What is 'long shutter?' Does every camera have it? How exactly do you use it?

Question

I have a Nikon Coolpix S210.

I was wondering if it has long shutter and if it does how do i get to use it?

Thanks guys!

x

Answer 1

It's actually a long shutter speed.  This is the mesuare of how long the shutter is open during the exposure.    Most photos are taken with the camera held by your hands.  Shutter speeds longer than 1/30th of a second invite blurrs from moving subjects or shaking cameras.

But we need longer shutter speeds in some instances - like night photography.

Your camera has a couple of modes that will use a long shutter speed:  Night Portrait, Night Landscape and Fireworks.   You will need a tripod to take good pics in these modes.

Here is a slow-shutter image of a carnival ride at night.  The shutter speed here was 1/5 sec.

http://family.webshots.com/photo/2688015...

Answer 2

Generally, anything with an exposure of less than 1/15th of a second falls into this term of - long shutter.

The term means any exposure that allows the shutter to remain open for an extended period of time, also known as - time exposures.

Many higher end point and shoot cameras have a M setting where you can change your shutter speeds, some even have a B for time exposures, up to many, many seconds or minutes. However it seems your does not. In fact the shutter speed range on your camera is not even listed.

Your creativity with this camera may be limited and you will have to shoot with in IT's range until you feel it's time to up-grade.

Sorry

Bob - Tucson

Answer 3

The long shutter refers to the amount of time that is is open, letting in light.  

Do use a long shutter, there are a few things you must do.  

First of all, you MUST have a tripod, or set the camera on a flat non movable surface.  If there is even slight movement your photos will not be clear and have a lot of blur.  

Set your camera on the tripod.  Now you need to set your camera to manual mode, and a long shutter can start at 1 second, and keep going longer and longer, maybe even up to 30 seconds. It depends on what you camera offers.  

In any case, if your camera is still, the shutter stays open longer, and you will get a blur movement if there is anything moving, like tail lights from a car. However, the other scenery, like buildings, road signs, etc... should be in focus, with no blur!

Thanks for reading!