One thing that I’ve been working to do is to help photographers create images in a way that AI really can’t duplicate easily. And part of that comes with making photographs in unique ways that it and most other people can’t really understand. Part of how you do this is with shutter effects. I’m going to talk about three of them here, but there are a whole lot more that I encourage you to check out all for yourself.
I’m not going to talk about how to do these things. But instead, I’m going to explain them.
In-camera Motion
In-camera motion has to do with using motion to create an image that looks like a painting. However, you have to do it in-camera. This is a technique that is done by so many photographers out there and is often embraced to create the feeling of either calm or like the world is moving at lightning speed. In a world where photography and photographers work to create such super sharp images, I challenge you to not do so.
Everyone has an image of a landscape. But how many have photographs of a landscape that really look like a painting without Photoshop or excessive processing?
That’s the idea here. You can apply this to street photography, landscapes, portraiture, and so many other things to creatively express yourself.
Slow Shutter Speed
Lots of photographers use the slow shutter speed effect to create motion blur with what’s happening in the scene. I’ve used it with portraits, but you can also do it with birds, animals, cars, and people. Effects like this help add drama and excitement to the image and show us something that can’t clearly and easily be seen with the human eye.
Years ago, slower shutter speeds were the norm. Many cameras didn’t have shutter speeds that went beyond 1/1000th. It also meant that we need to stop lenses down and we’d even use lower ISO film.
Here’s a challenge for you: lock your camera at a lower ISO of some sort so that you need to use a fast-aperture lens and a slow shutter speed to get a special effect.
High-speed Flash Sync
Most people looking at this image might think that it was shot with natural light. But instead, it was done with a combination of flash output and natural light being blended. In order to do that, we had to use a technique called high speed flash sync. This involves using a flash of some sort to balance out the exposure in the scene with the ambient light and the flash output. It can make the world look like it’s always got soft cloud coverage over the sun. But it can also really make everything and everyone look really good by delivering a really calm and serene look. Trust me when I say this, no one looks bad when this look is done masterfully.
I encourage you to master these techniques over time to make images that AI can’t necessarily do with ease.