D70s camera shake

It seems that, generally speaking, no matter what I try with hand-held I get camera shake and blurry photos taking landscape shots with my D70s. I'm using the kit 28-105 lens. I've tried Shutter Priority at 1/320 and 1/400; Aperture Priority at various f-stops; ISO automatic and various manual settings; bracketing, non-bracketing, etc., etc. Anything I can think of. I usually get blown-out highlights, too.

And the funny thing is, I found a large of amount of shots I took years ago with my Pentax IQZoom 140 point-and-shoot (whose lens finally froze in place) and my Minolta Maxxum 35mm and the only shots that were blurry were those taken in a high wind!

Granted, I'm an amateur, but I should be getting better results.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance for any help!

sl60 said:

It seems that, generally speaking, no matter what I try with hand-held I get camera shake and blurry photos taking landscape shots with my D70s. I'm using the kit 28-105 lens. I've tried Shutter Priority at 1/320 and 1/400; Aperture Priority at various f-stops; ISO automatic and various manual settings; bracketing, non-bracketing, etc., etc. Anything I can think of. I usually get blown-out highlights, too.

And the funny thing is, I found a large of amount of shots I took years ago with my Pentax IQZoom 140 point-and-shoot (whose lens finally froze in place) and my Minolta Maxxum 35mm and the only shots that were blurry were those taken in a high wind!

Granted, I'm an amateur, but I should be getting better results.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance for any help!

Click to expand...

First thing is eliminate or isolate what is causing the blurry pictures. Try using a tripod and see if it still exhibits the same blurry results, if so the camera/lens has a problem. Blown out high lights indicates you are over exposing your shots. Shut off the auto iso and set it at one of the lower ISO 200 I think, try using the camera in full manual and watch the light reading in the viewfinder and adjust for proper exposure. Posting one or two of these blurry images would be of help so we can view the exif camera setting.

Are you sure the shots are blurry from camera shake and not just out of focus? When I hear exposure problems AND blurry shots, I have to wonder if you are in spot metering along with single point focus. Its best to post a few pictures and list all of your settings.

These are shots where I can't use a tripod. I have tried auto ISO and various other ISO settings (usually I keep it at 200). Ufortunately I've already deleted all the blurry photos, but they look like typical blurred shots.

A lot of these are in lower light (in the woods). With a tripod I can set the camera for f/16, for example (I want the entire scene in focus), and let the take its time to expose the shot, but for hand-held I have to take a different tack, so I've been opting for the faster shutter speed and allowing the camera choose the aperture. But it doesn't work--blur!

I'm very weak on reading the light meter. Would you have any links to tutorials (simplified)?

Thanks.

Nick--

You could be 100% right, but I'm going to need a mini tutorial on spot metering and single point focus.

They aren't all out of focus, but many are. Some are overexposed, some are underexposed, but some are just right.

Unfortunately, I recently cleaned out all the bad photos!

My guess is Matrix mettering with all those exposure inconsistencies...

Another experiment was with a bright sky and a dark mass of trees. If I were just to shoot the entire scene (with my limited experience), I would get a decent shot of the trees with a totally blown-out sky. So I found a patch of stones that was about the value of a gray card, pressed the shutter halfway down, and then took a shot of the sky. The sky was fine, but the trees were totally black, so at least that's away to shoot the aky! I think I tried this in the woods and it didn't work.

I think F16 Is to small an aperture..If it were I, I would try F8....Surprising how much of the image is in focus at F8...

Another thing, it could be your technique...Or try AF-C...You maybe moving between focus and shot...

sl60 said:

Nick--

You could be 100% right, but I'm going to need a mini tutorial on spot metering and single point focus.

They aren't all out of focus, but many are. Some are overexposed, some are underexposed, but some are just right.

Click to expand...

You are talking about two different things, exposure and sharpness (focus or shake).
Exposure is about metering.

Speaking of sharpness, 1/300 or 1/400 second shutter ought to be plenty for hand held photos, esp if you are trying to hold still. However the big boys intently taking sellable large photos always use a tripod for landscapes.

Speaking of sharpness... there are several factors.

