Shutter Priority Exercises

Shutter Priority Exercises:

Learning to avoid camera shake and to control motion are critical skills. The following exercises will help you understand how to use the Shutter priority (Sv or Tv) function on your camera. Start by setting your camera to the shutter priority mode and the ISO to 200 then do the following:

1.(No tripod) Choose a static subject, turn off the image stabilization and set the shutter speed to 1/100 sec. (the camera will automatically adjust the f-stop in this mode to keep the image exposed correctly).  Take your first photo. Check the image to make sure it is sharp and there is no camera movement.  Next take several more images changing the shutter speed to 1/50, 1/25, 1/15 and 1/8. Compare your images. As the shutter speed gets slower look for camera movement (blur) in the images. Now repeat the exercise with the image stabilization turned on.  With the IS are you able to handhold the camera at a slower shutter speed with no image blur?

2.(Tripod optional) Find a moving or active subject. Beginning with 1/25 second exposure take a series of images increasing  the shutter speed 2x with each exposure (1/25, 1/50/, 1/100/, 1/200 etc.) until you are able to freeze the action.

3.(Tripod required) Find a subject such as a small waterfall, fountain or even leaves on a windy day. Set the camera on a tripod, focus on the subject and experiment with slow shutter speeds to achieve motion blur. Start with a shutter speed of 1/200 second (or higher if you like), then decrease the shutter speed by half (1/200, 1/100, 1/50, 1/25 etc.) with each consecutive exposure. To achieve slow shutter speeds of ½ second or longer you may need to lower the ISO to 100 or less, choose a subject in the shade , or use a neutral density filter.