Shutter Speed for Handheld Shooting

[hacked - darinwc]

Not if you smack him with a shoe. The pic becomes more of an abstract though

LOL thanks, I needed that this morning!

 

[DividedSky]

at 1:1, 105mm f/2.8, i usually get away with 1/60th of a second. dont let the naysayers get you down. keep you eye on the moving focus and be aware of the direction of your shaking before you press the shutter

 

[Jeff Kubach]

Keep it simple get a tripode
Jeff

 

[ColdEye]

Well here are some pictures from the macro shots, no tripod or flash, IIRC these are at 1/500. Seems pretty alright to me, except that subject motion is another factor I have to consider and the compensation when going to 1:1. Is there a Macro lens that stays pretty much in one aperture, say f2.8, even when it goes to 1:1?

 

[John Koehrer]

Most(all?) macro lenses are fixed maximum aperture.
What changes at 1:1 is the extension between the optics and the film. You lose two stops and there's nothing that can be done. It's a law of physics, AKA science stuff. Also, if you break the law, you may get a ticket.;P

So, Tripod for stability or light(to use a higher shutter speed.) to stop subject movement.
This one will work too. build a wind break to put around the subject. A diffuse cloth and four pieces of dowel to stick in the ground.
For one side those corrugated plastic sign that are all over the roadside..cheap, but it's illegal to just take them.

 

[ColdEye]

Ha! How I wish the law of physics can be broken. ) The wind break is a nice idea, I had a hard time picturing a spider because it kept swaying in the wind.

 

[John Koehrer]

Those crappy signs on the roadside offer the universal stick-it-in-the-ground holder upper thing too.

 

[PaulC]

It seems odd that nobody (as far as I can tell) has asked what your preferred subject is or where you want to shoot. It makes a tremendous difference.

(Shot on a Crown Graphic, 150mm lens, 6x9 back, tripod mounted in studio, with flash, maybe around half-size on the film, heavily cropped scan).

 

[E. von Hoegh]

Is it doable for somebody with shaky hands (me) to shoot macro handheld? I know I should get a tripod, but I don't have one yet. I was trying to shoot some stuff using a 55mm and when it goes to 1:1, the shaking is noticeable in the viewfinder. I used a shutter speed of 1/500, will that do? What might be the lowest shutter speed to use without necessary blur?

I have uncommonly steady hands, and I cannot handhold a camera at 1;1 and get acceptable results at any shutter speed, including 1/2000 second.

 

[mrred]

I have uncommonly steady hands, and I cannot handhold a camera at 1;1 and get acceptable results at any shutter speed, including 1/2000 second.

I bought my F100 to take advantage of my FX VR lens. I am definitely getting older and not steadier.

But.... there is no substitute for a tripod.

 

[E. von Hoegh]

I've used a flash with a duration down to 1/32000 sec handheld at close distances, it does work pretty well.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Is it doable for somebody with shaky hands (me) to shoot macro handheld? I know I should get a tripod, but I don't have one yet. I was trying to shoot some stuff using a 55mm and when it goes to 1:1, the shaking is noticeable in the viewfinder. I used a shutter speed of 1/500, will that do? What might be the lowest shutter speed to use without necessary blur?

the new photoshop'camera-shake filter may work for you!

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Is it doable for somebody with shaky hands (me) to shoot macro handheld? I know I should get a tripod, but I don't have one yet. I was trying to shoot some stuff using a 55mm and when it goes to 1:1, the shaking is noticeable in the viewfinder. I used a shutter speed of 1/500, will that do? What might be the lowest shutter speed to use without necessary blur?

there is no reason not to have a tripod or at leat a monopod

 

[camtec]

I use a ring flash and have zero problems with sharpness and it allows me to use a small F stop to maximize depth of field.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Is it doable for somebody with shaky hands (me) to shoot macro handheld? I know I should get a tripod, but I don't have one yet. I was trying to shoot some stuff using a 55mm and when it goes to 1:1, the shaking is noticeable in the viewfinder. I used a shutter speed of 1/500, will that do? What might be the lowest shutter speed to use without necessary blur?

that ,of course depends on the individual. the 1/f rule is a good start but often inadequate. I tested it for me and came up with1/f*2. here is a simple way to test:
get one of these mini mag flashlights.take the front lens off and expose the tiny bare bulb.Then in a darkened room take pictures of it with your lens at a reasonable distance with several sutter speeds.investigate the negatives or the files to see at what shutter speed the bare bulb is not a blurry trail anymore. I suspect you'll surprised how much shaky hands influence sharpness. I very much advocate a tripod or at least a monopod, which surprised mehow much it helps to stabilize a camera.they cost little and help a lot.it can easilyadd a stop or two.and let's not forget that when using a flash, the flash duration becomes the exposure time!can't beat that with a stick.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

also,for max image sharpness, use the sweet spot aperture of your lens

(that's typicallyaround f/8-11)

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Flexible tripods suck.

and there are plenty of those.it's worth it to spend tthe money on a good one.they last a long time

 

[Sirius Glass]

At 1:1 a tripod is a requirement not a choice.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Keep it simple, go for a tripod!

