b shutter speed?

Question

hey what is the B shutter speed?

whenever i am wanting to take a photo that doesn't have enough light, i go for the B shutter speed, yet my negative always turns out over-exposed ("black" negative, therefore a "white" photo)

how do i avoid this? my camera only goes up to 2 seconds, and i feel the B shutter is my only option for low-level light photography

sorry, but i dont really understand the "logic" behind the b-shutter speed.
how can I be sure that say, 30 seconds will produce a good image, to say 5 seconds? without overexposing any of them.
i dont understand how to not over-expose with the B shutter speed.

PS: what is a cable release? ill be sure to use a tripod

Answer 1

IF your camera only goes to 2 seconds, and you want to use the "B" setting, as suggested above, you would need some time device (a wrist watch, for example with a seconds hand or digital numbers). The best way would be to use your judgment, which you will greatly improve with practice (known as experience). Since your camera setting only goes to 2 seconds, then you would do several exposures, 3 seconds, 4 seconds, 5 seconds, 5 seconds... and that way you'll have an idea of how long to leave the shutter open as you gain experience.

A cable release is nothing more than an encased cable that screws into the cable button's screw opening and it is pliable so that when you squeeze it, the movement is absorbed by the flexible cable and will not transfer the movement to the camera and cause camera shake; it comes in different size from a few inches long to about 24 inches long, get one that you can afford; they are not very expensive and will serve you well.

A sturdy tripod is indeed a vital tool to use for those long exposure-photos to hold the camera steady as the image is being exposed but you don't really need to spend a fortune on one unless you are going to be using it everyday and for traveling to exotic jungles and/or desserts and/or rain forests with a very expensive pro-level camera; consider the Sunpak 6601 UT for $28; Sunpak 700aDX Digital for $30; Sunpak 9002DX for $45; Ultra 757 for $80; Velbon Cx-470 for $30; Velbon Videomate 607 for $70); check with www.bhphotovideo.com and see what you can afford. Good luck and best wishes.

Answer 2

what everyone is saying, the "b" setting is not automatic, but a means to manually keep the shutter open. "b" stands for "bulb", many years ago cameras used a squeeze bulb to control the shutter, squeeze and shutter opens, release and the shutter closes. Modern cameras often allow a cable remote release to be used, the cable screws into the plunger that you normally use to activate the shutter. this keeps your hands off the camera during exposure so helps keep the camera steady. Any exposure over 1 second will put you into the reciprocity failure zone of the film. that means you will have to allow even longer exposure time than indicated by a light meter. have you thought about using flash?

Answer 3

Bulb is a shutter-speed setting on an adjustable camera that allows for long exposures under user control. When set on "B", the shutter will stay open as long as the shutter release button remains depressed. The "T", or Time, setting, on the other hand, requires one press to open the shutter and a second press to close it. Here is an article which explains it http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulb_%28photography%29
Regarding how to do night photography here is another article you may want to read. In regards how to do proper night photography your best choice is to get yourself a good handheld light meter or learn how to bracket your exposures.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_photography

Answer 4

if it goes up to 2 seconds, you should time (with your watch, a timer, etc.) how long you want to expose for exposures greater than 2 seconds. With proper exposure, even using B, you should be able to get good pics. Trial and error is the way to go. After you attempts, you will find out what might be the right exposure. Of course, if you don't have any aids (light/exposure meter) you will bracket--take a few shots that you think are underexposed and a few you think are overexposed then check out the results.

Answer 5

your B setting on your camera stands for "bulb". what that setting does, is it holds your iris open as long as it is held. to take any exposures longer than around 1/60 of a second you should use a cable release and a tripod. a hand held exposure meter is handy also. if you don't have one, it might be an idea to get one. esp. if you do a lot of low light stuff.

Answer 6

try changing the aperture to a smaller value(i mean a larger number) .. or try increasing the aperture and use the 2sec shutter speed .. or u can use films like 400,800 ASA for low light photography