Shutter (photography)

Okay, kiddo! Imagine you have a special box with a tiny hole in it (that's a camera). When you take a picture, you want the light to come in through the hole and make an image on the back of the box (on the film or digital sensor). But you don't want the light to come in for too long or it will make the picture too bright or blurry. That's where the shutter comes in!

The shutter is like a little door that opens and closes really quickly. When you press the button to take a picture, the shutter opens up for just a fraction of a second to let the light in. Then it closes again so the light stops coming in.

This happens really fast, so fast you can't even see the shutter move! And depending on how long the shutter stays open, more or less light will come in, making the picture brighter or darker.

So remember, kiddo, the shutter is like a little door that helps control how much light comes into the camera in a short amount of time to make sure your picture looks good!