Tuesday, November 29, 2005
Nikon VR lens technology
And the VR? That stands for vibration reduction. Designed to offset camera movement, VR technology permits you to handhold at shutter speeds that would have required a tripod for sharp results. The old handheld rule of thumb has always been to use a shutter speed at least as fast as the fraction made by 1 over the length of the lens, i.e., for a 400mm lens, that's 1/400 sec.
With a VR lens, that has all changed. The manual says you can handhold this VR lens for sharp pictures "at shutter speeds approximately three steps slower than you ordinarily could."
What does that mean, exactly? A Nikon technician queried for this article said it's worded that way because individual photographers can handhold at different shutter speeds, depending on their steadiness. Basically, Nikon says you can sharply handhold 400mm at an unbelievable shutter speed of 1/60 sec.!
With a VR lens, that has all changed. The manual says you can handhold this VR lens for sharp pictures "at shutter speeds approximately three steps slower than you ordinarily could."
What does that mean, exactly? A Nikon technician queried for this article said it's worded that way because individual photographers can handhold at different shutter speeds, depending on their steadiness. Basically, Nikon says you can sharply handhold 400mm at an unbelievable shutter speed of 1/60 sec.!
