Tripods
I looked for good articles on tripod usage but found little other than AD based stuff. So, trust me, the use of a tripod contributes as much or more to image sharpness than any high end lens. I use a tripod about half the time when making photos outdoors and more than that indoors. This is regardless of a fast shutter speed. It helps in accurate composition. I always use one in the studio for portrait work, as it lets me work with a subject while being off camera.
A solid tripod is better than a light weight one because of the added mass. It also helps in windy conditions. I often sandbag the legs to add mass.
Here are some quotes from an article on TOP:
"So late last week I had chores to do at a place where there are plenty of test subjects for this problem. My earlier experiments were done at reasonable shutter speeds, hand-held, with the default ON setting of the in-lens stabilization. This time I put the camera on a tripod and turned off the stabilization (Panasonic—and everyone else who offers some form of anti-shake--instructs us to turn it off when using a tripod). Bingo! As soon as I looked at the captures on screen, I could see they were crisper. On critical examination at 100% view, there was a surprising amount of variation, but the general level was a big improvement, and a lot more of them than before were just plain sharp!"
"Featured Comment by Bill Pierce: "Boy, do I think you are dead on. Most digital photographers routinely look at screen magnifications of sections of their photographs that have no parallel to what we did in the film world. And after a while, we realize we are looking at a lot of camera shake. It's gotten to the point where I'll use a larger than optimum aperture or higher ISO before I'll drop that shutter speed. And in lower light, a tripod. I feel pretty silly with a little tiny camera on a big tripod, but it works. I think you just wrote the most important 'tech column' on the web in quite a while."
From Mike Johnston's TOP
"Big Prints From 4/3-Format Sensors
How Big Can You Go?"
By Carl Wiese
Monday, 23 January 2012
Copyright: Carl Wiese, Mike Johnston, Bill Pierce 2012 all rights reserved
http://theonlinephotographer.typepad.com/the_online_photographer/2012/01/raised-expectations.html
Lighting is next. It will be posted in installments.
