A-PEN: Annealed polyethylene naphthalate. A polyester material used as the base on advanced photo system fi
Abbe Number: Denotes the degree of refraction of light of different wavelengths to different extents, given by a
Aberration: The inability of a lens to produce a perfect, sharp image, especially towards the edge of the lens f
Abrasion Marks: Marks on the emulsion surface of a film, caused by scratching. It can be due to traces of dirt trapp
Absolute Released Images: Any images for which signed model or property releases are on file and immediately available.
Absolute Temperature: The temperature at which most molecular movement ceases. It is often referred to as absolute zero (-
Absorption: The process by which light falling on a surface is partially absorbed by the surface.
Abstract: Subjective, non-realistic image. An abstraction photograph generally contains a design of patterns o
Accelerator: Chemical added to a developing solution to speed up the slow working action of the reducing agents i
Acceptable Circle Of Confusion: The size of the largest circle which the eye cannot distinguish from a dot. In 35mm format cameras,
Acceptance Angle: See angle of view.
Accessory Shoe: Metal or plastic fitting on the top of the camera which supports accessories such as viewfinder, ran
Acetate Base: Non-inflammable base support for film emulsions which replaced the highly inflammable cellulose nitr
Acetic Acid: Chemical used for stop baths and to acidify acid fixing solution.
Acetone: Solvent chemical used in certain processing solutions that contain materials not normally soluble in
Achromatic: Lens system that has been corrected for chromatic aberration.
Acid: Chemical substance with a ph value below 7.
Acid Fixing Solutions: Solutions which contain an acid to neutralize any carry-over of alkaline developer on the negative o
Acid Hardener: Substance used in acid fixer to help harden the gelatin of the emulsion.
Acid Rinse: Weak acid solution used after development and before fixation. By neutralizing alkaline developer le
Actinic: The ability of light to cause a chemical or physical change in a substance.
Actinometer: Early type of exposure calculator.
Acuity: Subjective term for the visual sharpness of an image.
Acutance: Objective measurement of image sharpness.
Adapter Ring: Circular mount, available in several sizes, enabling accessories such as filters to be used with len
Additive Color: See additive printing.
Additive Printing: Color printing method which produces an image by giving three separate exposures, each filtered to o
Additive Synthesis: Method of producing full-color images by mixing light of the three primary color wavelengths, blue,
Advanced Photo System (APS): Consumer photography developed by kodak and four other companies - canon, fuji, minolta and nikon .
Aerial Perspective: The distance or depth effect caused by atmospheric haze. Haze creates a large amount of extraneous u
AF Lock: Stops autofocus operation once the subject is in focus. Useful when shooting a subject outside the f
AF Sensor: The sensor used to detect focus.
Afocal Lens: Lens attachment that alters the focal length of the camera lens without disturbing the distance betw
Aftertreatment: The treatment of negatives and prints to correct certain faults in exposure and development, or to c
Agitation: Method by which fresh solution is brought into contact with the surface of sensitive materials durin
Air Bells: Bubbles of air clinging to the emulsion surface during processing.
Air Brushing: Method of retouching b&w or color photographs where dye is sprayed, under pressure, on to selected a
Air-To-Air Photography: Photography of aircraft in flight from another aircraft.
Albert Effect: Effect that creates a reversed image. An exposed frame of film, treated with dilute chromic acid is
Albumen Paper: Printing paper invented by blanquart-evrard in the mid-19th century where egg whites were used to co
Alcohol Thermometer: Instrument used for measuring temperature. It is an inexpensive and less accurate version of the mer
Alkalinity: Denotes the degree of alkali in a solution, measured in ph values. All values above ph 7 are alkalin
Allegory: Work of art that treats one subject in the guise of another. An allegoric photograph usually illustr
Alum: Chemical used in acid hardening fixing baths.
Aluminum Compounds: Groups of chemicals often used as hardeners in fixing baths.
Ambient Light: The available light surrounding a subject. Light already existing in an indoor or outdoor setting th
Ambrotype: Mid-19th century photographic process introduced in 1851-52 by frederick scott archer and peter fry.
Amidol: Soluble reducing agent which works at low ph values.
Ammonium Chloride: Chemical used in toners and bleachers.
Ammonium Persulfate: Chemical used in super-proportional reducers.
Ammonium Sulfide: Pungent but essential chemical in sulfide or sepia toning.
Ammonium Thiosulfate: Highly active fixing agent used in rapid fixing solutions which works by converting unused silver ha
Amphitype: Mid-19th century process based on an underexposed albumen-on-glass negative. This was viewed by refl
Anaglyph: Result of forming stereoscopic pairs from two positives each dyed a different color, usually green o
Analyzer: Chart, grid or electronic instrument used to determine correct color filtration when making color pr
Anamorphic Lens: Lens capable of compressing a wide angle of view into a standard frame.
Anastigmat: Compound lens which has been corrected for the lens aberration 'astigmatism'.
Angle Of Incidence: When light strikes a surface it forms an angle with an imaginary line known as the :normal,' which i
Angle Of View: Is the maximum angle of acceptance of a lens which is capable of producing an image of usable qualit
Angstrom: Unit of measurement used to indicate specific points of wavelengths within the electromagnetic spect
Angular Field: The angle subtended at the lens by the diameter of the largest circle within which the lens gives an
Anhydrous: Dehydrated form of chemical. More concentrated, so that less weight is needed in a formula than the
ANSI: Speed rating system for photographic materials devised by the american national standards institute.
Anti-Fogging Agent: Constituent of a developer that inhibits or reduces fogging during development.
Antihalation Backing: Dye used on the back of most films capable of absorbing light which passes straight through the emul
Antinous Release: Alternate term for a camera cable release.
Antiscreen Plates: Photographic plates containing dyes that reduce the blue sensitivity. Used unfiltered, they can give
Aperture: Circular hole in the front of the camera lens which controls the amount of light allowed to pass on
Aperture Priority Camera: Semi-automatic camera on which the photographer sets the aperture and the camera automatically sets
Aperture Ring: Ring located on the outside of the lens usually behind the focusing ring, which is linked mechanical
Aplanat: Lens which has been corrected for spherical aberration.
Apochromat: Lens corrected for chromatic aberration in all three primary colors.
Apochromatic (APO): The ability to bring all colors of the visible spectrum to a common plane of focus, within close tol
Apodization: Lens treatment designed to cut down diffraction fringes that appear around the images bright points
Aquatint: Etching technique allowing control of tonal areas to produce almost unlimited gradations from pale g
Arc Lamp: Photographic lamp in which light is produced by passing an electric current through two carbon rods.
Archival Permanence Treatments: Various treatments given to prints to make them fade-resistant.
Argentotype: Mid-19th century silver print process, on which the kallitype and sepia paper processes are based.
Aristotype: Early commercial print type made on collodion-chloride or gelatin-chloride paper.
Artificial Daylight: Artificial light having a similar color temperature to daylight.
Artificial Light: All light not originating from a natural source - normally the sun.
Artificial Light Film: Color film balanced for use ion tungsten artificial light, usually 3200 k.
ASA: Original system of rating photographic materials, which was devised by the american standards associ
Aspect Ratio: Ratio of width to height in photographic prints. The ratio is 2:3 in 35 mm pictures which produces p
Aspherical Lens: Lens with a curved, non-spherical surface. Used to reduce aberrations and enable a more compact lens
Aspherical Surface: Lens surface with more than one radius of curvature, i.e. The surface does not form part of a sphere
Assembly Printing: Method of printing using image separations. Yellow, magenta, and cyan films are stacked to make a fi
Assignment: Definite ok to take photos for a specific client with mutual understanding as to the provisions and
Astigmatism: Lens aberration making a single point light source impossible to focus as a true point.
ATA: Term used to describe a camera, which supports the electrical interface standard, defined by the pc
Atmospheric Perspective: Alternative term for aerial perspective.
Audiovisual: Materials such as filmstrips, motion pictures and overhead transparencies which use audio backup for
Autochrome: Early commercial color photography process in which the principles of additive color synthesis were
Autofocus: Device used in certain cameras, projectors and enlargers that focuses the image automatically.
Automatic Aperture: Lens aperture mechanism that stops down to s preset size just as the shutter is fired, afterwards re
Automatic Exposure Control: System of exposure setting in a camera, in which the electric current produced or inhibited by the a
Automatic Iris: Lens diaphragm which is controlled by a mechanism in the camera body coupled to the shutter release.
Automatic Lens: Lens which remains at full aperture whatever working aperture is set, until the shutter is released.
Autowinder: Film wind-on mechanism which moves the film on one frame each time the shutter is released.
AV: See audiovisual.
Available Light: Term applying to light normally occurring in a scene, not supplemented by illumination intended spec
Axis Lighting: Light pointed at the subject from a position close to the lens.
Azo Dyes: Compounds forming colors of great strength and purity. Used in camera filters and integral tripack d
Back Focus: Distance between the back surface of the lens and the image plane, when the lens is focused at infin
Back Printing: Information printed on the back of a picture by the photofinisher. The system standard requires the
Back Projection: Projection system often used to create location backgrounds in the studio.
Back-Lighting: Light coming from behind the subject.
Background: Area shown behind the main subject in a picture.
Background Density: Density of any selection of a negative or print on which there is no image. Also referred to as fog
Backing: Dark coating, normally on the back of a film, but sometimes between emulsion and base, to reduce hal
Bag Bellows: Short flexible sleeve used on large format cameras in place of normal bellows when short focal lengt
Balance: Placement of colors, light and dark masses, or large and small objects in a picture to create harmon
Ball And Socket: Swiveling mount used to attach a camera to a tripod, consisting of a large ball joint designed to mo
Ballistic Photography: Photography of weapons, ammunition and projectiles usually used for analysis.
Barium Sulfate: Compound used in the manufacture of photographic printing paper to give bright white highlights in t
Barn Doors: Accessory used on spotlights and flood lamps to control the direction of light and width of the beam
Barrel Distortion: One of the common lens aberrations, where straight lines at the edge of the field are caused to bend
Baryta: Coating of barium sulfate applied as the foundation to fiber based printing papers.
Base: Support for photographic emulsions. Available in a choice of materials, including paper, cellulose,
Base Exposure Time: Initial exposure time used for making a 'straight' print.
Base-Relief: Photographic image effect usually produced by printing from a negative and a positive sandwiched tog
Baseboard Camera: Portable large format camera with a folding base-board. Allows a limited use of camera movements. Al
Batch Numbers: Set of numbers printed on packages of sensitive materials to indicate common production coating.
Beam Splitter: Mirror and prism system capable of partly reflecting, partly transmitting light.
Belitskis Reducer: Solution used as a chemical reducer for negatives. It consists of ferric potassium citrate or oxalat
Bellows: Light tight, folding sleeve which can be fitted between the lens and the film plane.
Bellows Shutter: Obsolete shutter consisting of a pair of bellows that, when closed together, form a hemisphere enclo
Between The Lens Shutter: Shutter usually placed within the components of a compound lens close to the diaphragm.
Bi-Concave Lens: Simple lens or lens shape within a compound lens, whose surfaces curve toward the optical center. Su
Bi-Convex Lens: Simple lens shape whose surfaces curve outward, away from the optical center. Such a lens causes lig
Bi-Pack: Combination of two films, differently sensitized, but exposed as one.
Bi-Refringence: Splitting of light passing through certain kinds of crystals into two rays at polarized right angles
Bichromate: Refers to potassium bichromate or potassium dichromate, used for bleaching and as a sensitizer for g
Binocular Vision: Visual ability to determine three dimensions. Stereoscopic photography depends on the use of binocul
Bispheric Lens: Lens having different curvatures at the center and the edge, each of which forms part of a sphere. T
Bitumen: Hydro-carbon which hardens by the action of light. It was used by joseph nicephore niepce to produce
Black Silver: Finely divided metallic silver formed from silver halides by exposure and development.
Bleach: Chemical bath capable of rehalogenizing black metallic silver.
Bleach-Out: Method of producing line drawings from photographic images. The photographic is processed in the nor
Bleaching: Stage in most toning, reducing and color processing systems.
Bleed: Term used to describe a picture with no borders, which has been printed to the edge of the paper.
Blocked Up: A portion of an overexposed and/or overdeveloped negative so dense with silver halides that texture
Blocking Out: Method of painting selected areas of a negative with an opaque liquid on the non-emulsion side. Sinc
Blotter: Sheet or sheets of absorbent material made expressly for photographic prints. Wet prints dry flat an
Blowup: Enlargement: a print that is made larger than the negative or slide.
Blue Print: Alternative term for cyanotype.
