Whether you're shooting fast-moving cars, athletes, or kids and dogs, stopping the action can make the difference between a successful sharp image and one that appears unsharp due to unwanted motion blur. In these situations, a fast shutter speed is required to stop the action and provide sharp detail in the main subject.
Unless you're using flash, as a rule a good minimum shutter speed when photographing people is 1/125. When the subject isn't moving quickly, such as the figure skaters shown in Figure , 1/60 is often enough to capture a sharp image. Flash helps to freeze action much better and is typically used at shutter speeds of 1/60 to 1/250 (or higher), depending on the camera.
Faster-moving subjects like cars often need a faster shutter speed, or they require you to use creative techniques at slower speeds. To freeze a car moving at freeway speeds, a shutter speed of 1/250 should be considered a minimum.
Shutter speed also changes with distance. The closer a moving subject is to the camera, the faster shutter speed you need to capture the image. As an example, the image shown in Figure was shot at 1/180, even though the planes are going several hundred miles per hour. Had they been closer and filling more of the frame, I would have needed a shutter speed of 1/2000 to freeze the action.
Sometimes freezing the action is exactly the wrong thing to do. For instance, flowing water like that shown in
Figure takes on a silky, smooth look thanks to a slow shutter speed of one second.
Combining motion and sharp detail can make for very compelling images, especially when shooting fast visual spectacles such as sports. The technique of panning is one of the few times when you intentionally move the camera while shooting. In Figure, the camera moved along with the motorcyle while pressing the shutter button. This provided a sharp image of the motorcyclist with a nicely blurred background to really show the speed.
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