WHAT IS PHOTOGRAPHY?

The word photography comes from a Greek word photo meaning light and graphics, meaning sharply defined. Hence the term means, creating sharply defined pictures by light. The word ‘graphos’ in Greek also means ‘drawing’ hence giving the term ‘photography’ a meaning ‘drawing with light.’

Technically, the process of capturing images mechanically on a light sensitive surface is termed as photography. The technique uses the tool ‘camera’ for capturing pictures. This is made possible when the camera directs the light reflected from the object on the surface of the film in case of a SLR camera and CCD in the case of a digital camera. The negative thus produced can be used to produce multiple positives of the same picture.

Creating a photograph involves the consideration of lighting, focus, color, contrast, quality and what can be seen sharply. Controlling these elements with proper precision is what makes an image photographic. But actually a mixture of both art and science is required to create photographs of quality.