When should you flash on the first or second curtain?

Saturday 7 January 2023, 16:32 by Liesbeth van Asselt | 8,031 views | 9 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

A question that often comes up is when to use first- or second-curtain flash. For some photos it makes no difference, but longer shutter speeds create differences that make the right choice important.

What is first- or second-curtain flash?

If you set the camera to first-curtain flash, the flash fires immediately after you press the shutter button. So at the start of the exposure.

If you set the camera to second-curtain flash, the flash fires when you release the shutter button. So at the end of the exposure.

Very often, you use second-curtain flash. A classic example is that this prevents the taillights from appearing through and in front of a car or cyclist. That looks very strange...

Second-curtain flash on the left, first-curtain flash on the right
If you use first-curtain flash, the cyclist is lit by the flash at the start of the exposure. The cyclist then continues riding. This means that the light trail from the taillight appears through and in front of the cyclist.

When do you use first-curtain flash?

But sometimes you do need to change the setting to first-curtain flash. This is, for example, the case with ICM photography (Intentional Camera Movement, in other words deliberately moving your camera while taking your photo).

Because at the start of the exposure, you have the composition exactly as you want it, before you start moving the camera.

You cannot predict exactly what your composition will look like after moving your camera for 3 seconds.

By using first-curtain flash in these situations, you can be sure that the model's face is in the right place in the photo.

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About the author

Liesbeth fotografeert met haar bedrijf stapfoto.nl voor websites van bedrijven. Daarnaast verzorgt ze al sinds 2004 (vooral creatieve) workshops zoals lightpainting, flitsen in de natuur, fine art, frozen flowers, paintsplash, infrarood, icm en multi exposure. Daarnaast is er een Stapfoto vakgroep voor de meer gevorderde fotografen.

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9 comments

B. wrote on Tuesday 10 January 2023 at 12:36 | reply
This is a clear explanation with photos about the "curtains". Thank you for this article
Translated from Dutch.

Liesbeth van Asselt wrote on Tuesday 10 January 2023 at 14:18 | reply
Thank you! My husband liked it a little less that he still had to cycle back and forth late in the evening .
Translated from Dutch.

martin verbruggen wrote on Tuesday 10 January 2023 at 17:04 | reply
Nice story. and if I understood it correctly, there are only few moments when you want to use first-curtain sync. Why isn't the flash then set to second-curtain sync by default?
Translated from Dutch.

Liesbeth van Asselt wrote on Tuesday 10 January 2023 at 17:15 | reply
Hi Martin, I really have no idea. Straight from the factory, they are all set to the first curtain.
Translated from Dutch.

Chantal wrote on Tuesday 10 January 2023 at 18:30 | reply
Thank you Liesbeth, with this article my memory has been refreshed again, and so clearly at that with the examples included,
Translated from Dutch.

Liesbeth van Asselt wrote on Thursday 12 January 2023 at 11:59 | reply
Good to hear, Chantal!
Translated from Dutch.

Donald Willemsen wrote on Friday 3 February 2023 at 22:27 | reply
Explained very clearly and understandably. Even a child could do it. Now to remember it; that will be a bit more difficult.
Translated from Dutch.

Liesbeth van Asselt wrote on Saturday 4 February 2023 at 18:50 | reply
Thank you Donald! It's easiest to simply leave it on the 2nd curtain, that's what you use most. And the advantage of the digital age is that you immediately see when something goes wrong. Then you can always switch it to the first curtain .
Translated from Dutch.

Donald Willemsen wrote on Saturday 4 February 2023 at 20:12 | reply
@Liesbeth, thanks for your response and your advice. I will do some tests to see what the effect is with a tripod and handheld with flashes on the first AND second curtain, especially in the studio setting.
Translated from Dutch.

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