Browse All 840 Photography Terms A–Z

Auto ISO Exposure & Metering ISO A camera mode that lets the body select sensitivity automatically within limits the photographer sets, usually with a minimum shutter speed.

Auto White Balance Colour & Colour Management K A camera function that estimates the illuminant from the scene and sets white balance accordingly.

Autochrome Film, Darkroom & Historic Processes The first commercially successful colour process, using a screen of dyed potato starch grains over a black and white emulsion.

Autofocus Focus & Depth of Field A system that measures focus error and drives the lens to correct it automatically.

Automatic Servo Selection Focus & Depth of Field A mode, marked AF-A, in which the camera decides whether to lock focus or track continuously based on whether the subject appears to be moving.

AVIF Files, Metadata & Workflow MB An image format based on the AV1 video codec, offering high compression efficiency, wide gamut and high dynamic range support.

Back Focus Focus & Depth of Field mm A calibration error in which a lens consistently focuses slightly beyond the intended subject.

Back-button Focus Focus & Depth of Field A configuration that moves autofocus activation from the shutter release to a separate rear button.

Background Light Lighting & Flash f-stops (EV) A light aimed at the backdrop rather than the subject, controlling how bright or dark the background renders.

Backlighting Lighting & Flash Placing the main light source behind the subject, so it faces the camera rather than illuminating the subject's front.

Backside-illuminated Sensor Sensors & Digital Capture A sensor design in which the wiring layer is moved behind the photodiodes so light reaches them unobstructed.

Backup Files, Metadata & Workflow count A separate copy of image files kept so that loss of the original does not lose the work.

Ball Head Cameras, Formats & Systems kg (load rating) A tripod head using a single ball-and-socket joint, allowing the camera to be aimed in any direction with one locking knob.

Banding Noise Sensors & Digital Capture Horizontal or vertical stripes appearing in heavily lifted shadows, caused by variations between readout channels.

Barn Doors Lighting & Flash Four hinged flaps mounted on the front of a light to cut its beam into a rectangle.

Barrel Distortion Optics, Lenses & Filters % A geometric distortion in which straight lines bow outward from the centre, as if the image were wrapped around a barrel.

Baryta Paper Printing, Display & Output g/m² An inkjet paper coated with barium sulphate, imitating the surface and depth of traditional darkroom fibre-based paper.

Base ISO Exposure & Metering ISO The sensitivity at which a sensor is read out with no amplification, delivering its maximum dynamic range and cleanest files.

Batch Rename Files, Metadata & Workflow count Renaming many files at once using a template built from metadata, sequence numbers and fixed text.

Battery Grip Cameras, Formats & Systems An accessory that bolts to the base of a camera to hold additional batteries and duplicate the controls for vertical shooting.

Bayer Filter Sensors & Digital Capture The dominant colour filter array pattern, using two green filters for every red and blue in a repeating square of four. RGGB in 2×2 blocks

Beauty Dish Lighting & Flash cm A shallow metal parabolic reflector with a central deflector, producing light that is soft in transition yet crisp in its specular highlights.

Bellows Extension Factor Exposure & Metering stops (EV) The extra exposure required when a lens is racked far forward for close focus, spreading its light over a greater distance. Factor = ((v) / f)²

Bird's-eye View Composition & Visual Design degrees A viewpoint directly overhead, looking straight down, which renders a scene as a flat pattern.

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