Clarification on shutter speed?

I was reading this article, which suggests a guideline of using a shutter speed no slower than 1/(mm of focal length). Does that refer to the actual focal length, or the 35mm equivalent focal length?

It also seems that the author is suggesting not to go under 1/50 sec. shutter speed with a handheld camera even if the focal length is less than 50mm. Is that correct?

I usually go as fast as possible shutter speed. There is a trade off of shutter speed versus the amount of light required.

1/ equivalent mm.

Faster is better but with a good stabilized camera and/or lens, a 24mm equivalent shot can be made hand-held at 1/2s. It may take a couple of tries, and it won't freeze moving people or things, but it can be done.

Keep in mind that there's almost always a wall or rail to lean against and/or prop your camera on.

Dave

High MP sensors tend to need even faster shutter speed than film did which is where that rule of thumb comes from. Rules are a guide not an absolute in photography. To show motion slow works better, to see a prop on a plane spinning slow works better. With slow you then need support or camera motion depending on what you want to do.

I hate rules...

framer

I was reading this article, which suggests a guideline of using a shutter speed no slower than 1/(mm of focal length). Does that refer to the actual focal length, or the 35mm equivalent focal length?

 

It also seems that the author is suggesting not to go under 1/50 sec. shutter speed with a handheld camera even if the focal length is less than 50mm. Is that correct?

35 mm equivelant.

Back in the day it was hard when shooting 35, 6x6, 5x4 all on one shoot.

The rule is based on 35mm equivalent framing - so when applying the rule with an APS-C camera, I'd use the equivalent focal length.

As others mentioned, this 'rule' is a guideline only, so all will depend on just how steady you are when you hold the camera and lens...no two people are going to be alike as far as what their bottom shutter speed will be in a given situation, then throw in stabilization systems on top of that and the rule can go out the window. You need to figure out where your comfort zone is and how steady you can be with different lenses. The 1-over-focal, like rule-of-thirds and F8-and-be-there are all good rules to learn, not just to help you but also to know when they can be broken.

I've learned very steady stance over the years, so I've been able to hand-hold various lenses at up to 3x slower than the 1-over-focal rule, withOUT stabilization. I've got a manual Voigtlander 35mm F1.4 that I use in low light, and have been able to handhold down to about 1/20 shutter reliably, and down to 1/10 with decent hit rate. When I shoot shorter focal length stabilized lenses, I can push up to 2 seconds shutter speed. I've got a friend who's not very stable due to health issues, and he'd have difficulty holding still enough even at 1-over-focal with most lenses, so he has to compensate by going with a much faster shutter speed - with a 50mm focal, he's usually trying to stay at 1/250 or higher.

As others have said, 35mm equivalent. I always use "EFL" (effective focal length) when I write out the equation while teaching.

Now, for geek mode: If you are standing up, not overly caffeinated, not fighting wind, on solid ground, etc., this equation dictates the supposed minimum shutter speed for a shake-free shot (without the aid of IS). Nothing more, nothing less. With Image Stabilization (or VR, or OS, etc.), this equation gets a little more complex. It's probably 8/EFL for older lenses, and maybe 16/EFL for newer-model lenses. So, a newer 300mm lens can be handheld to about 1/20th of a second (16/300 is similar to 16/320, which reduces to 1/20).

However, what good is a shake-free shot if your subject moved during the time you were getting that shake-free shot? That's where other guidelines come into play. For standing humans, you probably need 1/50th or 1/60th to actually get them reasonably crisp. If they're doing kid sports, you probably need 1/250th; HS sports 1/500th, college 1/1000th, pro 1/2000th. Obviously, that's all a set of guidelines and some sports are different than others.

That said, if you WANT to show movement, you need to slow it down. For most things, I find that 1/60th is a great place to start, and I slow it down from there. For helicopters and propeller-driven planes, you want 1/125th as a starting point so that the blade tips have some blur; otherwise the object looks "wrong" (there's a great YouTube video of a helicopter whose blades are turning at the frame rate of the video camera, from takeoff to departing the frame, and it looks impossible). For dreamy waterfalls, it's actually more like 2+ seconds.

