ABSTRACT
Optics explores the science behind how lenses use light to form an image and the technology that continues to improve this process. This chapter contains several simple mathematical formulas that explain how photographer’s camera’s lens works. Numbers might not be their thing, but we encourage them to stay with us: while all this math and science might seem “nerdy” or difficult, understanding these concepts will give them a level of control over their photographs that many artists never achieve. Remember: nerds rule the world, and perhaps especially the art world. Initially, camera obscuras were made only for the observation of images, not for capturing them. It would be another three centuries after Gemma Frisius before light-sensitive materials were placed in an early camera and an image was successfully captured as a photograph. Since the invention of photography, both photographers and opticians have waged a war against optical aberrations.
