A-Z of cameras

Black and white film simulation mode added to newer Fujifilm cameras. It's designed to give richer, more intense tonal rendition than the regular monochrome film simulation.

A small, simple and largely automated video camera (you can also shoot stills) designed to attach to a helmet, handlebars, surfboard or any other kind of object and provide dramatic first-person video of adventure sports and other activities. Almost all use fixed focal length super-wide angle lenses and shoot 4K video, some offering even higher resolutions.

An exposure mode on some Nikon digital cameras which balances up the exposure in high-contrast scenes. The camera reduces the exposure to make sure it captures bright highlight detail and then processes the image to brighten up dark shadows. It can be applied in different strength settings.

A rear LCD screen that can be flipped out and swiveled to face in any direction. This can be especially useful for filming video clips and for composing still images in confined spaces or at awkward angles. Some cameras offer tilting LCDs instead. These have a more restricted range of movements (up and down) but are still more versatile than regular fixed screens. An 'articulating' screen is essentially the same as a 'vari-angle' screen.

Using headphones or earbuds to monitor audio directly when recording video. This will give you a better idea of how the video sounds, the intrusiveness of any background noise and whether speech is clear and audible. Many cameras have headphone sockets for this, even some microphones.

A RAW format for video developed by BlackMagic Design and used by its cinema cameras and DaVinci Resolve video editing software. It’s a highly efficient RAW format that is supported by some cameras for use with external recorders such as Blackmagic’s VideoAssist models.

Usually, the camera’s exposure time is set by the shutter speed you’ve selected, so that the exposure ends automatically. But in Bulb mode the shutter stays open for as long as the shutter button is held down, so it’s used a lot for night photography or low light photography, where exposures can range from 30 seconds to 30 minutes (in moonlight). In the old days you’d use a cable release with a locking screw; these days you’d use a remote release with a bulb mode (using a remote release means you don’t risk moving the camera by keeping your finger on the button).

A new memory card type designed for higher speeds and capacities, especially for video capture. It's a smaller version of the CFexpress standard. Type A cards are smaller than the more common CFexpress Type B, but also slower and more expensive. They are currently used in Sony cameras, where they can fit into dual-format SD/CFexpress Type A memory card slots.

A new memory card format that combines the high speeds and high capacities needed for today’s high resolution video capture and high speed stills photography. They are physically identical to the short-lived XQD card format. Indeed, some cameras which used XQD cards have been updated to use CFexpress Type B. There is another, smaller CFexpress Type A variant used on some Sony cameras.

Uncompressed, higher quality video carried over a camera’s HDMI port to an external recorder. ‘Clean HDMI’ is a kind of early precursor to today’s high-quality HDMI output, where cameras can record higher quality video to external storage devices than they can internally to memory cards.

A combination word made up of the process of encoding and decoding video data, where the challenge is to compress large quantities of video capture data into a form that can be easily stored, transmitted and displayed. Many different codecs exist, though some are much more widely used than others, such as the H.264 and H.265 codecs.

In continuous AF (autofocus) mode, the camera continually refocuses all the time you have the shutter button half-pressed or fully-pressed. It's used in continuous shooting mode to keep moving subjects in focus as you follow them with the camera. Continuous AF mode may include subject tracking or predictive autofocus capability.

Most advanced cameras offer a custom settings menu for changing the behavior of the camera's controls to better suit the way you like to work. For example, you might want to change the direction of the control dials, or the order in which bracketed exposures are taken.

The same height as regular 4K UHD video (2160 pixels), but slightly ‘wider’ with a horizontal  resolution of 4096 pixels rather than 3840. It’s not necessarily superior as such, but if your project or work calls for the DCI 4K resolution and aspect ratio rather than 4K UHD, then you need a camera that offers this. Some cameras offer both, but not all. 

Many more advanced/professional cameras have two memory card slots not one. This can provide extra security where photos and video are recorded to both cards at the same time, overflow capacity for when the first card fills up or the separation of one type of file from another, such as RAW files and JPEGs or photos and video.