Blue Sensitive: Sensitive to blue light only. All silver halides used in traditional black and white emulsions are s
Blur: Unsharp image areas, created or caused by subject or camera movement, or by selective or inaccurate
Boom: Adjustable metal arm, attached to a firm stand, on which lighting can be mounted. Some booms are als
Borax: Mild alkali used in fine grain developing solutions to speed up the action of the solution.
Border: Edge of a photographic print - either left white, or printed black.
Boric Acid: Compound used in certain fixers to prolong shier hardening life.
Bounce Light: Light that is directed away from the subject toward a reflective surface.
Box Camera: Simplest type of camera manufactured, and first introduced by george eastman in 1888. It consists of
Bracketing: Technique of shooting a number of pictures of the same subject and viewpoint at different levels of
Brightfield: Method of illumination used in photomicrography which will show a specimen against a white or light
Brightline Viewfinder: Viewfinder in which the subject is outlined by a bright frame, apparently suspended in space. This m
Brightness Range: Subjective term describing the difference in illumination between the darkest and lightest areas of
Brilliance: Intensity of light reflected from a surface. It is sometimes an alternative term for luminosity.
Broad Lighting: Portrait lighting in which the main light source illuminates the side of the face closes to the came
Brometching: Obsolete, special method of producing a bromide print. The result acquired the texture of its suppor
Bromide Paper: Most common type of photographic printing paper. It is coated with an emulsion of silver bromide to
Bromoil Process: Old printing process invented in 1907, consisting of three stages. First, an enlargement is made on
Brownie: Trade name given to early kodak box cameras.
Brush Development: Method of development in which developer is applied to the material with a brush or similar instrume
BSI: Abbreviation for british standards institute.
Bubble Chamber Photography: Method of analyzing the paths of high-speed sub-atomic particles.
Buffer: Chemical substance used to maintain the alkalinity of a developing solution, particularly in the pre
Built-In Meter: Reflective light meter built directly into the camera so that exposures can be easily made for the c
Bulb: See b.
Bulb (B): Letter on the shutter dial indicating that the shutter will stay open while the release is depressed
Bulk Film: Film purchased in long lengths. Used in a bulk camera back or with a bulk film loader.
Burning In: See printing-in.
Butterfly Lighting: Lighting in which the main source of light is -placed high and directly in front of the subject.
C-41: Kodak's standard chemical process for developing color negative film.
C-Print: Any enlargement from a color negative.
Cable Release: Flexible cable used for firing a camera shutter. Particularly useful for slow shutter speeds and tim
Cadmium Sulfide Cell (Cds): Photo-sensitive cell used in exposure meters. Fed by an electric current from a battery, its electri
Callier Effect: Contrast effect in photographic printing caused by the scattering of directional light from an enlar
Calotype Process: First negative/positive process, invented by w.h. fox talbot in 1839. Paper was coated with silver i
Camera Angles: Various positions of the camera with respect to the subject being photographed, each giving a differ
Camera Lucida: Lens and prism system through which a virtual image was seen, apparently appearing on the surface of
Camera Movements: Mechanical systems most common on large format cameras which provide the facility for lens and film
Camera Obscura: Origin of the present day camera. In its simplest form it consisted of a darkened room with a small
Camera Shake: Movement of the camera caused by an unsteady hold or support. It is a major cause of un-sharp pictur
Canada Balsam: Liquid resin with a refractive index similar to glass. It is used for bonding elements in compound l
Candela: Unit which expresses the luminous intensity of a light source.
Candid Pictures: Unposed pictures of people and animals, often taken without the subject's knowledge. These usually a
Candle Meter: Also known as a lux and defined as the illumination measured on a surface at a distance of one meter
Candle Meter Second: Unit of illumination related to exposure time, more often referred to as one lux-second.
Capacitor: Device that builds and stores electrical charges. Used in electronic flash and some forms of electro
Capping Shutter: Extra shutter used in some medium format cameras or in conjunction with a group of extreme high spee
Carbon Arc: See arc lamp.
Carbon Process: Contact printing process, introduced in 1866, using tissue coated with pigmented gelatin. The paper
Carbon Tetrachloride: Liquid used for removing grease and finger prints from negatives.
Carbro Process: Early color print process using an adaptation of the carbon printing process.
Carrier: Frame that holds a negative flat for enlarging.
Carte-De-Visite: Portrait photograph on a mount about the size of a postcard. Introduced in 1854, carte-de-visite bec
Cartridge: Quick loading film container. Pre-packed and sealed by the manufacturer.
Cassette: Light tight metal or plastic container holding measured lengths of 35mm or medium format film, which
Cast: Overall bias toward one color in a color photograph.
Catadioptric Lens: See mirror lens.
Catchlight: Reflection of a light source in the subjects eyes.
Cathode Ray Tube: Evacuated bulb of glass containing pairs of plates between which electrodes pass.
Caustic Potash: High alkaline used in high contrast developing solutions to promote vigorous development. Highly cor
Caustic Soda: See caustic potash.
CC Filter: Abbreviation for color compensating filter.cc filters are designed primarily for introducing or corr
CCD: Electronic sensor used by all autofocus cameras, capable of detecting subject contrast.
Centigrade: Scale of temperature in which the freezing point of water is equal to 0° and boiling point to 100°
Changing Bag: Opaque fabric bag, which is light tight and inside sensitive materials may be handled safely.
Characteristic Curve: Performance graph showing the relationship between exposure and density under known developing condi
Chemical Focus: Point at which a lens brings the actinic rays to focus. In a modern fully corrected lens, chemical a
Chemical Fog: Even, overall density on film or paper. It is exaggerated by over-development.
Chemical Reducer: See reducers.
Chemical Vapor: Method of exposing negatives in a closed container to a small amount of mercury of sulfur dioxide. A
Chiaroscuro: Light and shade effect. The way in which objects can be emphasized by patches of light, or obscured
Chlorhydroquinone: Developing agent contained in warm tone developers.
Chloride Paper: Printing paper with a silver chloride emulsion. Much less sensitive than bromide paper. Mainly used
Chlorobromide Paper: Photographic paper coated with an emulsion made up of both silver chloride and silver bromide. Used
Chlorquinol: Alternate term for chlorhydroquinone.
Chromatic Aberration: Inability of a lens to bring light from the same subject plane but of different wavelengths to a com
Chromaticity: Objective measurement of the color of an object or light source.
Chromatype: Early type of extremely slow paper used for contact printing.
Chrome Alum: Alternative term for potassium chromium sulfate.
Chromogenic Development: Process in which the oxidation products of development combine with color couplers to form dyes duri
Chromogenic Materials: Color photographic materials which form dyes during processing.
Chronocyclograph: Photograph used for the analysis of complex cyclic movements.
Chronophotography: Technique pioneered by eadweard muybridge, for recording objects in motion by taking photographs at
Cibachrome: Color printing process that produces color prints directly from color slides.
CIE Standard: System of standards adopted by the commission internationale de i'eclairage, allowing accurate descr
Circle Of Confusion: Disks of light on the image, formed by the lens from points of light in the subject. The smaller the
Clayden Effect: Desensitizing of an emulsion by means of exposure to a strong, brief flash of light.
Clear-Spot Focusing: Method of lens focusing achieved by examining the image through a transparent area in a specific pla
Clearing Agent: Processing solution used to remove stains or to cancel out the effect of chemicals left on the sensi
Clearing Time: Length of time needed for a negative to clear in a fixing solution.
Cliche-Verre: Designs painted on glass in varnish or oil paint, or scratched into the emulsion of a fogged and pro
Click-Stops: Lens aperture controls using a series of bearings that click audibly into place at each numbered set
Clip Test: Short sample of film, cut from the main exposed roll, used to determine the appropriate development
Close-Up: General term for an image of a close subject, i.e. Filling the frame.
Close-Up Attachment: Accessory that enables a camera to focus on subjects nearer than the lens normally allows.
Close-Up Lens: See close-up attachment.
CMYK: Abbreviation for cyan, magenta, yellow and black. It is the colors used in a four color printing pro
Coated Lens: Lens with air-glass surfaces which have been coated with magnesium fluoride to reduce lens flare.
Coherent Light: Light waves that vibrate with constant phase relationships. They can be produced by a laser or a com
Coincidence Rangefinder: See rangefinder.
Cold Cathode Illumination: Low temperature fluorescent light source common in many diffuser enlargers, which is inclined to red
Cold Colors: Colors at the blue end of the spectrum that suggest a cool atmosphere.
Cold-Light Enlarger: Enlarger using cold cathode illumination. A diffusion type of enlarger. These types of enlarger head
Collage: Composition employing various different materials combined with original artwork attached to some ty
Collodion: Soluble gun-cotton, dissolved in a mixture of ether and alcohol.
Collodion Process: Also known as 'wet collodion' was invented by frederick scott archer in 1851-52. It was a great impr
Color Balance: Adjustment in color photographic processes ensuring that a neutral scale of gray tones is reproduced
Color Balancing Filters: Filters used to balance color film with the color temperature of the light source and prevent the fo
Color Circle: Chart of spectrum hues presented as a circle.
Color Compensatory Filters: Pale colored filters used to warm or cool subject colors.
Color Contrast: Subjective judgment on the apparent luminous difference or intensity of two colors when placed close
Color Conversion Filter: See cc filters.
Color Developer: Developer designed to reduce exposed silver halides of black silver and at the same time create oxid
Color Development: Chemical treatment in the color processing cycle that produces the colored dye image.
Color Head: Enlarger illumination system that has built-in adjustable filters for color printing.
Color Masking: Pink or orange mask built into color negative film to improve final reproduction on the print.
Color Mixing: Practical application of either additive or subtractive color synthesis.
Color Negative: Film designed to produce color image with both tones and colors reversed for subsequent printing to
Color Reversal: Film designed to produce a normal color positive image on the film exposed in the camera for subsequ
Color Saturation: Purity or strength of color, due to the absence of black, white or gray.
Color Sensitivity: Response of a sensitive material to colors of different wavelengths.
Color Sensitometry: Method of determining the sensitivity of color materials.
Color Separation: Process of photographic an image through filters to produce three black and white negatives that rep
Color Synthesis: Combinations of colored light or dye layers that will collectively produce a colored image.
Color Temperature: Way of expressing the color quality of a light source. The color temperature is measured in kelvin (
Color Temperature Meter: Device for measuring the color temperature of a light source.
Color Toning: System of changing the color of a black and white photograph by converting black metallic silver int
Color Weight: Visual characteristic of fully saturated colors. Some of these colors appear darker than others. A c
Coma: Lens aberration producing asymmetrical distortion of points in the image.
Combination Printing: Producing a composite image by printing more than one negative on a single sheet of paper.
Compact Camera: Camera designed to allow easy portability or concealment.
Compensating Developer: Developer designed to compress the general contrast range in a negative without influencing gradatio
Compensating Positive: Image on translucent material that can be printed together with the negative of the same image. When
Complementary Color: Color of light which, when combined with another specified color in the correct proportions, will fo
Completion: State of development when all the exposed silver halides have been reduced to metallic silver, and t
Composite Printing: Alternative term for combination printing.
Composition: Visual arrangement of all the elements in a photograph.
Compound Lens: Lens system consisting of two or more elements. Compound lens designs can allow the lens designer to
Compound Shutter: Shutter consisting of a number of metal leaves arranged symmetrically around the edge of the lens ba
Compur Shutter: Well known german brand of compound shutter.
Concave Lens: See bi-concave lens.
Condenser: Optical system which concentrates light rays from a wide source into a narrow beam. Condensers are u
Condenser Enlarger: Enlarger with a sharp, undiffused light that produces high contrast and high definition in a print.
Cones: Sensory organs on the retina of the eye, allowing color vision.
Constructivism: Art movement that begun in russia c. 1913. Characterized by the use of everyday materials in abstrac
Contact Paper: Printing paper used only for contact printing. It is usually coated with a silver chloride emulsion
Contact Print: Negative sized photograph made by exposing printing paper in direct contact with the negative.
Contact Printer: Apparatus used for making contact prints. Equipment ranges from a contact printing frame to more sop
Contact Screen: Type of half-tone screen in which the dots consist of slightly unsharp halos. Used to make half-tone
Contamination: Traces of chemicals that are present where they don't belong.
Continuous Tone: Term applied to monochrome negatives and prints, where the image contains a gradation of density fro
Contour Film: Special print film producing a equidensity line image from a continuous tone negative or print.
Contrast: Subjective judgment of the difference between densities or luminosities and their degree of tonal se
Contrast Filters: Filters used in black and white photography to darken or lighten the films rendition of particular c
Contrast Grade: Numbers (usually 1-5) and names (soft, medium, hard, extra-hard, and ultra hard) of the contrast gra
Contrast Values: Perceived difference between the light areas (highlights) and the dark areas (shadows) of a scene. T
Contrasty: Negative, print or scene with great differences between the highlights and shadows.
