On Wed, May 30, 2012 at 8:31 PM, Larry Colen <[email protected]> wrote: > > Thanks everyone. > > Interestingly the responses seem to come in various categories of things > that I already know intellectually. > > 1) Noise is better than blur. It's better to push the ISO and get the > shutter speed and aperture you need.
TANSTAAFL. If you set a high ISO, you also lose resolution. Which is just another source of blur. Not so bad with the K-5, I know. > 2) Stabilize the camera. > > Rather than having a default, I expect that the correct solution is to > know when which platform is the best. What guidelines do you use? If I'm shooting macros, say of flowers, I use a tripod, weight the tripod, and use mirror lockup to get the utmost stability. All the rest of the time I just hand-hold. :-) I tried using a tripod or monopod in studio shooting. I found it's just too much of a drag on creativity for me. I climb ladders and shoot down; I crawl on my stomach and shoot up; basically I move around too much. If I was doing a Karsh-style portrait, then I would use a tripod. But I'd also probably be using a medium format camera too. > What about using strobes? Either studio or speedlight? Are they fast > enough that a tripod doesn't give much/any advantage? Kinda. If you use a single strobe, at least two stops below its max output (eg 1/4 power or lower), it will yield ultra quick flashes like 1/4000th or 1/2000th. Then you'll *really* stop motion. But if you are using multiple lights, especially with radio triggers, or running them near full output, you'll get a longer ill-defined smear of light and that quick strobe-light effect is lost. > > - keep your glass clean > > How to clean it? Lens pen? Never tried one. So far, I've just used a micro fiber cloth. > > - avoid using filters (like UV); *especially* cheap ones > > I have been avoiding them, though there now seems to be a slight scratch > at the edge of the front element of my 16-50. I forgot to mention: avoid using scratched glass. ;-) > > - set aperture in sweet range for lens (eg not wide open) > > Two stops? Set program for MTF priority and see what it says? Research > it for each lens and note it's sweet spot? The latter. Rule of thumb seems to be two stops from either end of the total range should be okay. > > - use mirror lockup when you can > > - use timed shutter or remote release when you can > > - use input and output sharpening passes in post-processing > > I'm not familiar with these details. Mirror lockup avoids vibrating the camera body due to mirror slap when it actuates. After you have composed and focussed, activate mirror lockup and it will lift into exposure position. Wait a moment for the vibrations to cease, then actuate the shutter, preferably with a remote so your finger doesn't vibrate the camera. The Pentax $30 IR remote is perfect for this. Timed shutter release is an alternate way of doing the above, especially useful when you've lost or forgotten the $30 remote. :-) On sharpening. If you are shooting RAW and not doing sharpening you are leaving sharpness on the table. The ACR / Lr defaults for sharpening are very weak and not useful for most shots. Three points at which you generally apply some sharpening: "input/capture": in ACR or Lr Develop, before you start doing other work on the image. "creative": selective sharpening applied to specific objects, areas, layers, etc. to enhance the contrast per your creative intent. Usually in Ps or using the Adjustment brush in Lr. Try just sharpening eyes in portraits -- big difference usually. "output": this is sharpening that you apply to get the best out of the displayed image. Sharpening for printing is much different from sharpening for screen display, for example. Lightroom knows how best to do this, so I just leave it up to Lr. You'll find these controls in the Print module and the Export menus. There are some great little Adobe videos & articles by Jeff Schewe on this stuff. http://www.peachpit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=1721157 Also a good book if you really want the details: http://www.amazon.com/Sharpening-Photoshop-Camera-Lightroom-Edition/dp/0321637550 -- -bmw -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
