·Shutter
speed is measured in seconds – or in most cases fractions of seconds. The
bigger the denominator the faster the speed (ie 1/1000 is much faster than
1/30).
·In
most cases you’ll probably be using shutter speeds of 1/60th of a second or
faster. This is because anything slower than this is very difficult to use
without getting camera shake. Camera shake is when your camera is moving while
the shutter is open and results in blur in your photos.
·If
you’re using a slow shutter speed (anything slower than 1/60) you will need to
either use a tripod or some some type of image stabilization (more and more
cameras are coming with this built in).
·Shutter
speeds available to you on your camera will usually double (approximately) with
each setting. As a result you’ll usually have the options for the following
shutter speeds – 1/500, 1/250, 1/125, 1/60, 1/30, 1/15, 1/8 etc. This
‘doubling’ is handy to keep in mind as aperture settings also double the amount
of light that is let in – as a result increasing shutter speed by one stop and
decreasing aperture by one stop should give you similar exposure levels (but
we’ll talk more about this in a future post).
·Some
cameras also give you the option for very slow shutter speeds that are not
fractions of seconds but are measured in seconds (for example 1 second, 10
seconds, 30 seconds etc). These are used in very low light situations, when
you’re going after special effects and/or when you’re trying to capture a lot
of movement in a shot). Some cameras also give you the option to shoot in ‘B’
(or ‘Bulb’) mode. Bulb mode lets you keep the shutter open for as long as you
hold it down.
·When
considering what shutter speed to use in an image you should always ask
yourself whether anything in your scene is moving and how you’d like to
capture that movement. If there is movement in your scene you have the choice
of either freezing the movement (so it looks still) or letting the moving
object intentionally blur (giving it a sense of movement).
·To
freeze movement in an image (like in the baseball shot above) you’ll want to
choose a faster shutter speed and to let the movement blur you’ll want to
choose a slower shutter speed. The actual speeds you should choose will vary
depending upon the speed of the subject in your shot and how much you want it
to be blurred.
Motion is not always bad – I spoke to one
digital camera owner last week who told me that he always used fast
shutter speeds and couldn’t understand why anyone would want motion in
their images. There are times when motion is good. For example when
you’re taking a photo of a waterfall and want to show how fast the water
is flowing, or when you’re taking a shot of a racing car and want to
give it a feeling of speed, or when you’re taking a shot of a star scape
and want to show how the stars move over a longer period of time etc.
In all of these instances choosing a longer shutter speed will be the
way to go. However in all of these cases you need to use a tripod or
you’ll run the risk of ruining the shots by adding camera movement (a
different type of blur than motion blur).
Focal Length and Shutter Speed - another thing to
consider when choosing shutter speed is the focal length of the lens
you’re using. Longer focal lengths will accentuate the amount of camera
shake you have and so you’ll need to choose a faster shutter speed
(unless you have image stabilization in your lens or camera). The ‘rule’
of thumb to use with focal length in non image stabilized situations)
is to choose a shutter speed with a denominator that is larger than the
focal length of the lens. For example if you have a lens that is 50mm
1/60th is probably ok but if you have a 200mm lens you’ll probably want
to shoot at around 1/250.
Shutter Speed – Bringing it Together
Remember that thinking about Shutter Speed in isolation from the
other two elements of the Exposure Triangle (aperture and ISO) is not
really a good idea. As you change shutter speed you’ll need to change
one or both of the other elements to compensate for it.
For example if you speed up your shutter speed one stop (for example
from 1/125th to 1/250th) you’re effectively letting half as much light
into your camera. To compensate for this you’ll probably need to
increase your aperture one stop (for example from f16 to f11). The other
alternative would be to choose a faster ISO rating (you might want to
move from ISO 100 to ISO 400 for example).
Shutter speed is measured in seconds – or in most
cases fractions of seconds. The bigger the denominator the faster the
speed (ie 1/1000 is much faster than 1/30).