An autofocus technology developed by Canon that aims to deliver the speed and responsiveness of phase detection autofocus using only the camera sensor and not a separate phase detection sensor. This has many advantages for mirrorless cameras and DSLRs being used in live view mode. Effectively, the photosites on Canon's sensor are split into two, and the two 'halves' can be used to measure the distance of the subject by how much the two halves are 'out of phase'. Other makers have their own on-sensor phase-detection autofocus systems. This eliminates one of the few advantages of DSLR cameras over mirrorless models.

A variation on Canon’s EF DSLR lens mount for its smaller format APC-S models. You can use both full frame EF and APS-C lenses on these cameras, but lenses designed for the EF-S mount can’t be fitted to Canon’s full frame DSLRs.

Lens mount used by Canon for its DSLR cameras. EF mount lenses can be used on both full frame and APS-C format Canon DSLRs, and also on Canon mirrorless cameras via an adapter.

This is the name of the lens mount used by Sony mirrorless cameras. Regular E-mount lenses fit its APS-C format cameras, like the Sony A6500, while FE lenses fit its full-frame mirrorless cameras, including the A7 series and Sony A9. Sony also makes A-mount lenses for its Alpha SLT cameras, but these are not the same.

Extended dynamic range movie mode introduced by Fujifilm to handle high-contrast lighting, extending dynamic range by 200% or 400%. Other higher-end movie cameras have a similar feature. It produces flat-looking footage but with extended data in the shadow and highlight areas and the idea is that you process the video later on a computer (grading) to achieve the finished look. It's the video maker's equivalent of shooting RAW files.

Strictly, Sony uses just one mirrorless lens mount – the E-mount – but many lenses use the designation ‘FE’ in their names to indicate that they are for full frame cameras rather than ‘E’ lenses designed for Sony’s APS-C models.

Some camera lenses have a fixed focus. They either have a small lens aperture which offers extensive near-to-far depth of field or a small sensor which offers the same characteristic. Fixed focus lenses are found on disposable cameras, some action cameras and a few vintage-style ‘body cap’ lenses. 

Lens mount used by Nikon DSLR cameras and a development of its earlier film SLR camera lens mount. Replaced by the Nikon Z mount on Nikon mirrorless cameras.

Shooting a series of identical frames with slightly different focus points with the intention of picking the best one later or, usually, to use ‘focus stacking’ software to merge them into a single image with much more depth of field than can be achieved with a single shot. 

An option in a camera’s continuous shooting mode where the camera will only release the shutter when it’s achieved focus. This can reduce the speed at which frames are captured but should ensure that more are in focus. 

A more modern alternative to the JPEG format which is starting to appear on some camera models. HEIF files offer even better file size compression than JPEGs without sacrificing image quality but can also be saved as 10-bit files (depending on the device) which will be better at survive editing processes without as much degradation.

More advanced type of compact camera which attempts to match the controls and features of a digital SLR or mirrorless camera but in a smaller body. High-end compacts have larger sensors than regular point-and-shoot models and better lenses with wider maximum apertures.

Some cameras have in-built flash memory for storing photos and videos, often in addition to a memory card slot for removable storage. 

IPTC is a standardized system for embedded photo information in digital image files and for use by image cataloging and asset management software. It consists of a series of predefined ‘fields’ for copyright information, keywords, titles, descriptions and more. It’s entirely optional but often useful. 

Most digital photos are shot as JPEG images. This is a universal image file format that uses sophisticated compression to keep the files small and manageable. JPEGs are created by processing the RAW data captured by the camera. Some cameras let you save these RAW files instead. The files are larger and you need to process them later on a computer, but they offer the potential for better quality.

A measurement of temperature in degrees Kelvin that’s used in photography for white balance measurements. For example, where daylight is reckoned to have a color temperature of 5200 degrees Kelvin. Many cameras have an option to set the white balance in Kelvin, as do many photo editors.

The lens mount used by all current Pentax DSLR cameras and a development of the Pentax K bayonet mount used in its later film SLRs. The mount is the same, but some lenses are made for Pentax full frame DSLRs while others are solely for the smaller APS-C format cameras.

