This article guides you through the common digital camera symbols or icons that you'll find on your camera's outer case, on buttons and switches. Discover what those symbols mean and what function they do!
You'll find abbreviations throughout your camera both as symbols or icons and as letter abbreviations. Both in the camera's menu and on the outside of the camera's next to or on buttons and switches. All makes of camera are different so this article explores some of those symbols commonly found on the outside of your camera.
The swivel switch
The swivel switch is where you'll find most of those picture symbols. A lot of these symbols found here are as automatic settings which make taking photographs much simpler as you choose the appropriate setting for your photographic situation. Here is a run down of those commonly pictured symbols:
Portrait Face or Person Symbol
Portrait face or person symbol is a good setting to use for photographing people. This setting will usually employ the flash to take the photo and normally aim to freeze motion to stop blur so use quite fast shutter speeds and a medium aperture to get the middle ground but not to capture detail in the background.
Night-time Stars and Moon
The symbol typically of stars and a crest of a moon means this setting is for night-time photography. Flash will be employed as well as slower shutter speeds and a wide aperture (low aperture number) to let in as much available light as possible to take the photograph.
Tulip Flower
The flower symbol normally is found as a separate button on the camera other than the swivel switch. This symbol gives you the opportunity to do close-up photography, or in other words Macro photography. Using this setting makes the lens focus in much closer on to the subject so you can point your camera in much nearer to the subject than before. The flash won't normally go off as the camera will be in too close you you'll need to make sure your subject in macro photography mode is in good light.
Further Reading
Digital Camera Function Abbreviations
This article guides you through the common digital camera functions that you'll find on your camera that have been abbreviated, or shortened into a few letters. Discover what those letters mean and what function they do!
