Individually addressing LEDs in a multiplexed matrix

Question

I have created my first LED project with a hand made 4X4 LED matrix. The cathodes are joined horizontally to make the rows and the anodes are joined vertically to make the columns the columns. It is controlled by a shift register with the cathodes (rows) connected to pins 0-3 and the anodes (columns) connected to pins 4-7 of the register controlled from an Arduino Nano.

It all works but I have hit upon a limitation that I have not seen in the various videos and tutorials about making LED matrices so I suspect I am missing something.

This code will light up the bottom left LED which I will call position (0,0).

digitalWrite(latchPin, LOW);
shiftOut(dataPin, clockPin, MSBFIRST, B00011110 );
digitalWrite(latchPin, HIGH);

This code will light up the LED at position (1,1), so one up and one to the right.

digitalWrite(latchPin, LOW);
shiftOut(dataPin, clockPin, MSBFIRST, B00101101 );
digitalWrite(latchPin, HIGH);

If I then combine the two as below:

digitalWrite(latchPin, LOW);
shiftOut(dataPin, clockPin, MSBFIRST, B00111100 );
digitalWrite(latchPin, HIGH);

it of course lights up 4 LEDs: (0,0),(0,1),(1,0) and (1,1).

This feels like a limitation of wiring the LEDs in this way because once you power a row in a given column, you cannot unpower it in subsequent columns or vice versa. i.e. lighting (X,Y) and (A,B) means that you cannot have (X,B) and (A,Y) unlit.

However, in the videos I have seen that accompany tutorials on how to make similarly constructed matrices, I can see them lighting up in ways I can't replicate.

How can I light up an LED at positions (0,0) and (1,1) without also lighting up (0,1) and (1,0)?

Is this possible with this configuration?

Answer 1

Thanks to KIIV in the comments I figured it out. Apparently the trick is to rapidly switch between columns or rows without ever having two on at the same time.

With the below code running in the main loop it appears that (0,0) and (1,1) are lit at the same time even though they are actually switching rapidly.

void loop() 
{  
  digitalWrite(latchPin, LOW);  
  shiftOut(dataPin, clockPin, MSBFIRST, B00011110 );
  digitalWrite(latchPin, HIGH);
  digitalWrite(latchPin, LOW);  
  shiftOut(dataPin, clockPin, MSBFIRST, B00101101 );
  digitalWrite(latchPin, HIGH);
}