Click on the image for larger viewing.When I started to become more serious about taking photos, I subscribed to a photography magazine (Popular Photography). At first, a lot of the language was beyond my understanding, particularly lenses used, their millimeters (e.g. 24 - 70 mm) and their apertures. When something was shot at 50 mm at f/ 1.2 and ISO 100, what did that mean? I just kept reading those magazines from cover to cover and gradually I started understanding the lingo.
I highly recommend getting a photography magazine (there are a lot of good ones out there) and just start reading it, whether you understand it all or not. My current subscription is to Professional Photographer. I don't have time to read more, unfortunately.
That being said, this hummingbird photo was shot at ISO 100, using a Canon 70 - 200 L-series lens (kinda pricey, but it's got great glass and a motor in it) - shot at 145 mm, f/9.0 and 1/320 shudder speed. Had I used a faster shudder speed, I could have frozen the wing flutter, but I like to see it fluttering. Actually, if you want to stop action, it's recommended you use a shudder speed (TV mode on your camera) of 1/1000 or 1/2000. So...those shots I get of people jumping in the air...I speed up my shudder to the above settings. That way I don't get blur. To do it quickly, just put your camera in Shudder Speed Priority at 1/2000 and let your camera do the rest. If in low light, you'll have to have a higher ISO, but that is another lesson.
Find me on Facebook and pop a question to me if you want to know more, like...why did I use an f-stop of 9.0 and was I happy with that choice?