Contre-Jour: Backlighting. A photograph taken with the camera pointed directly at the light source.
Converging Lens: See convex lens.
Convertible Lens: Compound lens made in two sections, the elements of which are arranged so that when one part is unsc
Convex Lens: Simple lens which causes rays of light from a subject to converge and form an image.
Cooke Triplet: One of the most important lenses in lens history, designed by h.d. taylor in 1893. It consists of th
Copper Chloride: Chemical contained in certain bleaches, toners, intensifiers, and reducers.
Copper Sulfate: Chemical contained in certain bleaches, toners, intensifiers, and reducers.
Copper Toning: Chemical process used for toning monochrome prints. See toners.
Copyright Laws: Laws which govern the legality of ownership of a particular photographer or piece of work.
Correction Filter: Filter which alters the color rendition of a scene to suit the color response of the eye.
Coupled Rangefinder: System of lens focusing which combines the rangefinder and the focusing mechanism, so that the lens
Coupler: Chemical present in different forms in all three layers of substantive color or a chemical incorpora
Covering Power: Maximum area of image of usable quality, which a lens will produce.
Coving: Plain curved background which has no edges, corners or folds and gives the impression of infinity.
CP Filters: Abbreviation for color printing filters.
Critical Aperture: Setting at which a lens gives its best performance. The setting offers the best compromise between d
Cronographic Camera: Camera used to photograph the sun.
Cropping: Omitting parts of an image when making a print or copy negative in order to improve the composition
Cross Front: Camera movement which allows the lens to be moved laterally from its original position.
Crossed Polarization: System of using two polarizing filters, one over the light source and one between the subject and th
Crown Glass: Low dispersion optical glass.
Cubism: Early twentieth century european art movement characterized by the rendering of forms as simplified
Curvature Of Field: Lens aberration causing a curved plane of focus.
Curvilinear Distortion: Combination of barrel distortion and pincushion distortion.
Cut Film: Negative film available in flat sheets. The most common sizes are 4x5, and 8x10 inches.
Cyan: Blue-green subtractive primary color which absorbs red and transmits blue-green.
Cyanotype: Contact printing process producing a blue image on a white background.
Daguerreotype: First practical and commercial photographic process, introduced by louis daguerre in 1839. The sensi
Darkcloth: Cloth made of dark material placed over the photographers head and the camera back to facilitate the
Darkfield: Method of illumination used in photomicography that will show a specimen against a dark or black bac
Darkroom: Light tight room used for processing and printing. It usually incorporates safe lighting suitable fo
Darkslide: Slide-in plastic sheet used on sheet film cameras over the front of the film holder to protect the e
Daylight Color Film: Color film intended for use with daylight or a light source of similar temperature. The film is colo
Daylight Enlarger: Early type of enlarger using light from a hole in a window to provide illumination of the negative.
Daylight Tank: Light tight container for film processing.
Dedicated Flash: Flash gun designed to integrate automatically into a cameras exposure reading and shutter circuitry.
Definition: Subjective term for the clarity of a negative or print.
Delayed Action: Operation of the shutter some time after the release is depressed. Most shutters have a delayed acti
Dense: Describes a negative or an area of a negative in which a large amount of silver has been deposited.
Densitometer: Instrument for measuring the density of silver deposits on a developed image by transmitted or refle
Density: Amount of silver deposit produced by exposure and development. It is measured in terms of the logari
Depth Of Field: Distance between the nearest point and the farthest point in the subject which is perceived as accep
Depth Of Field Scale: Scale on a lens barrel showing the near and far limits of depth of field possible when the lens is s
Depth Of Focus: Distance which the film plane can be moved while maintaining an acceptably sharp image without refoc
Desensitizing: Reducing an exposed emulsion's sensitivity to light. This can be done by the application of dyes or
Detective Camera: Popular victorian camera which was designed to appear as a bowler hat, pocket watch or binoculars.
Developer: Chemical bath containing reducing agents, which converts exposed silver halides to black metallic si
Development: Process of converting exposed silver halides to a visible image.
Diaphragm: Term used to describe the adjustable aperture of a lens. It controls the amount of light passing int
Diaphragm Shutter: Between the lens camera shutter that performs the function of the iris diaphragm.
Diapositive: Positive image produced on a transparent support for viewing by transmitted light, i.e. Transparency
Diazo: Abbreviation of diazonium compounds, which decompose under the action of intense blue or ultraviolet
Dichroic: Displaying two colors - one by transmitted and one by reflected light.
Dichroic Filters: Produced by metallic surface coatings on glass to form colors by interference of light. Used in high
Dichroic Fog: Purple-green bloom usually seen on negatives and caused by the formation of silver in the presence o
Differential Focusing: Setting the camera controls to produce minimum depth of field, so that image sharpness is limited to
Diffraction: Light rays scattered and change direction when they are passed through a small hole or close to an o
Diffraction Grating: Optical attachment that separates light into its constituent colors.
Diffuse Lighting: Lighting that is low or moderate in contrast, such as on an overcast day.
Diffuser: Any material that can scatter or diffuse light. The effect is to soften the character of light. The
Diffusing: Process of softening detail in a print with a diffusion disk or other material that scatters light.
Diffusion Condenser Enlarger: Enlarger that combines diffuse light with a condenser system, producing more contrast and sharper de
Diffusion Enlarger: Enlarger that scatters light before it strikes the negative, distributing light evenly on the negati
Dilution: Reduction in the strength of a liquid by mixing it with an appropriate quantity of water.
Dimensional Stability: Substance's ability to remain unchanging in size when subjected to processing and drying.
DIN: Deutsche industrie norm (german standards organization).
DIN Speed: System used by the german standards organization.
Diopter: Unit used to express the power of a lens. It is the reciprocal of the focal length expressed in mete
Direct Vision Viewfinder: Sighting device with which the subject is viewed directly, without the aid of a prism or mirror.
Discharge Lamp: Light source that provides illumination when an electrical charge is applied to gas particles in a g
Dish Development: Method of development used for processing single sheet, cut film or paper by immersing in a shallow
Dispersion: Ability of glass to bend light rays of deferent wavelengths to varying degrees.
Distance Symbols: Symbols used on the focus control of simple cameras, as a focusing guide.
Distortion: Alteration in shape and/or proportions of an image.
Diverging Lens: Lens which causes rays of light coming from the subject to bend away from the optical axis.
Documentary Photography: Taking of photographs to provide a record of social and political situations with the aim of conveyi
Dodging: Control of exposure in photographic printing achieved by reducing exposure to specific areas of the
Dolly: Frame with lockable wheels, designed to support s tripod, and allow easy movement around a studio.
Double Exposure: See multiple exposure.
Double Extension: Characteristic of large format cameras which enables the bellows to be extended to twice that of the
Drop-In-Loading: Feature in all advanced photo system cameras that virtually eliminates film-loading problems by auto
Dry Down: Refers to the amount a print darkens after drying.
Dry Mounting: Method of attaching prints to mounting surfaces by heating shellac tissue between the mount and the
Dry Plates: Term used to describe gelatin coated plates in the days when wet collodion process was still popular
Drying Cabinet: Vented cabinet equipped with suspension clips for drying films.
Drying Marks: Marks on the film emulsion caused by uneven drying and resulting in areas of uneven density, which m
DX Coding: Method, whereby films can automatically set the film iso speed.
Dyad: Pair of complementary colors or any two colors considered visually harmonious.
Dye Coupling: Process creating a colored image from the reaction between by-products of color development and coup
Dye Destruction Process: Method of producing a colored image by partially bleaching fully formed dye layers incorporated in t
Dye Sensitizing: Defined as all silver halides used in black & white emulsions are sensitive to blue light. Early pho
Dye Transfer Print: Method of producing color prints via three color separation negatives. Negatives are used to make po
Dye-Image Monochrome Films: Black & white negative films designed for color processing.
Dynamism: Picture structuring which relates to a sense of movement and action.
E6: Kodak's standard chemical process for developing ektachrome or compatible slide films.
Easel: Device to hold photographic paper flat during exposure, usually equipped with an adjustable metal ma
Eberhard Effect: Border effect occurring in a developed image. It appears as a dense line along an edge of high densi
Edge Numbers: Reference numbers printed by light at regular intervals along the edge of 35mm and roll films during
Effective Aperture: Diameter of the bundle of light rays striking the first lens element that actually pass through the
EIS: Electronic image stabilizer. A feature that minimizes effect of camera shake.
Electroluminescence: Conversion of electric energy directly into visible light.
Electronic Flash: Artificial lighting produced by an electronic discharge in a gas filled tube. A single tube can prod
Electronic Shutter: Shutter system timed by electronic rather than mechanical means.
Electrophotography: Creation of images by alteration to the electrical properties of the sensitive material as a result
Element: Single lens shaped piece of glass that forms part of a compound lens system.
Elon: Another term for methylaminophenol sulfate. It is more commonly known as metol.
Emulsion: Light sensitive material which consists of a suspension of silver halides in gelatin.
Emulsion Side: Side of the film coated with emulsion.
Endoscope: Optical device allowing the viewing and photography of small inaccessible subjects.
Enhanced Back Printing: Advanced photo system feature available in some cameras that enables users to encode detailed inform
Enlargement: Term used to describe a print larger than the negative used to produce it.
Enlargement Ratio: Ratio denoting the amount of linear (not area) enlargement between a print and the negative from whi
Enlarger: Apparatus for producing prints by projecting a negative or transparency on sensitive paper.
Enprint: Small enlarged print, with dimensions of a fixed ration, produced commercially in an automatic print
Entrance Pupil: Size of the beam of light which, entering the elements of a compound lens that are in front of the a
Equivalent Focal Length: Distance in a lens between the front nodal point and the focal plane when the lens is set to focus a
Etch: Process of removing small imperfections in a print or negative by scraping away part of the emulsion
Etching: Dissolving away selected areas of a surface while shielding the other portions with a resistant. The
Ever-Ready Case: Camera case that can be opened, allowing the camera to be used without removing it. A front flap hin
Everset Shutter: Simple camera shutter mechanism on which a single depression of the release both tensions and fires
Exit Pupil: Image of the iris diaphragm formed on the back surface of a compound lens by the elements behind the
Expiry Date: Date stamp on most film boxes indicating the useful life of the material in terms of maintaining its
Exposure: Product of the intensity of light and the time the light is allowed to act on the emulsion (i x t =
Exposure Index: See speed.
Exposure Latitude: Amount by which it is possible to over or underexpose a light sensitive material and, with standard
Exposure Meter: Instrument for measuring the amount of light falling on or being reflected by a subject.
Exposure Value (EV): Scale of values used to indicate the sensitivity range of a ttl or off-camera meter system within wh
Extension Bellows: Device used to provide the additional separation between lens and film required for close-up photogr
Extension Tubes: Metal or plastic tubes used on small format cameras, to extend lens-to-film distance, enabling magni
Extinction Meter: Early type of exposure calculator.
F Numbers: Numbers on the lens barrel indicating the size of the aperture relative to the focal length of the l
F Stop: Number that equals the focal length of the lens divided by the diameter of the aperture.
Factor: Number that tells how many times exposure must be increased in order to compensate from loss of ligh
Fahrenheit Scale: Scale of temperature named after its german originator, g. D. Fahrenheit. On this scale, the freezin
False Attachment: Part of one object seen behind another so that lines, shapes or tones seem to join up. A composition
Farmers Reducer: Used for bleaching negatives and prints.
Farraday Shutter: High-speed shutter using a pair of crossed polarizers, between which is a glass block within a coil.
Fast Film: Film which has an emulsion that is very sensitive to light. These films have high iso ratings.
Fast Lens: Lens with a wide maximum aperture (low f number).
Ferric Chloride: Bleaching solution used on negative materials.
Ferrotype Process: Method of creating direct positive images with dark enameled metal plates as a base. Also known as t
Fiber Based Paper: Photographic paper without a resin coating. Processing times are longer than for other papers, but t
Field Camera: Sheet film camera suitable for use in location work.
Fill Light: Source of illumination that lightens shadows. See fill-in.
Fill-In: Light used to illuminate the shadow areas of a scene.
Film: Photographic material consisting of a thin transparent plastic base coated with a light sensitive em
Film Characteristic Curve: Describes a graphical relationship between the logarithm of the exposure value (horizontal axis) and
Film Clips: Metal or plastic clips used to prevent the curling of a length of drying film.
Film Holder: Light tight container to hold sheet film.
