- Shutter speed controls how long the camera shutter is open, affecting whether motion is frozen or blurred. Faster shutter speeds freeze motion while slower shutter speeds allow motion blur. - Common shutter speeds for handheld shooting range from 1/500 to 1/60 seconds. Slower shutter speeds require a tripod to avoid camera shake blur. - The appropriate shutter speed depends on the situation, with very fast speeds over 1/1000 used to freeze bird wing beats or sports, and slower speeds under 1/30 allowing blurring of waterfalls or traffic at night.

1. Shutter Speed
•

2. •If you want to capture still photos of fast motion (like
pressing pause on a video) you have to use a fast
shutter speed.
•Many sports use very fast shutter speeds to
capture the peak moment and freeze it in time.
•If the subject of your photo is not moving, or you
want to show the passage of time (with a running river
or waterfall), then you can use a slower shutter speed.
How does shutter speed effect your image?
It freezes action or shows the passage of time

3. Shutter Speeds
<--Faster------------Shutter speed-----------Slower-->

4. Shutter Speeds
<--Faster------------Shutter speed-----------Slower-->

5. The Numbers of Shutter Speed
(FASTEST)
1/4000
1/2000
1/1500
1/1000
1/750
1/500
1/350
1/250
1/180
1/125
1/60
1/45
1/30
1
2
4
10
(SLOWEST)
Green=most common shutter speeds
Orange=tripod use for sharp picture

6. Shutter Priority
•Many digital cameras can be
set to shutter priority mode.
•In this mode, you set the
shutter speed and the camera
automatically selects the
aperture so that the photograph
has the right exposure.

7. Shutter Speed and The Real World
Situation Setting Speed
A hummingbird is hovering above a
flower, and you don't want it's wings
to be blurry
Very fast shutter speed 2000 to
4000
Kids are playing soccer, and you
want the images to be sharp and
clear
Fast shutter speed
500 to
1000
You are taking a portrait of your favorite
pet, and your pet is being polite and
sitting still
Moderate shutter speed 125 to
500
A carousel is spinning and you want
to show how fast it is going by
letting the horses blur
Slow shutter speed and tripod 8 to 60
You want to take a photograph of your
favorite building at night Very slow shutter speed and tripod 8" to 30”

8. Situation:
The seagulls were just about to take off, and were opening their wings.
In order to freeze the motion of the wings, Photographer had to use a fast shutter
speed of 1/1000 of a second.
Very Fast Shutter Speed
1/1000

9. Situation:
Calm day and the grass was not moving at all. Photographer did not need
to capture fast motion, and did not want the photo to look blurry.
The shutter speed for this photo is 1/180 of a second
Moderately Fast
Shutter Speed
1/180

10. Situation:
Photographer wanted to capture this waterfall in motion, and create a blurry look
for the moving water.
The shutter speed was set to 1/6 of a second.
This shot required a tripod, otherwise the greenery around the waterfall would also
look blurry
Slow Shutter
Speed
1/6

11. Situation: Night time, semi-busy street
8 second exposure on a street at night. This photo could not have been
taken without a tripod.
The red and white streaks in the photo are the lights of passing cars. Since
the shutter was open a long time, the cars passed by completely while the
photo was being taken.
Very Slow
Shutter
Speed
8 sec.

13. COnfused???
Shutter speed is control by the shutter
speed dial. Shutter speed means timing
and duration of opening and closing of
the shutter curtain at the back of the
camera. A fast shutter speed will
freezes action while slower speed
creates blurring effect.

25. Realize that 1/4000 of a second is incredibly
fast and is not a shutter speed that you will
typically use. The most common shutter
speeds are anywhere from 1/500 to 1/60.
If you want sharp photographs while holding the
camera in your hands, you cannot use shutter
speeds much slower than 1/60 because it's
hard to hold the camera steady. Slow shutter
speeds blur motion, and you are creating
motion by holding the camera in your hands.
You can solve this camera shake problem by
stabilizing the camera on a tripod.