Introduction What is photography? The history of photography What this site will do for you Light: The most important element Why light is important to a photograph The many types of light Controlling light in your pictures The camera The basic function Types of cameras Choosing the right camera Putting the image together: the Lens How the lens bends light: a tutorial A brief introduction to apertures The variety of lenses Choosing a lens Exposure: a film tutorial How film records an image Understanding film speed Print vs. Slide film Film recommendations Taking Pictures Depth-of-field Apertures and shutter speeds Composition and experimentation: the basics Metering: when you can't guess The many types of picture-taking Photography with a point-and-shoot Accessories Tripods: for when you can't stay still Lens filters Post-processing: after development Scanning photos The digital darkroom Photo and equipment storage
The importance of light
Without light, photography would not exist. In fact, the word photography comes from the word photo, a Greek word meaning "light". Before you can understand photography, you must first understand light. Even if you have the most sophisticated of cameras, and the most expensive and sharpest of lenses, without light your photographs would be impossible, and your cameras and lenses would be useless.
Light and the photograph
To understand why light is important to a photograph, you must understand how an image is captured onto your film. The film you place in your camera is something called a photosensitive material, which means "a material that is sensitive to light". Film is basically material that reacts in a way that when light rays hit it, an image forms (However, to actually see the image you must first process, or develop the film). Once you read the Exposure: a Film tutorial section, you will be able to see about how film works in detail.