Hand-held DSLR

[photodd]

I seem to be able to hand-hold my 20D (and have noticed all the way back to a D30) beyond the majic 1/focal length. Do you think it's just due to less mirror slap with the smaller than full-image sensor, or do people with 1Ds's notice the same hand-holding ability vs. film 35mm cameras?

[bolantej]

i tend to get sharper images when I handhold and use continuous shooting.

[Mark_Cohran]

I think it all boils down to technique. With lots of practice you can hand-hold and get good results beyond the limits suggested by the thumbrule. But, some people have steadier hands than others and some people simply can't achieve those results even with practice.

[ericgtr]

I think a lot depends on your settings and lense(s) you use too. I drink a lot of coffee and tend to be jittery by nature so I find myself leaning or finding stabalization of some sort as well as holding my breath whenever I can. Mark, I like your idea too I may give that a try next time I am feeling extra shaky on a still shot. :)

[RalphNewman]

i tend to get sharper images when I handhold and use continuous shooting.
Interesting to read your comment. I have been doing that as well and find the second shot always sharper than the first. Good tip, just means a little more deleting.

[kram]

Remember "Unbreakable"? I am your 'other' side :) Struggling to get decent handheld shots even at less than the magic rule.

Seriously, it goes to technique and practise and just make sure you know what your limit is. I have seen some seriously sharp 1/20 images posted here....so you have some competition...

[elTwitcho]

I can generally speaking go pretty low and be fine, partly I think attributed to learning to take long shutter shots without a tripod and intentionally honing my ability to keep the camera steady and press the shutter smoothly. My shots at 1/60 at 105mm are never blurred and I had a 28mm shot come out perfectly crisp at 1/10 the other day. It's all in technique which includes not shaking the camera during the pressing of the shutter and taking the exposure between breaths as well as learning to slow your heartbeat.

Long story short, practice makes perfect.

[arunchs]

I think most people manage to go below 1/focal length mark. My previous film camera(Canon Rebel) had a nice grip and I could manage 1/30 in a 70-300 lens. But I have to stick to 1/focal length in my 350D which is too small for my hands. But an IS lens can change all the rules.

As an extreme case, I shot an image with my 100-400L at a ridiculously slow 1/6 sec with IS on and still did not have any shake!! I have deleted that full size image but here is a resized full frame in indoor light at f/5.6 and 1/6sec. But I had plenty of time to get my shot here. I could not do this all the time and is not practical when shooting outdoors.

[TimSewell]

If you're shooting for fun then you can sometimes get away with it but if you have to get the shot - take a tripod every time.

[photodd]

i tend to get sharper images when I handhold and use continuous shooting.
Interesting to read your comment. I have been doing that as well and find the second shot always sharper than the first. Good tip, just means a little more deleting.
I've never noticed this since I only use continuous shooting for sports. I'll have to try a test. Thanks.

[elTwitcho]

I think if you're getting "second image sharper" by using continuous shooting the problem lies in your technique in that you're jarring the camera when you press the shutter down. Learning to gently press the shutter without making the camera shake is one of the most important things you can do in improving your handheld photography, it makes much more sense than jarring the camera, wasting a shot and letting the camera stabilize for a second shot which may not still be there.

Don't believe me? Look through the viewfinder and press the shutter button with the camera off and watch how much the center focus point bounces around relative to the background.

[Jackal]

You can always put the camera on timer, press the shutter button, and hold it steady for 10 seconds :)!

I have been able to go below the rule by a good amount. I have super steady hands. I build aircraft models what do you expect? =)

If I really don't want to take the risk because it's an important shot I'll use a tripod.

[blackviolet]

the leopard and lion shots i've posted here are handheld bigma on 1dmk2 - 400mm plus at around 1/250th or so. i think it's just technique and (for me anyway) luck.