Cam and Cheese

Blur in your pictures can come about from a lot of different ways. Not all blur is bad. Bokeh is a term used to describe the blurry out-of-focus background in your images when using large apertures. It's a really desirable effect. However not all blur is desirable, and here are some tips to reduce that blur from your images.

First of all, you'll have to understand that blur can be caused do to hand or camera shake, and blur can come from the moving subject. If you want to reduce motion blur from your subject, the only way around that is to either shoot at a fast enough shutter speed to freeze the subject's motion in your picture, or tell your subject to stop moving and hold the pose.

Now to help reduce camera shake from hand holding there are a bunch of different ways. First, the rule of thumb is to not shoot at a shutter speed slower than 1 over focal length (1/focal length). So if you are shooting at 50mm, then don't shoot slower than 1/50 seconds. If you must shoot below 1/50 seconds, then you just have to adjust your Aperture or ISO so that you can shoot faster. Many lenses and now dSLR camera bodies (Olympus) have Image Stabilization built in. These have motors in the lens or camera body that rotate in order to counteract the effect of the shake due to hand holding. Supposedly this Image Stabilization can add up to 4 stops, meaning you can shoot at even slower shutter speed. Many Point-and-Shoots also have image stabilization. From my own experience, electronic image stabilization is not nearly up to par with optical image stabilization.

Image Stabilization has a bunch of names.

• Canon calls it Image Stabilization or IS.
• Nikon calls it Vibration Reduction or VR. (Watch out for eVR or electronic Vibration Reduction such as on the Nikon Coolpix S550. It's not very good)
• Sony calls it Super Steady Shot.
• Sigma calls it Optical Stabilization or OS.
• Tamron calls it Vibration Compensation or VC.

You'll also see that for the longer focal lengths you will have to shoot a lot faster to reduce blur, which goes along with the rule. That's because every time your hand shakes, the zoom magnifies the movement.

The way you hold your camera also has an effect on your shots. Try to stay compact, with your elbows tucked in close to your body, and not flared out. For you point-and-shooters try not to take pictures with your arms straight out infront of you. The closer you have the camera to your body the less shaky you will be. Also try to stabilize yourself by leaning against a wall or similar structure.

The other way to reduce hand shake is to take pictures with a tripod. For long exposures, and pictures of scenery it is a must to provide sharp images. Note that if you use a tripod, turn off the Image Stabilization on your lens because it will actually cause blur in your pictures, since your tripod is steady. Another tip for using your tripod is to purchase a remote or use a timer. For my Nikon D80, I was able to purchase my MC-DC1 Wired Remote for under $20. It saves a lot of time instead of using a timer. The reason why you want a delay or a remote to trigger your picture is because when you press on the shutter release button it will cause a slight movement in the camera or tripod. So either just set a short timer and press the image and move away from the camera, or presss it with a wired remote. If you are shooting in bulb, a wired remote or even cordless remote is a must.

So use these tips to remove that unwanted blur in your images. You can also use software to further sharpen your images.

To sum this article up:

• To reduce motion blur in your subject, you have to shoot at very fast speeds to freeze their action
• If hand holding use a shutter speed faster than 1/focal length
• Using Image Stabilization in Lenses or Camera Bodies can add up to 4 stops, allowing you to shoot at a slower shutter speed
• Hold your camera properly, not too far away from your body
• Lean against a wall or pilar for stability
• Use a tripod for very long exposures and scenery.
• Turn off Image Stabilization when using a tripod
• Use a timer or remote when using a tripod