Are you interested in starting the journey of learning photography? I’m so excited for you! I’m also thrilled that you are looking for a Beginners Photography Course to help you start mastering the basics. Your camera is quite a sophisticated tool. If you want your photography skills to progress quickly, it’s worth taking the time […]
Are you trying to figure out the best shutter speed for portraits?
If you’re in the process of learning how to use your camera’s settings, you’re probably quickly learning that there’s no one simple answer that covers all shooting scenarios. In this post, I’ll break down a few of the factors to consider when choosing a shutter speed for your portraits when shooting in manual mode.
TL/DR: Best Shutter Speed for Portraits
When choosing the best shutter speed for portraits, the photographer has to find the balance between letting in enough light and avoiding loss of focus (assuming sharp, in focus images are the goal).
Be careful of using a shutter speed that is slower than the inverse of 2x the lens focal length when hand holding. For example, for a 50 mm lens, avoid using a shutter speed that’s slower than 1/100 when shooting by hand.
Remember that a shutter speed of 1/500 or faster will freeze moderate human movement such as jumping, walking or jogging.
I remember when I was first learning photography. I actually took a wonderful class at a community college to learn the basics. But as I started practicing at home, I quickly became dissatisfied because my images did not have the creamy, blurred backgrounds I desired. It took me a while to learn how to blur […]
Are you new to photography and wondering about the best way to choose exposure settings? What’s the difference between an incident light meter vs reflected metering using your camera? In this post, I’ll explain the difference between the two different approaches to measuring or “metering” light. I’ll also fill you in on my preferred approach […]
Are you wondering how to use the ExpoDisc? You’ve come to the right post! This little tool has become one of my favorite pieces of photography equipment over the years. I use it during every session. Seriously, I’m pretty sure I would cry if I forgot to bring it along when using my digital camera. […]
Wondering about the best lighting for indoor photography? In this post I will share my approach as a family and newborn photographer who provides lots of in-home lifestyle sessions throughout the year. However, these techniques can also be applied to other indoor settings for general lifestyle and branding sessions. TL/DR: My Recommendations for The Best […]
Bummer. You captured the perfect shot right when someone walked into the background of your frame. Can it be fixed? In this post, photographer Kelley Hoagland will show you how to edit out someone in a photo using Photoshop. There are actually a few simple techniques you can try! This post contains affiliate links. This […]
What’s the difference between manual mode vs aperture priority? When learning photography, it’s helpful to start with understanding your options when choosing camera modes. These different modes affect how your camera measures light and chooses (or doesn’t choose) exposure settings. As I have mentioned in previous posts, as a portrait photographer, the first setting I […]
Wondering how to fix a grainy photo? Maybe you took a photo is less than ideal lighting conditions. Or maybe your settings were just off. Now you’ve ended up with a photo you like, except for the distracting digital grain and noise. How can you fix it? This post contains affiliate links. This means this […]
