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. Shutter speed controls the amount of time that your film, or
digital sensor, is exposed to light. In effect, the shutter determines what image is captured on your
film. The shutter is a small plastic sheet that opens and closes to allow light onto the film or prevent
light from reaching the film. The shutter is opened when you press the shutter release button on your
camera to take a picture. The shutter speed determines how long the shutter remains open.
In cameras with TTL (through the lens) viewfinders, the shutter release button also moves a mirror
out of the way of the film and shutter curtain. It is this movement of the shutter curtain and the mirror
that gives taking a picture its distinctive "click" sound. As you become more familiar with your
camera and shutter speed you will begin to notice the difference in the sound of the the "click" based
on the speed of the shutter. In time, you' will be able to tell about what shutter speed any camera in
the room is using just by the sound of the shutter.
Measuring Shutter Speed
Measuring shutter speed is relatively simple. Shutter speed is generally measured in fractions of a
second. A shutter speed of "5000" means that the shutter will open for 1/5000th of a second. Shutter
speeds of 1 second and longer are generally marked with a ‘, or other similar mark, after the number.
This means that 16' on your camera's display would stand for 16 seconds. The letter "B" is often used
to indicate the shutter will remain open as long as you hold down the shutter release button.
Slow Shutter Speed
Shutter speed is considered to be "long" or "slow" when it is slower than 1/60th of a second.
(Remember, this is marked as 60 on your camera dial or display.) This number comes from the fact
that most people can only hold a standard lens (between 3smm and 70mm) steady for 1/60th of a
second or less. This is different from the commonly used term "long exposure" which usually refers to
shutter speeds of over 1 second.
Fast Shutter Speed
Fast shutter speeds are generally considered to be those shutter speeds faster than 1/500th of a
second. These shutter speeds are used to freeze, or stop, motion for a clear image when shooting
fast subjects.
Rule of Thumb
A good rule of thumb for knowing the slowest shutter speed you can use with a particular lens,
without using a tripod, is to use the number of the lens size. For example, a 300 mm lens can be
hand held at shutter speeds of 1/300th of a second and faster. Note that the minimum hand held
speed should never be below 1/60th of a second without image stabilization assistance from
your camera or lens.
How to Set Shutter Speed
How to set shutter speed is a common question among new photographers. The process is actually
very simple. Shutter speed is set on cameras by turning a specified dial on the camera body. In older,
fully manual cameras, this is a dial on the top of the camera body that is marked with numbers
ranging from 1 to about 5000. In 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 point and shoot
cameras, there may not be a control to select specific shutter speeds. Instead, you may need to
understand your camera's pre-programmed modes to obtain the desired shutter speed. Many SLR
cameras also have these pre-programmed modes as well as a few additional modes of fine control.
Shutter Speed in Basic Pre-programmed Camera Modes
Almost all automatic cameras today have some sort of pre-programmed shooting modes. These
are designed for specific situations such as action, landscapes, and portraits. The following
information shows how shutter speed affects basic pre-programmed camera modes.
Action
Action mode is an automatic setting mode where the camera is predisposed to use the highest
shutter speed possible for the lighting situation. In this mode you can not set the exact shutter
speed you want but you can lessen your chances of a blurry image due to slow shutter speed by
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 nighttime or blurred motion shot, try the Landscape setting.
Night
Night mode goes a step farther than landscape mode. Night mode not only prefers the slowest
shutter speed possible, it also turns off the flash and sets the fastest film speed possible. This means
that your shutter speed may be only marginally slower because the fast film speed decreases the
amount of light needed to expose the image.
Portrait
Portrait mode is a bit tricky when dealing with shutter speed. 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 obtain a very fine film grain. This means that the shutter speed will be
faster due to the aperture setting BUT because the camera is using a slower film speed you will
probably loose any shutter speed advantage.
Shutter Speed in Advanced Pre-programmed Camera Modes
Beyond the basic pre-programmed 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 effect, the only setting on manual
cameras. Manual mode means that you are fully in charge of the settings of your camera. If you set
the shutter speed while in M mode, you will need to make an adjustment to aperture yourself in order
to maintain a correct exposure. Use your camera's 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.
Program
Program mode is marked by a "P" on the few cameras that have this option. In program mode, your
camera responds to some preset conditions you programed through the menu. Generally, this mode
allows you to set either the shutter speed or the aperture while the camera adjusts the other setting to
maintain proper exposure.
Shutter Speed Situation Guide
Now that you have a good understanding of what the shutter speed is and how to control your
camera's shutter speed, you need some guidelines on what shutter speed is needed in different
situations. Here are some photography tips for shutter speeds in specific situations. The speeds listed
are the needed speeds to freeze the action under normal conditions. If you want to blur the action,
decrease the shutter speed. To adjust for a very fast situation, increase the shutter speed.

Football - 1/400

Baseball/Softball/Hockey - 1/350
Kids Running - 1/350
People Jumping - 1/250
Golf Balls - 1/3200
Water Splashing - 1/350




Aperture
Aperture and f-stop are two photographic terms for the same thing. Aperture, or f stop, is the camera's setting
that determines the width of the passageway for incoming light. Inside lenses, there are blades that form an
opening. The position of these blades, and consequently the size of the opening, are determined by the
camera's f-stop setting. The numeric f-stop setting and the size of the opening are inversely proportional. In
other words, when the f-stop is a large number, the actual size of the opening is small. And vice-versa, when
the f-stop is a small . number, the opening is large. This setting has two affects on the photos you are taking:
Rate of exposure
The wider the opening (smaller f-stop number) the more light will come in to the camera to expose the film.
This means the film will be exposed faster. So, to compensate for this faster rate of exposure, the shutter
speed must be shorter. The opposite is also true: with a smaller opening (large f-stop number) less light will
come in, and the rate of exposure will drop. With this slower rate of exposure, a longer shutter speed must be
used. So, if you wish to use a fast shutter speed (perhaps to 'freeze' action) simply increase the rate of
exposure (by opening up the aperture), and the shutter speed can be increased.
Depth of field
Depth of field refers to the area in a photograph that is in focus. Whenever a photo is taken, the camera is
focused for a given distance (this is usually done by looking through the camera and focusing on the subject of
the photograph). This causes everything seen through that lens that is the same distance away to be in focus.
In reality, while there a given distance that is being focused on, there is a range of distances in focus. This
range is the depth of field. For example, if you focus your camera's lens on an object that is 10ft away,
everything in the 9ft - 11ft range may be in focus. The further away things are from the 10 foot mark (in either
direction), the more out of focus and blurry they become.
Aperture is a means of changing this range of values. As the opening widens (smaller f-stop numbers) the
depth of field shortens. The opposite is also true: with a smaller opening (large f-stop number) the depth of field
increases. This extends to the point where a very tiny aperture can render nearly everything in focus, and a
very large aperture could have almost no depth of field and only a single distance would appear focused.
F-stop values are traditionally incremented by stops. Each stop is a standard value that allows half as much
light through as the previous stop and twice as much light as the next stop. It is possible with most cameras to
use half stops, but some even allow smaller increments of the aperture than this.
For reference purposes, the chart below contains most "full" f-stop values and their corresponding diameters.
With high end equipment, it is possible to get f-stop values with smaller diameters than f/l and and larger
diameters than f/32.
f-stop
f/l
f/1.4
f/2
f/2.8
f/4
f/5.6
f/8
f/ll
f/16
f/22
f/32
Diameter
50 mm
35.4 mm
25 mm
17.7 mm
12.5 mm
8.8 mm
6.3 mm
4.4 mm
3.1 mm
2.2mm
1.6mm