tytywithasword:
i set up my 74HC595 shift register on a bread board just like this...
That's the Fritzing picture from the shiftout() page on this site.
It has a long-standing error that nobody seems to be able to correct.
The 1uF capacitor on the latch line is WRONG. It should be removed.
That cap (or a 100n cap) should go from the chip's VCC pin to ground, not from the latch pin to ground.
Leo..