Learn: What Is a Global Shutter and What Can It Do?

What is a global shutter, and is it worth buying a camera with one? What are the differences between a global shutter and the ‘rolling shutter’ effect? We asked sports and portrait photographer Mine Kasapoglu to explain global shutters, along with their pros and cons. 

Mine Kasapoglu has covered the Olympics, contributes to Vogue Turkey and exhibits her work across Europe. Mine Kasapoglu is a Red Bull photographer and serves as a brand ambassador for Sony’s A9-series cameras. As the Sony A9 III is the first full-frame CMOS camera to feature a global shutter, let’s hear from the expert.

Mine Kasapoglu explains the differences between the rolling shutter and the global shutter and what this means for your photography:

Advantages of the Global Shutter

1. No Rolling Shutter Distortion

Global shutter exposes all pixels on the sensor simultaneously, freezing the motion in absolute accuracy without distortion. 

A rolling shutter system, which is used in both mechanical and electronic shutters, means that the image we shoot on the camera is exposed on the sensor sequentially, usually from top to bottom.

Even though rolling shutter exposure is very fast, sometimes what we shoot is simply faster. This results in image distortion. We can see this when shooting golf, where the clubs look distorted, or while shooting tennis when the ball becomes an egg shape. 

Read more about the rolling shutter effect and the difference between CCD and CMOS sensors.

2. Reduced LED Flickering

The global shutter is also a huge advantage when shots involve LED panels, which are very common backgrounds in sports. Even with high shutter speeds, the LED panels show lines that ruin many great photos. By contrast, using the global shutter means these panels look much more even, like a printed ad.

For example, this shot of Wilfried Zaha from Galatasaray during a Turkish league game was shot at 1/2000th of a second. Notice the even look of the LED panels in the back and the shape of the ball, a perfect sphere. This is because the LED panel refresh rate (in Hz, or refreshes per second) is slower than the shutter speed. So this image, shot at 1/2000 sec, if it was shot on a camera with a non-global shutter we might have seen lines in the ad panels in the background.

3. Higher-speed Flash Synchronisation

Another considerable advantage of this technology is high-speed flash sync. As a sports photographer, I have always loved shooting with a fast shutter speed, freezing the moment in thousandths of a second. 

In the past, I avoided using flash whenever possible, as I felt it was too much hassle to do complicated high-speed flash set-ups. But now, with the global shutter, I can use flash with any shutter speed available, and I am so excited to play with this. With this new development, I can shoot without breaking my flow.

For example, I was shooting Olympic silver medalist Arno Kamminga training in Gloria Sports Arena, Antalya. I decided to use the camera's head-on flash, which I would have never considered doing with a rolling shutter. The results are just stunning.

The first full-frame global shutter camera was announced in November 2023 by Sony, with the Sony A9 III. I’ll discuss the other pros and cons I’ve experienced using the global shutter on my Sony A9 III.

4. Higher Burst Rate

In burst mode, the global shutter achieves faster sequences by reading out and passing on data quicker than a rolling shutter. While other full-frame rolling shutter cameras—like the Nikon Z9 and Canon EOS R3—can match or exceed 120fps, these cameras must compromise on resolution, file type, autofocus or burst length. The Sony A9 III’s global shutter enables 120fps shooting with few restrictions on capabilities. You retain autofocus, subject tracking and complete resolution in RAW—without viewfinder blackout—for up to 1.6 seconds. That’s a sequence of 192 images.

Here is a real-life example of why it’s helpful. I was shooting Olympic Gold medalist archer Mete Gazoz, training in Antalya. Getting an arrow in a frame with 30 fps is so hard. However, with 120 fps, it was possible to get 5 shots where the arrow is seen leaving the bow. This is just amazing to capture.

Every sport has a magic moment that photographers obsess over capturing. Swimming photographers love these bubble images of athletes coming out of the water. With 120 frames per second, we can be sure to capture these magic moments every time we try.

Disadvantages of Using a Global Shutter 

1. Recent adoption carries risk

Anything that changes the game can carry risks. The global shutter is technologically very advanced, but since it is brand new in combination with a full-frame camera, future editions of the full-frame global shutter maybe even better than what we have now.

2. Worse low-light performance

One worry about the global shutter has been whether it has less dynamic range than we are used to. Does this new sensor have reduced sensitivity to light? The tests I have seen are surprisingly good, but it’s not a certainty for anyone relying on good low-light performance. The Sony A9 III has a native ISO range that is 250-25600 compared to 100-51200 in the Sony A9 II. So the dynamic range is slightly reduced because of the global shutter system.

3. More expensive

Another drawback of the global shutter is that it is still very new and technologically advanced, so it is more expensive than previous shutter systems.

Summary

Even though time will tell us the full extent of this development, this new technology, the global shutter, is super exciting. Thanks to the global shutter, I believe we will see sports photographs like we have never seen before in the coming year. I cannot wait to see all my creative friends at work and am waiting to be blown away by the results. 

Thanks to Mine Kasapoglu for sharing her experience using the global shutter. This shutter promises to be helpful, particularly for sports photographers who need to capture fast-moving subjects. However, anyone who requires excellent low-light performance or a budget-friendly option may want to look elsewhere for now.

Next up: Check out the top 3 camera setups for high-speed sports photography, how the Fujifilm X-Pro 3 compares to the X-Pro 2 when it comes to high-speed sports or read more about extreme sports photography with Hannah Bailey.