Simple guide to shutter speed – a basic tutorial for sharper pictures!
Posted on | September 30, 2007 | 8 Comments
A simple and basic guide to shutter speed for sharper pictures! (My guide to aperture can be found here)
Shutter speed is the speed at which the camera opens the shutter (the little flap inside your camera that opens just enough to let some light through when you click) and lets the light fall on the sensor/film to record the picture. Shutter speed is important to your photographs as the quicker the shutter speed, the sharper the image will be. You will have noticed that some of your pictures are blurry, we all have stacks of them.. this is primarily because we just didn’t set the shutter speed high enough – or let the camera choose the settings on auto and wonder why the pictures are blurry. With an SLR camera, or even some modern compact cameras you use the ‘Shutter Priority’ mode – which enables you to completely control the speed at which the shutter opens.
So if you are shooting general photographs with a lens no longer than about 100m, then 1/125th second will be enough. this number ‘1/125′ is the physical speed of the shutter – it will let light through for precisely one hundred and twenty fifths of a second. If you are trying to photograph something fast moving you need a shutter speed much faster than that. If you have a very steady pair of hands you may be able to go as low as 1/60th of a second, or even 1/30th. You really must use a tripod for anything longer than that. If you can use a tripod you can leave the shutter open as long as you want – or as long as your camera will let you – for those long night time shots, or the blurred waterfall shots that you see. When I am doing my jewellery photography I use 1/125ths of a second to get the right exposure from my studio lights.
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8 Responses to “Simple guide to shutter speed – a basic tutorial for sharper pictures!”
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October 7th, 2007 @ 12:09 am
Hey, im loving the blog so far. You have already taught me a lot with just these few articles.
July 31st, 2009 @ 9:14 pm
Hi Chris, I have a question for you, I have been struggling with taking pics of a brides wedding dress can you tell me the best way to avoid blown out highlights in the dress, as is really bothering me, thanks
Martin
August 1st, 2009 @ 10:52 am
Martin,
The best thing to do is to underexpose the image by one stop or so – which camera are you using? If you have a histogram preview on your camera be sure to check this, or use the blown out highlights preview as well, which shows the same info you need.
But basically, just underexpose if you find you are blowing the dress out, and then if you are shooting in raw you can pump up the levels and local exposure in post processing if needed.
Just watch the light, and becareful of direct flash, as bright white against black is not an easy combo. Get them into the shade so you can control the light a bit better..
Try laying a crumpled white T shirt on a black pair or trousers in your house and take lots of test pictures until you get it right with decreasing the exposure.. and make sure you’re not clipping the whites as you do it! Let me know how it goes!
May 17th, 2010 @ 12:42 pm
Thanks for the photography tutorial. I want to know more!
July 17th, 2010 @ 6:37 am
Just to be sure, a shutter speed of.. let’s say 1/317 is faster, so less light is let in to the sensor of the camera, whereas a shutter speed of 1/30 is slower, so more light is let in, correct? And faster shutter speed sharpens pictures while slower shutter speed blurs pictures?
Haha, I’m new to photography, so I’m still learning. Your site has been very helpful so far!
July 17th, 2010 @ 8:48 pm
Hi, Thanks for dropping by!
Yes, 1/317 is the faster speed, and yes, 1/317th will let in much much less light than 1/30th of a second.
It’s not that faster shutter speeds ’sharpen’ pictures as such, faster shutter speeds just allow your camera to have less time to capture the movement in your subject, or your own shaking hand. IE if you are taking a photo of a static ornament sitting on your shelf, it makes no difference what shutter speed you have (Assuming it exposes correctly) at all of the subject is not moving.
If you want to take photo’s of people walking down the road whilst you are hand holding your camera, yes, then the faster you have your shutter speed the ’sharper’ everything is, I say sharper, but I mean less blur from movement…
Does that make sense?
July 19th, 2010 @ 10:37 pm
Ohh, so it only affects the quality of an image when the subject is in motion. I get it! Thanks so much!
July 19th, 2010 @ 10:56 pm
The subject, OR yourself in motion!