39mm screw mount historically used by Leica and many other camera makers as a standardized lens fitting until the wider uptake of bayonet-fit lenses.

Some DSLRs have an LCD status panel on the top plate for basic shooting information, battery life remaining and other items. This uses a high-contrast display with no backlighting to save power, but it can be hard to see in dim light, so there’s usually a backlight switch too.

Used in video to capture a wider brightness and color range with deliberately ‘flat’ looking footage designed to be edited or ‘graded’ later in video editing software. Different camera makers offer their own versions, such as S-log (Sony) and V-log (Panasonic).

A standardized screw fit lens mount size used extensively for SLR film cameras before bayonet fittings took over. Used by Pentax, Practika and others.

A long, narrow memory card format developed by Sony which evolved into a smaller Memory Stick Duo format which could be used, for a time, in Sony cameras alongside regular SD cards in a dual-format card slot. The Memory Stick/Duo format has now been quietly abandoned in favor of regular SD cards and the CFexpress format.

Bayonet lens mount used by Leica M rangefinder cameras to this day, and not to be confused with the L mount mirrorless lens mount used by its mirrorless cameras. Both Leica and some third party makers such as Voigtländer still make lenses in the Leica M mount.

Another term for black and white photography. Some camera makers offer ‘monochrome’ in-camera picture styles, and photographers will often talk about ‘monochrome’ photography.

One of the best-known camera brands, now known mostly for its DSLR and mirrorless camera range and lenses. Along with Canon, it's one of a handful of top brands for both professionals and amateurs.

Early mirrorless camera system launched by Nikon and based around a a 1-inch sensor size smaller than other interchangeable lens formats but with smaller camera bodies and, especially smaller lenses. It did not catch on and was discontinued a little later, though 1-inch sensors are still used today by Sony and Canon in compact camera models.

Sensors produce regular noise, caused by amplifying the signal at high ISOs or when brightening underexposed areas (shadow noise) but they also produce regular random electronic background noise which remains constant, and this is sometimes called the ‘noise floor’. It’s baseline level of noise, and any regular image noise is present on top of this.

The small difference in the relative positions of objects when seen from two slightly different positions. It’s not a problem in cameras with through-the-lens viewing, but is an issue with cameras that have separate ‘direct vision’ type viewfinders. These sometimes have parallax-adjusted framing guides for photographing objects close to the camera.

Immersive style of filming where the viewer feels as if they are seeing things through the photographer’s own eyes in real time, usually with an action camera and a wide angle lens and often with the photographer’s own hands, bike or vehicle in the shot.

A mode where the camera starts recording frames as soon as you half-press the shutter release and keeps recording frames in a kind of ‘rolling buffer’ all the time it stays pressed. When you press the shutter release the rest of the way, the camera incorporates these buffered shots into the burst sequence. You get to record action that has started even before you’ve had time to fully react.

In some branches of photography, notably panoramas and 360 video or VR applications, you’re capturing a circular or spherical scene around the camera. The ‘projection’ is how this is ‘flattened out’ for printing and display. Cartographers mapping the globe have long faced ‘projection’ issues – how to represent a curved space on a flat plane.

As well as saving JPEG photos at different sizes, cameras also offer different quality settings like 'Fine', 'Normal' and 'Basic'. Fine produces the best picture quality and is the one to go for if you can. If your camera shoots RAW files, this is where you'll find the RAW option. When saving images as JPEGs during editing, you'll get a Quality option here too.

Some cameras now let you process RAW images and save them as new JPEG files on the memory card. That might sound a bit pointless when you could shoot JPEGs in the first place, but it does mean you can try out different white balance settings, picture styles and more starting from the saved RAW file.

An effect sometimes created by on-camera flash where the subject’s eyes take on an unnatural red color. It’s caused by the flash illuminating blood vessels on the retina from the same position as the camera lens. Fewer people use on-camera flash these days, most cameras have red eye reduction modes and you can eliminate it in many photo editors too.

A focus mode for continuous shooting where the camera will release the shutter whether or not it has achieved focus on the subject. This can give faster and more consistent continuous shooting frame rates and does not necessarily produce more focus errors.