Shutter speed and tripods. If shutter speed is slow, tripods are great, and a VR lens is second best. 1/400 second ought not be an issue.

Depth of field is a factor. Focusing about 1/3 of the distance into the scene is good practice, except for closer distances (6 feet is close), which is more half way into the scene.

f/16 helps depth, but it will be a little less sharp and less clear than say f/5.6 or f/8 (due to diffraction). Except for macro, I'd try to avoid f/16. Your lens will be sharper at f/5.6.

AF-C is not all good, it is special purpose to follow moving subjects. Its default is to allow the shutter to operate regardless if it has found focus yet or not. That is not good, but the idea is the second or third in burst might find focus. Default for AF-S is the shutter simply won't work if it has not found focus first. Yes, there are configuration choices that can reverse these, but if you are not knowledgeable about it, avoid AF-C until you know what you are doing. AF-C is not for shake, it is to follow moving subjects. As a rule, landscapes and forests don't move, and finding focus first is a plus.

It would be good to see such photos. Shake and focus can be differentiated, however the small size required on the forum makes it hard to see anything. Posting a 100% crop would be good. Also, Exif data is needed to know what it represents. But without seeing anything, and your not be able to tell us, we are all just saying words.

The mini tutorial.... Single point focus is fine, but be aware of what point is selected. And make sure that point is on your subject. Whatever mode you use, just make sure the point falls on your subject. Probably best to keep it in the middle. Spot metering is just that, its a spot., and 'the spot' is the focus point selected. For many scenes, matrix metering works out. Spot metering has its place, but if you are not aware of it, it will make you crazy. If that spot is on a dark area of the scene, it will meter only on that spot so lighter areas could be overexposed. If that spot falls on a highlight, then the rest of the scene will likely get underexposed. A good use for spot metering is on someone's face that has bright sky or water behind them. Matrix metering tries to take the whole scene into consideration.
As far as the scene you described, bright sky and dark trees, you might be coming up on the limits of your dynamic range. I had a d70, I don't recall it being terrible. So check you focus point and metering mode. Do you shoot raw? I didn't even know what raw was back then, so I have no old files to play with. With raw, you can get a little more data to play with and you might be able to even out the problem scenes.

It's definitely camera shake, because some of the photos taken in the same session come out just fine. But I don't understand why setting the shutter at 1/320 doesn't solve this. My hands aren't shaky and I try to hold the camera as steadily as possible, I try to keep my elbows in, etc. As I said, it baffles me even more because with my old point-and-shot, for example, I have tons of photos completely in focus!

sl60 said:

It's definitely camera shake, because some of the photos taken in the same session come out just fine. But I don't understand why setting the shutter at 1/320 doesn't solve this.

Click to expand...

That's why we are left wondering if it is camera shake or out of focus. "because some of the photos taken in the same session come out just fine" does not indicate/prove camera shake or focus problem.

As I said in my last post, it's camera shake which results in blurry or out-of-focus photos. I don't know how else to describe it! There's nothing wrong with the camera, since I am able at times to get clear shots, so obviously I'm doing something wrong. I just can't figure out why a faster shutter speed doesn't correct it. And, as I said, it's all the more odd because the only time I had this problem with my point-and-shoot was in a high wind!

Just post a bad shot when you get one with all of your settings including focus and metering mode. High wind can cause subject motion, so in that case a speed higher than what is normally safe for hand holding would be needed to freeze the action caused by the wind. Point and shoots have a great depth of field so its a lot easier to get an in-focus shot. Since a fast shutter speed did not help with your current problem, I am still wondering about focus. You need to know exactly where your focus point is and take it from there. Slow shutter speed -camera shake or subject motion causes a ghost or very slight double image. On zooming in you can see signs of movement. If focus was off or just shallow, you get a soft, not sharp image. At a quick glance, both cases may simply look 'blurry', but you need to nail down which it is.
You need to show us something or tell us something concrete besides your shutter speed. Were you in single point focus mode and was that point placed where you want it on your subject and was that exact point in focus? if the exact point is sharp, then it may be just a shallow depth of field. There are too many things we don't know about your settings.