Photography 101: Taking Sharper Photos
Photography 101: Taking Sharper Photos
Yes, it’s possible to sharpen images digitally post-shoot, but it’s always best to get the sharpest shot up front, before your photo is even developed. It’s really quite easy to improve the sharpness of your daily shots – just consider these concepts!
1) Use a Tripod, if at all possible
Tripods are by far the best method of ensuring image sharpness right in the camera. The platform created by your tripod stabilizes the camera such that camera shake due to human interference is not an issue, regardless of the level of light available to you, and thus the length of your exposure.
2) Use a Proper Handholding Posture when a tripod is not practical
When tripods are not practical or if you don’t have access to one, you should assume the proper handholding posture to minimize camera shake:
Hold the camera with both hands such that your right hand has a finger on the shutter release button, and your left hand cradles the camera body (not the lens – it’s ok to rest your fingers against the lens, but be sure you don’t interfere with auto focus). Press your elbows tightly against your torso and raise the camera to eye level (for SLR) or so that you can see the LCD (digital P&S), but never hold the camera with extended arms as this increases shake. Stabilize your body against a solid object if you can – a wall or lamp post will do. Use the focus lock feature by depressing the shutter release button half way; once the focus is locked, take a deep breath, and depress the button fully to take your shot while exhaling.
3) Use Image Stabilization (IS) or Vibration Reduction (VR) Lenses
Some lenses for SLR cameras include built-in methods of reducing camera shake. If you have such a lens, make sure you enable IS or VR when shooting hand-held. This technology reduces the effects of camera motion on image sharpness by countering the slight lens movements that result in a blurry image. In general, these lenses allow you to hand-hold a camera at a full stop increase over non-IS or non-VR lenses. These lenses are much more expensive than regular lenses, but if you find yourself hand-holding most of your shots with blurry results, it might be worth the investment. See my article on lens characteristics for more informatio
1000
n.
4) Increase your shutter speed
The faster your shutter speed, the less apparent camera shake will be. Obviously, if the shutter is left open for 4 seconds then the slightest movement will result in a soft image, even the movement of the shutter release button! Conversely, if the shutter speed is 1/2000th of a second then hardly any movement will result in image blur. As a guideline, at ISO 100, you should restrict your handheld shots to the reciprocal of your lens focal length. Here is a chart that illustrates this principle, along with the effect of image stabilization:
Lens Focal Length Min. Shutter Speed for Handheld Same Lens with IS
28 mm 1/30th second 1/15th second
50 mm 1/60th second 1/30th second
85 mm 1/125th second 1/60th second
100 mm 1/125th second 1/60th second
180 mm 1/250th second 1/125th second
400 mm 1/500th second 1/250th second
If you are stuck handholding your camera at shutter speeds that are slower than the reciprocal, then you should use flash or increase your ISO setting. The lower the ISO setting, the lower the noise, so it’s always best to stick with ISO 100; however, to reduce camera shake, it may be worth the trade-off to raise the ISO to 200, 400, or even higher.
5) Check your AF (auto-focus) sensors to confirm area of highest focus
When using auto-focus mode, most cameras confirm with tiny red lights which part of the image is in sharpest focus before taking the shot. Be sure your camera has the same subject in mind that you do, or else your main subject may not be emphasized the way you had imagined. If the sensor picking up the area of focused is not hitting the area you want, it’s best to set it manually. You can do this by disabling auto-focus, or by recomposing your scene such that the correct area is selected, depressing the shutter release button half way to keep the exposure locked, and returning to your original composition.
6) Use continuous shooting mode
By taking two or more shots of the same scene in rapid succession (by keeping the shutter release button depressed), you remove the effect that pressing the shutter release button can have on camera shake. In other words, your second shot (and any subsequent shots, until you release the button) will not experience any shake due to vibration of the shutter release since the first shot took the brunt of it.
7) Use moderate apertures
The rule here is that your lens does its best focusing when set to two stops smaller than its widest aperture. For example, if your lens’ widest aperture is f/2.8, then it will produce the sharpest images (not at f/4) at f/5.6. Even high quality lenses with aspheric and low-dispersion glass elements may not produce their sharpest images at their widest apertures.
Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com
Jennifer Clarkson is a Canadian Photographer living in Ottawa. For more information about sharpening images, or to browse other Photography Tips and articles, please visit her website at