Film Pack: Container holding several sheets of film, so devised that when fitted to the camera the photographer
Film Plane: Plane at the back of the camera across which the film lies.
Film Speed: See speed.
Filter Factor: Number by which an unfiltered exposure reading must be multiplied to give the same effective exposur
Filters: Colored glass, gelatin or plastic disks, which modify the light passing through them, mainly in term
Finality Development: Prolonged development, reducing silver halides affected by light to silver until no further image de
Finder: Abbreviation for viewfinder.
Fine Grain Developers: Film developers which help to keep grain size in the photographic image to a minimum.
Fisheye Lens: Extreme wide-angle lens with an angle of view exceeding 100° and sometimes in excess of 180°. Dept
Fixation: Chemical bath which converts unused halides to a soluble silver complex in both negatives and prints
Fixed Focal Length: Camera system whose lens cannot be interchanged for a lens of different focal length.
Fixed Focus: Lens camera system that has no method of focusing on a fixed point, usually at the hyperfocal distan
Fixer: Chemical solution used for fixation.
Flare: Non-image forming light scattered by the lens or reflected from the camera interior.
Flash: Artificial light source giving brief but very bright illumination. It is produced by a combination o
Flash Bulb: Replaceable bulb for use in expendable flash units. A glass bulb contains a pyrotechnic wire or past
Flash Cube: Obsolete bulb containing four small flash bulbs built into a single unit.
Flash Factor: Number which provides a guide to correct exposure when using flash. See also guide number.
Flash Powder: Chemical powder consisting of a mixture of metallic magnesium and an oxidizing agent. Ignited by hea
Flash Synchronization: Method of synchronizing flash light duration with maximum shutter opening. There are usually two set
Flashing: Briefly and evenly exposing photographic materials to white light.often used to lower contrast of pr
Flat: Used to describe a negative or print with very low contrast.
Flat Gradation: Subjective term used to describe low-contrast values.
Flat Lighting: Lighting that produces very little contrast or modeling on the subject and a minimum of shadows.
Flat-Bed Camera: Camera designed for copying artwork and documents. Mounted on a vertical column, like an enlarger, a
Floating Elements: One or more elements in a lens which adjust position relative to other components during focusing or
Floodlight: Artificial light source with a dish shaped reflector and a 125-500+ watt tungsten filament lamp prod
Fluorescent Whites: Brilliant highlights produced by applying a fluorescent agent to a printing paper base. The print ca
Focal Length: Distance between the rear nodal point of the lens and the focal plane, when the focus is at infinity
Focal Plane: Imaginary line perpendicular to the optical axis which passes through the focal point. It forms the
Focal Plane Shutter: Shutter which lies just in front of the focal plane. Light sensitive film positioned at the focal pl
Focal Point: Point of light on the optical axis where all rays of light from a given subject meet at a common poi
Focus: Position in which rays of light from a lens converge to form a sharp image.
Focus Range: Range within which a camera is able to focus on the selected picture subject.
Focusing: System of moving the lens in relation to the image plane so as to obtain the required degree of shar
Focusing Cloth: Dark cloth used in view camera photography.
Focusing Hood: Light proof cowl used on tlr and most roll film slr cameras to prevent extraneous light falling on t
Focusing Magnifier: Device to magnify the optical image and aid visual focusing.
Focusing Scale: Scale of distances marked on a lens focusing ring.
Focusing Screen: Ground glass screen fixed to the camera at the image-forming plane, enabling the image to be viewed
Fog Level: Density formed in unexposed areas of film or paper during processing.
Fogging (Fog): Produces an overall veil of density on a negative or print, which does not form part of the image. I
Foreground: Area in an image closer than the main subject.
Format: Size of negative paper or camera viewing area.
Frame: 1. Single exposure on a roll of film. 2. Viewfinder image boundary. 3. Decorative border applied to
Frames Per Second (Fps): Used to describe how many frames can a motor drive or winder handle automatically.
Free Working Distance: Distance between the front of the lens and the subject.
Fresnel Lens: Condenser lens used on a spotlight to gather together the rays of light coming from a source and dir
Fresnel Magnifier: Condenser lens used at the center of some ground glass viewing screens to aid focusing.
Frilling: Wrinkling and separation of the emulsion along the edges of its support material.
Front Curtain Synchronization: When the flash fires an instant after the front curtain of a focal plane shutter has completed its t
Front Element Focusing: System of lens focusing in which only the front component of a compound lens moves backward and forw
Front Projection: Method of projection which allows you to combine a figure in a studio with a previously photographed
Full Scale Print: Print having a wide range of tonalities.
Futurism: Art movement started in italy c. 1910, characterized by an aggressive rejection of tradition, and th
G Curve: Average gradient of a characteristic curve, describing similar characteristics to gamma, but measuri
Galvanography: Technique of electroplating a gelatin relief image created photographically to produce a photomechan
Gamma: Measurement used in sensitometry to describe the angle made between the straight line portion of the
Gelatin: Natural protein used as a transparent medium to hold light sensitive silver halide crystals in suspe
Gelatin Filters: Filters cut from dyed gelatin sheets and held in front of the lens or studio light.
Gelatin Sugar Process: Daylight printing process using paper with a sugar and dichromate coating, which hardens on exposure
Ghost Images: Bright spots of light, often taking the shape of the aperture, which appear in the camera viewfinder
Glaze: Glossy surface produced on some (non resin coated) printing papers. It is achieved by placing a wet
Glazer: Machine on which wet fiber base prints are placed face down in contact with a polished surface, such
Glossy Paper: Printing paper with a smooth shiny surface finish to give maximum detail and tonal range.
Gold Chloride: Soluble chemical used in gold toners.
Gold Mean: Compositional technique used to determine the 'ideal' position of the main subject in the frame. It
GOST: Arithmetical system of rating film speed used in soviet bloc countries.
Gradation: Tonal contrast range of an image.
Grade: System of terms and numbers used to denote the contrast characteristics of black and white printing
Graduate: Vessel used for measuring liquids.
Graduated Filter: Filter with a colored section, which gradually reduces in density toward the center of the filter. T
Grain: Clumps of silver-halide grains in film and paper that constitute the image. These grains are produce
Graininess: Clumps of silver halide crystals in the emulsion which are visible to the human eye because of space
Grains: Exposed and developed silver halides which have formed black metallic silver grains, producing the v
Granularity: Objective term describing the amount that silver halide grains have clumped together within the emul
Gray Card: Card with an 18 percent gray tint (reflectance) used to determine exposure by taking a meter reading
Ground Glass Screen: Translucent glass sheet used for viewing and focusing the image on all large format and some reflex
Guide Number: Term sometimes used to describe a flash factor, which provides a guide to correct exposure when usin
Gum Arabic: Water soluble gum obtained from the acacia tree and used in coatings of a number of photographic pro
Gum Bichromate: Contact printing process once very popular for the manipulative, impressionistic effects it makes po
Gum Platinum Process: Combination of gum and platinum printing.
Gyroscopic Camera Mount: Device employing a gyroscope to help stabilize hand held cameras subject to movement or vibration fr
Halation: Diffused ring of light typically formed around small brilliant highlight areas in the subject. It is
Half: Silvered mirror is a glass sheet evenly coated with a substance which transmits part of the light in
Half-Frame: Negative format of 18 x 24mm. Images are recorded on a vertical axis on standard 35mm film, thus giv
Half-Frame Camera: Camera designed to use 35mm film in a half-frame format.
Half-Plate: Picture format measuring 4 ¾ x 6 ½ inches. Some early cameras produced negatives of this size.
Halftone: Mechanical process for printing continuous tone images in ink.
Halogens: Collective term for the elements chlorine, bromine and iodine, which are combined with silver to pro
Halogens: A group of chemical elements. In photography, three of these, bromine, chlorine and iodine are used
Hand Coloring: Process of applying color tints, in the form of paint, to a photographic image to create or enhance
Hanger: Frame for holding sheet film for processing.
Hard: Defines a scene, negative or print with high contrast.
Hard Gradation: Term denoting the quality of harsh contrast in a photograph.
Hardeners: Chemicals often used with a fixing bath to strengthen the physical characteristics of an emulsion. T
Heat Filter: Optical attachment made of thick infrared absorbing glass, used to absorb heat radiation from alight
Heliography: Early photographic process invented by niepce, employing a polished pewter plate coated with bitumen
Herschel Effect: The destruction of an exposed image by infrared radiation.
Hide: Camouflaged barrier used by natural history and wildlife photographers.
High Art Photography: General term for an early form of artistic photography (1851-1870), in which photographers set out t
High Contrast Developer: Solutions used to produce high contrast images.
High Key: Photograph which contains large areas of light tones, with few middle tomes or shadows.
Highlights: The brightest ares of the subject, represented on a negative by dense deposits of black metallic sil
Hill Cloud Lens: Lens with a 180° angle of view, used for photographing cloud formations and other meteorological wo
Holding Back: 1. Shortening the development time given to film to help reduce image contrast. 2. Method of decreas
Holography: System of photography, using neither a camera not lens, in which laser beams create an interference
Horizon: Line at which earth and sky appear to meet. Its position, which can be altered by titling the camera
Hot Shoe: Fitting on the top of many cameras designed to hold accessories, such as a flash gun.
Hot Spot: Often undesirable concentration of the central beam of a flood or spotlight on the subject.
Hue: Name of the color (e.g. Red, blue, yellow).
Hydrobromic Acid: Acid liberated during the developing process by the reduction of bromide.
Hydrochloric Acid: Chemical used in some bleaching solutions.
Hydrogen Peroxide: Chemical used in hypo clearing agents.
Hydroquinone: Reducing agent. It is used in developers to provide high contrast results in the presence of a stron
Hyperfocal Distance: Distance between the camera and the hyperfocal point.
Hyperfocal Point: Nearest point to the camera which is considered acceptably sharp when the lens is focused on infinit
Hypersensitizing: Method of increasing the light sensitivity of a photographic emulsion prior to exposure.
Hypo: Common name for a fixing agent, derived from an abbreviation of hyposulfite of soda, the misnomer ap
Hypo Eliminator: Chemical bath which removes traces of fixing agent from an emulsion.
I Setting: Mark found on some cheap box cameras which indicates an instantaneous shutter speed of approximately
Ideal Format: Film format in the proportion of 4 to 3, e.g. 6 x 4.5cm. This ratio is considered the ideal shape by
IF (Internal Focusing): System in which only the internal lens group shifts during focusing. If benefits include focusing wi
Illuminance: Term quantifying the illumination of, or incident light falling on a surface.
Image: Two dimensional representation of a real object, produced by focusing rays of light.
Image Plane: Plane commonly at right angles to the optical axis at which a sharp image of the subject is formed.
Impressionism: Art movement in which painters broke away from the techniques of continuous brushstrokes and clearly
Incident Light: Light falling on a surface, as opposed to reflected by it.
Incident Light Attachment: Accessory for a hand held exposure meter which allows it to give incident light readings. Many model
Incident Light Reading: Measurement, by light meter, of the amount of incident light falling upon a subject. The light meter
Indicator Chemical: Neutral chemical which can be added to a sample of a solution to indicate its ph level or the presen
Infectious Development: Development action which occurs in processing 'lith' materials. The oxidation of hydroquinone produc
Infinity: In photographic terms is a distance great enough to be unaffected by finite variations. In practice
Infrared: Rays that occur beyond the red end of the electro-magnetic spectrum and are invisible to the human e
Infrared Compensation Index: Used to compensate the focus for black and white infrared film. Color ir film generally does not req
Infrared Focus: See ir setting.
Instamatic Camera: Compact camera popular in the 1960s and 70s with very simple controls, taking 126 film and yielding
Instant Picture Camera: Camera, usually with simple controls, producing a finished photographic print within minutes of the
Integral Tri-Pack: Three emulsions, usually of different character, coated on the same film base. The system is used ma
Integrating: Term used to describe a method of arriving at an exposure setting by taking an average of the light
Intensification: Chemical method of increasing the density of the photographic image. It is only suitable for treatin
Intensity Scale: Exposure scale in which the time of exposure remains constant but the intensity of light increases i
Interchangeable Lens System: System of lenses of different focal lengths made to fit the same camera body.
Interference: Interaction of light waves when they meet and either reinforce or cancel each other (e.g. Holograms)
Interleaving: Method of agitating more than one sheet of photographic paper in the same tray of chemicals.
Intermittency Effect: States that, a number of short, separate exposures will not produce the same photographic result whe
Internegative: Negative made on special color film designed for making copy prints from color slides.
