# slow shutter speed/ over exposed



## chrisjones75 (Sep 25, 2009)

afternoon team!

i have playing around with light trails, etc, but would really like to get some shots of running water in the daylight, so i slow my shutter speed down, and guess what?! WHITE!

its ok at night, naturally, but i want some day time shots of the sea...

what can i do to slow the shutter speed down and not over expose my shots?!

thanks in advance for anything that works!

chris


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## Plato (Sep 25, 2009)

Duh...
Close down your aperture.  If it doesn't close far enough, buy a neutral density filter.


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## Dao (Sep 25, 2009)

Plato said:


> Duh...
> Close down your aperture.  If it doesn't close far enough, buy a neutral density filter.




:thumbup::thumbup:


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## chrisjones75 (Sep 25, 2009)

would it be too much of a stupid question to ask how?

bearing in mind i'm a total beginner and have had the camera a week... i thought that if you put it in shutter mode, the camera would work out everything else... obviously i'm wrong, but how do i set the shutter speed, using the dial, then adjust the aperture?


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## Plato (Sep 25, 2009)

chrisjones75 said:


> would it be too much of a stupid question to ask how?
> 
> bearing in mind i'm a total beginner and have had the camera a week... i thought that if you put it in shutter mode, the camera would work out everything else... obviously i'm wrong, but how do i set the shutter speed, using the dial, then adjust the aperture?



That differs a bit among camera models.  Did you get a user manual with your camera?

Shutter mode...  Do you mean "Shutter Priority" mode?

Also, what is the ISO setting?


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## chrisjones75 (Sep 25, 2009)

i got a book, and have also bought the 'for dummies' guide for my camera, they both tell me how to adjust the shutter speed in "shutter priority" mode, but it seems that that is all i can adjust. i can adjust everything else, aperture etc, but if i adjust the aperture, then i can't adjust the shutter speed...

i think, to be fair, i'm trying to run before i can walk! (i don't know what the ISO setting is as i'm sat at my sofa, not out in the field!)


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## Village Idiot (Sep 25, 2009)

You need to use manual mode. You can adjust the shutter and aperture that way.


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## bcshort (Sep 25, 2009)

I'm going to take a punt and say you have a point & shoot camera, rather than a DSLR - that is - you cant swap lenses on & off your camera?

Point & Shoot cameras usually have a small aperture range compared to DSLRs, partly due to their sensor size. My Canon Powershot G3 P&S is f/2 to f/8. Most DSLRS are somewhat reliant on lenses and typically would range from as low as f/1.4 to f/22 or higher.

Even with your aperture at F/8, and your ISO as low as you can get it, you will be hard pressed on a sunny day to shoot anything at a shutter speed below 1/50. It has been suggested you purchase an ND Filter which is a good start - though the one mentioned (ND8) may not be enough.

Can you please tell us what sort of camera you have to help out here?


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## Plato (Sep 25, 2009)

chrisjones75 said:


> i got a book, and have also bought the 'for dummies' guide for my camera, they both tell me how to adjust the shutter speed in "shutter priority" mode, but it seems that that is all i can adjust. i can adjust everything else, aperture etc, but if i adjust the aperture, then i can't adjust the shutter speed...
> 
> i think, to be fair, i'm trying to run before i can walk! (i don't know what the ISO setting is as i'm sat at my sofa, not out in the field!)



1. "Shutter priority" means that you select the shutter speed and the camera selects the aperture based on the available light.

2. "ISO" (formerly called "ASA") is an indication of the sensitivity of the film or sensor.  Higher numbers mean more sensitive.  Be forewarned that higher ISO values also result in electrical noise (e.g., static) that can show up in the photo.

First, confirm that you are, in fact, using the lowest ISO of which the camera is capable.  Then, look in the manual to find out where you can see the aperture that the camera is choosing.  Low numbers mean small aperture.  The smallest should be around f/16 or f/22.

IF you confirm a low ISO and you also confirm a small aperture (high f-number), then the neutral density filter is the ONLY solution.

Make certain that you choose a filter that will fit on your lens.  As with ANY filter, get high quality multi-coated.  In addition to doing whatever they're designed to do, all filters will degrade the image somewhat.  You're introducing two additional surfaces, flat surfaces.  Higher quality results in degradation that you'll never see.


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## Plato (Sep 25, 2009)

Village Idiot said:


> You need to use manual mode. You can adjust the shutter and aperture that way.



Shutter priority should also work for him and, for now, it's an easier solution.  Perhaps full manual at a later date.


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## Plato (Sep 25, 2009)

Reading the responses from the others...

Yeah, you really have to tell us the brand and model camera that you're using.  Also, what shutter speed are you attempting to use?


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## chrisjones75 (Sep 25, 2009)

its a nikon D60... and i vary my shutter speed and take lads of pictures, from a few seconds down to about half a second...

i'm going to jot down everything said here, give it a whirl in the morning and report back!

looks rather good, cheers team... thats given me something to play with!

Chris


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## chrisjones75 (Sep 25, 2009)

***loads, not lads!****


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## Plato (Sep 25, 2009)

chrisjones75 said:


> its a nikon D60... and i vary my shutter speed and take lads of pictures, from a few seconds down to about half a second...
> 
> i'm going to jot down everything said here, give it a whirl in the morning and report back!
> 
> ...



I realize that you won't see this for a while but there is a guideline regarding the ability of a normal human being to hold a camera steady with various shutter speeds.  With a "normal" lens (we'll discuss that later), figure on nothing slower than 1/60 second and you can't even do that with a telephoto lens.  There's more detail but I suspect that you need a bit more camera knowledge to understand the detail.


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## USAF-SSgt (Sep 25, 2009)

I would recommend on reading up to learn how to use and read your camera's histogram.  The histogram "measures" the exposure of an image and will tell you if it is going to be over/under/correctly exposed. 

If your shots are over-exposed (washed-out), and you want to keep the shutter speed low to get the *whispy* effect, then you need to adjust your aperture and/or ISO.  

Where the histogram will help is you can properly expose the image at a normal shutter speed, then for each time you cut your shutter speed in half (ex: 1/125 to 1/60 to 1/30 to 1/15), you need to minimize your aperture one full stop to prevent as much light from entering (F/4 to F/5.6 to f/8) I find this easiest in manual mode.





You can also adjust your ISO settings.  An ISO setting of 400 is twice as sensitive as an ISO 100.  (400 to 200 to 100).  So you can help fight over exposure by adjusting your ISO for each Full F-stop or each halving of your shutter speed.  

I hope this helps answer your question.   Other ideas are to put on a ND filter or circular polarizer filter or put a hood on your lens is the light is *splashing the glass*

Post your shots after you retake.


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## NateWagner (Sep 25, 2009)

actually, if he's going for the cotton candy effect, he's going to need the neutral density filter. 

He needs to set the aperture to a high f/number his ISO to 100 (or as low as possible). and get the shutter speed down quite low, 10-15 seconds is great. (for the flowing water)


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## Plato (Sep 25, 2009)

Sergeant...

I don't disagree but I believe that the OP needs more photo experience before getting involved with the histogram.


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## Samanax (Sep 25, 2009)

chrisjones75 said:


> its a nikon D60...


Have you tried shooting in Manual Mode? (page 44 of the user's manual)


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