Control Shutter Speed

Whether youve been taking photos for years or just starting out. the basics are always good to review.

so i decided to explain such things as Camera Controls, photography lighting,and composition(rule of thirds) and every thing else i can think of.

CONTROLS

hope its of some help.

With so many of todays digital cameras trying to do all the work for us.

To get really great image you have to do the hard work yourself and your gonna need to now what controls affect what aspects of your final picture

lesson 1

SHUTTER SPEED

shutter speed basics

One of the most requested photography tips is shutter speed help. shutter speed is one of the most basic important controls on a camera. Itcontrols the amount of time that your film or digital sensor is exposed to light. In effect the shutter controls what image is captured on your camera. The shutter is a small plastic sheet that opens and closes to allow light on to to the film or digital sensor or prevent light reaching it.

The shutter is opened when you press the shutter release button on your camera to take a picture. The shutter determines how long the shutter remains open.

In camera with TTL(through the lens) viewfinders. the shutter release button also moves a mirror out of the way of the film and shutter curtain. this movement is what gives the distinctive "click" sound. In time you may be able to tell what shutter speed any camera in aroom is using just by the sound of the click.

Measuring Shutter Speed

Measuring shutter speed is quite easy. shutter speed is measured in fractions of a second. A shutter speed of 5000 means the shutter will open for 1/5000th of a second. Shutter speeds of 1 second or more are usually marked with a ( ' ) or a similar mark after the number. this means that 16' on your camera's display wwill stand for 16 seconds. The letter B stands for Bulb and is used to indicate that the shutter will stay open for as long as you hold down the shutter release button.

Slow shutter speed

Slow shutter speed is considered to be long or slow when it is slower than 1/60th of a second ( this is marked as 60 on your camera's display. This number comes from the fact that most people can only hold a camera  and standard lens ( between 35mm and 70mm ) steady for around 1/60th of a second or less.

Fast shutter speed

Fast shutter speed are usually considered to be speeds faster than 1/500th of a second. These shutter speeds are used to freeze or stop motion for a clear image when taking fast subjects.

Rule of thumb

A good rule of thumb for knowing the slowest shutter speed you can use with a peticular lens, with out the use of a tripod, is to use the number of the lens size. For example a 300mm lens can be hand held at shutter speed of 1/300th of a second and faster. Note that the minimum hand held speed should never be below 1/60th with out image stabilization assistance from your camera or lens.

How to set shutter speed

This is a common question among new photographers. The process is actually very simple. Shutter speed is set on cameras by turning a specied dial on the camera body. I older and fully manual cameras.this is a dial on top of the camera body that is marked with numbers ranging from 1 to about 5000. On newer cameras the shutter speed is generally displayed on an LCD screen while the photographer turns a small wheel near the shutter release button to adjust the speed.The exact placement of the wheel will vary from camera to camera. On smaller point and shoot camera's, there may not be a control to select specific speeds. Instead, you may need to understand your cameras pre-programmed modes to obtain the desired shutter speed.

Most DSLR cameras also have these pre-programmed modes as well as a couple of extra modes of fine control.

Shutter speed in basic pre-programmed camera modes.

Almost all automatic cameras today will have some sort of pre-set shooting modes. they are designed for specific situations like for example.

Action

action mode is an automatic setting mode where the camera is predisposed to the highest shutter speed possible for the lighting situation. In this mode you can not set the exact shutter speed you want but it will lessen the chances of blurry images due to slow shutter speed using this mode

Landscape

Landscape mode is basically the opposite of Action mode. Landscape is programmed to give the smallest aperture( largest f-stop) possible in order to ensure a large depth of field. This means that the shutter speed will be slower. If your camera does not allow Manual or Tv mode and you are wanting to shoot a night scene or blurred motion shot, try the Landscape mode.

Night

Night mode goes a step further than Landscape. Night mode not only selects the slowest shutter speed. It also turns of the flash and set the fastest film speed possible ( ISO) . This means that your shutter speed may be only slightly slower because the fast film speed decreases the amount of light needed to expose the image.

Portrait

Portrait mode is a little tricky when dealing with shutter speeds. Portrait is programmed to have a shallow depth of field (large aperture/small f-stop) and use a slow film speed in order to throw the background out of focus and give a very fine film grain. This means that the shutter speed will ne faster due to the aperture setting but as the camera is using a slower film speed(ISO) you will probably loose any shutter speed

Shutter speed in advanced pre-programmed camera modes

Beyond the basic camera modes. Shutter speed is important in advanced pre-programmed camera modes as well.

Manual

Manual setting is marked "M"on newer cameras and is in effedt the only setting on manual cameras. Manual mode means that you are fully in charge of the settings on your camera. If you set the shutter speed in M mode you will have to make an adjustment to the aperture aswel in order to maintain a correct exposer. Use your caneras light meter to ensure the values are  in balance.

Shutter Priority

The setting on your camera marked "Tv" is called shutter Priority mode. This means that if you use Tv mode and set the shutter speed the camera will adjust your aperture value to maintain a correct exposure.

Aperture Priority

Aperture priority is marked by a "Av" and works in the oppersite way to the Tv setting. Allowing you to set the aperture value and the camera will adjust the shutter speed to gain the correct exposer

Program

Program mode is marked by a "P" on the few cameras that have this option. I program mode, your camera will responds to the preset conditions you have programed through the menu. Generally this mode will allow you to set the shutter speed or the aperture while the camera will adjust the other setting to mainain the correct exposure.

Shutter Speed Situation Guide

Now that you have a good understanding of what the shutter speed is and how to control your cameras shutter speed, you need some guidelines on what shutter speed is needed in different situations. Here are a few photography tips for shutter speed in specific situations. the speeds listed are needed speeds to freeze the action under normal conditions. If you want to blur the action, decrease the shutter speed. to adjust to a fast situation, increase the shutter speed.

Football-1/400

Running-1/350

Jumping-1/250

Golf balls-1-3200

Water splashing-1/350