In most cases you’ll probably be using shutter speeds of
1/60th of a second or faster. This is because anything slower
than this is very difficult to use without getting camera shake. Camera
shake is when your camera is moving while the shutter is open and
results in blur in your photos.
If you’re using a slow shutter speed (anything slower than 1/60)
you will need to either use a tripod or some some type of
image stabilization (more and more cameras are coming with this built
in).
Shutter speeds available to you on your camera will usually
double (approximately) with each setting. As a result you’ll
usually have the options for the following shutter speeds – 1/500,
1/250, 1/125, 1/60, 1/30, 1/15, 1/8 etc. This ‘doubling’ is handy to
keep in mind as aperture settings also double the amount of light that
is let in – as a result increasing shutter speed by one stop and
decreasing aperture by one stop should give you similar exposure levels
(but we’ll talk more about this in a future post).
Some cameras also give you the option for very slow shutter
speeds that are not fractions of seconds but are measured in
seconds (for example 1 second, 10 seconds, 30 seconds etc). These are
used in very low light situations, when you’re going after special
effects and/or when you’re trying to capture a lot of movement in a
shot). Some cameras also give you the option to shoot in ‘B’ (or ‘Bulb’)
mode. Bulb mode lets you keep the shutter open for as long as you hold
it down.
When considering what shutter speed to use in an image you
should always ask yourself whether anything in your scene is moving
and how you’d like to capture that movement. If there is movement in
your scene you have the choice of either freezing the movement (so it
looks still) or letting the moving object intentionally blur (giving it a
sense of movement).
To freeze movement in an image (like in the surfing
shot above) you’ll want to choose a faster shutter speed and to let the
movement blur you’ll want to choose a slower shutter speed. The actual
speeds you should choose will vary depending upon the speed of the
subject in your shot and how much you want it to be blurred.
Shutter speed is measured in seconds – or in most
cases fractions of seconds. The bigger the denominator the faster the
speed (ie 1/1000 is much faster than 1/30).
In most cases you’ll probably be using shutter speeds of
1/60th of a second or faster. This is because anything slower
than this is very difficult to use without getting camera shake. Camera
shake is when your camera is moving while the shutter is open and
results in blur in your photos.
If you’re using a slow shutter speed (anything slower than 1/60)
you will need to either use a tripod or some some type of
image stabilization (more and more cameras are coming with this built
in).
Shutter speeds available to you on your camera will usually
double (approximately) with each setting. As a result you’ll
usually have the options for the following shutter speeds – 1/500,
1/250, 1/125, 1/60, 1/30, 1/15, 1/8 etc. This ‘doubling’ is handy to
keep in mind as aperture settings also double the amount of light that
is let in – as a result increasing shutter speed by one stop and
decreasing aperture by one stop should give you similar exposure levels
(but we’ll talk more about this in a future post).
Some cameras also give you the option for very slow shutter
speeds that are not fractions of seconds but are measured in
seconds (for example 1 second, 10 seconds, 30 seconds etc). These are
used in very low light situations, when you’re going after special
effects and/or when you’re trying to capture a lot of movement in a
shot). Some cameras also give you the option to shoot in ‘B’ (or ‘Bulb’)
mode. Bulb mode lets you keep the shutter open for as long as you hold
it down.
When considering what shutter speed to use in an image you
should always ask yourself whether anything in your scene is moving
and how you’d like to capture that movement. If there is movement in
your scene you have the choice of either freezing the movement (so it
looks still) or letting the moving object intentionally blur (giving it a
sense of movement).
To freeze movement in an image (like in the surfing
shot above) you’ll want to choose a faster shutter speed and to let the
movement blur you’ll want to choose a slower shutter speed. The actual
speeds you should choose will vary depending upon the speed of the
subject in your shot and how much you want it to be blurred.
