Here you’ll find 67 Photography words that start with B, organized from “BSI” to “Burst mode”. These entries cover camera features, shooting techniques, lens and sensor terms, and common abbreviations used by photographers and creators.
Photography words that start with B are concise labels and abbreviations describing camera parts, techniques, settings, and image attributes. For example, “Burst mode” changed sports and wildlife photography by letting you capture fast action in a rapid sequence.
Below you’ll find the table with Term, Definition, Abbreviation, Example, and Related terms.
Term: The photography word itself, so you can scan the list and locate a specific entry quickly.
Definition: A concise 1–2 sentence explanation that tells you what the term means and when it matters in practice.
Abbreviation: Common shortened forms and initials, helping you decode manuals, camera menus, and tech specs fast.
Example: A short real-world use or scenario so you see how the term appears in actual photography work.
Related terms: Linked words you can explore for broader context and to expand your technical vocabulary.
Photography words that start with B
| Term | Category | Abbreviation/Alt spellings | Typical units/values |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bokeh | Concept | N/A | |
| Backlight | Technique | N/A | |
| Backdrop | Accessory | Fabric, paper, seamless | |
| Back-button focus | Technique | BBF | N/A |
| Backscatter | Artifact | N/A | |
| Banding | Artifact | N/A | |
| Barrel distortion | Concept | N/A | |
| Base ISO | Parameter | ISO (e.g., ISO 100) | |
| Battery | Equipment | mAh, volts | |
| Battery grip | Accessory | Extra cells, button controls | |
| Bayer filter | Concept | Bayer pattern, CFA | RGB mosaic |
| Bellows | Equipment | Extension mm | |
| Blooming | Artifact | N/A | |
| Blur | Concept | N/A | |
| Bracketing | Technique | Stops, EV | |
| Brightness | Parameter | Arbitrary units | |
| Bulb | Setting | Seconds, minutes | |
| Burn | Technique | N/A | |
| Black and white | Concept | B&W | N/A |
| Black level | Parameter | Measurement units | |
| Black point | Concept | Percent, stop | |
| Black card | Technique | Card size | |
| Blue hour | Concept | Minutes before/after sunrise | |
| BSI | Abbreviation | Backside illumination | N/A |
| Bridge camera | Equipment | Fixed lens, 24–1200mm equiv. | |
| Burst mode | Setting | Continuous shooting | Frames per second |
| Bit depth | Parameter | bits (8, 12, 14, 16) | |
| Background | Concept | N/A | |
| Background removal | Technique | N/A | |
| Backlit | Concept | N/A | |
| Bad pixel | Artifact | N/A | |
| Bean bag | Accessory | Small, filled cushion | |
| Bounce flash | Technique | N/A | |
| Body | Equipment | Camera body | Grams |
| Bluetooth | Accessory/Feature | Version (e.g., 5.0) | |
| Blue channel | Concept | 0–255 | |
| Bleach bypass | Technique | N/A | |
| Brightness value | Parameter | BV | Stops |
| Bellows factor | Concept | Magnification ratio, stops | |
| Brush | Tool | Size, hardness | |
| Burn tool | Tool | Brush size | |
| Back focus | Issue | N/A | |
| Back curtain sync | Setting | 1st/2nd curtain | |
| Buffer | Concept | Frames, MB | |
| Bounce card | Accessory | Plastic, white paper | |
| Background compression | Concept | Telephoto focal length effect | |
| Barn doors | Accessory | Flaps, degrees of control | |
| Bias frame | Accessory/Technique | Exposure time, same temp. | |
| Beauty dish | Accessory | Diameter (e.g., 16, 22 inches) | |
| Black frame | Technique | Exposure matching | |
| Band-pass filter | Accessory | Hz or nm range | |
| Blue cast | Artifact | Kelvin | |
| Bromide | Material | Bromide paper | Paper type |
| Burn-in | Artifact/Process | N/A | |
| Bringing up | Technique | N/A | |
| Bracketed HDR | Technique | Stops, EV | |
| Brilliant filter | Accessory | Filter type | |
| Back-illuminated sensor | Concept | Back-illuminated, BSI | N/A |
| Banding noise | Artifact | N/A | |
| Baseplate | Accessory | Rig compatibility | |
| Brightness clipping | Artifact | Percent, stops | |
| Black card technique | Technique | N/A | |
| Blue filter | Accessory | Warming/cooling effect | |
| Burst buffer | Concept | Frames, MB | |
| Body cap | Accessory | Plastic | |
| Backlight metering | Technique | Metering mode | |
| Banding artifact | Artifact | N/A |
Descriptions
Bokeh
Aesthetic quality of out-of-focus areas, affected by aperture, lens design and blade shape; creates pleasing background blur.
Backlight
Lighting a subject from behind to create rim light, silhouette, or separation from background.
Backdrop
Background surface used in studio photography to set scene, color, or texture behind the subject.
Back-button focus
Separates autofocus from the shutter button using a rear control so focus and exposure can be triggered independently.
Backscatter
Light reflected off particles (dust, water) causing bright spots or haze, especially in flash photography.
Banding
Visible stripes or lines in shadows or gradients caused by sensor readout, compression, or limited bit depth.
Barrel distortion
Lens distortion where straight lines bow outward, common with wide-angle lenses.
Base ISO
Lowest native ISO of a camera sensor offering maximum dynamic range and least noise.
