If you are serious about becoming a photographer of astounding quality, familiarizing yourself with photography terms is an essential part of the process. Whether you talk with other photographers on a daily basis or you’re looking to expand your photography knowledge, this glossary will offer you a better understanding of all things photographic.

Aberrations: flaws within the lens that result in the creation of a distorted image.

AE Lock: camera-operating mode for exposure control. The AE lock “locks in” the exposure reading so that the photographer can make other modifications without re-entering the value.

Angle, or Field of View: the amount of area covered by the lens’ eye, identified by a value in degrees. The shorter the length of view of the lens, the larger the angle of view.

Aperture: name given to the opening within the camera that lets light into the film through the lens. Also called f-stop, an aperture setting must be selected in most cameras to define the amount exposure (light that enters the lens).

Aperture Priority AE: camera operating mode within the semiautomatic category. It calculates the most suitable shutter speed and exposure when the photographer enters an aperture value.

Bounce Flash: the result of light fired off of a flash bouncing off a reflective surface sideways, diagonally, horizontally, or vertically. Instead of directly lighting a source of directional light on the subject, bounce flash techniques are used to soften light and even its distribution. Bounce flash is commonly used for portraits to minimize shadows and silhouettes.

Bracketing: method used to find a correct exposure value for a given set of pictures. The process consists of firing identical pictures under different exposure values so as to determine the best for that scene.