest relative apertures therefore have the lowest f-numbers. All lenses set to the same f-number give images of a (distant) scene at equal brightness.
Aperture preview Button on some SLR cameras to close the lens to the aperture set for photography. Allows you to visually check depth of field in the viewfinder.
APS Advanced Photographic System. Easy-load cameras and film cartridges 30 per cent smaller than 35 mm (see page 54).
ASA Stands for (obsolete) American Standards Association. The initials were once used for a film speed rating system. Now replaced by ISO.
Aspect ratio This is usually found in dialog boxes concerned with changes of image size and refers to the relationship between width and height of a picture. The maintaining of an image’s aspect ratio means that this relationship will remain the same even when the image is enlarged or reduced.
Auto-focus (AF) System by which the lens automatically focuses the image of a selected part of your subject.
Av Aperture value. AE camera metering mode by which you choose aperture, and the metering system sets shutter speed (also called aperture priority).
‘B’ setting Brief or bulb. On this setting the camera shutter stays open for as long as the release button remains depressed.
Background printing A printing method that allows the user to continue working whilst an image or document is being printed from a computer.
Batch processing Refers to a function or a series of commands being applied to several digital files at one time. This function is useful for making the same changes to a folder full of images. In Photoshop Elements, this function is found under the File menu and is useful for converting groups of image files from one format to another.
Bit Stands for ‘binary digit’ and refers to the smallest part of information that makes up a digital file. It has a value of only 0 or 1. Eight of these bits make up one byte of data.
Bitmap or ‘raster’ The form in which digital photographs are stored, made up of a matrix of pixels.
Blend mode The way in which a color or a layer interacts with others in a digital photograph. The most important after the Normal blend mode are probably Multiply (which darkens everything), Screen (which adds to the colors to make everything lighter), Lighten (which lightens only colors darker than itself) and Darken (which darkens only lighter colors than itself). Both the latter therefore flatten contrast. Color maintains the shading of a color but alters the color to itself. Glows therefore are achieved using Screen mode, and Shadows using Multiply.
Bracketing (exposure) Taking several pictures of your subject at different exposure times or aperture settings, e.g. half and double, as well as the estimated correct exposure.
Brightness range The range of brightnesses between shadow and highlight areas of an image.
Bromide paper Light-sensitive photographic paper for enlarging or contact printing. Carries a predominantly silver bromide emulsion. Must be handled in appropriate (usually amber or orange) safe lighting.
Burning-in Giving additional exposure time to one selected area, during printing to selectively darken.
Burning-in tool Used to darken a digital image, can be targeted to affect just the Shadows, Midtones or Highlights. Opposite to Dodge. Part of the toning trio, which also includes the Sponge.
Byte This is the standard unit of digital storage. One byte is made up of 8 bits and can have any value between 0 and 255; 1024 bytes equal 1 kilobyte; 1024 kilobytes equal 1 megabyte; 1024 megabytes equal 1 gigabyte.
Camera obscura A dark chamber to which light is admitted through a small hole, producing an inverted image of the scene outside, opposite the hole.
Cassette Light-tight container for 35 mm camera film (see page 54).
CCD Charge-Coupled Device. Electronic light-sensitive surface, digital replacement for film.
CD-ROM Compact disc with read-only memory.
Clone Stamp or Rubber Stamp tool Allows a user to copy a part of a digital image to somewhere else. It is therefore ideal for repair work, e.g. removing unwanted spots or blemishes. Equivalent to Copy and Paste in a brush.
Close-ups Photographs in which the picture area is filled with a relatively small part of the subject (e.g. a single head). Usually photographed from close to the subject, but may be shot from further away using a long focal length lens.
Close-up attachments Accessories which enable the camera to focus subjects that are closer than the nearest distance the lens normally allows.
Color balance A color photograph that closely resembles the original subject appearance is said to have ‘correct’ color balance. Mismatching film type and lighting (wrong color temperature) gives a cast most apparent in gray tones and pale tints.
Color mode The way that a digital image represents the colors that it contains. Different color modes include Bitmap, RGB and Grayscale.
Color temperature A means of describing the color content of a ‘white’ light source. Based on the temperature (absolute scale, expressed in kelvin) to which a black metallic body would have to be heated to match the light, e.g. household lamp 2800 K, photoflood 3400 K.
