16
Concepts in Photography
Shutter speed
Shutter speed refers to the amount of time it takes to open and close
the shutter, and it is an important factor in the brightness of a photo, as
it controls the amount of light which passes through the aperture before
it reaches the image sensor.
Usually, the shutter speed is manually adjustable. The measurement
of the shutter speed is known as the “Exposure Value” (EV), which is
marked in intervals of 1 s, 1/2 s, 1/4 s, 1/8 s, 1/15 s, 1/1000 s,
1/2000 s, and so on.
Exposure
+1 EV
-1 EV
1s 1/2 s 1/4 s 1/8 s 1/15 s 1/30 s
Shutter Speed
Therefore, the faster the shutter speed, the less light will be let in.
Likewise, the slower the shutter speed, the more light will be let in.
As the photos below illustrate, a slow shutter speed allows more time
to let light in, so the photo becomes brighter. On the other hand, a fast
shutter speed allows less time to let light in and the photo becomes
darker and more easily freezes subjects in motion.
0.8 s 0.004 s