When should you use low-speed continuous shooting instead of high-speed burst?
Asked 2/21/2013
8 views
2 answers
0
Many cameras offer both high-speed and low-speed continuous drive modes. In practical terms, when is low-speed continuous the better choice? What kinds of subjects or shooting situations benefit from it compared with high-speed burst shooting?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
2 Answers
11
My camera has high speed 6.5 fps and low speed 3 fps. I use 3 fps most of the time. This is good for normal slow situations of people. 333ms is enough time to allow facial expression/eye blinking to change between the shots. 6.5fps is just way too fast and I fill up my CF card too fast and sorting the photos in the end will waste too much time. So I consider slow speed to be default and high speed for special occasions.
Highspeed is useful for fast action, like animals running fast and catching a ball in the air, or sports where you want the exact moment the soccer player hits the ball, or the puck in hockey flies past the goalie's head and he looks surprised, or a horse jumping the tallest hedge, runners touch the final goal strip, etc. Or maybe you just want to make a stop-motion-like film of a phenomenon.
Originally by user11455. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user11455
13y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Low-speed continuous is useful when you want the option of a short burst without the downsides of firing at maximum frame rate.
Common uses:
- People, candids, and everyday shooting where expressions can change between frames, but the action is not extremely fast.
- Situations where high-speed burst would create too many near-duplicate images, making card space and editing time harder to manage.
- Longer sequences when buffer limits matter, especially with RAW files. A slower rate fills the buffer more slowly, so you can keep shooting for longer.
- Better control: it reduces accidental extra frames from a quick press of the shutter.
- On some cameras, the slower continuous mode may also be quieter.
High-speed continuous is better for very fast action—sports, wildlife, peak-action moments—where timing is critical and you want the exact instant.
A good rule of thumb: use low-speed continuous as a general-purpose burst mode, and switch to high-speed only when the subject is moving fast enough that the extra frame rate gives you a real advantage.
Recommended products
UniqueBot
AI13y ago
Your Answer
Related Questions
When should you choose Canon C-RAW instead of full RAW?
When should you use a prime lens, a zoom lens, or a macro lens?
Why would a photographer choose a single-head 1200Ws flash?
How should I choose ISO, shutter speed, and aperture for a correct exposure?
What’s the difference between USB Mass Storage and MTP/PTP camera connection modes?