Complementary colors Opposite or ‘negative’ colors to the primary colors of light (blue, green and red). Each is made up from the full spectrum less the primary color, e.g. the complementary of red is blue.
Composition The activity of positioning the various subjects in a picture within a frame or viewfinder. Photographers often aim to create a visual balance of all the elements within their photographs. They do this via careful composition.
Compression Refers to a process where digital files are made smaller to save on storage space or transmission time. Compression is available in two types: lossy, where parts of the original image are lost at the compression stage; and lossless, where the integrity of the file is maintained during the compression process. JPEG and GIF use lossy compression, whereas TIFF is a lossless format.
Contact printing Printing with light, the object (typically a negative) being in direct contact with the light-sensitive material.
Contrast (composition) Photographers who position subjects with different characteristics in the frame together are said to be creating contrast in the composition. Sitting a highly textured object against a smooth and even background creates a visual contrast between the two subjects and emphasizes the main characteristics of each.
Contrast (exposure and tone) The difference (ratio) between the darkest and brightest parts. In a scene this depends on lighting and the reflecting properties of objects. In a photograph there is also the effect of exposure level, degree of development, printing paper, etc.
Cropping Cutting out unwanted (edge) parts of a picture, typically at the printing or mounting stage.
Daylight color film Color film balanced for use with flash, daylight or daylight-matching strip tubes (5500 K).
Depth of field Distance between nearest and furthest parts of the subject sharply imaged at the same time. Greatest with small lens apertures (high f-number), distant scenes and shortest focal length lenses.
Developer Chemicals, normally in solution, able to convert the invisible (latent) image on exposed photographic material into visible form.
Developing agents Chemicals (typically phenidone, metol and hydroquinone) able to change light-struck silver halides into black metallic silver.
Diffuse lighting Scattered illumination, the visual result of which is gentle modelling of the subject with mild or non-existent shadows.
Digital image Stream of electronic data, forms visible image on computer monitor.
Digitize This is the process by which analog images or signals are sampled and changed into digital form.
DIN Stands for Deutche Industrie Norm (German Industrial Standard). DIN numbers denoted a film’s relative sensitivity to light. Halving or doubling speed is shown by decrease or increase of the DIN number by three. Now incorporated in ISO and distinguished by degree symbol.
Dodge tool For lightening areas in a digital image. See also Burn.
Dodging Local shading in enlarging, usually by means of a piece of opaque material on a thin wire to selectively reduce exposure and therefore lighten the print. Has the opposite effect of burning-in.
DPI Dots per inch, a term used to indicate the resolution of a scanner or printer.
DX coding Coding printed onto film cassette denoting speed, length, etc. Read by sensors in the film compartment of most 35 mm cameras.
Dynamic range The measure of the range of brightness levels that can be recorded by a digital sensor.
Emulsion Suspension of minute silver halide crystals in gelatine that, coated on film or paper, forms the light-sensitive material used in traditional (non-digital) photography.
Enhancement A term that refers to changes in brightness, color and contrast that are designed to improve the overall look of a digital image.
Enlarger Optical projector to give enlarged (or reduced) images, which can then be exposed onto light-sensitive paper or film (see page 217).
Enlarging easel (masking frame) Flat board with adjustable flaps used on the enlarger base board to hold paper flat during exposure.
Exposed A light-sensitive material that has received exposure to an image. Usually relates to the stage after exposure and before processing.
Exposure Submitting photographic material to the action of light, usually by means of a camera or enlarger.
Exposure-compensation dial Camera control overriding film speed (e.g. DX) setting, + or −.
Exposure latitude The amount by which a photographic emulsion may be under- or overexposed, yet still give an acceptable image when processed.
Exposure meter Instrument that measures light intensities falling on, or reflected off, the subject, and indicates or sets corresponding camera settings (shutter and aperture).
Extension tubes Rings or short tubes mounted between camera body and lens to space the lens further away from the film and so allow the sharp focusing of very close subjects.
F-numbers See Aperture.
File format The way that a digital image is stored. Different formats have different characteristics. Some are cross-platform and can be used on both Macintosh and Windows machines, others have inbuilt compression capabilities.
Fill-in Illumination to lighten shadows, reducing contrast.
Film speed Measure of sensitivity of film to light. Usually expressed as an ISO figure.
