----- Original Message ----- From: "Paul Delcour" Subject: Tripod use
> Hi all, > > there is an unwritten rule saying the focallength in mm, ie 200, makes 1/200 > as the minimum shutterspeed to be used handheld. But a 500mm at 1/500 may > not be OK. Weight is a factor, as is position. If your hands are steady you > can go to a lower speed. I used to use 1/8 with 28 or 24mm and got a fine > result. I used the 85 with 1/60 recently and if the people on stage weren't > moving too much the result was fine. Try this: Put your best lens on your camera. Put a short roll of fine grained film (it doesn't matter what type) into your camera. Take pictures of the same scenen hand held, at 1/1000, 1/500, 1/250, 1/125, 1/60, and 1/30, adjusting the aperture to ensure correct exposure. Repeat the test, except this time, put the camera on a rock solid tripod, and use mirror lock up if possible. Process the film and examine the results under a microscope. When I did this, I was surprised to find that a tripod improved the resolution of pictures taken with a 50mm lens at 1/1000 of a second. William Robb
