Art Of Slow Shutter

If you've ever seen a racing photo where the car is razor sharp, but the background streaks with motion blur, you've witnessed the power of slow shutter speed photography. For motorsport enthusiasts and budding photographers alike, learning how to drag the shutter can add energy and drama to your shots—capturing not just the subject, but the speed itself.

Understanding Shutter Speed

Shutter speed controls how long your camera's sensor is exposed to light. In motorsport, fast shutter speeds (like 1/1000s) freeze the action, but slow shutter speeds (anywhere from 1/30s to 1/4s or even slower) allow you to capture motion blur, which gives a sense of speed and direction. As you may have guess, the longer the shutter remains open, the harder it is to get your subject sharp, therefore it is widely recommended when starting to practice with faster shutter speeds and gradually work your way slower. At the start of any day at the track, I will start between 1/60th-1/125th of a second to get my eye in. For me once I start getting around 40% plus of my images relatively sharp, I will reduce my shutter speed by 50% (e.g. 1/60th > 1/30th or 1/30th > 1/15th) and start the process again.

Shutter Speed Examples

Below are some examples of how different shutter speed may influence your images.

1/100th

At 1/100th you start to get some background blur. Busy background remain distracting and you are not fully isolating your subject.