High Speed photography is an art. There isn’t a perfect all-purpose setting to use when capturing high speed images. There are however, a few basic tip you can keep in mind as you tinker with the camera to get that perfect shot.
Shutter Speed
Depending on your desired shot, you may need to increase your shutter speed. You’ll definitely want to try out a few different options, shooting objects moving at various speed to get a handle on where you want to set the shutter speed.
Some basic rules of thumb:
- You’ll need a higher speed for objects moving past the camera than for objects moving towards the camera.
- The faster the object you’re trying to shoot moves, the faster you’ll need to set the shutter speed.
- With faster shutter speeds comes less light hitting your camera’s sensor, so there are a few other adjustments you can make to make up for this:
ISO
Boosting your ISO means that less light is required for a good exposure. This can be very helpful as you increase your shutter speed, though beware the grainy texture that becomes more obvious as you go above ISO 800. You’ll want to aim for the lowest ISO speed you can use and still get a great photo.
Aperture
Widening the aperture of your camera will also allow more light in at high shutter speeds. Your aperture setting does effect depth of field as well, so you’ll need to find the right balance between the amount of light you need and the range of focal lengths you’ll be dealing with.
Camera Trigger
Of course, there’s a whole different approach you can use to get those strange and beautiful high speed photos. Rather than ramping up your shutter speed, you can slow it way down and use a camera trigger in conjunction with your flash to get a clean, crisp image with just the right exposure.
Using a camera trigger to capture lightning photographs has many advantages. Not only does a trigger allow you to shoot lightning more safely, it reduces shutter clicks and allows you to capture photos that would not be possible with manual triggering.
Lightning Safety
Using a trigger such as the Strike Finder 2 allows you to set your camera and retreat to a safer location. Lightning is dangerous! When shooting, you don’t want to be the tallest object around. Avoid trees, power lines and open areas. The safest place to be is in a building with sides, however, a hard topped car with the widows rolled up can provide some protection. Be sure to check out the National Weather Service’s lightning tips. Stay safe storm chasers. Keep a safe distance from the center of the storm, 6-8 miles.
Reducing Shutter Clicks
Shooting lightning in the evening, after dark, is the easiest time to capture lightning. You can use an intervalometer to easily capture the shots. However, using a camera trigger will greatly reduce the number of shutter clicks needed to capture the same shots thus saving you tons of shutter clicks.
Capturing Lightning Photos
Daytime lightning shooting is the trickiest time to capture lightning and it’s the time a trigger will be most beneficial. Daytime shooting requires a faster shutter, usually 1/10-1/125. It’s simply not feasible to use an intervalometer to capture lightning in the daytime. However, a camera trigger can detect the infra red from a lightning bolt and trigger your camera’s shutter, allowing you to capture daytime bolts.
These are just a few ideas to help get you on your way. The best thing you can do to improve your photos is get creative, experiment with your settings and refine them until you are comfortable shooting at high speed in the environment in which you find your subject. Happy shooting!