The lens mount used by Canon’s latest generation of mirrorless cameras. These consist of both full frame and APS-C models, but the lens mount is the same for both, though there are some lenses made specifically for the smaller sensor size.

An image effect common with electronic shutters, as used for both video and stills photography, so that although they offer even higher shutter speeds than mechanical shutters, they too capture image data in 'strips', and while they may offer an exposure time of, say, 1/32,000sec, it actually takes considerably longer for this electronic scanning process to complete. This can only be fixed by so-called global shutters, which capture data from the entire sensor area at once.

The sensors in interchangeable lens cameras are prone to picking up specks of dust which appear as small black spots in your images. Sensors have anti-static coatings and sensor cleaning mechanisms designed to repel and shake off dust particles but they often persist despite this. They can be removed with manual sensor cleaning or by using dust removal tools in software.

A standard color space used widely by displays on smartphones, computers, tablets and other electronic devices. It reproduces a sufficiently wide range of colors to give realistic photographic images and is supported by almost all devices. As color spaces go, it’s a safe and effective ‘lowest common denominator’.

All digital cameras record the time and date and embed it in the photo’s EXIF data. It’s important to set the time and date correctly on the camera because it’s used later on when you want to search for photos on your computer or sort them in chronological order in cataloguing software.

UHS is a new ultra high speed bus (data transfer connection) for SD memory cards. There are two versions: UHS-I and a more advanced UHS-II type. This refers to the physical construction of the card and does not directly indicate its speed. There are speed standards for UHS cards: UHS 1 guarantees a minimum speed of 10MB/s, which is suitable for full HD video recording, and UHS 3 guarantees a minimum transfer speed of 30MB/s, which is what you’d need for 4K video.

A useful feature on most modern cameras where you can charge the battery while it’s still in the camera by connecting its USB port to a USB power supply or a portable power bank.

Pivoting rear screen on a camera which can be flipped out sideways and angled up and down to allow shots to be framed with the camera at high or low viewpoints or from angles where it would be difficult to see the screen or viewfinder normally. Useful for video in particular but also stills photography.

An ‘immersive’ environment you can explore using a VR headset or via an interactive screen display. These are commonly created using computer generated 3D environments, but increasingly photographers are using 360 cameras to capture a spherical rendition of the world with the camera at the center. Viewers can explore 360-degree still images or watch 360 video while choosing where to look in the full 360-degree spherical scene.

The speed at data can be written to, or stored, on a memory card or other storage device. ‘Fast’ memory cards are useful for continuous shooting in sports photography, but the main requirement for memory card speed is in video, where memory cards need to be able to maintain a consistently high write speed. This is why most memory cards now come with a ‘class’ rating for video.

New lens mount used on Nikon mirrorless cameras with a shorter lens flange distance and wider lens throat for a new generation of mirrorless lenses. The mount is the same on both Nikon’s full frame FX format mirrorless models and its DX (APS-C) format models, though some Nikon Z DX lenses are designed specifically for the smaller sensor.

A higher quality video capture setting than the regular 8-bit video capture of most consumer devices. The advantage of 10-bit video is that it will stand up better to any heavy video editing later on in post production. 10-bit video is especially important if you record using ‘log profiles’ to capture a wider color and brightness range.

The HEIF format is relatively new and offers a potentially useful intermediate file format between 8-bit JPEGs and RAW files. The HEIF format is just as efficient as JPEG or better at minimizing file sizes without quality loss, and offers the option of 10-bit capture for increased resilience during editing.

A unique sensor size used by Canon in its PowerShot G1 X II compact camera. It's just a little smaller than the APS-C format used by most DSLRs and larger than the 1 inch sensors used in other high-end PowerShot models, so it gets close to the quality of a good interchangeable lens camera.

These numbers refer to the level of compression of color data when capturing video. 4:2:0 is the highest level of compression producing the smallest and most manageable files and probably perfectly adequate quality when used as-is. 4:2:2 video is captured with less color data compression and may deliver better results, especially if you do any editing later.