Post Your best Alpha Anti-Shake Times

[cgl88]

Since SSS (Anti-Shake) can work so well if you have steady hands, I thought I'd compare shutter times!

What is your best exposure with absolutely no evidence of camera shake?


(1) Mine is 1/50s, f/4, ISO100 @ 210mm (300mm equiv)
Lighting: Late afternoon.



(2) Night @ 1/15, f/4, ISO200 @ 20mm (30mm equiv).

[DonSchap]

It's pretty amazing the control you can get with Anti-shake, isn't it?

Half the fun of having it is being able the extend the 250mm maximum f/6.3-aperture of the (2007) TAMRON AF18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 XR Di-II LD (Aspherical) IF lens to and equivalent f/4 or so.

I wasn't trying for slowness out of this shot, but more an exposure balance and the anti-shake to a 250mm teleshot.

250mm - f/6.3 - 1/400 sec. - ISO-250 - 0EC - Handheld - SSS="on"

You can really get a lot more out of the lens with Super SteadyShot. It was the number one item I regretted not having on my Canon EOS 20D when using the earlier released (2005) TAMRON AF18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 XR Di-II LD (Aspherical) IF lens. I wound up having to buy the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM to compensate (I know, that's a major leap, but if you're into your Photography for a penny ... let's face it ... you're in for a pound).

[DonSchap]

I went one step further, to compare 1/15 sec (SSS) to a 1/10 sec (SSS) shots.

I figure this gives you an idea of how dynamically things can shift with adequate anti-shake ... and not.

SONY A100 W/ Minolta AF 50mm f/1.7
@50mm - f/1.7 - variable speed* - ISO-400 - SSS="on" - ambient fluorescent light (2x 60w) - Manual Mode - Handheld

*Same settings, except for shutter speed - 1/15 sec vs 1/10 sec.

[cgl88]

Don, my night shot at 1/10s, while usable for a 4x6 print, had about the same amount of shake as your shot.

I have put on a flash card that 1/15s is the magic shutter speed for still-life. For people or moving subjects (where shake depends on me, not the subject)...well, that's another shutter speed to figure out!

[DonSchap]

Just for the sake of clarity, "moving-objects" have nothing to do with anti-shake.

If your subject is simply walking, 1/60th is your starting point. 1/125th-second is much better and of course, 1/250th is preferred. If it is a fast-action sports shot, 1/500th is the default choice. A vehicle? 1/800+ second and bright sun.

Forget 1/15th of a second. You'll just have a blur.

An excellent test of this is to mount your camera on a tripod, facing the street and have a friend drive by, again and again, at about 15 mph (about ten times, eight if you are lucky enough to get everything right each time). Nothing too fast, but it is definitely important that you and the "friend" be consistent.

PRINT A COPY OF THESE INSTRUCTIONS, take them with you and follow them ... so nothing is overlooked. Cookbook-style consistency is the secret to this kind of experiment.

1. set your camera to manual mode (M)
2. set the aperture to f/8 ... to get a decent depth of field (DOF). Remember that this is just a suggested aperture, as your actual aperture setting may vary, depending on the ambient light you have available for the test.
3. switch the lens switch to MF, not AF, to manually focus to the spot where the car will cross in front of the camera. Leave the lens focus alone after this.
4. set your ISO to 100.
5. set the shutter speed to begin with 1/500th-second.
6. Time your shot and trigger the shutter as best you can for the same position on the car as it passes by (I use the front bumper as my trigger point ... just as it enters the frame. Be careful not to jar the camera when you trip the shutter ... especially at the slower shutter speeds).
   
   Note: Don't frame your shot too tight ... frame to get the entire vehicle in the shot or triggering gets a bit tricky.
   .
7. After each pass, adjust the shutter speed down to half of the prior setting (1/250th, 1/125th, 1/60th, 1/30th, 1/15th, 1/8th, 1/4th)
8. at around 1/60th-second shutter speed, you also may want to adjust the aperture down to f/11 ...
   and at 1/8th-second down to f/16, just so light does not flood the sensor and wash the whole image out.
   

Now, I know this sounds like a lot, but I contend that you will have a pretty good idea of what shutter speed does with moving objects, despite anti-shake. Until you actually do test and experience this comparison, it is hard to imagine the issues involved.

Nice days ahead, plan to do this little experiment early on. Believe me, you'll be better for it.