From the course: Photography 101

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Electronic vs. mechanical shutter

Electronic vs. mechanical shutter

From the course: Photography 101

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Electronic vs. mechanical shutter

- I'd like to talk about the difference between a mechanical and an electronic shutter. Let's start with the mechanical shutter. This is what you found in pretty much every camera made since the beginning up until pretty much now. Mechanical shutter is what you'll find in a traditional SLR or DSLR, and the mechanical shutter is a physical thing that opens to expose the film or sensor to light and then closes again. In a camera like this, you have a mirror that has to get up out of the way, and then the shutter opens, exposes the film or the sensor, closes again, and then the mirror flaps back down, and this is what it sounds like. (shutter clicking) There's a lot going in here. That's the sound of the mirror and the shutter moving around at the same time. Now, on the other end of the spectrum, you have the electronic shutter. The electronic shutter is what you'll find in video cameras and these days, you'll find them in smartphones as well. An electronic shutter has no moving parts at…

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