It’s inevitable. Sooner or later, you look back at photos and notice that some of your shots have blurred. Why does this happen? And more importantly, how can you stop it from happening? Read on to find the best way to stop your photos from blurring.

Faster Shutter Speed

The longer the shutter is open, the more light the camera collects. However, if the camera moves as the shutter is closing, it leads to blurry pictures. Therefore, if you set your shutter to a faster speed, there’s less time for your photo to blur. Be careful though. In some cases, faster shutter speeds will lead to darker pictures.

More Light

If your photos are getting too dark with a faster camera speed, it’s time to add more light to your subject. Open a window, turn on a light, or bring in additional artificial lights.

Use a Tripod

If you’re taking a photo of a low-light subject, such as a city at night or the stars above, adding more light won’t help matters, nor will opting for a faster shutter speed. Instead, it’s time to get a tripod. Learn more about the times you should use a tripod here.

Human Tripod

Though you may not have a tripod on hand, there are ways you can stand to get a steadier picture. Plant your legs shoulder-width apart and tuck your elbows into your ribs. Hold the camera to your eye and use the viewfinder. Having the camera closer to your body will reduce camera shake.

Squeeze the Camera

Pushing the camera button down with no resistance can nudge your camera down as far as a millimeter–which may sound small until you realize how much that can blur your photo! Instead, when you press the shutter button, push against (IE squeeze) the bottom of your camera. Putting the opposite amount of force against the camera button helps reduce camera shake.

Step Back

Sometimes when a camera is too close to the subject, the camera has difficulty focusing, just as the human eye does when information is too close. If this is the case, step back and let your camera find the subject. You can always crop the photo tighter later if you need to.

Moving Subject

Is your photo blurring because your subject keeps moving?  Learn how to photograph moving subjects here.

Did we miss anything? Let us know in the comments below how you stop your photos from blurring!