shutter speeds

robin623 · Sep 29, 2012

What are the advantages of owning a DSLR with a shutter speed of 1/8000 sec as opposed to a speed of 1/4000 sec ?
I see many top end DSLR's have a speed of 1/4000 sec , how often would you find the need of 1/8000 sec for creative situations and or in general shooting situations ?

Dead Link RemovedThanks for your thoughts.

chriscrawfordphoto · Sep 29, 2012

The 1/8000 shutter speed was actually first introduced on 35mm film SLRs back in the 1980s. I believe the Nikon N8008 was the first. My old Nikon F4s film camera has 1/8000 top shutter speed, as does my digital Canon 5DmkII. As to its usefulness, I have used it exactly once, with the F4s, when I was in high school in 1994, when photographing a sports event for the school newspaper. It would be most useful for sports and wildlife work, and even there it would be used rarely.

Pioneer · Sep 29, 2012

1/8000 seconds

I have this shutter speed available on my Pentax PZ-1p 35mm camera and I have personally found it useful when I am shooting ultrafast films (think Fuji Superia 1600 or Kodak TMax P3200 (or Delta Pro 3200.) I also have it on my Canon 5D digital, but I rarely have use for it since that camera's ISO can easily be adjusted for each individual shot (as opposed to having to work with a whole roll of film.) However, like any available shutter speed, I am sure it is useful in certain artistic circumstances where you may need to try and stop some particularly fast action.

250swb · Sep 29, 2012

1/8000th second is particularly useful if you have fast lenses that you want to use wide open in daylight.

Steve

BMbikerider · Sep 29, 2012

When you think of it there are quite a lot of things on a camera that are rarely used - for instance I have never used 'program mode' or Shutter priority. But for some they are useful and for the manufacturer they are a selling point. Minolta even had a 1/12000th on the Dynax 9 how many times was that used?

Ricardo Miranda · Sep 29, 2012

I'm sorry to ask this: Robin, are you sure you are in the right forum? This one is for Large Format cameras and for Film cameras!
Thanks!

SuzanneR · Sep 29, 2012

I've moved this to the 35mm forum, and since there are film cameras with a 1/8000 shutter speed we can keep the discussion open, but discussing DSLR's is off topic for APUG. Try our sister site DPUG if you want to discuss DSLR cameras and their features.

benjiboy · Sep 29, 2012

250swb said:
1/8000th second is particularly useful if you have fast lenses that you want to use wide open in daylight.

Steve

It's an expensive neutral density filter in other words

Chan Tran · Sep 29, 2012

robin623 said:
What are the advantages of owning a DSLR with a shutter speed of 1/8000 sec as opposed to a speed of 1/4000 sec ?
I see many top end DSLR's have a speed of 1/4000 sec , how often would you find the need of 1/8000 sec for creative situations and or in general shooting situations ?

Dead Link RemovedThanks for your thoughts.

I think this question you should ask yourself. For example myself I have never used shutter speed above 1/1000 for almost 40 years I have used the camera so to me a camera with high shutter speed is no advantage.

There is one thing though and I don't know if it's true. Many of my old 35mm SLR the top shutter speed of 1/1000 are not accurate so if my Nikon F5 with top shutter speed of 1/8000 and that may not be accurate but is the 1/1000 speed is any more accurate???

removed account4 · Sep 29, 2012

i always use ultra high shutter speeds when i take portraits
especially when i am photographing someone really "twitchy"
the last thing i want is to get a blurry image
when i am shooting wide open, and if i can catch a bug in flight
its icing on the cake !

E. von Hoegh · Sep 29, 2012

Chan Tran said:
I think this question you should ask yourself. For example myself I have never used shutter speed above 1/1000 for almost 40 years I have used the camera so to me a camera with high shutter speed is no advantage.

There is one thing though and I don't know if it's true. Many of my old 35mm SLR the top shutter speed of 1/1000 are not accurate so if my Nikon F5 with top shutter speed of 1/8000 and that may not be accurate but is the 1/1000 speed is any more accurate???

You would have to check each camera. My new 35mm SLR was made in 1970 or so, and 1/1000 of a second really is 1/1000 of a second, after cleaning and lubricating and adjusting the shutter.

Chan Tran · Sep 29, 2012

Thanks! I haven't figure out how to get my Nikon F5 to fire its shutter with the back open or removed yet so I can't test its shutter speed yet.

E. von Hoegh · Sep 29, 2012

Chan Tran said:
Thanks! I haven't figure out how to get my Nikon F5 to fire its shutter with the back open or removed yet so I can't test its shutter speed yet.

It gets challenging to measure those speeds, the slit becomes quite narrow.

Mainecoonmaniac · Sep 29, 2012

I never a camera that had 1/8000 shutter speed. Can film go into a reverse reciprocity failure?

E. von Hoegh · Sep 29, 2012

Mainecoonmaniac said:
I never a camera that had 1/8000 shutter speed. Can film go into a reverse reciprocity failure?

There is short exposure reciprocity failure, yes.

Ricardo Miranda · Sep 29, 2012

It's an expensive neutral density filter in other words

Ben,
You can buy these days a Nikon F-801 or even a F90 for under £40. They have 1/8000th shutters. I'm almost sure the F-801 was the first to have such a high speed shutter.

fstop · Sep 30, 2012

In motorsports photography we are always looking for speed.

You wouldn't move your camera a couple inches during exposure. but an object moving at only 140 mph moves over 2 inches in 1/1000 of a second.
motion=blur

brucemuir · Sep 30, 2012

The first Canon 1D digi has a 1/16,000 speed
I'm unsure if the shutter actually moves that fast or if the sensor cycles on/off in the correct increment.

Opps did I just say that.

Pumalite · Sep 30, 2012

250swb said:
1/8000th second is particularly useful if you have fast lenses that you want to use wide open in daylight.

Steve

+1

EASmithV · Oct 4, 2012

I've used it on my F6 for a bunch of times when I was pushing Tri-X to 1600 and 3200. That way I could shoot in low light easially, but bump up the shutter and still shoot shallow in good light.

polyglot · Oct 4, 2012

I can confirm that 1/8000 is great for motorsports up real close though it does mean using a fast film (sensor) and lens combo (f/2.8 ISO1600 1/6400 in the shade). Minolta even did a couple of 1/12000 models, e.g. the 9.

I do prefer the panned slow-shutter approach (sharp vehicle, blurred background), though it has a much lower hit-rate and doesn't work with a rotating (pitching or rolling) vehicle and fails if they go over a bump at the wrong time.

Wade D · Oct 5, 2012

I use 1/8000 only for the occasional air show with the Minolta 8000i. A Thunderbird or Blue Angel passing show center at 500mph needs it.
Before getting that camera 1/1000 and panning was the only option with mixed results.

benjiboy · Oct 8, 2012

My Canon T90s go to 1/4000 sec, but since I shoot mainly portraits I rarely use any faster than 1/500 sec. except on very bright days.

cliveh · Oct 8, 2012

I find spark photography more useful than high shutter speeds.

erikg · Oct 8, 2012

benjiboy said:
It's an expensive neutral density filter in other words

It's free if you already own the camera.

shutter speeds

Moderator

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency