The Photographer's Eye: Graphic Guide

PART 7

MOTION

Early photographers had a complex about movement, because the light-sensitive emulsions they used responded poorly to light. The very first photograph, taken by Nicéphore Niépce of some rooftops in 1825, needed an eight-hour exposure, in which time the sun and resulting shadows had moved so much that the image seems bathed in a strange light. Every movement in every picture situation has a shutter speed that will capture it sharply, from the blink of an eyelid to a galloping horse’s hooves. This is always useful to know, whether you want to stay on the sharp side or go for the more impressionistic treatment of motion blur. More than ...