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Glossary Of Photography Terms [23]

B Backlighting Light coming from behind the subject, toward the camera lens, so that the subject stands out vividly against the background.
Backup Backup, in the context of photography, refers to the process of duplicating and storing digital image files to safeguard against potential data loss. This preventive measure involves creating copies of photographs and storing them in a separate location or on a different device, such as external hard drives, cloud storage services, or dedicated backup solutions. Backing up images is essential for protecting against unforeseen events like hardware failure, accidental deletion, or damage to the original storage medium. By maintaining reliable backups, photographers ensure the preservation of their valuable digital assets, allowing for recovery and restoration in the event of data loss. Regularly scheduled backups, combined with redundant storage solutions, contribute to a robust strategy for securing and maintaining the integrity of a photographer's image library.
Baltic Birch Baltic Birch Plywood is the leading plywood that is light in color with fine grain patterns. Its high durability and resistance is its strength, preventing warpage and blending. A Baltic Birch Plywood is made of a strong material due to the usage of high-quality MR for veneer gluing. It is one of the most sold products for its long durability, low weight, surface hardness, quality, and high performance.
Batch Processing Batch processing is a workflow technique employed in digital photography to apply a series of edits, adjustments, or transformations simultaneously to multiple images. Rather than editing each photo individually, photographers can use batch processing to streamline repetitive tasks and enhance efficiency. This can include actions such as resizing, cropping, color correction, or applying filters to a large number of images in a single operation. Batch processing is particularly useful for photographers dealing with extensive collections of images, such as event photographers or those managing large photo archives. Popular photo editing software often includes batch processing capabilities, allowing photographers to save time and maintain consistency in the post-production process.
Bayer Filter A Bayer filter is a color filter array commonly used in digital camera sensors to capture and reproduce color information in digital images. Named after its inventor, Bryce Bayer, this filter is composed of a grid of tiny color filters arranged in a specific pattern over the individual sensor pixels. The Bayer filter typically consists of red, green, and blue filters in varying proportions, allowing the camera sensor to capture color information by interpreting the intensity of light for each color channel. The raw data captured by the Bayer filter requires demosaicing during image processing to produce a full-color image. While widely used, the Bayer filter is just one of several color filter array designs employed in digital imaging, each with its own strengths and limitations.
Black and White Conversion Black and white conversion is the process of transforming a color photograph into grayscale, removing the color information to create a monochromatic image. This conversion can be achieved through various methods, such as desaturation, channel mixing, or using dedicated black and white conversion tools in photo editing software. The decision to convert an image to black and white is often driven by creative considerations, emphasizing tonal contrast, textures, and composition without the distraction of color. Black and white conversion is a powerful artistic choice that allows photographers to evoke a timeless and classic aesthetic, enhance mood, and emphasize the visual elements of light and shadow within their compositions.
Black and White Photography Black and white photography is a classic and timeless approach to image-making that relies solely on shades of gray to convey visual information. In contrast to color photography, black and white images emphasize the interplay of light and shadow, textures, and tonal contrast without the distraction of color. Black and white photography has a rich history and remains a popular choice among photographers for its ability to evoke emotions, highlight form and composition, and create a sense of timelessness. Photographers often choose black and white for artistic expression, portraiture, street photography, and documentary work, as it allows them to focus on the essential elements of a scene and create images with a distinctive and evocative aesthetic.
Black) CMYK is a color model used in color printing and reproduction processes. It stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black, representing the four primary colors used in subtractive color mixing. In CMYK printing, each color is represented by a separate ink or toner, and varying combinations of these four colors can produce a wide range of colors and tones. Cyan, magenta, and yellow are subtractive primary colors, meaning they subtract or absorb specific wavelengths of light, while black (K) is added to improve color depth and contrast. CMYK is commonly used in commercial printing processes, such as magazines, newspapers, and packaging, where precise color reproduction and consistency are essential.
Bleed The bleed is the portion of an image that goes beyond the cut lines. This ensures that the color goes all the way to the edges of a trimmed print. Alternately, it is the section of the image that is outside the viewing window of a mat or frame (and therefore unseen in the finished display).
Blend Mode Blend modes are a feature found in most image editing software, including Adobe Photoshop, GIMP, and Affinity Photo, among others. They determine how two layers in an image interact with each other, blending their pixels together to create different visual effects. Each blend mode alters the appearance of the top layer based on its interaction with the pixels of the layers beneath it. For example, some blend modes enhance contrast, while others increase brightness or alter colors. Common blend modes include Overlay, Multiply, Screen, Soft Light, and Color Dodge, among others. Photographers and graphic designers use blend modes extensively to achieve various creative effects, such as adding texture, adjusting color tones, or creating composite images.
Blow up Another word for enlargement; the act of increasing the print size of an image, photograph, or block of text.
Blue Hour The blue hour is a period of time that occurs twice a day, just before sunrise and after sunset, when the sky takes on a deep blue hue with soft, diffused light. It is named for the bluish quality of the light during this time, which is caused by the scattering of shorter blue wavelengths in the atmosphere while longer red wavelengths diminish. The blue hour presents a unique and captivating opportunity for photographers to capture scenes with a tranquil and atmospheric quality. The soft, diffused light of the blue hour can enhance landscapes, cityscapes, and architectural photography, creating images with a serene and ethereal ambiance.