Intersection Of Thirds: Compositional technique whereby the image area is divided horizontally and vertically into equal thi
Interspersed Aspect Ratio: Basic requirement of certified photofinishers and certified photo finishing equipment. It specifies
Inverse Square Law: States that, when the light source is a point, illumination on a surface is inversely proportional t
Inverted Telephoto Lens: Lens construction which gives a short focal length with a long back focus or lens-film distance. It
Iodine: Chemical used in reducers and bleachers.
IR Setting: Mark usually in red, found on many camera lens mounts. It indicates the focus change required for in
Iris Diaphragm: Continuously adjustable lens aperture consisting of interposed metal leaves.
Irradiation: By the physical structure of the emulsion and the distribution of the silver halide grains cause ray
IS (Image Stabilizer): Feature that minimizes the effects of camera shake. Originally designed for video cameras. Canon has
ISO: International standards organization. Used instead of asa as prefix to film speeds. The scale is ide
Ivorytype: Obsolete printing process designed to give the impression of a painting on ivory. A hand colored pri
IX (Information Exchange): Ability of aps film to communicate with devices, and devices to communicate with film.
JCII: Japan camera inspection and testing institute. It is an organization in japan to monitor export qual
Joule: Unit used to quantify the light output of electronic flash. A joule is equal to one watt second of 4
JPEG: Format for compressed graphics files. Jpeg graphics are commonly used as part of world wide web.
K14: Kodak's chemical process for developing kodachrome slides.
Kallitype: Obsolete printing process, resembling the platinum process. The image is formed in metallic silver r
Kelvin (K): Unit of measurement on the absolute temperature scale, used to describe the color content of continu
Kerr Cell: High speed shutter without moving parts, using two crossed polarizing filters at either end of a cyl
Key Light: Studio light used to control the tonal level of the main area of the subject.
Keyed Emulsion Sensitivity: Term used to describe the color response of color printing papers which have peak sensitivities to t
Kilowatt: Unit of 1000 watts. Used to measure the power of an electrical light source.
Kinetic: Concerned with movement and motion.
Knifing: Method of removing marks and other blemishes from the surface of a print by gentle scraping with the
Kostinsky Effect: Development effect in which dense image points are inclined to move apart, relative to each other, a
Kromskop: Early viewing instrument invented by f.e. ives, embodying a system of mirrors and color filters to s
Lamp: General term used to describe the various kinds of artificial light sources used in photography.
Lamp Black: Pure carbon pigment, made from soot deposited from burning oils.
Lamp House: Light tight housing of an enlarger or projector, which contains the light source.
Lantern Slides: Old term used to describe transparencies.
Large Format Camera: General term for any camera having a picture format of 4 x 5 inches or larger.
Laser: Abbreviation for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation.
Latensification: Method of increasing relative film speed by fogging after exposure and before development. It can be
Latent Image: Invisible image produced by exposure which can be made visible by development.
Lateral Reversal: Mirror image reversal of the subject from left to right, as found in the viewfinders of some reflex
Latitude: Degree by which exposure can be varied and still produce an acceptable image. The degree of latitude
LCD: Liquid crystal diode. Lcd is an electronic solid state display system commonly used for the face of
Lead Acetate: Crystalline, highly poisonous powder used in some toning and intensifying solutions.
Leader: Beginning of a roll of film, which is attached to the camera's take up spool.
Leaf Shutter: See between the lens shutter.
LED: Light emitting diode. Led is an indicator light used to convey exposure information.
Lens: Optical element made of glass or plastic and capable of bending light. A lens may be constructed of
Lens Barrel: Metal or plastic tube with a blackened inner surface, in which the lens elements and mechanical comp
Lens Cap: Plastic, rubber or metal cover which fits over the front or back of the lens to protect it.
Lens Coating: Layer or multiple layers of thin anti-reflective materials applied to the surface of lens elements t
Lens Drive System: Used in autofocus slr cameras. One type has a motor located inside the lens: in another, a motor ins
Lens Hood: Opaque tube, either cylindrical, square of funnel shaped, use to shield a lens from stray light outs
Lens Shade: See lens hood.
Lens Shutter Camera: Camera with the shutter built into the lens.
Lens Speed: Largest lens opening (smallest f-number) at which a lens can be set. A fast lens transmits more ligh
Lens System: Describes the type and quantity of lenses available for use with a particular camera.
Lenticular Screen: Lens system consisting of a screen containing a number of small lenses.there are two applications of
Light: Visible radiated energy which forms part of the electro-magnetic spectrum in the wavelength range of
Light Meter: Alternate term for exposure meter.
Light Sources: General term applied to any source of light used in photography.
Light Tent: Tent like structure made of translucent material hung around a frame. The fabric diffuses the light
Light Trail: Image track recorded on photographic material when a point of light is shifted during exposure.
Light Trap: System of entry to a darkroom which allows easy access, but prevents unwanted light from entering.
Light Value: Alternative term for exposure value (ev).
Light-Tight: Term denoting a material or piece of equipment that is impervious to light.
Lightbox: Box of fluorescent tubes balanced for white light and covered with translucent glass or plastic. Use
Lighting Ratio: Ratio of the brightness of light falling on the subject from the main (key) light and other (fill) l
Limiting Aperture: Actual size of the aperture formed by the iris diaphragm at any setting.
Line Film: High contrast film which, after correct development, gives negatives of black and white only (with n
Line Image: Photographic image consisting of black areas and clear film i.e. White.
Linear Perspective: Apparent convergence of parallel lines with increasing distance in a two dimensional image.
Linked Ring Brotherhood: Group of pictorialist photographers who broke away from the photographic society of great britain. E
Lippman Process: Early color process invented by professor gabriel lippmann (1845-1921). Light first passed through a
Lith Film: Extreme form of line film, which produces very high contrast images when used in conjunction with a
Local Control: Method of controlling the final quality of a print by increasing or decreasing the exposure given to
Log E: Logarithmic value (to the base 10) of the relative brightness exposed on the film when undergoing se
Long Focus: A lens in which the focal length is much greater than the diagonal of the film format with which it
Low Key: Photograph in which tones are predominantly dark and there are few highlights.
Lumen: Unit of light intensity falling onto a surface.
Lumen Second: Unit to measure the total light output of a photographic source.
Luminance: Measurable amount of light which is emitted by or reflected from a source.
Luminance Meter: Alternate term for exposure meter.
Luminescence: Visible light produced from a surface submitted to invisible radiation such as uv, x rays and son on
Luminosity: Brightness of either a light source or a reflective surface.
Luminous Flux: Intensity of a light source, measured in lumens.
M-Synch: Is a flash setting or socket which synchronizes the firing of the shutter with the peak light output
Mackie Line: Is an effect sometime found on a negative or print, in which a light line forms along the boundaries
Macro Attachment: Are supplementary elements attached to the front of a normal lens to give an extreme close-up facili
Macro Lens: Is a lens specially designed to give accurate resolution of a very near subject without the need for
Macrophotography: Is photography which produces an image larger than the original subject size without the use of a mi
Magazine: Is a light-tight container holding roll film.
Magenta: Is the complimentary color to green. It is composed of blue and red light.
Magnification: Is the size of the image relative to the size of the subject used to produce it. It is an expression
Mask: Is an opaque material used to cover the edges of the printing paper, and thus produce borders when t
Masking: Is a system of controlling negative density ranges or color saturation through the use of unsharp ma
Masking Frame: Is an adjustable frame used to hold printing paper in position under the enlarger, also referred to
Mastic Varnish: Is varnish used for negatives.
Mat: Is an alternative term used for matte. Also describes the cardboard surround in a picture frame.
Matrix: Is a relief image, usually made from gelatin and used for processes such as dye transfer printing.
Matte: Is a term used to describe a non reflective, non-textured surface.
Matte Box: Is a mask used to make images suitable for wide-screen projection.
Matte Field: Is a granular textured surface that disperses light in order to form a clear image. Used in the view
Meniscus Lens: Is a simple lens consisting of a single piece off glass, thicker at the center than at the edges. It
Mercuric Chloride: Is a chemical used in certain types of intensifiers.
Mercury Vapor Lamp: Is an artificial light source produced by passing current through mercury vapor in a tube.
Metal Print: Is a photographic print made on a sensitized metal surface
Methyl Alcohol: Is a volatile, poisonous spirit commonly known as wood alcohol. Used as a substitute for pure alcoho
Metol: Is a reducing agent which is soft working, especially in the presence of a weak alkali.
Metolquinone: Is a combination of metol and hydroquinone, used as a developing agent (mq developer).
Micro Lens: Is a lens for microscopic photography. Not to be confused with a macro lens.
Microfiche: Is a sheet of microfilm usually forming part of a filing system.
Microfiche: Is a sheet of microfilm usually forming part of a filing system.
Microfilm: Is a film used to produce a microscopic record of a document and intended for projection.
Microflash: Is an electronic flash of very short duration used to illuminate subjects traveling at a very high r
Micron (�): Is one millionth of a meter.
Microphotograph: Is a photograph produced to a very small size which can be viewed with a microfilm reader.
Microprism Collar: Is a grid type ring found in the center of a camera focusing screen, usually surrounding a split ima
Midtone: Is an area in a print or scene that contains average values.
Millimicron (M�): Is one thousandth part of a micron.
Miniature Camera: Is a term commonly applied to cameras with a format size of less than 35mm.
Mired: Is an abbreviation for the term micro reciprocal degrees, a scale of measurement of color temperatur
Mirror Box: Is a box containing one or more mirrors, usually angled to the light beam, as in the main body of an
Mirror Lens: Is a lens system which uses mirrors within its internal construction. Most lenses of this type have
Mode: Is the prime operating function of slr cameras, e.g. Manual mode, aperture priority mode, shutter pr
Modeling Light: Is a light used to create a three dimensional effect achieved through the perception of form and dep
Modelscope: Is a device employing a short rigid endoscope fitted with a right angle mirror at its tip, used to p
Modular Enlarger: Is an enlarger with interchangeable filtration heads and illuminations systems.
Monobath: Is a single solution which combines developer and fixer for processing b&w negatives. It is a quick
Monochromatic: Are light rays of a single wavelength.
Monochrome: Is single colored. It is most frequently applied to black and white photographs, but can also descri
Monopack: Is an outdated term describing a film carrying system.
Monorail Camera: Is a sheet film camera, of modular construction, mounted on a rail system to give maximum camera mov
Montage: Is a composite picture made from a number of photographs.
Mordant: Is a colorless dye absorbing substance used in some forms of toning. The silver image is converted i
Mosaic: Is a composite made up from a patchwork of partly overlapping photographs.
Motor Drive: Is an automatic film wind-on mechanism which can be attached to some cameras. While the shutter rema
Mottle: Is a processing fault characterized by random print density differences.
Mount: Is a frame and/or backing used to support and protect prints and transparencies.
MQ-PQ Developers: Are developing solutions containing the reducing agents metol and hydroquinone or phenidone and hydr
MTF (Modulation Transfer Function): A comparison of contrast between a test chart and the reproduced image. One of the measurements of l
Multi-Band Photography: Is a method of aerial photography using cameras and scanners which are sensitive to different wavele
Multimode Camera: Is a 35mm camera that will operate in several modes.
Multiple Exposure: Is the technique of making more than one exposure on the same film frame, normally so that the image
Multiple Flash: Is the use of more than one flash unit, usually operating simultaneously to light a subject.
Munsell System: Is a method of precise color description, based on comparison with comprehensive hue and saturation
Nadar: Is the name adopted by the first aerial photographer, g. F. Tournachon, who took photographs from an
Nanometer: Is a unit of measurement of light wavelength. A nanometer is one millionth of a millimeter.
Naphtha: Is a volatile petroleum based solvent such as benzine or gasoline (but not kerosene).
Near Ultraviolet: Are wavelengths from about 400nm down to 250nm. Most photographic emulsions are sensitive to this ra
Negative: Is the image produced on a photographic emulsion by the product of exposure and development, in whic
Negative Carrier: Supports the negative between the light source and the enlarging lens of an enlarger.
Negative Lens: Is a simple concave lens that causes rays of light to diverge away from the optical axis.
Negative-Positive Paper: Is paper used to print a positive color image from a negative.
Neo-Coccine: Is a red dye used in retouching to stain the gelatin.
Neutral Density: Is a technique which makes possible shorter printing times in color printing.
Neutral Density Filter: Describes a gray camera filter which has an equal opacity to all the colors of the spectrum and so d
Neutral Filtration: In color printing is the filtration at which color balance is achieved, rendering a neutral gray ion
Neutralizer: Is a chemical designed to counteract and make inactive another chemical solution.
New Objectivity: Is an approach to the subject matter of photography originating in germany in the 1920s. The photogr
New Realism: Is an alternative name for new objectivity.
