Effect of shutter speed on look of video?

sbryan

Well-known member
Just a general question . . . It doesn't throw off colors like the White Balance or anything like that does it?
 
Not generally. One of the few times you'll see it happen is when shooting under crappy fluorescent lighting. You sometimes see color shifting with the shutter at some speeds in those conditions.
 
Shutter speed has an effect on two properties.

First, the period that the shutter is open effects the quantity to light gathered. The longer the shutter is open, the more light reaches the imagers. The relationship is a linear one. Double the period and you double the light, half the period and you half the light.

Second, the period that the shutter is open effects relative motion blur. For objects which move in relationship to the camera frame (either by moving themselves or by the camera moving in relationship to their position in the frame) blur can and does occur (sometimes obvious, sometimes nearly imperceptibly). The longer the shutter is open, the more blur that an object in relative motion will impart. The shorter the period the less blur.

Film, unlike video can have different reciprocity curves for each of the color layers and can exhibit a color shift with very long exposures, video, in general lacks this effect.
 
Keep in mind, though, that on a video camera, there's no shutter. It's always "open." What "shutter speed" refers to is the fraction of a second that the camera reads the CCD(s), which is analogous to the amount of time a shutter lets light through on a film camera.
 
The actual term is acquisition period (there are also transfer and clear parts of the CCD cycle) but the analogy of a film camera is likely a simpler concept for most to grasp.

Each of the CCD receptors accumulate photons during the acquisition period. This results in a potential difference accumulating between each receptor and the substrate of the device. During the transfered cycle the net accumulated charge is read by the quantizer and is assigned a value according to the accumulated charge Voltage. During the final cycle, the CCD receptor is cleared by the application of a low impedance device (typically a MOS-FET) between each point and the substrate.
 
I just don't want anyone thinking their camera has a shutter. One time, someone asked if the "clunk" was their shutter coming loose. :)
 
Perhaps clarifying that it lacks a "mechanical shutter" but it has an "electronic equivalent" would be the most accurate.

It really has been too long since we had a "clunk sound" newbie post.

Ah, those were the days!
 
khmuse said:
It really has been too long since we had a "clunk sound" newbie post.

Ah, those were the days!

There was one in the HVX technical section last week and everyone gave him true information. 'Twas a sad day.:(
 
What about "virtual shutter?

Sony's shoulder-mount camcorders call it "Clear Scan" (CLS).
I guess that refers to its most prominent use: getting rid of flicker on crt monitors.
 
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