[HUG] Boneheads

  • From: "Stein" <rstein@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: <hasselblad@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Mon, 27 Aug 2007 21:57:59 +0800

 Dear Friends,

        I have just checked the archives, cleaned the cat hair out of the
keyboard, and am prepared to start annoying people.

        I spent my weekend at a Medieval Fayre in a town that grows mud for
export. The physics of a long wool garment and capillary action ensured that
I was able to bring a good deal of that mud home. But I also brought home
the memory of some truly appalling camera work.

        Not mine, I hasten to add. I learned a long time ago to hang onto an
Enfield or a Graflex with both hands and my arms held firmly into my body. I
learned to use the power of opposing muscle groups to steady myself - I
still use this in my profession but use smaller holds and rests.

        I applauded the Canon people for the use of rubber forehead pads on
some of their high-end Super 8 cameras - and I remember that Eumig did the
same. They obviously recognised that the frontal bone of the forehead was
the place to push against to steady a movie camera.

        I do the same with the three points hold - eyepiece of the
Hasselblad prism, flash bracket, and focus ring. I get away with 1/60 even
in the Medieval battles, though the sword strokes are distorted. But look at
the others using P/S digitals and camcorders....

        The vast majority had their cameras out at arm's length like Leica
O's but with a sort of 3 finger grip. The camcorders used one hand and used
the other to continuously tilt screens. Tripods were non-existent. I can
only speculate as to the results, particularly as combat photography does
not permit time lag. Perhaps it's be a kindness to realise that most of the
exposures made will be wiped or forgotten.

        Moral of this posting? Brace, hold your breath - a max of 4 seconds,
squeeze the shutter release, don't jerk it, and don't wear long wool robes
in Balingup!

 Uncle Dick  

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9:34 PM
 


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