Nature Photography How To

Selecting the appropriate shutter speed for a given scene is important for most types of photography if you want the best possible results. This decision is important with landscapes and wildlife shots—particularly when shooting hand-held, for scenes with motion, and while using long lenses.

In this behind-the-scenes tutorial from one of Shutterbug’s favorite landscape photographers you’ll learn how to nail shutter speed every time for the specific task at hand. The tips in the video below involve recognizing several common mistakes and understanding how to avoid them

Mads Peter Iversen is an acclaimed professional landscape photographer, with a portfolio of stunning outdoor images (often with a unique look). He’s also a very popular instructor because of his helpful easy-to-understand tips.

Today you’ll follow Iversen at the Land’s End shoreline in picturesque Cornwall, England, while discussing his favorite shutter speed tips for a variety of conditions. By following his straightforward advice, you’ll be to make the right choice under bright conditions, when it's really dim, and regardless of the lens you use.

Accompanied by two liked-minded photographers, Iversen has the benefit of beautiful light and the luck of an abundance of flying birds—a perfect example of when fast shutterspeeds are called for if want sharp results. As you’ll see, subject-to-camera-distance also factors into the equation.

Iversen moves on to other key considerations, like the difference between movements in the foreground vs. the background of the frame. He also discusses several techniques for making sharp exposures in high wind.

Iversen also demonstrates how various weather conditions influence camera settings, shooting with or without out a tripod, and the differences between SD cards and the new SSD cards.

We think that if you spend 15 minutes watching the video, your landscape photos will look better than ever.

You can find more great advice on Iverson's YouTube channel, so head over there after watching this lesson. And on a related topic be sure to check out the tutorial we posted recently, explaining which metering mode to use in different situations for optimum landscape and wildlife photography.