·Shutter
speed is measured in seconds – or in most cases fractions of seconds. The
bigger the denominator the faster the speed (ie 1/1000 is much faster than
1/30).
·In
most cases you’ll probably be using shutter speeds of 1/60th of a second or
faster. This is because anything slower than this is very difficult to use
without getting camera shake. Camera shake is when your camera is moving while
the shutter is open and results in blur in your photos.
·If
you’re using a slow shutter speed (anything slower than 1/60) you will need to
either use a tripod or some some type of image stabilization (more and more
cameras are coming with this built in).
·Shutter
speeds available to you on your camera will usually double (approximately) with
each setting. As a result you’ll usually have the options for the following
shutter speeds – 1/500, 1/250, 1/125, 1/60, 1/30, 1/15, 1/8 etc. This
‘doubling’ is handy to keep in mind as aperture settings also double the amount
of light that is let in – as a result increasing shutter speed by one stop and
decreasing aperture by one stop should give you similar exposure levels (but
we’ll talk more about this in a future post).
·Some
cameras also give you the option for very slow shutter speeds that are not
fractions of seconds but are measured in seconds (for example 1 second, 10
seconds, 30 seconds etc). These are used in very low light situations, when
you’re going after special effects and/or when you’re trying to capture a lot
of movement in a shot). Some cameras also give you the option to shoot in ‘B’
(or ‘Bulb’) mode. Bulb mode lets you keep the shutter open for as long as you
hold it down.
·When
considering what shutter speed to use in an image you should always ask
yourself whether anything in your scene is moving and how you’d like to
capture that movement. If there is movement in your scene you have the choice
of either freezing the movement (so it looks still) or letting the moving
object intentionally blur (giving it a sense of movement).
·To
freeze movement in an image (like in the surfing shot above) you’ll want to
choose a faster shutter speed and to let the movement blur you’ll want to
choose a slower shutter speed. The actual speeds you should choose will vary
depending upon the speed of the subject in your shot and how much you want it
to be blurred.
Shutter speed is measured in seconds – or in most
cases fractions of seconds. The bigger the denominator the faster the
speed (ie 1/1000 is much faster than 1/30).
In most cases you’ll probably be using shutter speeds of
1/60th of a second or faster. This is because anything slower
than this is very difficult to use without getting camera shake. Camera
shake is when your camera is moving while the shutter is open and
results in blur in your photos.
If you’re using a slow shutter speed (anything slower than 1/60)
you will need to either use a tripod or some some type of
image stabilization (more and more cameras are coming with this built
in).
Shutter speeds available to you on your camera will usually
double (approximately) with each setting. As a result you’ll
usually have the options for the following shutter speeds – 1/500,
1/250, 1/125, 1/60, 1/30, 1/15, 1/8 etc. This ‘doubling’ is handy to
keep in mind as aperture settings also double the amount of light that
is let in – as a result increasing shutter speed by one stop and
decreasing aperture by one stop should give you similar exposure levels
(but we’ll talk more about this in a future post).
Some cameras also give you the option for very slow shutter
speeds that are not fractions of seconds but are measured in
seconds (for example 1 second, 10 seconds, 30 seconds etc). These are
used in very low light situations, when you’re going after special
effects and/or when you’re trying to capture a lot of movement in a
shot). Some cameras also give you the option to shoot in ‘B’ (or ‘Bulb’)
mode. Bulb mode lets you keep the shutter open for as long as you hold
it down.
When considering what shutter speed to use in an image you
should always ask yourself whether anything in your scene is moving
and how you’d like to capture that movement. If there is movement in
your scene you have the choice of either freezing the movement (so it
looks still) or letting the moving object intentionally blur (giving it a
sense of movement).
To freeze movement in an image (like in the surfing
shot above) you’ll want to choose a faster shutter speed and to let the
movement blur you’ll want to choose a slower shutter speed. The actual
speeds you should choose will vary depending upon the speed of the
subject in your shot and how much you want it to be blurred.
