Folders more prone to camera shake?

[graywolf]

Not entirely. Compare the same lens (Zeiss 38/4,5 Biogon) on an Alpa and a Hasseblad SWC. The Alpa, with more ergonomic grips and a MUCH smoother release, is a lot easier to hold steady. Yes, I've tried both. So has Zeiss.

Cheers,

R.

I think you are mis-reading my comment. Of course once your techique is near perfect, that everything else becomes 100% of the problem. But I will stick to technique being 80% if you do not have it down pat.

Unfortunately, most of us do not do even as well with camera holding technique as we know how, and some do not know how to start with. Heck a lot of people get camera shake when using a tripod.

True some cameras have a shutter release that is very hard to get at, a short cable release will usually fix that.

Some of us older folks have physical problems that do not let us hold a camera real steady, but that is not a fault of the camera.

My experience is that I can shoot a 35mm at 1/50, roll film at 1/25, and a 4x5* down to about 1/10 of a second if I do my part right. That is sharp for prints up to 16x20.


* Maybe I should say that I use the solenoid fired from the button on the battery case with my Crown Graphic, I can not imagine getting a sharp shot with that slider on the side of the camera near the bottom. Part of technique is finding a way around a particular camera's limitations.

 

[Sejanus.Aelianus]

Forty five years ago, a friend suggested the following experiment: get a very small mirror and stick it in the middle of an old filter; screw the filter into your lens; darken the room and point a small torch towards the camera; release the shutter while holding the camera in your normal grip; observe the reflection from the lens mounted mirror in a second mirror.

The results were intriguing but I'm going to let those, who wish to carry out the experiment for themselves, tell us what they find without any prejudice engendered by me.

😀

 

[Roger Hicks]

I think you are mis-reading my comment. Of course once your techique is near perfect, that everything else becomes 100% of the problem. But I will stick to technique being 80% if you do not have it down pat. . . .

We're not disagreeing very much. All I'm saying is that some cameras are a lot easier to hold steady than others, which is hardly controversial. Some folders do have really bad ergonomics and (especially with the passage of a few decades) stiff, jerky shutter releases.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Forty five years ago, a friend suggested the following experiment: get a very small mirror and stick it in the middle of an old filter; screw the filter into your lens; darken the room and point a small torch towards the camera; release the shutter while holding the camera in your normal grip; observe the reflection from the lens mounted mirror in a second mirror.

The results were intriguing but I'm going to let those, who wish to carry out the experiment for themselves, tell us what they find without any prejudice engendered by me.

😀

You can do a similar trick with a laser gunsight or even laser pointer fixed to the camera.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Dwig]

... What I've noticed is, that compared to my TLR and - surprisingly - even to my medium format SLRs (Pentax 67, Mamiya) my folders seem much more prone to camera-shake. ...

One difference is the direction the releave and your finger move when releasing the shutter. With most TLRs you are pressing front to back. This will impart less angluar movement and a vertical release. Of course, the lighter weight of a typical folder works against you.

 

[curmudgeon]

I found that if I shorten the strap on the GF670 and loop it over my left shoulder I can pull against it and "lock" the camera against my forehead. Based on the shake visible in the viewfinder, it will add at least a stop to my ability to shoot at low speeds. This trick works because both strap lugs are on the left end of the camera. I finished the first roll in the GF670 but I've been too busy preparing for Sandy to think about developing it.

 

[KenR]

I feel that I'm shaking with my Zeiss Ercona, but it's probably because I'm not used to the left sided shutter release. Thus far, all shots are sharp when printed or looked at with a loop.

 

[xxloverxx]

I get shake using folders because the shutter release is at the front and the film side of the camera isn't heavy enough to counter the downward action. But I'm reluctant to use a cable release because you can't fold it with a cable and leaving it open makes it seem so…vulnerable.

Sigh.

 

[Ernst Dinkla]

I found that if I shorten the strap on the GF670 and loop it over my left shoulder I can pull against it and "lock" the camera against my forehead. Based on the shake visible in the viewfinder, it will add at least a stop to my ability to shoot at low speeds. This trick works because both strap lugs are on the left end of the camera. I finished the first roll in the GF670 but I've been too busy preparing for Sandy to think about developing it.

Next to maintenance on shutter mechanisms I use a chainpod made of a freightbelt:
http://www.pigment-print.com/Fotografica/Iskra/target0.html

Ernst