Battery
Removable or internal power cell that runs a camera; capacity affects shooting time.
Battery grip
Vertical-handling accessory that holds spare batteries and often duplicate controls for portrait shooting.
Bayer filter
Color filter array on most digital sensors that arranges red, green, and blue photosites.
Bellows
Adjustable accordion extension used for macro photography to increase lens-to-sensor distance for closer focusing.
Blooming
Overload of a sensor photosite causing bright highlights to spill into neighboring pixels.
Blur
Loss of sharpness from motion, shallow depth of field, or focus errors; used artistically or avoided for clarity.
Bracketing
Shooting multiple exposures with varied settings (exposure, focus, white balance) to ensure correct result.
Brightness
Perceived lightness of an image or display area; often adjusted in editing or camera preview.
Bulb
Shutter mode where the exposure remains open while the shutter button is held, for long exposures.
Burn
Darkroom/editing technique to locally darken parts of an image to control tonality and focus attention.
Black and white
Image limited to shades of gray; emphasizes form, contrast and texture without color information.
Black level
Sensor or RAW baseline signal representing the darkest measurable value before clipping.
Black point
Darkest tone in an image that maps to true black during processing or printing.
Black card
Long-exposure technique using a black card to selectively expose parts of a scene for creative light control.
Blue hour
Period of soft, cool light around dawn or dusk prized for landscape and cityscape photography.
BSI
Sensor design where wiring sits behind photodiodes to improve low-light sensitivity and reduce noise.
Bridge camera
Camera type between point-and-shoot and DSLR/Mirrorless, often with superzoom lens.
Burst mode
Camera mode capturing rapid consecutive frames for action and wildlife photography.
Bit depth
Number of bits per color channel determining tonal precision and dynamic range in images.
Background
Area behind the subject that influences composition and visual depth; managed for clarity or effect.
Background removal
Process of isolating a subject and deleting or replacing the background in-camera or in post.
Backlit
Describes subjects lit from behind, producing rim light, increased contrast, or silhouettes.
Bad pixel
Individual sensor pixel stuck bright or dark; often corrected in-camera or in software.
Bean bag
Stable, flexible support used to steady a camera when a tripod is impractical.
Bounce flash
Flash technique directing light toward a surface (wall/ceiling) to soften shadows and diffuse light.
Body
Main camera unit excluding lens, housing controls, sensor, and electronics.
Bluetooth
Wireless protocol used by cameras for remote control, image transfer, and accessory pairing.
Blue channel
One of three color channels (red, green, blue) in RGB images used in color editing and corrections.
Bleach bypass
Chemical film process or digital effect that reduces saturation and increases contrast for a gritty look.
Brightness value
Exposure-related value used in metering to quantify scene luminance.
Bellows factor
Exposure compensation amount for light loss when using bellows in macro work.
Brush
Editing tool that selectively paints adjustments like dodging, burning, or masking.
Burn tool
Editing tool that darkens specific image areas to enhance contrast or shape light.
Back focus
When a lens focuses behind the intended subject plane; requires micro-adjustment or calibration.
Back curtain sync
Flash mode where flash fires at shutter’s end, producing natural motion blur trails behind moving subjects.
Buffer
Temporary camera memory that stores images during burst shooting before writing to the card.
Bounce card
Small card used to redirect a flash head’s output and soften or shape light.
Background compression
Apparent overlap and size compression of background elements when using long lenses.
Barn doors
Adjustable metal flaps on studio lights used to shape and limit light spill.
Bias frame
Short-exposure calibration frame capturing sensor readout noise for astrophotography calibration.
Beauty dish
Parabolic light modifier that produces soft, focused light with pronounced falloff, often for portraits.
Black frame
Frame captured with lens cap on to record sensor dark current, used in long-exposure noise reduction.
Band-pass filter
Optical filter passing a specific band of wavelengths, used in specialized photography and scientific imaging.
Blue cast
Unwanted bluish color shift caused by cool light sources or incorrect white balance.
Bromide
Silver-based photographic paper historically used for black-and-white darkroom prints.
Burn-in
Permanent change or retention of image detail on sensors or displays; also used in exposure blending terminology.
Bringing up
Informal term for increasing exposure, contrast, or detail in shadow areas during editing.
Bracketed HDR
Shooting multiple exposures across a range to combine into high dynamic range images.
Brilliant filter
In-camera or post effect boosting contrast and local saturation for a punchy look (term used generically).
Back-illuminated sensor
Sensor construction improving light capture by placing wiring behind photodiodes.
Banding noise
Patterned noise appearing as bands, often in low-light or heavy compression situations.
Baseplate
Mounting plate used to attach cameras to tripods, rigs, or sliders for stability and accessories.
Brightness clipping
Loss of detail in highlights when signal exceeds sensor or file maximum.
Black card technique
Long-exposure method using a handheld card to selectively expose subjects against dark backgrounds.
Blue filter
Optical or digital filter that emphasizes blue tones or corrects color temperature.
Burst buffer
Camera subsystem combining buffer memory and processing to sustain high-speed continuous shooting.
Body cap
Protective cover for a lens mount when no lens is attached.
Backlight metering
Metering approach to expose for a backlit subject, often using exposure compensation.
Banding artifact
Repetition of banding term for emphasis; visible stripes due to quantization or readout problems.