Welcome to Macro Photography for Beginners. In my last post I wrote about generic camera settings. This time we are going to concentrate on just one of those settings, shutter speed; and how it can be used to good effect in macro photography. What is shutter speed? Photographic cameras have a shutter that prevents light entering the camera whilst it is not capturing an image. The button that you press to take a photograph with your camera controls the shutter. The famous audio clicking sound that you hear when pressing the shutter button (often dubbed onto television programmes) is the sound of the camera shutter opening and closing. The shutter on some cameras operates silently and an audio sound effect is played simultaneously. Shutter speed is the measurement of time that the shutter is open during the exposure. Shutter speed is another relic from the days of film photography, and is derived from the time the film was exposed to the scene. In digital photography the scene or the subject is exposed to the cameras digital sensor. Learning how to determine and use the correct shutter speed will make a substantial difference to the quality of your macro photographs.

Under Exposed Spark Plug Macro

Beginners to macro photography often find shutter speed confusing. Not everyone is good with numbers and fractions. The information can be displayed differently depending on the brand of digital camera. The way that shutter speed is displayed by the camera is often the cause of confusion for photographers. When shutter speed is written down, as a list, on a piece of paper, thereby retaining the correct format, it seems to make a lot more sense and is a lot easier to understand. The range of shutter speeds available depends on the camera and accessories connected to it, but generally, using my Canon 300D as an example, the speeds range from 1/4000 (one four thousandths of a second) to 30 seconds. Just in case you really are terrible at mathematics, 1/4000 (one four thousandths of a second) is the fastest and 30 seconds is the slowest shutter speed. To keep the shutter open for a longer time there is option to select Bulb. When bulb is selected the shutter remains open for as long as the shutter button is pressed down. Releasing the shutter button closes the shutter. Most macro photography can be achieved using speeds in the middle of the range. There may be occasions when you want to venture to the extreme ends of the shutter speed scale.

Over Exposed Macro of Spark Plug

 ISO Speed Setting

Good exposure is what all photographers aim for when they take a photograph. ISO (International Organisation for Standardization) is a standard used to measure the sensitivity of camera film. The terminology has been transferred to digital cameras and is now used to measure the sensitivity of the cameras digital sensor. It is a useful setting for digital macro photography because it can be used to solve lighting problems. It is particularly useful when you want to avoid using any form of flash. Selecting a higher ISO allows the photographer to use a faster shutter speed. The price of selecting a higher ISO setting is the introduction of noise to the image. Noise can be seen as a pattern of coloured speckles within the photograph. It is more noticeable at very high ISO settings and can result in a loss of detail. My advice is to always strive to keep the ISO setting as low as possible for any given photographic scene or subject. This ensures the highest quality image with the least risk of losing important detail to noise. Set a higher ISO speed as a last resort, and then use a faster shutter speed to compensate without making adjustment to the aperture value. In macro photography, changing the aperture value will also change the area of the image that is in close focus. Shutter speed, Aperture Value and ISO all play an integral part in getting a good exposure.

High ISO Setting (3200) - High Level of Noise

There are a total of 55 shutter speed settings on my camera listed here from the fastest to the slowest. Actual format followed by their displayed format in brackets (how it is shown on the cameras

LCD panel)

1/4000 (4000), 1/3200 (3200), 1/2500 (2500), 1/2000 (2000), 1/1600 (1600), 1/1250 (1250), 1/1000 (1000), 1/800 (800), 1/640 (640), 1/500 (500), 1/400 (400), 1/320 (320), 1/250 (250) 1/200 (200), 1/125 (125), 1/100 (100), 1/80 (80), 1/60 (60), 1/50 (50), 1/40 (40), 1/30 (30), 1/25 (25), 1/20 (20), 1/15 (15), 1/13 (13), 1/10 (10), 1/8 (8), 1/6 (6), 1/5 (5), 1/4 (4), 0.3 (0”3), 0.4 (0”4), 0.5 (0”5), 0.6 (0”5), 0.6 (0”6), 0.8 (0”8), 1 (1), 1.3 (1”3), 1.6 (1”6), 2, (2), 2.5 (2”5), 3.2 (3”2), 4 (4), 5 (5), 6 (6), 8 (8), 10 (10), 13 (13), 15 (15), 20 (20), 25 (25), 30 (30) – bulb

Shutter speed is used to control the exposure of the photograph. When used in combination with aperture value, ISO and all other relevant factors to the specific photographic scene or subject. Under exposure is a consequence of the shutter speed being too fast. The shutter is not open long enough to let an adequate level of light into the camera. The image appears too dark resulting in a loss of detail. Over exposure is a consequence of the shutter speed being too slow. The shutter is open for too long and lets too much light into the camera. The image appears too light resulting in a loss of detail. Shutter speed really is that simple and once you understand this basic principle you will have good control of your camera in full manual mode. Shutter speed can also be used to capture movement or to freeze the action in a photograph. Slow shutter speed can be used to capture movement, although it is in reality an artistic effect, giving the impression of movement. This effect is called motion blur. Fast Shutter speed can be used to freeze the action in a photograph. An example of this, in insect macro photography would be capturing the intricate wing details of a large insect.

A Good Exposure with no Loss of Detail

Thank you for visiting my macro photography for beginners website. I hope the information in this article has helped you understand shutter speed. In my next post, I will be writing about Aperture Value, which is another important piece in the jigsaw!

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