Exposure Exposure is the amount of light collected by the sensor in your camera during a single picture. If the shot is exposed too long, the photograph will be washed out (or too light). If the shot is exposed too short, the photograph will appear too dark.

The two main controls your camera uses for exposure are shutter speed ( how long the sensor is exposed to light) and aperture (the size of the lens opening that lets light into the camera). These are measured in f/stops (a wide aperture is f/2.8 and a small aperture is f/19) whereas shutter speed is measured in seconds. These two controls not only govern the amount of light coming into the sensor but also other aspects as well. Another feature that has an effect on exposure is the ability to change the sensitivity of the sensor when collecting light (ISO speed). The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the image sensor and therefore the possibility to take pictures in low light situations. Where you would have needed to physically change to a different roll of film on a traditional camera if you wanted a different ISO speed, digital technology allows you to simply dial one. In this way, you can record images taken at different ISO speeds on the same memory card.