Filter, digital A filter is a way of applying a set of image characteristics to the whole or part of an image. Most image editing programs contain a range of filters that can be used for creating special effects.
Filter, lens Sheet of (usually dyed) gelatin or glass. Used over the camera or enlarger lens mainly to reduce the light (neutral density gray filter) or to absorb particular wavelengths from the light beam.
Fixed focus Camera lens set for a fixed subject distance. Non-adjustable.
Fixer Chemical (basically a solution of sodium thiosulfate plus potassium metabisulfite as acidifier). Used after development to make soluble those parts of a photographic image unaffected by the developer. Photographs can thereafter be handled in normal lighting.
Fixing agent Chemical able to change silver halide into colorless soluble salts.
Flare Scattered light that dilutes the image, lowering contrast and seeming to reduce sharpness. Mostly occurs when the subject is backlit.
Flash contacts Electrical contacts, normally within the mechanism of the camera shutter, which come together at the appropriate moment to trigger the flash unit. Older shutters may be fitted with X and M contact sockets. Use X for electronic flash.
Flash (electronic) Equipment that gives a brief, brilliant flash of light by discharging an electronic capacitor through a small, gas-filled tube. Given time to recharge, a unit gives many thousands of flashes, usually triggered by contacts within the camera shutter.
Flash factor See Guide number.
‘Flat’ images Images that are low in tonal contrast, appearing gray and muddy.
Floodlamp Studio lighting unit consisting of a large reflector containing a photolamp or other pearl glass lamp. Gives diffuse lighting.
Focal length In a simple lens the distance (typically in millimeters) between the lens and the position of a sharp image for a subject a great distance away. A ‘normal’ lens has a focal length approximately equivalent to the diagonal of the picture format it covers, i.e. 50 mm for 36 mm × 24 mm.
Focal plane The plane – normally flat and at right angles to the lens axis – on which a sharp image is formed. In the camera, the emulsion surface of the film must be in the focal plane at the moment of exposure to record a focused image.
Focus priority (trap focus) Auto-focus camera mode by which you cannot release the shutter until the lens has sharply focused your subject.
Focusing Changing the lens-to-image (or lens-to-subject) distance, until a sharp image is formed.
Fog Allowing random light to reach light-sensitive material, as in opening the camera back accidentally or leaving a packet of paper open. Also caused by bad storage or contaminated or over-prolonged development (chemical fog).
Form An object’s three-dimensionality: height, breadth and depth.
Format Height and width dimensions of the picture area.
Front page Sometimes called the home or index page, refers to the initial screen that the viewer sees when logging onto a website. Often, the name and spelling of this page file is critical if it is to work on the web server. Consult your ISP staff for the precise name to be used with your site.
Gamma The contrast of the midtone areas of a digital image.
Gamut The range of colors or hues that can be printed or displayed by particular devices.
Gaussian Blur When applied to an image or a selection, this digital filter softens or blurs the image.
GIF Graphic Interchange Format. This is an indexed color mode that contains a maximum of 256 colors that can be mapped to any palette of actual colors. It is extensively used for web graphics as buttons and logos, and small animated images.
Glossy paper Photographic paper that can give prints with a shiny, glossy surface.
Grade, of paper Classification of black and white photographic papers by the gradation they offer between black and white. Soft (Grade 1) paper gives a wider range of gray tones than Hard (Grade 3). See also Variable contrast paper.
Grain Irregularly shaped, microscopically small clumps of black silver making up the processed photographic silver halide image. Detectable on enlargement, particularly if the film emulsion was fast (ISO 1000 or over) and overdeveloped. Hard grade paper also emphasizes film grain.
Grayscale A monochrome digital image containing tones ranging from white through a range of grays to black.
Guide number (flash factor) Figure denoting the relative power of a flash source. The GN is the light-to-subject distance (usually in meters) multiplied by the f-number for correct exposure, e.g. GN of 16 = 2 m at f8 or 1 m at f16. (Unless film speed is quoted, factor refers to ISO 100 film.)
‘Hard’ image Image with harsh tonal contrasts – mostly blacks and whites with few intermediate gray tones.
‘Hard’ light sources Harsh source of illumination, giving strong clear-cut shadows. Tends to dramatize form and texture.
Histogram A graph that represents the distribution of pixels brightness within a digital image.
