A method of creating the illusion of depth by showing each eye a slightly different photograph of the same scene. The two pictures are taken from points about as far apart as human eyes.

Photography with a very wide field of view, usually much wider than it is tall. A panorama can be made with a special panoramic camera or by joining several photographs together.

A technique in which a moving light source is used during a long exposure to draw shapes or to light parts of a scene step by step.

Photography that records infrared light, which is just beyond the red end of what the human eye can see. Special film, a converted digital camera or a filter that blocks visible light is needed.

A lens or camera movement that can tilt the lens (to change the plane of focus) and shift it (to move the image without moving the camera). See also shift lens and Scheimpflug principle.

A technique that combines several photographs focused at different distances into one image that is sharp from front to back.

Connecting a camera to a computer or tablet, by cable or wirelessly, so that each photograph appears on the larger screen right after it is taken.

An autofocus mode that detects a person's or animal's eye and keeps it in focus automatically.

A camera setup in which autofocus is started by a button on the back of the camera instead of by half-pressing the shutter button.

A function on SLR cameras that raises the mirror before the shutter opens. This stops the vibration of the moving mirror from blurring the picture.

A mode in which the camera shows the image from the sensor in real time on the rear screen or in an electronic viewfinder.

A small, simple camera with automatic exposure and focus, made to be easy to carry and use. It is also called a compact camera.

Film or cameras that use sheets of film of 4 x 5 inches (about 10 x 12 cm) or larger. Large format photographs are usually made with a view camera on a tripod. See also sheet film.

A camera with two lenses of the same focal length, one above the other. The top lens shows the image on a focusing screen through a mirror, and the bottom lens takes the picture. It is often shortened to TLR.

A photograph in which only a thin part of the scene is sharp, while the foreground and background are blurred. It is made with a wide aperture, a long focal length or a close subject.

The largest blur spot that the human eye still sees as a sharp point at a normal viewing distance. A point of light that is slightly out of focus is recorded as a small disc. If that disc is small enough, it still looks sharp.

A technology that reduces blur caused by camera shake. It is often shortened to IS. Other brand names include VR (Nikon) and OIS (optical image stabilization).

The physical size of a camera sensor. Common sizes include full frame (36 x 24 mm), APS-C, Four Thirds and the much smaller sensors in phones. Medium format sensors are larger than full frame.

Short for charge-coupled device, a type of image sensor. The CCD was invented in 1969 at Bell Labs by Willard Boyle and George E. Smith, who received the Nobel Prize in Physics for it in 2009.

One million pixels. It describes the resolution of a camera sensor or an image. A 24-megapixel sensor records about 24 million pixels, for example 6000 by 4000.