Project 4: Shutter speeds

Find something continuously moving and take a series of pictures with different shutter speed. Find the slowest shutter speed at which the movement is sharply frozen.

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(Shutter speed: 1/2000 sec, Aperture: f/5.6, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 400)

(Shutter speed: 1/1000 sec, Aperture: f/5.6, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 400)

(Shutter speed: 1/500 sec, Aperture: f/9, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 400)

(Shutter speed: 1/250 sec, Aperture: f/13, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 400)

(Shutter speed: 1/125 sec, Aperture: f/18, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 400)

(Shutter speed: 1/60 sec, Aperture: f/29, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 400)

(Shutter speed: 1/30 sec, Aperture: f/36, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 400)

(Shutter speed: 1/15 sec, Aperture: f/36, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 200)

(Shutter speed: 1/8 sec, Aperture: f/36, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 200)

(Shutter speed: 1/4 sec, Aperture: f/36, Focal length: 120mm, ISO: 200)

Since the focus is not quite right in these photographs, it is not very clear, but it looks 1/500 second (the third picture from the top) or shorter is necessary to freeze the water flow in this particular case. The water may look frozen at 1/250 second (in the fourth picture), but the water drops are actually blurred.

The fountain looks much nicer at the slower shutter speed, such as 1/8 second (the second one from the bottom) and 1/4 second (the last one). I think the bottom one looks the best. It suggests that it is always necessary to use a tripod (or something to stabilise the camera) when taking pictures of fountains.

Since it was a very sunny bright day, I could not set the shutter speed slower than 1/4 second. I should have taken the pictures later in the afternoon or should have used ND filter (but I didn't have one).