Digital Photography Glossary: B

backlighting: A lighting effect produced when the main light source is located behind the subject. Backlighting is also a technology for illuminating an LCD display from the rear, making it easier to view under high ambient lighting conditions.

barn doors: Attachments for flash devices that feature movable flaps, which allow you to finely tune light output.

battery charger: A device that recharges rechargeable batteries by connecting to a power source.

battery pack: A device that holds multiple batteries with which you can power your digital camera.

bit depth: Refers to the number of bits available to store color information. A standard digital camera image has a bit depth of 24 bits. Images with more than 24 bits are called high-bit images.

blog: Short for Web log. A Web site where journal-like entries are made and displayed in reverse chronological order.

blown out: Term to describe an image or part of an image that’s over-exposed with no detail.

Manual: Shooting mode in which you choose both aperture and shutter speed.

BMP: A Windows bitmap file format; the default graphic created by Windows graphics programs.

bokeh: The quality of the out-of-focus areas of an image that a lens produces.

bracketing: Taking a series of photographs of the same subject at different settings to help ensure that one setting will be the correct one.

shooting mode: Range of options that gives you limited or total control of picture-taking settings.

buffer: A digital camera’s internal memory, which stores an image immediately after it was taken until the image can be written to the camera’s memory or a memory card.

Bulb: Shooting mode in which the shutter stays open so long as the shutter button is fully depressed.

burst mode: A special capture setting, offered on some digital cameras, that records several images in rapid succession with one press of the shutter button. Also called continuous capture mode.