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Photography vocabulary · Lenses & Focus

Sharp

Meaning in photography, with examples

/ʃɑːrp/adjectiveCore term

In photography, sharp means: Clear and detailed, with crisp edges and no blur. Used about photos, parts of a photo and lenses.

In Turkish: net, keskin

How it is used

One of the first things checked in a photo. Lenses are tested for sharpness, often from the center to the corners. The opposite is soft (slightly unsharp) or blurry. The verb sharpen means adding sharpness in editing.

Example sentences

  1. Zoom in and check that the eyes are sharp before you show the client.

  2. This lens is sharp wide open, even in the corners.

Common collocations

  • tack sharp
  • razor-sharp
  • sharp lens
  • sharp focus
  • sharp from corner to corner
  • focusThe point or area of a photo that is sharp. Something is in focus when it looks sharp and out of focus when it looks blurred.
  • motion blurThe streaky, blurred look of something that moves while the shutter is open, or of the whole image when the camera moves.
  • lensThe part of a camera that collects light and focuses it onto the sensor or film. It contains several pieces of glass and usually the aperture.
  • tripodA stand with three adjustable legs that holds the camera steady, especially for slow shutter speeds, low light and careful framing.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Lenses & Focus

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