Hot linked This term refers to a piece of text, graphic or picture that has been designed to act as a button on a web page. When the viewer clicks the hot-linked item, they are usually transported to another page or part of a website.
HTML The Hyper Text Mark Up language is the code used to create web pages. The characteristics of pages are stored in this language and when a page file is downloaded to your computer the machine lays out and displays the text, image and graphics according to what is stated in the HTML file.
Hue Refers to the color of the image and is separate from how light or dark it is.
Hyperfocal distance Nearest subject rendered sharp when the lens is focused for infinity. Focused for the hyperfocal distance and without change of f-number, depth of field extends from half this distance to infinity.
Hypo Abbreviation of hyposulfate of soda, an incorrect early name for sodium thiosulfate. Popular name for fixing bath.
Image layers Images in programs like Photoshop Elements can be made up of many layers. Each layer will contain part of the picture. When viewed together, all layers appear to make up a single continuous image. Special effects and filters can be applied to layers individually.
Incident light attachment Diffusing disc or dome (usually of white plastic) placed over the cell of a hand-held exposure meter to make readings towards the light source. Calculator dial is then used in the normal way. Gives results similar to reading off an ‘average’ subject or gray card.
Infinity A distance so great that light from a given point reaches the camera as virtually parallel rays. In practice, distances of about 1000 times the focal length or over. Written on lens focusing mounts as ‘inf’ or a symbol like an ‘8’ on its side.
Infinity lock Control that sets (auto-focus) lens for distant subjects only. Useful if shooting through windows.
Inkjet printer Digital printer, forms images using a very fine jet of one or more inks.
Interpolation This is the process used by image editing programs to increase the resolution of a digital image. Using ‘fuzzy logic’ the program makes up the extra pixels that are placed between the original ones that were generated at the time of scanning or capture.
Inverse square law ‘When a surface is illuminated by a point source of light the intensity of light at the surface is inversely proportional to the square of its distance from the source.’ In other words, if you double the lamp distance, light spreads over a larger area and illumination drops to 1/2 × 1/2 = 1/4 of its previous value. Forms the basis of flash guide numbers and closeup exposure increases. Does not apply to large diffuse sources or, in practice, the (extremely distant) sun.
ISO International Standards Organization. In the ISO film speed system, halving or doubling of speed is denoted by halving or doubling number. Also incorporates DIN figure, e.g. ISO 400/27° film is twice as sensitive as ISO 200/24°.
ISP The Internet Service Provider is the company that hosts or stores web pages. If you access the web via a dial-up account, then you will usually have a portion of free space allocated for use for your own site; others can obtain free (with a small banner advert attached) space from companies like www.tripod.com.
JPEG A file format designed by the Joint Photographic Experts Group that has inbuilt lossy compression that enables a massive reduction in file sizes for digital images. Used extensively on the web and by press professionals for transmitting images back to newsdesks worldwide.
Juxtaposition Juxtaposing is the act of placing two objects side by side so that they are compared. In photographs, unlike subjects are often placed next to each other, or ‘juxtaposed’, so that their differences are exaggerated.
K (kelvin) Measurement unit of lighting and color temperature.
Large-format cameras Normally refers to cameras taking negatives larger than 120 rollfilm size.
Latent image The invisible image contained by the photographic material after exposure but before development. Stored protected from light, damp and chemical fumes, a latent image can persist for years.
Layer opacity The opacity or transparency of each image layer in a digital photograph can be changed independently. Depending on the level of opacity, the parts of the layer beneath will become visible. You can change the opacity of each layer by moving the Opacity slider in the Layers palette.
LCD Liquid Crystal Display. A display screen type used in preview screens on the back of digital cameras and in most laptop computers.
Line (composition) Line is one of the strongest visual elements that photographers can use to help compose their pictures. Often, line is used to direct the attention of the viewer towards a certain part of the frame or at a specific focal point. The lines used in photographs may be actual, such as a power cable in a landscape, or may be created by changes of tone or texture, such as the edge between a shaft of sunlight and the dark background.
Liquify A digital filter that uses brushes to perform distortions upon selections or the whole of an image.
Long focal length lens Lens with focal length longer than considered ‘normal’ for picture format. Gives larger detail and narrower angle of view. Almost all such lenses are telephoto types.
Macro lens Lens intended for close-up photography, able to focus well forward from its infinity position for subjects a few inches away, gives highest quality image at such distances.
