tell me something

JT · 09-17-2005, 09:23 AM

what is the advantage of slowing down the shudder speed, and I mean slow it down. Like I can make it take as long as 30 seconds, you would obviously need a tripod to keep the camera still but way would you want a shutter speed slow at all?

Capt. Insane · 09-17-2005, 10:18 AM

it lets more light in to the camera. if you're taking pictures when it's kind of dark out you need a slower shutter speed so the picture won't come out dark

JT · 09-17-2005, 10:27 AM

so obviously you wouldnt use a flash on such pictures, therefore your going for an effect right? A 30 second shutter speed I would imagine it would have to be pretty darn dark eh?

Capt. Insane · 09-17-2005, 11:27 AM

when you have a flash, shutter speed doesnt really matter. if you're using a 35mm SLR camera there's generally a setting for when you're using a flash.

say you're on vacation taking pictures and it gets cloudy. it's too bright to use a flash, but too dark for a good picture. if you have a faster shutter speed, the picture will come out dark. if you slow down the shutter speed, more of the available light will reach the film and make it clearer. the picture won't necessarily be darker (though it could be); it'll just look better.

also, the slower shutter speeds are used for different effects. you can do short time-lapse things with it and such (however, most ppl who do time release would use a cable release and just hold the shutter open)

ilikemittens · 09-17-2005, 11:52 AM

Yeah, having the shutter open for 30 seconds would most likely be used for pitch dark pictures. Maybe of the stars or something. However having a longer shutter speed can give you some interesting effects in daylight too. There's a whole genre of photography called motion photography. Of course it takes a little more than just leaving your shutter open longer to do some of those pics but it's how you start.

JT you'll find that the less light you have to work with, you'll most likely have to keep your shutter open longer.

One of these nights when it's really clear and starry, take your tripod and go out where there aren't any street lights, point your camera at the sky, and set your shutter speed to 30 seconds and see what happens. If the pic is too bright, bring the speed down to 25 seconds until it looks right.

I'm pretty sure good aurora pics are taken with long exposures.

MMMMMMMMM I have dreams about taking pictures like these.

KID A · 09-17-2005, 12:34 PM

You can also get some cool photos when it involes movement, especially if there is light around.

I took this one at Grand Central Terminal and I managed to lie it down on a flat surface to get a clear pic. I think the shutter was open for 30 secs. so a lot of people who were in the pic at the start were gone by the end. Cool effect.

This is just a random highway shot taken at night I found on the web.

http://www-net.cs.umass.edu/~yifeng/...0/IMG_0289.jpg

Capt. Insane · 09-17-2005, 12:39 PM

my brother took a pic like that highway one when we were visiting friends in england a while ago.

mittens, those pix are really cool

JT · 09-17-2005, 12:56 PM

excellent photos and thanks for the explanations. Forgive me if I am clueless about advanced photography but this is my first slr camera and I feel with this camera I should attempt to use it for more then just a point and click type camera so you'll be getting some stupid questions for awhile and I appreciate everyones help/understanding. Those pics were really neat and I will have to try them out sometime. I dont have a tripod at the moment so I think I'll stay away from trying for now.

thanks again

ilikemittens · 09-17-2005, 12:56 PM

oh yeah i forgot about the moving people thing. really neat effect you can do with long shutter speed!

you can do that ^^^ in light and still have a nice effect too.

i think too often i want to punch long shutter speeds in the face because i want nice crisp, non-blurred pics of people. i always forget the nice things you can do with it.

ClydeFrog · 09-20-2005, 09:21 PM

Night time photos are some of my favorites, especially aurora photos. I visit www.spaceweather.com at least once a day, hoping for some activity. Consumer cameras do not have anywhere near the dynamic light sensitivity of the human eye so any night shots have to be exposed for at least several seconds. After lots of practice I can finally balance ISO, F and exposure for the best shot. Higher ISO = grainier picture but more light.

You can use the flash with long exposures, usually to highlight something in the foreground then long exposure to allow background to show up. Tripods are a must!

Here's a few aurora shots from my yard:

Looking straight up at the zenith:

Ursa Major:

Facing north:

I'd really like to get a Canon 20Da ( http://www.canon.co.jp/Imaging/astro/index-e.html ) but I don't think I can bring myself to cough up the dough!