Newtons Rings: Are rings of colored light produced when two glass or transparent surfaces are in partial contact.
Nitraphot: Is a tungsten filament lamp similar to the photoflood but with a longer working life.
Nitrate Base: Was an early flexible film support which was highly inflammable.
Nitric Acid: Is used in emulsion manufacture, in toners, and in bleaches, it is highly corrosive.
Nodal Plane: Is an imaginary line passing through the nodal point, perpendicular to the optical axis.
Nodal Points: Are located in two areas in a compound lens system. The front nodal point is where rays of light ent
Non-Silver Processes: Are image making processes that do not require the use of metallic silver, such as gum bichromate.
Non-Substantive: Is a name given to color film in which the color couplers are not contained within the emulsion, but
Normal Lens: Describes a lens with a focal length approximately equal to the diagonal of the film format for whic
Notch: Is a v or u shaped cut into one edge of sheet film. It denotes the location of the sensitive side of
Objective: Is the lens used closest to the specimen in microscopes or telescopes.
Off The Film Metering: Is a meter which determines exposure by reading light reflected from the film during exposure. Pione
Oil Reinforcement: Is a method of altering the tonal range of prints on matte or textured fiber papers. The dried print
One Shot Color Camera: Is an obsolete plate camera making three color separation negatives from a single exposure.
One Shot Developer: Is a developer that is used on a single occasion and then discarded.
Opacity: Is the light stopping power of a a material. The greater the opacity of a substance, the more light
Opal Lamp: Is a filament lamp with an opal glass bulb for optimum diffusion.
Opalescent: Like opal, a material with a cloudy-white translucent appearance.
Opalotype: Is an obsolete printing process in which a carbon-process image is transferred on to translucent opa
Opaque Liquid: Is a dense red or black pigment, dissolved in water to form a liquid paint used to fill in film area
Open Flash: Is a method of flash operation using the following sequence: shutter opened, flash fired, shutter cl
Opening Up: Is increasing the size of the lens aperture or decreasing the shutter speed to admit more light to t
Optical Axis: Is an imaginary line passing horizontally through the center of a compound lens system.
Optical Bench: Is a device for measuring the optical performance of lenses.
Optical Glass: Is used for manufacturing lenses and prisms. It is specially manufactured to be free of defects and
Optical Sensitizing: Is a method of increasing a films sensitivity by the use of dyes.
Optical Wedge: Is a strip of material, clear at one end and gradually increasing in opacity, which is used to deter
Optics: Is the science dealing with the behavior of light.
Ordinary Emulsion: Is a term applied to a photographic emulsion which is only sensitive to ultra-violet and blue light.
Orth-Phenylene Diamene: Is a fine-grain developing agent.
Orthochromatic: Is used to describe an emulsion which is sensitive to blue and green light, but insensitive to red.
Over-Development: Is a term indicating that the amount of development recommended by the manufacturer has been exceede
Over-Exposure: Is an expression used to indicate that the light sensitive material has been excessively exposed.
Over-Run Lamp: Is a tungsten light source specifically used at a higher voltage than normal to increase light outpu
Oxalic Acid: Are soluble white crystals used in some toners.
Oxidation Product: Is the chemical produced by a color developer during the conversion of exposed silver halides to bla
Painting With Light: Technique of lighting large, dark interior. The camera, mounted on a tripod, is given a long time ex
Pan And Tilt Head: Tripod head allowing the camera to be tilted up and down or turned through a 360° arc.
Panchromatic: Photographic emulsion sensitive to all the colors of the visible spectrum and to a certain amount of
Panchromatic Vision Filter: Filter through which the subject can be viewed approximately as it would appear in monochrome as rec
Panning: Technique of photographing moving subjects. While the shutter is open, the camera is swung in the sa
Panorama: Picture presenting a continuous view of the landscape, produced either by using a panoramic camera o
Panoramic Camera: Camera with a special type of scanning lens which rotates on its rear nodal point and produces an im
Paper Base: Support for the emulsion used in printing papers.
Paper Characteristic Curve: Describes a graphical relationship between exposure values and image density of a printing paper. Ea
Paper Grade: Numerical and terminological description of paper contrast: numbers 0 - 1 soft: number 2 normal: num
Paper Safe: Light-tight container for unexposed photographic papers, with an easy open positive closing lid.
Parabolic Mirror: Silvered glass or metal reflector with a parabolic axial cross-section, used to produce near paralle
Parallax: Difference between the image seen by a viewing system and that recorded on film. Only ttl viewing sy
Paraphenylenediamine: Reducing agent used in some fine grain and color developers.
Paraphotography: General term for non-silver-halide image forming processes.
Paraxial: Rays nearest the optical axis of a lens.
Patch Chart: Squared pattern test strip often made when color printing by the additive method.
PCT: See photo color transfer.
PEC: See photo-electric cell.
Pellicle (Pellicule): Thin film used in one-shot color cameras as a semi-reflecting surface.
Pentaprism: Optical device, usually fitted on 35mm cameras, which makes it possible to view the image while focu
Percentage Solution: Solution containing a given quantity of a dissolved substance in a stated volume of solvent.
Perforations: Accurately spaced holes punched throughout the length of film for still cameras. Basically the perfo
Periphery Photography: Technique used to photograph the entire inner or outer surface of a cylinder or tube.
Permanence Tests: Methods of establishing whether long term permanence of an image has been achieved.
Perspective: Relationship of size and shape of three-dimensional objects represented in two-dimensional space.
Petzval Lens: Early lens system developed by joseph petzval. It had a very wide aperture and was relatively free f
Ph Scale: Numerical system running from 0-14 and used to express the alkalinity or acidity of a chemical solut
Phenidone: Reducing agent used in many fine grain solutions.
Phenol Varnish: Resin used to produce a hard durable top coating.
Phosphorescence: Property held by some materials of absorbing light of one wavelength and emitting it as light of a d
Phosphotophotography: Technique of projecting an infrared image on a phosphorescent surface.
Photo Color Transfer: Method of making color enlargements by exposing on full size sheet film which is then soaked in a ac
Photo Elasticity: Method of determining stress patterns in structures with the aid of polarized light.
Photo File Index Print: Makes ordering reprints and enlargements easy. A small print shows a positive, 'thumbnail' version o
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Photo Telegraphy: Transmission of pictures between two points by means of radio or telegraph. A print is wrapped aroun
Photo-Electric Cell: Light sensitive cell. Two types are used in exposure meters. A selenium cell generates electricity i
Photo-Engraving: Production of a relief printing surface by chemical or mechanical means, with the aid of photography
Photo-Etching: Technique of contact printing an image on lith film on a presensitized zinc plate which is then proc
Photo-Reportage: Use of photographs in newspapers and magazines, to supplement or replace written journalistic accoun
Photo-Resistor: Photoelectric cell which varies in its electrical resistance according to the light received.
Photo-Silkscreening: Method of silkscreening images, using a stencil produced photographically.
Photo-Transistor: Light sensitive electronic component which functions as a switch. Used for slave firing of electroni
Photoflood: Artificial light source using a tungsten filament lamp and a dish reflector.
Photogenic Drawing: Original name given by william fox talbot to his earliest method of recording camera images.
Photogram: Pattern or design produced by placing opaque or transparent objects on top of a sensitive emulsion,
Photogrammetry: Method of making precise measurements from photographs.
Photography: Literally writing or drawing with light (from the greek words photos meaning light and graphos, writ
Photogravure: Method of printing photographs from an etched copper plate.
Photolamp: Tungsten filament photographic lamp with a large diffused bulb, giving light of 3200 k (kelvin).
Photolinen: Laminate of linen and paper coated with black and white photographic emulsion. It is used for photog
Photolithography: Lithographic printing process using an image formed by photographic means.
Photometer: Instrument for measuring light being reflected from a surface. It works by comparing the reflected l
Photomicrography: System of producing larger than life photographs by attaching a camera to a microscope.
Photon: Particle of light energy. It is the smallest quantity of radiant energy that can be transmitted betw
Physical Development: System of development in which silver is contained in suspension within the developer and is attract
Physiogram: Photographic patter produced by moving a regulated point of light over a sensitive emulsion.
Pictorialist: Photographs which are a picturesque, decorative art in their own right and appeal to the viewers sen
Piezo-Electric Flash: Tiny flash bulbs (normally housed in flash cubes) which can be fired by a very low current produced
Pigment: Coloring material that is insoluble in the liquid carrier with which it is mixed. Examples include p
Pigment Processes: Making a positive print by using the property of bichromated colloids by changing their physical cha
Pinacryptol: Yellow and green dye powders which are used in desensitizing solutions.
Pincushion Distortion: Lens aberration causing parallel, straight lines at the edge of the image to curve toward the lens a
Pinhole Camera: Camera without a lens which uses a very small hole pierced in one end to allow light to pass through
Pixels: Abbreviation for picture elements. The tiny squares of light making up the picture are transmitted i
Plane: Imaginary straight line on which image points may lie or which passes at right angles through a set
Plate Camera: Camera designed to take glass plates but often adapted to take cut film.
Plates: Early photographic glass plates coated with emulsion.
Platinotype: Obsolete contact printing process popular among pictorialists.
Point Source Lamp: Arc type lamp producing light from a small gap between two carbon rods.
Pola-Screen: Another term for a polarizing filter.
Polarization: Light said to travel in a a wave motion along a straight path, vibrating in all directions. Polariza
Polarized Light: Rays of light that have been restricted to vibrate in one plane only.
Polarizing Filter: Colorless gray filter made from stressed glass. Polarizing filters are used over light sources or ca
Polaroid Camera: An instant picture camera designed for polaroid materials.
Portrait Lens: Lenses produced specifically for portraiture. They usually have a long focal length and produce a sl
Positive: In photography, the production of prints or transparencies in which light and dark correspond to the
Positive Lens: Simple lens that causes light rays from a subject to converge to a point.
Positive-Positive Printing: Process for printing a color transparency directly on paper to produce a positive print.
Posterization: Photographic technique using a number of tone separated negatives which are printed on high contrast
Potassium Bichromate: Chemical used in chrome intensifiers.
Potassium Bromide: Chemical used as a restrainer in most developing solutions and as a rehalogenizing agent in bleaches
Potassium Carbonate: Highly soluble alkaline accelerator used in most general purpose and print developing solutions.
Potassium Chloride: Chemical used in some bleaches and sensitizers.
Potassium Citrate: Chemical used in blue and green toners.
Potassium Dichromate: See potassium bichromate.
Potassium Ferricyanide: Chemical used in farmer's reducer as a bleach.
Potassium Hydroxide: Caustic potash. Highly active alkali, used as the basis for high contrast developing solutions.
Potassium Iodide: Chemical used in bleaches, toners and intensifiers.
Potassium Metabisulfite: Acidifier used in fixers and stop baths.
Potassium Permanganate: Chemical used extensively in reducers, bleaches and toners.
Potassium Persulfate: Chemical sometimes used in super-proportional reducers.
Potassium Sulfide: Chemical used in sulfide toning.
Potassium Thiocyanate: Chemical used in some fine grain developers as a silver solvent.
Pre-Soak: Preparatory water bath for film or paper prior to processing that prevents uneven development. It is
Prehardener: Chemical solution used to harden the gelatin of an emulsion prior to processing.
Preservative: Chemical, commonly sodium sulfite, used in developing solutions to prevent rapid oxidation of the re
Preset Focus Shooting: Technique in which focus is set at a predetermined setting and the shutter is released when the subj
Press Focus Lever: Lever found on the between-lens shutter of many large format cameras. It allows the shutter blades t
Primary Colors: Three primary additive colors of the spectrum in terms of transmitted light. These colors are blue,
Principal Axis: Imaginary line which passes through the center of curvature of all the lens elements.
Principal Planes: Imaginary lines which pass through the nodal planes of a lens system.
Principal Point: Point from which the focal length is measured. The principal point of a simple lens is located at th
Print: In photography is an image, normally positive, which has been produced by the action of light on pap
Printing: Process employed to make one or a number of images on paper or similar material.
Printing-In: System of local shading control used in printing in which additional exposure is given to selected a
Printing-Out Papers: Light sensitive printing papers which visibly darken during exposure to sunlight. Also referred to a
Prism: Transparent medium capable of bending light to varying degrees, depending on wavelength.
Process Lens: Lens system designed specifically for high quality copying.
Processing: Sequence of steps whereby a latent photographic image is converted into a visible, permanent image.
Projection Cutting: Any method of printing in which the image is optically projected on the sensitized material.
Projector: Apparatus used to display enlarged still or moving images on to a screen.