Blueline An inexpensive photographic proof created prior to printing the full run of the image on a printing press. A blueline is created from a negative on which all the colors are blue (or possibly a different color) and shades of blue. Printing plate negatives are exposed to photosensitive paper to create the proof. Blueline proofs are "contact proofs," so called because the creation process requires they come into contact with a specific kind of paper.
BMP BMP stands for Bitmap Image File format, which is a standard raster graphics file format used to store bitmap digital images. BMP files are characterized by their uncompressed nature, which means they can contain a large amount of image data and result in relatively large file sizes compared to compressed formats like JPEG or PNG. BMP files support lossless image data and can store images with high color depth and resolution. However, due to their large file sizes, BMP files are not as commonly used for web graphics or online distribution as other formats. They are more often used in professional graphic design, printing, and archival purposes where image quality and fidelity are paramount.
Bokeh Bokeh refers to the aesthetic quality of the out-of-focus areas in a photograph, particularly in the background or foreground. It is characterized by smooth, soft, and pleasingly blurred areas of light and color that result from the lens's rendering of out-of-focus elements. Bokeh is influenced by various factors, including aperture shape, lens design, and the distance between the subject and background. Lenses with wide apertures, such as f/1.4 or f/2.8, are prized for their ability to produce creamy and attractive bokeh, creating a sense of depth and separation between the subject and its surroundings. Bokeh can add visual interest and artistic impact to portraits, macro photography, and other genres where selective focus and shallow depth of field are used to draw attention to the main subject.
Bokehlicious "Bokehlicious" is a playful term used by photographers to describe the aesthetic quality of bokeh in an image. It refers to the pleasing, attractive, or visually appealing nature of the out-of-focus areas in a photograph, particularly when they exhibit smooth, creamy, or beautifully blurred backgrounds or foregrounds. Images described as bokehlicious often feature subjects that are sharply focused against a soft and dreamy bokeh background, creating a sense of depth, separation, and visual interest. Photographers often seek to achieve bokehlicious effects by using lenses with wide apertures, such as prime lenses with low f-stop values, which produce shallow depth of field and creamy bokeh.
Bond Paper Originally used in preparing government bonds, this type of paper is of high quality and quite durable, generally having a paper weight of more than 50 g/m². In the printing business, this paper is used to produce important documents, or may be used as a lower-cost option to light fine art papers, for producing artistic reproductions. Bond paper may be used to create original artworks using pen, ink, or pencil, and is sometimes made from rag pulp, which creates a stronger paper with a distinct texture.
Bracketing Bracketing is a technique used by photographers to capture multiple exposures of the same scene, each with different camera settings, such as exposure, aperture, or white balance. By taking a series of bracketed shots, photographers can ensure they capture the scene with a range of settings, including overexposed, underexposed, and correctly exposed images. Bracketing is particularly useful in situations where the lighting conditions are challenging or variable, such as high contrast scenes with bright highlights and deep shadows, or when shooting in difficult lighting conditions such as sunrise, sunset, or indoor environments with mixed lighting. Bracketed exposures can be later combined or selected during post-processing to create a final image that accurately represents the desired exposure and tonal range.
Bridge Camera A bridge camera is a type of digital camera that bridges the gap between compact point-and-shoot cameras and more advanced DSLR or mirrorless cameras. Bridge cameras typically feature a fixed, non-interchangeable lens with a versatile zoom range, ergonomic design, and advanced shooting modes. While they offer many of the features found in DSLR or mirrorless cameras, such as manual exposure controls, advanced autofocus systems, and high-resolution sensors, bridge cameras are often smaller, lighter, and more portable, making them ideal for travel, everyday photography, and casual shooting. Bridge cameras appeal to photographers seeking a balance between convenience, versatility, and image quality without the complexity and expense associated with interchangeable lens systems.
Bromide In photography, refers to a print that is created on bromide paper. The paper is coated in silver bromide, resulting in neutral black and white images, or those with a blue-black tint.
Bulb Mode Bulb mode is a camera setting that allows photographers to manually control the length of the camera's exposure beyond the usual shutter speed limitations. When the camera is set to bulb mode, the shutter remains open for as long as the shutter button is held down or until a specified time limit is reached, allowing photographers to capture long exposures of several seconds, minutes, or even hours. Bulb mode is commonly used in low-light photography, night photography, astrophotography, and long-exposure techniques such as light painting and capturing motion trails. It enables photographers to creatively capture scenes with extended exposure times, revealing details and capturing light that would be otherwise invisible in shorter exposures.
Burst Mode Burst mode, also known as continuous shooting mode or high-speed shooting mode, is a feature found in many digital cameras that allows photographers to capture a rapid series of consecutive images with a single press of the shutter button. In burst mode, the camera records multiple frames per second, enabling photographers to capture fast-moving subjects, action sequences, and fleeting moments with precision and timing. Burst mode is particularly useful in sports photography, wildlife photography, and photojournalism, where capturing decisive moments and fleeting expressions is essential. By shooting in burst mode, photographers increase their chances of capturing the perfect shot, ensuring they don't miss critical moments in fast-paced or unpredictable situations.
Buy Out To buy out or farm out work is to subcontract certain services to a different company. The secondary company generally works on a white label basis, whereby the customer is unaware of the outsourcing. Also known as "out of house" or "outwork."