Photography 101 - Shutter

How does shutter work?

I have always enjoyed the intricacies of aperture and shutter speed when it comes down to your photographic elements. I like the math and the inverse nature that two completely opposite components can go hand in hand together to make something magnificent.

Welcome to this week’s Photograph 101 episode from your friendly Santa Clarita Wedding Photographer on the topic of shutter speed.

There are so many beautiful things that you can create just by having the knowledge of what the shutter does and how it works. In basic terms, the shutter is the barn door that allows light to enter into the camera and ultimately expose the image. Back in the film days, (this is a little bit easier of an example to review), film was what an exposure was captured on. Film was a light sensitive piece of paper if you will that reacted to, you guessed it, light! But light is all around us! How do you monitor it so it doesn’t give you just a super white image? I’m glad you asked.

SHUTTER SPEED.

The shutter was put into place to monitor the amount of light that is being let into the camera to expose the film/image for a certain period of time. As you have probably heard me state before, this works hand in hand inversely with the aperture. The main difference between the two is that the shutter determines the amount of time the light is allowed in, the aperture is how much light can be allowed in for that period of time.

Shutter speed can have a dramatic effect when capturing moving objects. The faster the shutter speed, the more likely you will be able to capture a crisp moving subject. The slower the shutter speed, your image will be subject to a concept known as motion blur. Depending on the type of photography that you are trying to capture will determine the desired range for your shutter speed and aperture.

Typical cameras have a standard shutter speed that goes anywhere form 30 seconds long to 1/8000th of a second long. If a longer shutter speed is desired, it can be achieved if the camera has a “B” or bulb function. This allows the shutter speed to be open as long as the shutter button is held down. This is a great tool that can be used for Nighttime photography to capture the stars as they move throughout the night.

Typically, when a camera is handheld, the slowest possible shutter speed that is recommended is calculated to be 1/60th of a second. Anything slower than this should be shot with a tripod or other camera support.

When it comes down to it, the more you learn how to TRULY control your shutter speed and aperture and truly understand how these components fit together, your possibilities will be endless! You will be able to literally LOOK at a photo, and tell me how you would replicate it. That is always a fun task that I engage in on a regular basis as is allows me to quicken my skill. I also do this when I am trying to determine where a light source is coming from, what kind of lighting was used, etc.

What do you mainly use shutter speed for?

Josh D. Smith