selecting an extended exposure time. While the
shutter release is manually triggered, light enters
the camera as long as the release is held down.
Most often time exposure is utilized in scientific
applications, particularly in astrophotography,
where exposure time can be measured in hours
rather than the normal fraction of a second. As
well, photographers experiment with time exposure
both to capture images in less than optimal condi-
tions (such as dim light) or for its artistic value. A
tripod can be used to steady the camera, unless the
desired effect includes the ‘‘shakiness’’ that will
inevitably result from holding the camera by hand.
Controlling the shutter speed allows the photo-
grapher to manage the scene’s outcome on the film.
A quick shutter speed will freeze a moment in time;
a slow shutter speed drags and blurs the moment’s
action. Blurred motion is often used to create an
artistic effect. For example, landscape photogra-
phers often use a slow shutter speed to create
mood, such as when shooting a waterfall. Instead
of snapping a shot that essentially freezes the tum-
bling water, the slow shutter speeds turns it into a
smooth flow demonstrating the poetic aesthetics of
nature and time.
The handheld time exposure shakes the entire
frame, creating a recognizable effect. Mounting the
camera on the tripod with a time exposure creates
the ‘‘dragging’’ effect to light and movement, result-
ing in a blurred effect. For example, a camera
mounted on a tripod with an open shutter will blur
city traffic into streams of light while the rest of the
environment remains motionless. The night sky is
another popular destination to photograph and
experiment with time exposure. The camera, with
the shutter left open for hours, records a motionless
horizon while it captures a semicircular star trail.
Photographers also play with shutter speed and
the artificial lighting of a strobe. Sports photogra-
phers often use a slow shutter speed in conjunction
with flash while panning across their subject, often
an athlete in motion. The result is that the subject is
kept in focus while the surrounding environment
becomes blurred, creating a dynamic photograph
that shows motion and energy.
Time exposure is just one of many techniques to
capture on film images that cannot be normally
seen with the human eye.
TriciaLouvar
Seealso:Astrophotography; Camera: An Overview;
Camera: 35 mm; Camera: Digital; Edgerton, Harold
E.; Exposure; ManipulationFurther Reading
Burian, Peter K. and Robert Caputo.National Geographic
Photography Field Guide: Secrets to Making Great Pic-
tures. Second Edition. Washington DC: National Geo-
graphic Society, 2003.
Frost, Lee.The Complete Guide to Night and Low-Light
Photography. New York: Watson-Guptill Publications
2000.
Meehan, Les.Creative Exposure Control: How to Get the
Exposure You Want Every Time. New York: Watson-
Guptill Publications, 2001.
Peterson, Bryan.Understanding Exposure. New York: Wat-
son-Guptill Publications, 1990.
Sanderson, Andrew.Night Photography. New York: Wat-
son-Guptill Publications, 2002.
Zuckerman, Jim. Perfect Exposure: Jim Zuckerman’s
Secrets to Great Photographs. Cincinnati, OH: Writer’s
Digest Books, 2002.TOKYO METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF
PHOTOGRAPHY
The first municipal art museum in Japan specializ-
ing in photography and optical imagery, including
videos and films, Japanese or non-Japanese, op-
ened in June 1990, pursuant to the Ordinance of
the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography.
It moved to its current facilities at the Yebisu Gar-
den Place in the Yebisu section of downtown
Tokyo in January 1995. Its financer, the Tokyo
Municipal Government, announced the establish-
ment of the museum as early as November 1986, as
part of the government’s Second Long-Term Plan.
As a museum specializing in photography and opti-TIME EXPOSURE