Proportional Reducer: Chemical method of reducing excess density and contrast from a photographic negative.
Protective Toning: Toning process used to protect black and white prints from fading and give archival permanence. Usua
Pulling: Method of underrating the normal iso speed of a film to produce an overexposed latent image.
Push Processing: Increasing the development time of a film to increase its effective speed. See pushing.
Pushing: Method of overrating the normal iso speed of a film to produce an underexposed latent image. Used to
Pyro: Reducing agent sometimes used in developing solutions.
Quantum: Smallest indivisible unit of radiant energy.
Quarterplate: Negative or print format measuring 3 ¼ x 4 ¼ inches. It's one quarter the size of a full plate (8
Quartz-Iodine Lamp: Compact tungsten filament lamp designed to maintain its color temperature and light intensity throug
Rack And Pinion Focusing: Mechanical focusing system used on copying or monorail cameras. A pinion engages a rack on a slide.
Radiography: Technique of using x-rays, gamma rays and charged particles to form shadow images on photographic ma
Rangefinder: Focusing system which measures the distance from camera to subject.
Rapid Fixer: Fixing solution that uses ammonium thiocyanate or thiosulfate instead of hypo.
Rapid Rectilinear: Lens system composed of two matching doublet lenses, symmetrically placed around the focal aperture.
Rayographs: Term coined by man ray and his friends for pictures made by placing directly on photographic paper (
Rear Curtain Sync: When the flash fires an instant before the second or rear curtain of the focal plane shutter begins
Rear Focus: Refers to the focused area behind the picture's subject.
Rear Focusing System: System where only the rear lens group moves during focusing. It eliminates changes in the physical l
Rebate: Margin on photographic film surrounding the image area.
Reciprocity Failure: In photographic emulsions occurs when exposure times fall outside a films normal range. At these tim
Reciprocity Law: States that exposure = intensity x time, where intensity is equal to the amount of light and time is
Reconstituted Image: Photograph produced by translating light from the subject into electronic signals.
Recycling Time: Time it takes a flash unit to recharge between firings.
Red Eye: Effect encountered when light from a flash unit travels parallel to the lens axis during exposure.
Reducers: Solutions which remove silver from negatives and prints. They are used to diminish density and alter
Reducing Agent: Chemical in a developing solution which converts exposed silver halides to black metallic silver.
Reflected Light: Light bounced off a subject, not falling on it.
Reflected Light Reading: Measurement by a light meter of the amount of reflected light being bounced of the subject. The ligh
Reflecting Telescope: Telescope using a concave parabolic mirror to increase focal length and focus light at a point.
Reflections: Rays of light which strike a surface and bounce back again. Specular reflection occurs on even, poli
Reflector: Any substance from which light can be reflected. It also describes a white or gray card used to refl
Reflex Camera: Camera system which uses a mirror to reflect incoming image rays on to a ground glass screen, provid
Reflex Lens: Alternative term for mirror lens.
Refraction: Change in direction of light rays as they pass obliquely from one transparent medium to another of d
Refractive Index: Numerical value indicating the light bending power of a medium such as glass. The greater the bendin
Register: Exact alignment when overlaying separate images.
Register Punch: Punched used to make alignment holes in film or paper for registering images.
Rehalogenization: Process by which black metallic silver is converted back to silver halides. It is used in bleaching
Relative Aperture: Measurable diameter of the diaphragm divided by the focal length of the lens in use and expressed in
Replenishment: Addition of chemicals to a processing solution to maintain its characteristics, e.g. Developers are
Resin Coated Paper (RC): Printing paper with a water repellent base. Rc paper can be processed faster, require less washing,
Resist: Protective but removable layer applied to a surface in the form of a pattern or image. Used to preve
Resolving Power: Ability of the eye, lens or photographic emulsion to determine fine detail. In photography, the qual
Restrainer: Chemical constituent of developing solutions which helps prevent reducing agents from affecting unex
Reticulation: Regular crazed pattern created on the emulsion surface of negatives which is caused by extreme chang
Retouching: After treatment carried out on a negative or print, in the form of local chemical reduction, local d
Retrofocus: Type of lens design with a negative lens element positioned in front of the diaphragm and a positive
Reversal Materials: Materials specifically designed to be processed to a positive after one camera exposure.
Ring Flash: Ring shaped electronic flash unit attached to the front of a lens. Used to give even frontal lightin
Rinse: Brief clean water wash between steps of a processing cycle to reduce carry-over of one solution into
Rising Front: Camera movement enabling the front lens panel to be raised or lowered from its central position on m
Rods: Receptors forming part of the retina at the back of the eye sensitive only to variations in brightne
Roll Film: Refers to 120, 220 and 620 film formats.
Roll Film Adaptor: Specially designed attachment for cameras designed for cut film, enabling roll film to be used.
Sabattier Effect: Part positive part negative effect formed when an emulsion is briefly re-exposed to white light duri
Safelight: Darkroom light of a color and intensity that will not affect light sensitized photographic materials
Safety Film: Term used to describe a film with a base that is not readily inflammable.
Sal-Ammoniac: Ammonium chloride. Used in some high speed developers.
Sandwiching: Combination of two or more negatives or film positives in the negative carrier or masking frame when
Saturated Color: Pure color hue, undiluted by other colors, white or gray, i.e. The primary colors, red, yellow and b
Scale: Linear relation between the size of the subject and the size of its image.
Scanning Electron Microscope: Device used in photomicrography.
Schumann Plate: Plate coated with an emulsion with so little gelatin content that the silver halide grains protrude
Screen Plate: Plate used in early additive forms of color photography.
Screening: Conversion of a continuous tone image to a half-tone image.
Scrim: Lighting attachment which, when placed in front of a lamp, reduces its strength, usually by one stop
See Reducers:
Selective Focusing: Method of adjusting the lens aperture and shutter speed to give a depth of field that will limit ima
Selenium: Light-sensitive substance which, when used in a barrier-layer construction, generates electrical cur
Selenium Cell: Light sensitive cell used in many types of exposure meters. It generates electricity in direct propo
Self Toning Paper: Obsolete silver chloride paper used for contact printing in daylight.
Self-Timer: Mechanism for delaying the opening of the shutter for a given number of seconds after the release ha
Sensitive Material: In photography, refers to materials that react to the actinic power of light.
Sensitivity: Degree of response of a photographic emulsion to exposure to light.
Sensitometry: Scientific study of the response of photographic materials to exposure and development. It establish
Separation Images: Technique of producing an image by combining photographs produced on a material or using equipment w
Separation Negatives: Black & white negatives, usually prepared in lots of three or four, which have been taken through fi
Shading: See local control.
Shadow Detail: Details visible in areas that are darkest in the subject.
Shadows: Darkest areas in a photographic print.
Sheet Film: Alternative term for cut film.
Shelf Life: Length of time unused material or chemicals will remain fresh.
Shellac: Natural resin with a low melting point. It is mainly used on dry mounting tissue.
Shutter: Mechanical system used to control the time that light is allowed to act on the sensitive emulsion.
Shutter Priority Camera: Semi-automatic camera on which the photographer selects the shutter speed, and the camera automatica
Shutter Speed: Action of the shutter that controls the duration of an exposure. The faster the speed the shorter th
Side Lighting: Light striking the subject from the side relative to the position of the camera. It produces shadows
Silhouette: Photographic image in which the subject is seen as a solid black shape against a light background.
Silicon Release Paper: Thin, heat resistant interleaving paper, used between a photographic print and textured material in
Silk Print: Image made on silk by means of the diazo or dye printing methods.
Silkscreen: Method of applying inks to paper or similar materials using a nylon stencil produced by photographic
Silver Dye Bleach Material: Integral tripack printing material.
Silver Halides: Light sensitive crystals used in photographic emulsions, i.e. Silver bromide, silver chloride and si
Silver Nitrate: Chemical combination of silver and nitric acid. It is used in intensifiers, physical developers and
Silver Reclamation: System for recovering silver from exhausted solutions.
Silver Recovery: System of reclaiming silver from exhausted solutions.
Silver Salts: Compounds of silver.
Simultaneous Contrast: Effect that adjacent color hues have upon each other.
Single Lens Reflex (SLR): Stands for single lens reflex. It is a camera of 35mm or medium format in which a system of mirrors
Single Servo AF: When focus is locked as long as the shutter release button is lightly pressed.
Sizing: Very dilute, gluey substance used to prepare surfaces for coating by filling in pores and giving eve
Sky Filter: Outdated term for a filter which has a graduated density across its surface.
Sky Shade: Alternative term for a lens hood.
Slave Unit: Mechanism which fires other flash sources simultaneously when a photo-electric cell is activated by
Slide: Alternative term for a projection transparency.
Slide: Photographic transparency mounted for projection. It represents first generation production of an im
Slit Shutter: Narrow vertical slit either just in front of the emulsion or at a similar distance in front of the l
Slow Film: Film having an emulsion with low sensitivity to light. Typically films having an iso or 50 or less.
Slow Lens: Lens with a small maximum aperture, such as f/8.
Slow Sync: Flash technique for using the flash at a slow shutter speed. Flash shooting in dim light or at night
Snapshot: Term once used to describe a photograph taken with the i (instantaneous) setting on cameras. The ter
Snoot: Cone shaped shield used on spotlights to direct a cone of light over a small area.
Sodium Bichromate: Chemical used in intensifiers, toners and bleaches.
Sodium Bisulfite: Chemical used in fixing baths as an acidifying agent.
Sodium Carbonate: Alkaline accelerator used in many general purpose and print developers.
Sodium Chloride: Used in some bleaches and reducers.
Sodium Hexametaphosphate: Water softener.
Sodium Hydrosulfite: Used as a fogging agent in reversal processing.
Sodium Hydroxide: Highly active alkaline accelerator used in conjunction with hydroquinone to produce high contrast de
Sodium Metabisulfite: Used as an acidifying agent in acid fixing baths.
Sodium Sulfide: Chemical used in sulfide (sepia) toning.
Sodium Sulfite: Chemical commonly used as a preservative in many developing solutions.
Sodium Thiocyanate: Alternative to potassium thiocyanate and is used as a silver solvent in physical and ultra-fine grai
Sodium Thiosulfate: Chemical used in many fixing solutions. It converts unused halides to a soluble complex which can be
Soft Developer: Paper developer that can be used alone or in combination with other developers (two-bath development
Soft Focus: Definition of a diffused image. This can be achieved at the camera or enlarging stage.
Soft Focus Lens: Lens, uncorrected for spherical aberrations, used to produce a soft focus effect.
Solarization: Reversal or partial reversal of tones in a photographic image caused by vast amounts of over-exposur
Solubility: In general terms is the ease with which a solid will mix homogeneously with water to provide a chemi
Spacing Bracket: Device used to position the camera at the right distance from the subject for the lens focus setting
Spectral Sensitivity: Relative response of a photographic emulsion to each of the colors of the spectrum, including infrar
Spectrum: Usually used in reference to the visible part of the electro-magnetic spectrum, i.e. The color bands
Speed: Sensitivity of a photographic emulsion to light. Films are given iso or din numbers denoting speed c
Spherical Aberration: Lens fault which causes loss of image definition at the image plane. Its affects are reduced by stop
Split Image Rangefinder: See rangefinder.
Spool: Bobbin like object consisting of a narrow core with flat disks on either end, around which the film
Spot Meter: Used to get accurate light readings of a small part of a subject. It uses a narrow angle of view to
Spotlight: Artificial light source using a fresnel lens, reflector, and simple focusing system to produce a str
Spotting: Method of retouching. Blemishes or unwanted details are removed from negatives and prints by brush a
Sprocket Holes: Perforations on both edges of 35mm film, which engage with the teeth of the film transport mechanism
Squeegee: Tool with rubber blades or rollers, used to squeeze water out of wet prints.
Stabilization: Alternative method of fixing. Unused halides are converted to near stable compounds, insensitive to
Stabilizer: Final solution often used in color processing which leaves the dyes produced by chemical development
Staining Developer: Developer, such as pyro, in which the oxidation products give extra image density by staining the ge
Stand: Alternative name for a tripod.
Stand Camera: Large format camera usually mounted on a rigid stand.
Standard Lens: Lens with a focal length approximately equal to the diagonal of the film format with which it is use
Static Marks: Jagged fog marks on negatives as a result of a very dry film being rewound or unwound too rapidly.
Step Wedge: Printed series of density increases, in regular steps from transparent to opaque. Its a method of ma
Stereoscope: Viewer which accepts pairs of stereoscopic images.
