Camera shake during time exposures

[MichaelJ]

Hi all,

Pete and I are having a few problems with camera shake whilst taking time exposures of both trains and landscapes. We have recently upgraded our cameras from EOS 350D and 28/105 USM to EOS 50D and 24/105 USM L and believe that the heavier camera/lens may be catching the wind a bit more than our smaller camera/lens. It is particularly visible for time exposures longer than 20 seconds. I have a reasonably stable Velbon CX-686 and thought this wouldn't be a problem. How should I try to minimise the camera shake? Any help is greatly appreciated.

Mick.
Berlin, Germany.

[travsirocz]

IS turned off?

[MichaelJ]

Image stabiliser is turned on. It made very little difference to the image quality when I turned it off.

[TheRoadForeman]

Originally Posted by MichaelJ

Hi all,

Pete and I are having a few problems with camera shake whilst taking time exposures of both trains and landscapes. We have recently upgraded our cameras from EOS 350D and 28/105 USM to EOS 50D and 24/105 USM L and believe that the heavier camera/lens may be catching the wind a bit more than our smaller camera/lens. It is particularly visible for time exposures longer than 20 seconds. I have a reasonably stable Velbon CX-686 and thought this wouldn't be a problem. How should I try to minimise the camera shake? Any help is greatly appreciated.

Mick.
Berlin, Germany.

If your tripod has a center post, try hanging your gear bag from it. Also, a remote release and Mirror-up or delay (if equipped) is a wise choice.

[travsirocz]

Originally Posted by MichaelJ

Image stabiliser is turned on. It made very little difference to the image quality when I turned it off.

IS will kill photos. 90% of my shots when I forgot to turn IS off are blurry. Also use your live view and digitally zoom in all the way and see if there is shake. Very easy to see.

[Gear]

Originally Posted by MichaelJ

How should I try to minimise the camera shake?

Less coffee.

[milwman]

Rap up your camera strap or remove it, Its like a sail!

[Alan]

Less coffee, that's a good one.

[bigbassloyd]

Originally Posted by travsirocz

IS will kill photos. 90% of my shots when I forgot to turn IS off are blurry. Also use your live view and digitally zoom in all the way and see if there is shake. Very easy to see.

IS causes the scene to shift when the shutter is half pressed on my XS. IS is bad for long shutter shots indeed!


Loyd L.

[mSummers]

Yes, definitely turn IS or VR off when using a tripod. Tripods with center columns are most stable when the column is not extended at all, so don't extend it if possible.

Also, the Velbon CX-686 is rated for 1.5kg and your 50D 24-105mm combo is right at that limit so the tripod may not be stable enough for really long exposures.

[MichaelJ]

Thanks for the responses, guys. I will give all of the suggestions a go tonight and see what happens.

[mSummers]

Good luck. Let us know how it works out.

[Joe the Photog]

Not to ask a stupid question, but is the wind blowing? I've positioned cars or myself to stand in between the camera and wind if needed.

[alexramos]

It's probably wind. I usually block the camera and lens with a jacket after releasing the shutter. Seems to fix the issue.

-Alex Ramos

[TheRoadForeman]

Originally Posted by Joe the Photog

Not to ask a stupid question, but is the wind blowing? I've positioned cars or myself to stand in between the camera and wind if needed.

Good point and great solution Joe!

[milwman]

Originally Posted by Alan

Less coffee, that's a good one.

Its true, i can tell if i had to much Coke over the day.

[Peter Reading]

The wind was blowing slightly on a few occassions and that probably caused a few of our troubles.

Mick and I took a few shots of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin last night with IS turned off and everything worked out well. The wind wasn't blowing at the time.

Thanks for the help!