Camera Shake

Camera shake is the bane of all photographers. We all have a

low-grade "essential tremor" that only worsens with age, caffeine

use or stress. This "essential tremor" is not to be confused with

Parkinson's disease ! One excellent medical therapy that

alleviates "essential tremor" is Inderal (propanolol.) The usual

dose is 10 to 20 mg taken one hour before the putative

photographic foray. Given inderal's short half-life, repeat doses

are required every 6 hours. Please however contact your

physician to make sure that this LOW DOSE of inderal is right for

you as the medication can aggravate underlying diabetes or

worsen a slow heart rate amongst other things. However, it is a

very safe medication used therapeutically by tens of millions of

people world wide for hypertension therapy.

An addendum: This will markedly decrease you tremor but will

not make your 400mm handheld photographs perfectly clear.

Therefore, a tripod will still be required in many circumstances.

Albert: can I take it with a Heinekin?

What about propanolol's potentially deadly effect on asthmatics? Why bypass the tripod for prescription medication with potentially serious side effects?

Hypertension therapy is a legitimate use of prescription medication (risks vs benefits analysis, something every medical student learns in their first week of Pharmacology). On the other hand, "Hmmm, you know what, my pictures aren't sharp" and "Hmmm, I just need to run 0.3 seconds faster to clinch a gold medal" are not legitimate uses.

Like I told my primary care physician, I didn't have any of these problems when I was dating 16 year old girls...

Albert

 

I have to say I am surprised you are seriously recommending any recreational drug use to be honest; it sounds a very pooor idea to me. It is one thing if you have hypertension, but just to (possibly) be able to take the odd shot at slow speeds seems misguided.

And to think some people have problems with discussing Hexar and Contax on this forum :-)

are we in a full moon?? things are getting very weird around here.

Hey doc, try taking a deep breath instead of dosing up. Another sign of the medical profession wallowing in the same muck as the legal. Sorry, but just my uneducated 2cents.

There are a lot of other drugs that can improve your photography too, just ask anyone from the 60's ;>)

 

Seriously though, Albert it's your prerogative to self-prescribe Inderal to help steady your camera but I suspect that a lot of physicians might be unwilling to write an Rx for a patient for that purpose. Personally, I would first try cessation of caffiene intake, undertaking a stress-reduction program, exercise, Yoga, a table-tripod, and Image Stabilization, before swallowing something with a long list of potential side effects. Anyone who is on Rx meds knows it isn't all roses.

Albert,

 

Since you're an MD, could we pretend you're my physician and just send me a perscription? I don't think my doctor will give me one to cure "photo shake!" ;o)

Hey Doc:

 

Percoset works pretty well for me, how about some freebie samples?

 

;>),

My actor friend takes Inderal for stage fright. I also know people who take it before delivering speeches and presentations. Apparently the drug takes the edge off, but doesn't leave the patient feeling drugged.

I think transcendental meditation, Qi Gong etc is better than

drug

Try 'Tri-X', the local drug store sells it over the counter. Side effects are minimal, but for a slight feeling of graininess.

Doc,

 

You're getting hammered on this one. Cease and desist before the insurance rates go up.

 

How about letting us know how it went with the 24mm last weekend and posting some results?

 

Jerry

I'll not bash Albert on his post. Although his Inderal suggestion

goes against my philosphy of purity, I like this thread nontheless

-- most informative, though tangential and [ by the responses ]

quite entertaining. I'll keep buying popcorn while the filck is

rolling...when is intermission btw?

i find a couple of heinies relax my muscles.

Taking a deep breath as someone mentioned is good, but don't some photogs hold it before and on shutter release? And, of course, press that release gently. Seems mainly necessary for slow shutter speeds. Haven't tried one of those soft releases, but seems like an interesting device.

Actually, instead of holding their breath, I think sharp shooters slowly exhale while they pull the trigger.

Atwood in the Leica brochure: "It will give sharp images even in poor lighting because I can hold my breath and work at extremely slow speeds with no camera movement."

Nevermind. Did a quick search on breathing. Snipers take their shot at the end of their breathing cycle. Sorry, this is getting way off topic.

This is more on topic than Al's original post. We're talking about cutting down camera shake, do some photogs rest their elbows on their torso too? Hmn...

I'm another of those who sometimes uses ethanol to dampen the shakes--never have tried propanalol. I don't get what the fuss is about. We have billions of dollars worth of ads telling us everyday how taking some drug or another will solve problems ranging from sneezing and farting to sleeplessness and anxiety (not to mention those drugs that will make us cooler, more popular, and more fun).