speed

speed, in photography, any of those standards that indicate (1) the size of the lens opening, or aperture, (2) the duration of exposure, and (3) the sensitivity of the film to light.

The aperture, or lens speed, of a camera is the size of the opening in the lens. Aperture settings provide one means of controlling the amount of light that falls on the film by determining the maximum diameter of the light beam entering the camera body. A standard set of numbers, called f-stops, describe the lens aperture as a ratio of the focal length (see relative aperture).

The shutter speed regulates the length of time that the shutter is open during an exposure. Varying the shutter speed controls the film’s exposure to light and determines the speed of action that the photograph can “freeze,” or reproduce without blurring the image. Shutter speeds generally range from one second to 1/2,000 of a second.

Film speed indicates the sensitivity of a particular emulsion to light. It is usually expressed as an ISO (International Standards Organization) number (formerly called, and identical to, the ASA [American Standards Association; now American National Standards Institute] number), or, in Europe, as a DIN (Deutsche Industrie Norm) number. A film with a speed of 32 ISO/ASA, or 16/10 DIN, for example, would be considered a slow film—i.e., relatively insensitive to light, and most effectively used in bright light—whereas one with a speed of 400 ISO/ASA, or 27/10 DIN, would be considered fast—i.e., relatively sensitive to light and therefore usable in dim light or with a very fast shutter speed.