Tv Mode--Let the Light Shine In

Sometimes for the fun of it, I'll turn my digital SLR (Single Lens Reflex) camera to Tv mode (that setting enables me to set a shutter speed while the camera automatically determines how wide the lens will open). Then, I'll turn the knob on top of the camera's body until I get the number 10 (seconds) to show up on the indicators inside the viewfinder.

Next, I'll set the camera on a flat surface aiming at what could be an interesting shot. In the image above it's aiming inside a school window in Siam Reap, Cambodia.

Last, I'll turn on the camera's timer (the clock thing that shows up on the LCD screen when you press the timer button on the body of the camera) and click on the shutter release button half-way down for a focus point and then all the way down to take a picture.

When I set your camera to take a shot for a couple of seconds or more, the result is called a long exposure.

The amount of time I set my shutter speed to stay open depends upon how much light I have around. In this case I judged that I'd need from 5 to 10 seconds to get a good exposure.

Let's review what I've said here:

1. Tv mode lets you set how long you want to keep your shutter open (shutter speed).

2. When you decide the shutter speed in Tv mode, the camera decides how wide it'll open the lens. How wide the lens is open is called the aperture of the lens.