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Golden hour is the period of daytime shortly after sunrise or before sunset when the light is redder and softer compared to when the sun is higher in the sky.

A diffuser is a device that scatters light from a source, thereby softening the light as it hits the subject and reducing harsh shadows.

The hyperfocal distance is the closest focus distance at which a lens can be focused while keeping objects at infinity acceptably sharp; used in landscape photography.

Digital Single-Lens Reflex (DSLR) cameras use a mirror mechanism to direct light from the lens to an optical viewfinder on the back of the camera.

Kelvin is a unit of measurement for color temperature used to describe the warmth or coolness of a light source in photography.

Sensor size determines the amount of light a camera's sensor captures, influencing depth of field and image quality; common sizes include full-frame and APS-C.

Tonal range in photography refers to the range of tones from the darkest shadows to the brightest highlights in an image.

Flash sync speed is the maximum shutter speed at which a flash can be used without causing the shutter's open time to be shorter than the flash duration.

A UV filter blocks ultraviolet rays, helping to reduce haze; often used to protect the lens from scratches, dirt, and knocks.

Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor. A type of image sensor found in digital cameras that converts light into electrical signals.

Joint Photographic Experts Group. A common file format for compressing digital images. It is a lossy compression, meaning some quality is lost in the process.

Optical image stabilization is a method used in camera lenses and bodies to stabilize the image by physically moving an element in the lens or sensor.

The exposure triangle is a concept that illustrates the relationship between the three elements of exposure: aperture, shutter speed, and ISO.

Long exposure photography involves using a long-duration shutter speed to sharply capture the stationary elements while blurring the moving elements.

Panning is a camera technique where the camera is moved horizontally to follow a moving subject, resulting in a sharp subject and a blurred background.

A zoom lens is a lens that offers the photographer a range of focal lengths in a single lens, allowing for a closer or wider shot without changing the lens.

Bulb mode allows for long exposure times beyond the set shutter speed limits, typically used for exposures longer than 30 seconds.

A prime lens is a fixed focal length lens that generally offers better quality and larger apertures compared to zoom lenses.

Depth of field refers to the range of distance within a photo that appears acceptably sharp. It varies with aperture, focal length, and subject distance.

Auto Exposure Lock (AE Lock) is a camera function that allows a photographer to lock the exposure settings while recomposing the shot.

Single-Lens Reflex (SLR) is a camera that utilizes a mirror and prism system to allow photographers to see through the lens and take a picture.

Through The Lens (TTL) refers to the metering system of cameras that measures the light intensity through the lens.

A light meter is a tool used to measure the amount of light in a scene to determine the correct exposure for a photograph.

Shutter speed is the amount of time the camera's shutter is open and exposing the sensor to light; fast speeds freeze action, while slow speeds capture motion blur.

JPEG is a widely-used image format with compression, while RAW is a file format containing all data from a camera's sensor, offering higher quality and greater editing flexibility.

An aperture is the opening in a lens through which light passes to enter the camera. It is expressed in f-numbers (e.g., f/2.8), controlling depth of field and exposure.

Noise in a digital image refers to the visual distortion. It looks similar to grain found in film photography and generally occurs in low light or at high ISO settings.

RAW is a file format that captures all image data recorded by the sensor when you take a photo. This offers higher quality and greater flexibility in post-processing.

Electronic Viewfinder (EVF) is a camera viewfinder where the image captured by the lens is projected electronically onto a miniature display.

Pixel peeping is the act of closely inspecting images at the pixel level, often to evaluate the quality of the camera, lens, or image processing.

A megapixel is one million pixels and is used to denote the resolution of a digital camera's sensor.

The viewfinder is the part of the camera that you look through to compose, and in many cases, to focus the picture.

Exposure compensation is a camera function that allows the photographer to adjust the exposure indicated by the camera's meter, usually in increments of EV.

An intervalometer is a device used to control the frequency at which photographs are taken, such as in time-lapse photography.

Red-eye is a common photography effect where subjects' eyes appear red due to the reflection of the camera's flash in the retina.

ISO measures the sensitivity of the image sensor. The lower the number, the less sensitive your camera is to light and the finer the grain.

Time-lapse photography is a technique that captures a series of images at set intervals to record changes that take place slowly over time when played at normal speed.

White balance is the adjustment of colors to make the image look more natural and to compensate for the color temperature of a light source.

A hot shoe is a mounting point on the top of a camera to attach a flash unit and other accessories.

A lens hood is an accessory that attaches to the front of a lens to block the Sun or other light sources to prevent glare and lens flare.

Vignetting is a reduction in image brightness or saturation at the periphery compared to the image center. It can be an unintended effect or used for creative purposes.

A wide-angle lens is a lens with a shorter focal length than normal, allowing more of the scene to be included in the photograph.

White balance bracketing is where the camera automatically takes several shots with different white balance settings, useful in mixed lighting situations.

Chimping refers to the habit of checking every photo on the camera display (LCD) immediately after capture.

Color temperature is a characteristic of visible light measured in Kelvin (K), dealing with the color of light sources and their impact on photography.

A neutral density filter reduces the amount of light entering the lens, allowing for wider apertures or slower shutter speeds in bright conditions.

Bokeh refers to the quality of out-of-focus or 'blurry' parts of the image produced by a lens. It is a term used to describe the aesthetic quality of the blur.

F-stop refers to the measurement of the aperture setting on a camera lens. Smaller numbers represent wider apertures and larger numbers represent smaller apertures.

High-Dynamic-Range. A technique used to reproduce a greater range of luminosity by combining multiple images with different exposures.

Mirrorless cameras lack a mirror mechanism, using an electronic display system instead. They are generally lighter and more compact than DSLRs.

The rule of thirds is a compositional guideline which suggests dividing the image into nine equal parts with two equally spaced horizontal lines and two equally spaced vertical lines, and placing important elements along these lines or at their intersections.

X-sync is the speed setting on a camera that synchronizes the shutter with the flash, ensuring the flash fires at the moment the shutter is fully open.

Bracketing is taking multiple shots of the same subject using different camera settings (like exposure). These can be merged later in post-processing.

Focal length, measured in millimeters, is the distance between the lens and the image sensor when the subject is in focus, determining the angle of view.