BillK said:
I'm very shaky when it comes to taking photos so I think a tripod could help make my photos a lot crisper, especially when I'm looking to obtain a deep depth of field and must leave the shutter open longer.
Tripods are good when you have them, but it is worth learning to be as steady as possible when hand holding.
Rule of thumb: you can hand-hold a camera at 1/FL or faster where FL is the 35mm equivalent focal length.
* prop the camara against a fixed object (eg a rock or tree), if possible
* hold camera against your face (use the viewfinder!), left hand under the lens and body (palm upward, thumb pointing toward view). Right hand on the grip and button. This supports the weight on the left hand and gives you a fairly stable platform.
* hold your body steady
* hold your breath
* shoot between heartbeats if you can
* prop your body against something, better yet prop your elbows against something
* squeeze the button slowly
* continue to hold the camera steady after the shot
* increase the ISO (trade-off between speed and noise)
* use IS lenses (heavy and expensive
)
* practice
I have hand held times up to 1/4 or 1/8 sec with a 28mm lens. (This was using my pre-IS film SLR.)
You can also prop the camera against a hiking pole as an improvised monopod. Even better, you can hold the handles of two poles together in one hand and prop the camera against them (a bipod...).
In my experience, the modern P&S cameras are too small to be able to hold very steady. (Taking a picture with the camera held a distance from one's body is particularly unsteady.) The hiking pole or fixed object props can be a big help here.
Doug
Who doesn't have a light-weight tripod and refuses to carry his heavy tripods when hiking.
