Electronic or mechanical shutter?
Drop a photo straight from the camera
An original JPEG or RAW file, not edited
Works with Fujifilm Nikon Z Canon R Panasonic Pentax
or paste an image or link (Ctrl+V) Paste a link
How it works
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1
Drop your file in the box above, or tap to choose one.
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2
We read the information saved inside it. This takes a few seconds.
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The answer appears right away, with a link you can share and the full details if you want them.
Three ways to take a picture
A mechanical shutter uses two physical curtains that open and close in front of the sensor. An electronic shutter does the same job by switching the sensor on and reading it out, line by line, without moving anything. The electronic front curtain mixes the two: it starts electronically and ends with the rear curtain.
The difference shows in the photo. Electronic shots are silent and don't wear the shutter, but fast movement can bend and some LED lights can leave bands. Many mirrorless cameras record which shutter they used for every shot.
- Mechanical
- Electronic front curtain
- Electronic (silent)
- Shutter speed
Questions and answers
How can I tell if a photo was taken with the electronic shutter?
Drop the original photo into the box above. Fujifilm, Nikon Z, Canon R, Panasonic and Pentax cameras record the shutter used for each shot, and we show it in plain words.
Does the electronic shutter add to the shutter count?
It doesn't wear the mechanical shutter. Some cameras, such as Nikon's Z models, still include electronic shots in their shutter count, while others count only mechanical ones.
Why are there bands across my photo?
Electronic shutters read the sensor line by line. Under flickering LED or fluorescent light, each line catches a different moment of the flicker, which shows as bands. The mechanical shutter usually avoids it.
What is an electronic front curtain?
A mode where the exposure starts electronically and the mechanical rear curtain ends it. It removes the shake caused by the first curtain while keeping the mechanical shutter's look.
Why can't it tell for my Sony camera?
Sony's interchangeable-lens cameras record whether the electronic front curtain was switched on, but not which shutter took each photo, so we can't give a firm answer.
What happens to my file?
Your file is sent over an encrypted connection, read on our servers and deleted automatically after about 24 hours. The answer is kept on a page with its own link, so you can share it. Tool result pages are never listed in search engines.