Now that I have backed up, can I delete items from my desktop? One of the reasons I got the time capsule was so that I could free up some space on my computer. I am confused about whether the backup will one day remove my photos/video

I purchased a 2TB time capsule yesterday. I set it up as a router and did the backup no problem. I then navigated the backup folder and found that all my photos/video that I am nervous about losing are on there. So far so good.
Taking a step back, the reason I bought the time capsule was 1.) I needed a router 2.) I have a mac and 3.) I am running out of disk space on that mac (I shoot and cut a lot of video and have years of high quality pictures on my mac hard drive)
Can I now delete them from my mac computer to free space? I have used standard external disk drives in the past, but the whole "Back Up" piece of things has me confused. I love the idea of backing up my computer so I want to keep that functionality, but will the drive still function as a static external hard drive? Or do I need to move that material in seperately as a folder outside of the backup folder?
I am nervous that if the backup overwrites information as the disk space becomes limited that in 10 years when I fill this drive up, that I will lose all of my photos that are part of the backups that I am running now.....
Or worse, I am nervous that if I remove things from my mac right now, that the next time that a back up is performed that it will lose this data as it is not currently on the device I am backing up? How does this work?
I apologize, the back up is a very new concept to me and I want to make sure I do not goof anything up.

applefool wrote:
Taking a step back, the reason I bought the time capsule was . . . 3.) I am running out of disk space on that mac
That's an entirely different thing from backups.  A backup is an extra copy, in case the original is lost or damaged.   Additional space is just that -- more space for originals.
While it's possible to use the same disk (such as the TC's internal HD) for both things, it's dangerous -- when (not if) something happens to the TC, you risk losing the originals that are on it.   To be safe, you need (at least) two copies of everything important, in (at least) two different places.  
Many (including me) recommend at least three copies (originals plus 2 backups).  While it's not common for the Mac's hard drive to fail about the same time as the backup drive, it does happen.  There are several threads here where it did, and very expensive data recovery was needed, but in some cases everything was lost.
So as the others recommend, getting an external HD for the stuff there isn't room for on your Mac is one solution for not having enough space.  But you might explore getting a larger internal HD.   If possible, that might be bettter.
Then, also get another external, for "secondary" backups, so you're doubly protected.  If you get a portable model, you can take it offsite for even better protection.  See #27 in Time Machine - Frequently Asked Questions for details and some suggestions.
Can I now delete them from my mac computer to free space? I have used standard external disk drives in the past, but the whole "Back Up" piece of things has me confused.
You're not the first or only one. 
There are different types of backup apps, so there are different answers for the different types.
As the others have posted, Time Machine will, sooner or later, delete it's backup copies of things that are no longer on your system.  Depending on how long the original was there and when backups were run, that can be in as little as 24 hours, or as long as there's room.   So no, don't take the chance with data that's important!
Is there helpful information on how to add an external drive to your backup set up?
See the green box in #2 of the FAQ article.  All you have to do is format it for a Mac and remove it from the exclusion list.
           Once I set it up, will I need to leave the hard drive plugged into my mac in order for the data to be backed up?
It can only be backed-up while it's connected.
           If I do, and a back up is performed without the hard drive attached to my computer, will it remove the backup of  what was on the hard drive
No (unless you leave it disconnected until Time Machine starts deleting old backups).
It will back up the external when it's connected, and not complain if it isn't.

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