How to: Stop Motion Photography

Stop Motion Photography uses fast shutter speed and high aperture to stop someone or something in action. ISO must also be taken into consideration.

Shutter speed is how fast the cameras shutter will open. It will also affect the amount of light let into the camera. If your shutter speed is fast, such as 1/2500 of a second, less light will be let in. If your shutter speed is slow, such as 1/60 of a second, more light will be let in.

Aperture is a direct control of how much light will be let into the camera. It is measure in F Stops. Surprisingly, a high number (example: f/22) actually lets less light in. Therefore, if you are taking a picture in low lighting conditions, you would actually want to select a low number (example:f/28) to let more light in.

ISO is the film speed. It is how fast the film will react to light. With a film camera, the ISO you set must match the ISO of the film. So, if your film ISO is 400, then your camera needs to be set to ISO 400. The way that’s done will depend on your camera. Now, digital cameras work in the same sort of way. The only difference is that there’s no film because, obviously, everything is digital.

There is no set answer for this one. Whether it’s Stop Motion Photography or any other type, the lighting is going to affect the appropriate settings. The shutter speed, aperture, and ISO are things you’re going to have to mess with to get the desired result. It can be difficult to get the correct exposure and still catch someone or something in action. Practice makes perfect. As you become more familiar with photography, you will be able to guess the settings without messing around with them too much. Just remember you have to use a fast shutter speed (example: 1/2500 of a second) and high aperture (example:f/2.8). With a digital, you’ll see if your exposure is right before you take it. With a film, you’ll have to use your light meter.

A light meter is only necessary in a film camera. As it’s name suggests, it is basically a meter of light. It tells you if your exposure will be correct. Light meters work in different ways depending on the camera. Therefore, if you have a film camera, read your manual to find out how to use yours.

This depends on your camera. You’ll need to read your cameras manual. However, the one thing in common in this process for all cameras is that you’ll need to put your camera into manual mode. Getting it into manual mode will also depend on your camera, however, any that I have seen have a ring with multiple settings and if you turn it to “M” you will be in manual mode.

By this point, you should know everything needed to start taking some Stop Motion Photography. I’ll bet your wondering what it looks like though. Here are a couple examples that I took this year.