Stereoscopic Camera: Camera designed to take simultaneous images of the same subject from viewpoints separated by the sam
Stereoscopy: Method of creating a three dimensional effect on a two dimensional surface using a pair of images ta
Still Life: Inanimate subject, either in the studio, or outdoors, normally arranged to make full use of form, sh
Stock Solution: Processing chemicals which may be stored in a concentrated state and diluted just before use.
Stop: Aperture of a camera or enlarging lens.
Stop Bath: Chemical bath whose purpose is to stop development by neutralizing unwanted developer. This increase
Stop Down Metering: Ttl metering in which the light is measured at the picture-taking aperture.
Stopping Down: Reducing the size of the lens aperture and thus the amount of light passing into the camera. It incr
Straight Photography: Term used to describe picture making with minimal manipulation of the photographic process.
Stress Marks: Black lines on a photographic emulsion caused by friction or pressure.
Strobe Light: Low power electronic flash that can fire repeatedly at regular, controlled intervals.
Studio Camera: Term given to a large format 12 x 15 inch camera on a wheeled stand.
Sub-Miniature Camera: Camera using a film format smaller than 35mm.
Subbing: Layer applied to a photographic support as a foundation for the emulsion.
Subject: Person or thing photographed.
Subjective Photography: Interpretive image of the subject, with results influenced by the attitude of the photographer.
Substantive Film: Color film in which the color couplers are contained within the emulsion.
Subtractive Primaries: Yellow, magenta and cyan.
Subtractive Synthesis: Combination color system used in modern photography materials. The complimentary colors of yellow, m
Successive Color Contrast: Trick of the human eye by which the impression of a color is influenced by an immediately preceding
Sulfide Toning: Conversion of a black metallic silver image into a brown dye image. Usually known as sepia toning.
Sulfuric Acid: High corrosive chemical used in reducers.
Supper Coat: Top coating of non-sensitized gelatin added to sensitized emulsions to form a protective layer.
Supplementary Lenses: Additional lens elements used with the standard camera lens to provide a new focal length.
Surface Development: Development process in which the image forms primarily on the surface of the emulsion and then penet
Surge Marks: Streaks on the image from each of the sprockets holes of 35mm film caused by excessive agitation.
Surrealism: Originally an early 1920s artistic movement, now taken to indicate the production of unreal images w
Swing Back-Front: Term used to describe the movable lens and back panels of most view and monorail cameras. They allow
Symmetry: Effect of an evenly balanced arrangement of visual information, such as pattern, on either side of a
Synchro-Sunlight: System of combining daylight and flash to achieve a controlled lighting ratio.
Synchronized Flash: Method of synchronizing flash light duration with the maximum shutter opening.
T (Time): Shutter speed setting used for timed exposures longer than the numbered settings. The shutter opens
T Setting: See t (time).
T Stops: More accurate measurement of light entering a lens than 'f' numbers. Whereas 'f' numbers represent t
T-Grain Technology: Name for kodaks film emulsion technology used in all kodak aps films. Uniquely shaped grains that al
Tacking Iron: Heated tool used to stick part of the dry-mounting tissue to a print and its mounting board.
Tanks: Containers for holding chemical solutions for processing films and plates.
Tanning Development: Type of developer used for processes that require a relief image, such as dye transfer.
Technical Camera: See view camera.
Teleconverter: Optical system mounted between a camera body and the lens to increase the effective focal length of
Telephoto Lens: Compact lens construction which provides a long focal length with a short back focus.
Tempering Bath: Large tank or deep tray filled with water maintained at the correct temperature for processing. Used
Tessar Lens: Famous german non-symmetrical lens design by zeiss. It is based on the triplet lens.
Test Strip: Trial and error method of calculating exposure in photographic printing. A number of exposures are g
Texture: Broadly defined as the surface character of an object.
Texture Screen: Transparent film or glass printed with a fine background pattern. They're interposed between the ima
Thermography: Recording images by means of the heat radiated from the subject.
Thick Negative: Antique term used to describe a dense negative.
Thin Negative: Antique term used to describe a negative lacking in density.
Through-The-Lens: See ttl.
Thyristor Flash Gun: Automatic flash gun which cuts off the flash when the exposure is correct. This conserves power, mak
Time And Temperature: Controlling factors of a chemical photographic process.
Time Exposure: General term for an exposure longer than can be set using the camera's fixed shutter speeds.
Time Gamma Curve: See gamma.
Time Lapse Photography: Method of recording chemical and physical changes in a subject over a period of time by photographin
Timer: Clock used to control processing.
Tin-Type: See ferrotype.
Tinting: Application of color tints, usually in the form of dyes or paints, to a photographic image to create
Tomography: Radiographic technique used in medial photography.
Tone: Refers to the strength of grays between white and black. It relates to the brightness, lightness and
Tone Line Process: Technique used to reproduce a photographic image so that it resembles a pen and ink drawing.
Tone Separation: Process of reducing the tonal range of a photograph to a very restricted range. The final result has
Tone Values: Various shades of gray between the extremes of black & white in a photographic image.
Toners: Used to change the color of the photographic print by chemical baths. Through the system of bleachin
Toning: Method of soaking the print in selenium or similar chemical(s) to help give the print an overall fee
Transfer Processes: Methods of transferring a photographic image from one surface to another.
Transmission: Passage of light through a transparent or translucent material.
Transmitted Light: Light which is passed through a transparent or translucent medium. The amount of light transmitted d
Transparency: Positive image in black and white or color, which is produced on transparent film.
Transparent Magnetic Layer: Information storage layer built into advanced photo system film that enables enhanced information ex
Transposing Frame: Frame used for printing pairs of stereoscopic negatives from a two lens camera.
Tray Development: Any process carried out in open trays rather than using tanks or similar apparatus.
Tri-Color Filters: Filters in deep primarily colors used to expose color prints by the additive method.
Trichrome Carbro Process: Method of making assembly color prints from separation negatives, using an adaption of the carbro pr
Trigger: Term used to describe a shutter release.
Tripack: Photographic material, used in color photography, consisting of three emulsion layers of different s
Triple Extension: Camera system in which lens-image distance can be extended by as much as three times its focal lengt
Triplet Lens: Lens consisting basically of three elements, a diverging lens sandwiched between two converging lens
Tripod: Three legged camera support. The legs usually feature sections that permit height adjustments.
TTL: Abbreviation for 'through-the-lens' as referring to a metering system in which a suitable light sens
Tungsten Filament: Artificial light source using a tungsten filament contained within a glass envelope.
Tungsten Halogen Lamp: Improved version of the normal tungsten lamp. It is much smaller and more consistent in color temper
Tungsten Light: Light from standard room lamps and ceiling fixtures, not fluorescent.
Tungsten Light Film: See type b film.
Twin Lens Reflex (TLR): Camera having two lenses of the same focal length. One is used for viewing and focusing, the other f
Two-Bath Development: Development of negatives in two stages. Developer without alkali is followed by an alkali bath, whic
Two-Color Photography: Simple method of color photography which analyzes the spectrum into two parts instead of three, form
Type A Film: Color film balanced to artificial light sources at a color temperature of 3400k.
Type B Film: Color film balanced to artificial light sources at a color temperature of 3200k.
Type D Film: Obsolete term for film balanced for daylight.
Ultrasonic Image Recording: Image formation by measurement of ultrasound echoes translated electronically into a scanned visual
Ultraviolet (UV): Part of the electromagnetic spectrum from about 400nm down to 1nm. It is invisible to the human eye,
Under-Development: Reduction in the degree of development. It is usually caused by shortened development time or a decr
Underexposure: Result of too little exposure in the camera or at the enlargement stage.
Universal Developer: Name given to a number of developing solutions, usually mq, indicating that they can be used for pro
Uprating: No longer used term to define the process of increasing the manufacturers film speed by the use of:
Uranium Nitrate: Chemical used in toners and developers.
UV Filter: Filter which is used to absorb ultraviolet (uv) radiation.
Vacuum Back: Is a camera back with a perforated plate through which air is drawn by a pump. A sheet of film is th
Vacuum Easel: Is a compact printing frame which ensures firm contact between the film and paper by excluding air b
Vanishing Point: Is the point at which parallel lines, viewed obliquely, appear to converge in the distance.
Vapor Discharge Lamp: Is a lamp in which electrical current passes through a vapor or gas rather than through a wire filam
Variable Contrast Paper: Is a printing paper in which the contrast can be varied depending on the color of the printing light
Variable Focus Lens: Is a lens whose focal length can be continually varied within a given range. Also known as a zoom le
Veil: Is a uniformly distributed silver deposit in a photographic image, not forming part of the image its
Video Still Camera: Is a camera using an electronic charge coupled device instead of film.
View Camera: Is a large format camera which has a ground glass screen at the image plane for viewing and focusing
Viewfinder: Is a system used for composing and sometimes focusing the subject. There are several types: direct v
Viewpoint: Is the position of the camera in relation to the subject.
Vignetting: Is a printing technique where the edges of the picture are gradually faded out to black or white. It
Vinyl Film: Is an emulsion coating on a polyvinyl chloride acetate base, with less shrinkage than conventional f
Viscose Sponge: Is a synthetic sponge used to wipe surplus water off films before they are hung up to dry.
Viscous Processing: Is a process using chemicals carried in sticky semifluid substances instead of normal liquids. Used
Volt: Is a unit of electrical potential difference and electromotive force.
Voltage Stabilizer: Is a transformer used to produce a steady output voltage despite fluctuations of input voltage.
Vortograph: Is an abstract photograph made with a simple kaleidoscopic apparatus, first used by alvin langdon co
Warm Colors: Are any colors which, by association, suggest warmth, such as red, orange and yellow.
Warm Tone Developer: Is a developer producing image colors in chlorobromide papers ranging from warm black to reddish bro
Washing: Is the final part of the processing cycle, which removes residual chemicals and soluble silver compl
Water Bath: Are large water filled containers used to maintain processing trays, tanks or chemicals at the corre
Water Softeners: Are used to eliminate most of the minerals and slats found in hard water.
Waterproof Paper: Is another term for resin-coated paper.
Watkins Factor: Is an old system of development control, based on observation of the processing image under safe lig
Watt: Is a unit of power in electricity.
Watt-Second: Is an alternative unit of energy, equal to the joule.
Wavelength: Describes the distance from wave-crest to wave-crest between two corresponding waves of light in the
Waxed Paper Process: Is an early form of photography. A variation on the calotype process.
Weak Is: A negative or print which is low in contrast or density.
Wedge Spectrogram: Is an indication of the spectral sensitivity of a sensitized material by exposing it to a spectrum o
Wet Collodion: Is a much improved calotype developed by frederick scott archer. A sensitized glass plate was dipped
Wet Processing: Is processing by the application of chemicals in fluid form. The traditional method of photographic
Wetting Agents: Are chemicals which, when used in minute quantities, reduce the surface tension of water. They are u
White Light: See white light spectrum.
White Light Control: Is the level or switch on a color enlarger which removes all color filtration and returns it when re
White Light Spectrum: Is the electromagnetic wavelengths between 400-700 nanometers. Also referred to as the visible spect
Whole Plate: Is a negative or print format measuring 6 ½ x 8 ½ inches.
Wide Area AF: Means the autofocus detection area is wider than normal. Making it easier to photograph moving subje
Wide-Angle Lens: Is a lens with wide covering power. It has a focal length which is less than the diagonal of the fil
Wide-Angle Rack: Is an additional focusing rack used on large format cameras.
Wood Print: Is a print made on a wood surface which has been photochemically prepared.
Working Aperture: Is the widest aperture at which an acceptable image can be achieved.
Working Solution: Is a liquid chemical that has been mixed and diluted for use.
X Ray: Are electromagnetic radiations beyond ultraviolet which, when passed through a solid object and allo
X Ray Film: Is spectral sheet film for radiography, having a thick emulsion coated on both sides of the support
X Setting (X Sync): Is the setting that causes the flash to burst in synchronization with the shutter. For some manual c
Xenon: Is a rare gas sometimes used with electronic flash tubes and enclosed arc light sources.
Xerography: Is a photographic process which uses an electrically charged metal plate. On exposure to light the e
Xography: Is a system of photography which produces prints and transparencies with a three-dimensional effect.
Yellow: Is the color formed by mixing red and green light. Yellow is complimentary to blue, and is one of th
Zirconium Lamp: Is an arc lamp used in powerful enlarges and projectors.
Zoetrope: Is an early device for creating illusion of continuous motion. A sequence of still pictures was view
Zone Focusing: Is a method of focusing the lens so that the depth of field extends over a preselected range of dist
Zone System: Is the method of determining exposure and development required for individual scenes, invented by an
Zoom Lens: Is a lens which is constructed to allow continuously variable focal length within a specific range.