If there's a video screen (TV, computer) in your frame, you probably want your shutter speed to be near the frame rate of said device. TV frame rate is just a hair under 30 frames per second, so 1/30th is the right place to start. Computer video can be all over the map, so you may just have to guess&go.

Thanks everyone for the input. My next vacation will include taking pictures inside of palaces, churches and museums ... where flashes and tripods are prohibited ... and where many of the solid objects shouldn't be leaned against.

Rules are a guide not an absolute in photography.

"Know the rules well, so you can break them effectively." - Dalai Lama XIV

The rule is based on 35mm equivalent framing - so when applying the rule with an APS-C camera, I'd use the equivalent focal length.

As others mentioned, this 'rule' is a guideline only, so all will depend on just how steady you are when you hold the camera and lens...no two people are going to be alike as far as what their bottom shutter speed will be in a given situation, then throw in stabilization systems on top of that and the rule can go out the window. You need to figure out where your comfort zone is and how steady you can be with different lenses. The 1-over-focal, like rule-of-thirds and F8-and-be-there are all good rules to learn, not just to help you but also to know when they can be broken.

 

I've learned very steady stance over the years, so I've been able to hand-hold various lenses at up to 3x slower than the 1-over-focal rule, withOUT stabilization. I've got a manual Voigtlander 35mm F1.4 that I use in low light, and have been able to handhold down to about 1/20 shutter reliably, and down to 1/10 with decent hit rate. When I shoot shorter focal length stabilized lenses, I can push up to 2 seconds shutter speed. I've got a friend who's not very stable due to health issues, and he'd have difficulty holding still enough even at 1-over-focal with most lenses, so he has to compensate by going with a much faster shutter speed - with a 50mm focal, he's usually trying to stay at 1/250 or higher.

I always found a rangefinder I could hold much lower speeds

Thanks everyone for the input. My next vacation will include taking pictures inside of palaces, churches and museums ... where flashes and tripods are prohibited ... and where many of the solid objects shouldn't be leaned against.

 

 

"Know the rules well, so you can break them effectively." - Dalai Lama XIV

Sometimes a shot with minor blur is better than no shot at all.

If you can do so without being disrepectful, disruptive or changing the shot much and you need to go to a slow shutter speed, try kneeling on one knee. That turns you from a bipod into a modified tripod (one foot, knee and to). Also, if you are shooting raw especially, don't be afraid to up the ISO a little to compensate instead of going for a slower shutter..

Thanks everyone for the input. My next vacation will include taking pictures inside of palaces, churches and museums ... where flashes and tripods are prohibited ... and where many of the solid objects shouldn't be leaned against.

 

 

"Know the rules well, so you can break them effectively." - Dalai Lama XIV

If you can do so without being disrepectful, disruptive or changing the shot much and you need to go to a slow shutter speed, try kneeling on one knee. That turns you from a bipod into a modified tripod (one foot, knee and to).

I have a better trick. I have a 6' leash that I can hook to the wrist strap of either camera. Then I can stand on the other end of the leash, pull it taut, and "brace" against the floor. It's not as stable as resting the camera on a solid object, but it's more stable than kneeling for a shot. (Easier on the knees, too.)

Also, if you are shooting raw especially, don't be afraid to up the ISO a little to compensate instead of going for a slower shutter..

I ran some tests yesterday. Cranking up the noise reduction in RAW should allow me (if absolutely necessary) to bump the ISO up from 400 to 1600.

I usually go as fast as possible shutter speed. There is a trade off of shutter speed versus the amount of light required.

Agreed. The faster shutter speed that you can use (in most cases) the better. Slower shutter speeds makes it damned hard to hold steady without a tripod.

Of course, going out on an old country road at night (lots of curves) setting up a tripod and opening the shutter (and leaving it open) as a car goes by provides some "interesting" results. :D