Basic concepts - shutter speed and lens aperture

[Pablo Fernicola]

Ken Cartwright (Arthonon) and I were standing next to each other at the recent El Centro show and by coincidence took almost the same photograph but with different settings. I think these shots may be useful as a reference for new photographers trying to understand different basic photography concepts and equipment.

These two shots, made with the same body type (Canon 7D) and similar long lenses (400mm), showcase a couple of basic concepts.  Both shots achieve the goal of showcasing the #5 plane, but do it in different ways:

Photo 1

Photo 1 - 100-400 mm lens, at 400mm, with an F14 aperture, 1/400 shutter speed, and ISO 200

Photo 2

Photo 2 - 400mm DO lens, with a F4 aperture, 1/4000 shutter speed, and ISO 200

Shutter Speed
Photo 1 was shot with a lower shutter speed, as a result you can observe the motion blur of the planes in the background.  To pull this off successfully, it is important to track the main subject, so that it also does not come out blurred.

A higher shutter speed reduces the need to closely track, but reduces or totally eliminates the motion blur, as seen in photo 2.
When shooting planes with props or helicopters in motion, one would always want to use a slower shutter speed so that the prop blades appear blurred, and not frozen (which looks unnatural).  As seen in photo 1, the motion blur conveys a sense of motion.

Aperture Value
Photo 2 has a lower aperture value, thus objects in the background are soft (out of focus).  A lower aperture value helps isolate and bring out the subject which the photograph is focused on (makes it sharper).

Equipment Dependencies
A faster lens, which has a lower F value and greater aperture, tends to be more expensive.  Faster lenses enable higher shutter speeds, but they will be larger and heavier above the 300mm range.  Also note that many times zoom lenses do not have a constant F value throughout their range, and those that do tend to be higher end.

Which Photograph is Better?
Both photographs work well.  Photo 1 conveys a sense of motion (viewers' eyes are attracted to the moving planes).  Photo 2 is squarely about the #5 plane, in context with the other planes.

-Pablo

Thanks to Ken for allowing me to use his photo in this post