Shutter Speed

Your camera relies on the combination of aperture and shutter speed to determine proper exposure. If you have a wide range of shutter speeds, you have more latitude in deciding what aperture to use and what kind of pictures you can take. If you have a limited range of shutter speeds, or worse only three or four shutter speeds, you might find that most of your shots are underexposed, or the camera applies software techniques to "boost" the available light by manipulating the image captured, which usually results in loss of image quality. So, even though you might buy a high resolution digital camera, your limited shutter speed range may effectively diminish the image quality you obtain in capturing a properly exposed picture (e.g. the camera might have to use a higher ISO setting and introduce noise in your picture). Bottom line: ensure that your digital camera provides a full range of shutter speeds ranging all the way from fast (e.g. 1/1,000 sec.) to slow (1 sec. or more).