Movement
If you take a closer look at the following picture, you will notice it is completely moved. I shot this photograph using a shutter speed of 1/1, in other words, 1 second. The idea was trying to achieve a little movement with a certain degree of sharpness for the viewer to understand the meaning or idea of the photograph. Since it was very difficult to determine the proper shutter speed to use (I was using colour films), I tested several shutter speeds (1/15, 1/8, 1/4, 1/2, 1’’, 2’’ and even 4’’) to make sure I got the right effect.
This photograph was taken under natural light while holding the camera with my hand, with a shutter speed of 1 second.
Everyday, there are more digital cameras which count with an image stabilizer. If you have a camera with this feature, you will be able to take pictures using lower shutter speeds (sometimes 2 or 3 points), than with a camera without this function.
When we shoot a picture of a moving object (a person, a car, etc), it is us, the photographers who need to decide if we want this object moved or frozen (or sharp). A moving object is not the same as a moved photograph.
The shutter speed we choose to take a photograph will vary depending on what we want to achieve. If we want to freeze a moving object, we will need to use a higher shutter speed than if we want the object to appear moved.
For example, if we take a picture of a car running, the lower the shutter speed is, the more movement in the car you will get. As we increase the shutter speed, the car will show less and less movement, until it is completely frozen.