Macrophotography Photography at very close subject range.
Marquee A rectangular or elliptical selection used to isolate a portion of a digital photograph made by clicking and dragging to an opposite corner.
Masking frame See Enlarging easel.
Mat or overmat Card with cut-out opening, placed over print to isolate finished picture.
Megapixel One million pixels. Used to describe the resolution of digital camera sensors.
Monochrome image Single colored. Usually implies a black image, but also applies to one which is toned, i.e. sepia.
Montage An image constructed by combining what were originally several separate images.
Mood The mood of a photograph refers to the emotional content of the picture.
Multigrade Multi-contrast printing paper. See Variable contrast paper.
Negative image Image in which blacks, whites and tones are reversed, relative to the original subject. Color negatives have subject colors represented by their complementaries.
‘Normal’ lens The lens regarded as standard for the picture format, i.e. having a focal length approximately equal to its diagonal.
Optical resolution The resolution that a scanner uses to sample the original image. This is often different from the highest resolution quoted for the scanner, as this is scaled up by interpolating the optically scanned file.
Options bar Long bar beneath the menu bar in an image editing program, which immediately displays the various settings for whichever tool is currently selected. Can be moved to other parts of the screen if preferred.
Overdevelopment Giving too long or too much agitation in the developer, or having too high a temperature, or developer too concentrated. This results in excessive density and exaggerated grain structure in the developed material.
Overexposure Exposing photographic material to too much light because the image is too bright or exposure time too long. Results in excessive density in the final image.
Palette A window in the image editing program that is used for the alteration of the characteristics of a digital photograph.
Panchromatic Photographic materials sensitive to all visible wavelengths of light, recording them in various shades of gray. Should be processed in total darkness or an exceedingly dark safe light. All general-purpose films are of this kind.
Panning Rotating or swinging the camera about a vertical axis.
Parallax error Viewpoint difference between the picture seen in the viewfinder and as seen by the camera lens (see page 32).
Pattern (composition) Repeating subjects that have similar characteristics such as color, shape and texture create a strong visual element that is often referred to as pattern. Pattern can be used in a similar way to tone, line and color as a way to balance compositions and direct the viewer’s eye throughout the frame.
Photo CD CD format for storing photographs as digital files. Disc typically holds up to 100 images, stored in various levels of resolution.
Photographic lamps Generalized term now often applied to both 3200 K studio lamps (floods and spots) and the brighter, short-life 3400 K photoflood lamps.
Pixel Short for picture element, refers to the smallest image part of a digital photograph.
Polarizer Gray-looking filter, able to darken blue sky at right angles to sunlight, and suppress reflections from (non-metallic) surfaces at angles of about 30°.
Polycontrast See Variable contrast paper.
Printing-in See Burning-in.
‘Pushing’ Slang term for uprating film speed.
Rapid fixer Fixing bath using ammonium thiosulfate or thiocyanate instead of the normal sodium thiosulfate. Enables fixing time to be greatly reduced, but is more expensive.
Reciprocity law failure Normally the effect of dim light, or small lens aperture, can be counteracted by giving a long exposure time. But this reciprocal relationship (half the brightness = double the exposure time) increasingly breaks down with exposure times beyond 1 second. The film then behaves as if having a lower speed rating. Color films may also show incorrect balance.
‘Red eye’ The iris of each eye in portraits shows red instead of black. Caused by using flash directed from close to the lens.
Reflex camera Camera with viewfinder system using a mirror and focusing screen.
Refraction Change of direction of a ray of light passing obliquely from one transparent medium into another of different density, e.g. from air into glass. The basic reason why lenses bend light rays and so form images.
Resin-coated (RC) bromide paper Bromide paper having a water-repellent plastic base. RC papers require less washing, dry more rapidly and generally process faster than fibre-based papers.
Reversal film Film that can be processed to give a positive image, such as a color slide film. Some black and white films can be reversal processed.
RGB All colors in a digital image are made up of a mixture of Red, Green and Blue colors. This is the typical mode used for desktop scanners, painting programs and digital cameras.
Rollfilm Photographic film, usually 6.2 cm wide (known as 120), attached to a numbered backing paper and rolled on a flanged spool.
Safe light Darkroom light source filtered to illuminate only in a color to which photographic material is insensitive. The correct color varies with type of emulsion, e.g. orange for bromide papers.
Selective focusing Using a shallow depth of field (i.e. by means of a wide lens aperture) and focusing so that only one selected zone of the subject is sharply recorded.
Shading, in printing Preventing the image light from acting on a selected area of the picture for a time during the exposure. See Dodging.
Sheet film Film supplied as individual sheets, usually 10 or 25 to a box.
Shutter Mechanical device to control the time the light is allowed to act on the film. Usually consists of metal blades within the lens, or two blinds passing one after another just in front of the film, the exposure occurring in the gap between them (focal plane shutter).
Silver halides Light-sensitive compounds of silver with the halogens (iodine, bromide, etc.). Normally white or creamy yellow in color. Used as the main sensitive constituent of photographic emulsions.
Single lens reflex (SLR) Camera in which the viewfinder image is formed by the picture-taking lens.
Soft focus Image in which outlines are slightly spread or diffused.
‘Soft’ light sources See Diffuse lighting.
Sponge tool Used for saturating or desaturating part of a digital photograph, that is exaggerating or lessening the color component as opposed to the lightness or darkness.
Spotlight A compact filament lamp, reflector and lens forming one light unit. Gives hard direct illumination, variable from narrow to broad beam.
Stop-bath Stage in processing that arrests the action of the previous solution (e.g. a weak solution of acetic acid used between development and fixation).
Subject The person, scene, situation, etc. being photographed. (Tends to be used interchangeably with object.)
‘T’ setting Setting found on some large-format camera shutters for time exposures. Pressing the release opens the shutter, which then remains open until pressed for a second time.
Target audience The group of people whose experience, understanding and appreciation are catered for when creating a picture, or taking a photograph. The content or style of picture may change depending on the nature of the target audience who will be viewing the work.
Telephoto lens Long focus lens of compact design (lens is physically closer to the film than its focal length).
Test strip One of a series of test exposures on a piece of printing paper, then processed to see which gives the most satisfactory result.
Texture Surface qualities such as roughness, smoothness, hairiness, etc. Like line, pattern and color, texture is a compositional element that can be used to help balance a photograph.
Through-the-lens (TTL) metering Measuring exposure by a meter built into the camera body, which measures the intensity of light passing through the picture-taking lens.
Thumbnail A low-resolution preview version of larger digital image files used to check before opening the full version.
Time exposure General term for a long duration exposure.
Tone (subject matter) Tone can also refer to the mood of a picture. When the tone of a photograph is said to be ‘dark’, then the subject matter and/or the way that the content is depicted can be emotional, complex, sometimes sad, confronting and generally thought-provoking.
Tones, tonal values Areas of uniform density in a positive or negative image that can be distinguished from darker or lighter parts.
Translucent Transmitting but at the same time also diffusing light, e.g. tracing paper.
Transparency Positive image film.
Tungsten lamps Lamps that generate light when electric current is passed through a fine tungsten wire. Household lamps, photofloods, studio lamps, etc. are all of this type.
Tungsten light film Also known as ‘Type B’ or ‘Artificial light’. Color film balanced for use with 3200 K studio lighting.
Tv Time value. AE camera metering mode by which you choose shutter speed and the metering system sets aperture (also called shutter priority).
Twin lens reflex Camera with two linked lenses – one forming an image onto film, the other giving an image on a focusing screen (see page 325).
Underdevelopment Giving too short a developing time, using too low a temperature, too great a dilution or old or exhausted solutions. This results in insufficient density being built up.
Underexposure Exposing photographic material to too little light, because the image is too dim or exposure time too short. Results in insufficient density and shadow detail in the final image.
Uprating Shooting film at more than the manufacturer’s suggested speed rating, e.g. exposing 400 ISO film as if 800 ISO. The film is then given extra development.
Variable contrast (multigrade) paper Black and white printing paper that changes its contrast characteristics with the color of the exposing light. Controlled by enlarger filters typically ranging from yellow to purple.
Viewpoint The position from which camera, and photographer, view the subject.
Wetting agent Chemical (e.g. weak detergent) that reduces the surface tension of water. Facilitates even action of developer or final wash water.
Wide-angle lens Lens with a focal length much shorter than the diagonal of the format for which it is designed to be used. Gives a wide angle of view and considerable depth of field.
Zoom lens A lens that offers continuous variation of focal length over a set range, maintaining the same focus setting.