On The Prowl

I was dissapointed with the sharpness, I think it was my aperture and

shutter speed ?? aperture 5.0 shutter 1/40 sec. ISO was set on 100. I

was using the EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM. Which usually

compensates for for my ID10 user error really well. The tiger is walking

but not fast. Am I right?

Hi Ronda, there is no lens sharpness issue here. 1/40 is barely adequate even for portrait animal shots. You simply needed higher ISO and faster shutter speed. Judging by the light on your shot...probably a 400 ISO would give you a more manageable 1/125 shutter speed and a tack sharp image! These kind of shutter speeds (1/30, 1/40) are ideal only if you want to achieve a motion blur effect on moving targets! Greetings from Greece, Teo

Thank you Theodore, those are the answers I was looking for.

Rule of thumb for shutter speed is 1/FL. If you are using 100mm, then the minimum shutter speed should be 1/100 sec. For 400mm, 1/400 sec. The IS helps somewhat but shouldn't be relied on.

The aperture controls DOF. f/4 is very narrow DOF and f/22 gives you good depth; for example. f/8 - f/16 is good for most shots.

You want to keep your ISO as low as possible to eliminate noise. Most camera work fine at 200 and some at 400. It depends on your camera.

It is also most helpful to use a tripod, when possible.

Hope this helps.

 

Richard thank you I will remember that little rule of thumb that will help a lot thank you!