Technical Talk: Shutter Speed

In photography, several camera settings are controlled to allow for what we call a proper exposure, or what we all might just recognize as a good photo. A good exposure IS what makes the photo look good, as it provides a balance of light and can create an even and true-to-life look. Exposure combines balancing both APERTURE and SHUTTER SPEED.

Let's look at shutter speed!
We are most familiar with what this function does as we consider motion and movement. The simplest way to understand might be to take an example of running water. If we want the water to look like it is crystal clear and "stopped," a FAST shutter speed will help us catch that split second.
On the contrary, if we want the water to look frothy, milky, and like there is real movement, we might choose to use a a SLOW shutter speed.

Fast might equal a fraction of a second, like 1/100th of a second.
Slow might equal multiple seconds.

When we are using our cell phones, we might struggle to find these functions and settings. The cameras within these devices often focus on creating a quick and balanced exposure without the use of slow or fast shutter speeds--they are just automatic exposures.

With the use of a free camera app, Top Camera, you can explore these settings more effectively.

The below images are taken with both the camera moving/subject still, and the camera still/subject moving. See if you can spot the differences, and try to understand how the movement was created.




Photos by Germaine Watkins

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