Posted by Alternate_Us on September 19, 2008 at 16:20:04:
In Reply to: Re: a more technical explaination posted by JC on September 19, 2008 at 11:44:11:
After I wrote that, I wondered whether depth of field really was a factor in that shot. It is quite likely the bright lighting also let the Mavica use a faster shutter speed, which would further reduce the effect of camera shake (a general blurring effect in hand held shots caused by the human inability to hold the camera perfectly still). Camera shake's effects are magnified by telescopic lenses (zooming in) and reduced by wide angle lenses (zooming out) and eliminated by using a good tripod. Naturally, doing a better job holding the camera still is a big help. Hold the camera close to your face, not extended away from your body. If you can, rest your elbows on a table or the ground.
On a sunny day, try taking some close-up shots of pantyhose. Take some with a wide aperture and fast shutter speed (like 1/1000 or faster; heck use your fastest shutter speed), then reduce the aperture and shutter speed a little, take the same shots again, and repeat until your shutter speed is as slow as you can use (maybe 1/60) and/or your aperture is as small as can be set. Then increase the ISO and take series of pictures working from small aperture slow shutter to large aperture fast shutter. This exercise should be done in Av (aperture priority) mode. Inspect your shots and note when (or if) general fuzziness appears as aperture decreases. If the fuzziness is also present in the shots at the same aperture and higher ISO, it's diffusion; if it's gone, it's camera shake.