Jeff

a combination of flash and monopod is simple and effective.

 

[Dan Fromm]

At 1:1 a tripod is a requirement not a choice.

Steve, I have thousands of good (plane of best focus where I wanted it, well-exposed, sharp) Kodachromes shot handheld at 1:1. 105/2.8 MicroNikkor AIS on an FM2n with two small flashes mounted on a Spiratone Macrodapter. 55/2.8 MicroNikkor AIS and 55/3.5 MicroNikkor on an FM2n, Nikkormat ELW, and Nikkormat FTN with two small flashes mounted on a Jones of Hollywood macro bracket and several I made myself.

For small moving subjects, including flowers when there's any wind at all, a tripod just gets in the way. So does a monopod.

Been there, done that, am pleased with the results. Understand, however, that when I started out I was afraid to use flash.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Dan, I am glad it works for you. I got better and consistent photographs at 1:1 with a tripod. I get good results with a tripod for time exposures, shifts and tilts, however normally I prefer not to use a tripod.

 

[Dan Fromm]

Dan, I am glad it works for you. I got better and consistent photographs at 1:1 with a tripod. I get good results with a tripod for time exposures, shifts and tilts, however normally I prefer not to use a tripod.

I couldn't have got the shots handheld without flash. Shooting closeup without flash requires a tripod.

I have great difficulty doing as well with my Graphics and Cambo. These have to be shot from tripod and are much slower working than a Nikon. They're absolutely impossible with small unconstrained fish in aquaria and with live insects that won't hold a pose for very long, are very difficult with flowers and such. What usually ruins my flower shots is wind, which can move the plane of best focus between the time I focus and compose and the time I get the shot off. Yes, I still use flash.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

I couldn't have got the shots handheld without flash. Shooting closeup without flash requires a tripod.

I have great difficulty doing as well with my Graphics and Cambo. These have to be shot from tripod and are much slower working than a Nikon. They're absolutely impossible with small unconstrained fish in aquaria and with live insects that won't hold a pose for very long, are very difficult with flowers and such. What usually ruins my flower shots is wind, which can move the plane of best focus between the time I focus and compose and the time I get the shot off. Yes, I still use flash.

I agree,using a flash is the easiestway to get plentyof lightand a fast shutter speedbut getting the exposure right can be tricky;best to use a flashmeterand avoid the inverse square law,which fails when you get really close to the light source

 

[Dan Fromm]

I agree,using a flash is the easiestway to get plentyof lightand a fast shutter speedbut getting the exposure right can be tricky;best to use a flashmeterand avoid the inverse square law,which fails when you get really close to the light source

Ralph, you're a masochist. You think harder than is necessary.

The easy way is to use a flash bracket that gives reproducible camera-flash-subject geometry and shoot a series of calibration shot. One shot at each full stop from the lens' largest to smallest aperture at 1:1, 1:2, 1:4, 1:6. Use reversal film. Then you'll know which aperture to use given magnification and film speed. Linear interpolation for magnifications between the ones used for calibration works well. If the best stop is too small to suit you, put ND gels on the flash(es) and adjust the aperture accordingly. This approach requires no thinking or calculations in the field. Set the magnification desired, look up the aperture to use in the calibration table, start stalking your subject. Flashmeter, calculations, and even knowing the flash(es)' GN(s) are all unnecessary. Suck and try will do the job.

The key to getting this to work is using a rigid bracket. I use two basic designs: Spiratone Macrodapter/Jones of Hollywood macro bracket, essentially a lens hood with a pair of flash shoes; rigid bracket with a pair of shoes that attaches securely to the camera. Both work but if you get the geometry right with the flash-on-lens type you'll get good exposure at the same nominal aperture (as set, not effective) over an interesting range of magnifications. The rig I use with my press and view cameras gives good exposure from 1:4 to 2:1 and the same f/stop set. This by test, first with a flashmeter (less expensive than testing with film if you have one) and then with film (ISO 100 E6).

With my press and view cameras and a single hand-held flash, I use a tape measure and mental arithmetic to find extension, use GN arithmetic with adjustment for magnification to find the right power setting for a Vivitar 283 with VP-1 held ~ 1 foot from the subject. Works very well when a single flash will do.

 

[PaulWA]

I use a ring flash (an old vivitar one, macroflash 5000 I think?) and even at 1/60th sync, I don't struggle hand held.

The flash duration is very short, I don't know the actual speed. So I use a tamron adaptall 90mm 2.5, the matching optical extender to get a 180mm 1:1 lens f5.6. This offers *just* enough light for acceptable focusing, although that is by far the hardest part. A true 1:1 lens that lets in more light would be a huge advantage here.

Then I stop down to whatever I need, usually an effect f 22 or smaller for depth of field and shoot. Effectively the only light is the flash duration so my effective shutter speed is in the thousandths of a second.

Takes practice though, and I must admit, I only got the feel for it when I transferred said lens to a nikon d200 and could get results immediately, educating me on the sort of film speeds that work at various distances. Cheater, I am.