> What shutter speed would you feel comfortable shooting freehand to create a keeper image,
> all other things being up to the grade (such as composition, subject, etc.)
Short answer: about 1/5, at about 35-60mm field-of-view.
Does that always give me pixel sharp images ? No. But it does give me sharp enough images enough of the time to be worthwhile to me.
Maybe your question should be "What is the lowest shutter speed that *I* can take good pictures at ?"
Since you have a digital camera with instant review, experiments and practice are cheap. So have a go, and figure out what the answer is for you !
> - the body and lens combo used
> - the focal lenght in case of zoom lenses,
> - The shooting technique: location of the hands on the lens, breathing timing,...
> - the circle of confusion you are shooting for,
Are you in a sheltered log cabin in the middle of the Rockies ? Or on a trawler in a storm force 10, a hundred miles south of Iceland ?
The breathing bit seems quite important. I did try holding my breath, but that just made me tense. Breathing slowly & deeply seemed the way to go. I think you need to be relaxed. But I've never studied it deeply, I don't do rifle shooting, archery, or yoga. Those kinds of people would probably have something useful to say.
> - the circle of confusion you are shooting for,
I guess we get into this area because tripods or higher shutter speeds are impractical or undesirable for one reason or another, but we think there is a worthwhile, or even striking image to capture. If the image you capture is striking, who cares if it is sharp to the last pixel ?
See:
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/1photo-p...o-laneway.shtmlIf we point and shoot, we at least have a chance of capturing the image, but if we leave our cameras in their bags because the conditions aren't technically good enough, we won't.
John.