"A Subtle Hum"

Capturing the Movement of Fast Subjects

By: Cole Worrall

Shutter speed is crucial to maintaining a sharp/fast image especially when photographing fast moving subjects. Wing movement is sudden, and a high shutter speed can reduce image blur and retain sharpness. Low shutter speeds keep the shutter open for longer, capturing light and in a way adding it in all at once, this is very useful for any nighttime photography due to the lack of natural light outside. This setting though is not as simple as adjust and shoot again like all element of a camera there are other things that need to be adjusted. This is why I always recommend you get to know your camera and know all of its bounds; only then can you really start to see the results you want!

Tips/Tricks

Increase shutter speed for fast objects anything above 1/1500s
Decrease shutter speed to capture movement/light all together 5-10s
Control ISO to adjust for the change in shutter speed
Track moving targets (this takes experience)
utilize quick autofocus for field shooting
Manual focus if shooting a fixed position like a bird feeder

(2025). Shopify.com.

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0929/2120/0955/files/6d2eb50f-04d9-4674-a0bc-8f2a69d5dc03_550x825.png?v=1747157579

Perfect Example

This photo of an eagle soaring through the sky was taken by one of my favorite wildlife photographers, Simon d'Entremont. Simon's work demonstrates professional knowledge of a camera and its settings, as well as compositional arrangement in a photo. What might seem like a click and shoot is much more elaborate and fast paced, this is what separates amateur from pro, especially with wildlife. Simon uses a high shutter speed to obtain a crisp image of the eagle's wings stopped in time. Fortunately, an eagle is a bigger creature and therefore has less flaps per minute meaning the shutter speed does not need to be exceedingly high (which can lead to noise and poor image quality if not adjusted properly). Once you are able to pump out results like this you can then understand you have a solid base for all the special things that make a camera so special!

Review

"A Subtle Hum" shows promise when using shutter speed but I myself can admit I did not do my best work here, that's ok though, how else do we learn? The fix is simple, higher shutter speed, the hummingbird's wings are ever so slightly blurred here, and it does in fact take away from the viewing experience of the photo. Do not be mistaken, wing blur isn't always a bad thing, in fact sometimes it serves as a strong element in a creative photo, its just less common than a sharp frame of a bird's wings. Keep practicing with your camera, phone or not, we all need practice even myself, at no point is anyone a true master of their craft without needing more practice!

Blog Comments

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse