Skip to main content

Photography Basics: Shutter Speed

Here are some basics about shutter speed along with two tips at the end that might help you when using manual control of your camera. I show various examples of how shutter speed in the camera applies to photographs. I also talk about the reciprocal rule. Keep in mind this video was made back in 2012, so it’s definitely some of my early work…

This video has been clipped in YouTube to make it more concise, so it could be a bit jumpy at times…

Transcript:

The shutter speed defines how long your sensor or film is exposed to light.


An important thing to remember about shutter speed is that a fast shutter speed will help you freeze motion and a slow shutter speed will help you produce motion blur.


It’s also important to remember that you want to generally have a fast shutter speed to avoid unwanted camera shake, unwanted motion blur.


That isn’t always the case.


Sometimes.. for example.. let’s say you wanted to photograph a helicopter.


It’s up in the air and you take it with a really fast shutter speed.


But you see that your photo… the blades are… they don’t even look like they’re moving.


So it’s probably better in some situations to use a slower shutter speed so you get intentional motion blur.
As you double your shutter speed the amount of light changes by one EV.


I’ll give you an example of how it works.
So at 1/125th of a second you use f/11 for the aperture.
If you don’t know the aperture is the opening inside your lens that is variable.


You can change the size of it.


To get the same exact exposure at 1/250th of a second you’d use f/8 instead of f/11.


Or at 1/500 of a second you would use f/5.6 instead of f/8 or instead of f/11.


So it works pretty nicely like that to figure out your proper exposure.


A nice guideline to remember is that base your shutter speed on your lens focal length.


So if you have a 50 millimeter lens or you’re using a zoom lens that’s at 50 millimeter, you’d probably use something around 1/60th of a second shutter speed to avoid unwanted blur.


And then if you had 100 millimeter lens you’d use 1/100 of a second shutter speed.


It’s just a little rule of thumb.


It’s not something you should follow religiously, but it’ll help you get those nice sharp photos.


So those are the basics of shutter speed, thanks!

Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Nikon Z5ii Announced and My Thoughts vs the Original Z5

The Nikon Z5ii was announced recently. I haven't actually used this new camera myself, so keep that in mind. This is going to be mostly me looking at the specs and comparing it to the original Nikon Z5, which I've been using for a few years now. The original Nikon Z5 camera. Overall, the original Z5 isn't a bad camera. I've gotten it to a point where it works how I want it to and it's reliable for what I do.  My main use case is often anime and comic conventions, going there and taking photos of people in cosplay. I usually use the 40mm f/2 lens on the Z5, and it works well for that.  First-person view using the Nikon Z5 at an anime convention. Nikon Z5ii vs Z5: The Spec Sheet Comparison  Nikon has a handy comparison section on their Z5ii page, so let's break down some key differences based on that and my experience with the original. Nikon's website comparing the Z5ii and the original Z5 specifications. First up, the sensor. The Z5ii gets a backside-illumi...
Read more

Xenvo Smartphone Lens Kit Overview

I recently took a look at the Xenvo "Ultimate Smartphone Lens Kit," an add-on system designed to enhance your phone's camera capabilities. I purchased this myself; it wasn't sent to me, and I wanted to share my experiences using it. The kit aims to give you both wider angle shots and detailed macro photos using a clip-on lens system. Let's see what's included and how well it works. The Xenvo "Ultimate Smartphone Lens" Kit packaging. What's in the Box? Opening the box reveals the core components: the lens system itself, which consists of a 15x macro lens and a 0.45x wide-angle lens attachment. It's important to note that the wide-angle piece needs to be screwed onto the macro lens to function correctly; using the wide-angle part alone doesn't really produce a usable image. Inside the box: the lens, case, and accessories. You also get a plastic clip mount to attach the lens assembly to your phone. Alongside the lenses, Xenvo includes severa...
Read more

Nikon D3500 Hands-On And Opinion

Today we are taking a look at the entry level standard F-mount Nikon DSLR in their line-up. This is the latest iteration in their D3000 series of cameras started in 2009.  With lower cost DSLR we can expect certain features like FP sync not being included as well as fewer direct control dials and other buttons. For this iteration it comes with a 24.2 megapixel DX (APS-C) sensor with a sensitivity range of 100 to 25600.  My video on the camera. Get the Nikon D3500 DSLR Camera through my links: Amazon.com , BHPhotoVideo.com , Used on KEH.com , Walmart.com , and eBay.com As an affiliate of these shops, I earn from qualifying purchases!  The D3500’s sensor is visible in cleaning mode. There is no shake reduction in the camera, but the kit lens does have VR. The standard optical viewfinder has 95% frame coverage with a 0.85x magnification.  The DSLR focusing system is the 11-point Multi-CAM 1000 autofocus sensor module with TTL phase detection giving you a detection ran...
Read more