When I was going to school and learning about film, one concept that really confused me at the time was the difference between frame rate/film speed and shutter speed. Using the term film speed and shutter speed sounds very similar but refer to two completely different things.
Frame Rate or Film Speed measures the frames per second (FPS) that the camera records. Think of it as individual pictures being taken per second. The higher the frame rater, the more pictures being taken, which means the more information in that second you can see. Filming at a higher frame rate will result in having hyper-realistic images that appear sharper. For an example of this, you can watch Peter Jackson’s “The Hobbit” which was filmed at a higher frame rate. Higher frame rates are most commonly used when shooting in slow-motion. Shooting at a higher frame rate and then slowing it down will assure that the footage plays back smoothly.
Shutter speed is the measurement of time that a camera’s shutter opens and closes. To help myself remember this concept, I picture the actual shutter, opening and closing with light blasting through it.
When you have a higher shutter speed, the shutter opens and closes much faster which reduces motion blur. It’s very hard for our eyes to focus on something and keep it very sharp for long periods of time so higher shutter speeds seem unrealistic. You usually want to record sports and car races with higher shutter speeds.
When you have a lower shutter speed, much more motion blur is introduced into your footage. This feels much more natural. Here is a graphic to help with setting your shutter speed in relation to your f/stop.
For more info on Shutter Speed and even Shutter Angles, check out a this previous post:
http://gaddisvisuals.com/controllinglightincamera/
This illustration shows the shutter speed and frame rate for 1 second of video.
A great video that explains frame rate in detail comes from filmmakeriq.com with John Hess. Check it out:
