billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

You should practice holding (pressing) the camera against your head (really) and holding the camera steadily both hands. Make sure BOTH elbows are in and against your body. In this way you have created a three point attachment for the camera. Head and elbows. Practice, practice, practice.

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

Thanks for the reply. While caused by a different disease, I certainly understand your difficulty. I'm anxious for the arrival of the strap. I'll post results.
Mark

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

Thanks for the reply. I certainly understand your difficulty. I'll post my experience of the strap.
Mark

olemikey Loc: 6 mile creek, Spacecoast Florida

Hey Mark, I don't know if this would help or not, but you might try it since you have a remote release (and echoing what Bill de mentioned). Utilizing one of those flat "flash side mount" plates that attach to the tripod mount on the bottom of the camera, set the receiver on that plate one your right hand side, put the transmitter on the left side (picture the old "newsman" style set-up with flash bracket and camera on a plate or in a cradle). This gives you camera hold and shutter control on the left and right hand is able to hold and assist with camera settings and such on the right. That way when you need to fire the release, it is the steadier hand/finger controlling that. You could use an even simpler trigger mechanism, like a cheap wired trigger, but since you already have the remote device (my assumption is radio controlled) just try it with that. The plates and cradles can be anywhere from cheap to fairly elaborate, but that would be up to you.

When you really need the tripod, simply mount the whole set-up on the tripod and pull the remote transmitter off the rig for actual shots. It will make the smaller camera a tad larger with the attachments, but give you back some shooting freedom, and I hope an overall much steadier operation. I worked this up when a friend had injured several of her own fingers (right hand, and she's a righty) and had them wrapped with gauze/tape and could not fire the camera normally. At any rate, good luck with your efforts and "keep on truckin".


My Father-n-law dealt with the same issues for several decades, and we were always trying to work out ways for him to keep doing the things he loved, we weren't 100% successful, but between the two of us we were able to keep his quality of life much better.

jtwind

Just a wild stab at imagining a solution. What about mounting camera on gunstock? Seems that with holding stock against shoulder you'd dampen the shake quite a bit. Not sure how you connect to trigger for shutter but I'm sure it can be done.

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

I certainly appreciate all the suggestions to help remedy my "dilemma". I'm hoping the hand strap helps. Taping a remote to the left side seems to have merit. I've dealt with this issue for a very long time. When convenient, the monopod, tripod and the remote do help. Thank you for caring. I feel I have a "family" on UHH.

I'll post results with the hand strap.
Mark

jgangjr

What about using the timer to give you time to focus on just stability after pressing the button?

I also think you may be able to use a wireless remote in one hand while using the other hand and a face support to steady the camera. You could still use the side of your hand or even your forearm that is holding the remote to further steady the camera.

I feel for you, my father-in-law has Parkinson's and he is getting therapy in addition to medicine to help him with his fine motor control. If seems to be helping, but he is still finding many things he used to do, difficult.

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

Thanks for the suggestions. I do use the remote when the camera is mounted to the tri or monopod. They are not always convenient.
I'll try the timer too. BBF and a remote may have merit too.

I'm very fortunate in having very mild symptoms of Parkinson's. I empathize with your father-in-law. I take Carbidopa/Levodopa, three times a day. It really helps.
Mark

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

Even without a shaky right hand, this is what I would be using with a Sony RX10 IV !

Richard Spencer Loc: Evansville, Indiana

I have that same problem and find that holding my right hand from the front of the camera helps but I often set the shutter release for 2 seconds and then remove my right hand after pressing the button and just hold the camera with my left hand. Using a tripod, mono pod or remote shutter release will work better.

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

Thanks for the feedback and creative idea. If using the handstrap and/or taping a remote to the left side of the camera is not satisfactory, I may give your idea a try. I'm able to hold a camera steady, but upon shutter release my finger/hand shakes.
I appreciate the response and idea!! I follow your posts. You are very creative and certainly one of UHH's most respected members.
Mark

pappleg

Hi Mark, Not always a viable solution but two possibilities that may help and cost very little. A small beanbag made of coarse cloth (canvas maybe) and filled with plastic pellets available online. More flexibility is obtained with a 1/4-20 threaded eyebolt, two nuts and a metal and a fiber/rubber washer. Thread the two nuts onto the eyebolt and place the metal washer on top. Thread it into your tripod socket on your camera until it just bottoms. Fix the nuts in that position with lock tight or epoxy and then epoxy the washer in place and then epoxy the fiber washer atop the metal one. This will provide clearance so you cannot over tighten it in the camera. Tie a length of clothesline to the eyebolt such that you can step on it pulling the assembly taught and stabilizing the camera while still allowing movement. Not perfect but may help and costs little if it does not work for you.

Pat

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

Thanks, Richard. The timer does not work for all venues. I agree. The remote and camera mounted on the tri or monopod helps. The handstrap arrives today. I'm hoping it will help with the Sony and longer focal lengths. I used another hand strap, permanently fastened to my Canon 5D MIII and found it helped stabilize my hand/finger.
I appreciate the feedback!
Mark

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

Wow!! Very creative. Thanks for the suggestions!
Mark

olemikey Loc: 6 mile creek, Spacecoast Florida

The remotes I have (Vello Freewave Fusion Basic) have a hot shoe style mount on both units, transmitter and receiver, so I can use the transmitter/trigger mounted, or simply slip it off the shoe attachment on the bracket and hand hold it. You could also mount the receiver in the hot shoe of the camera and just have the transmitter on the bracket, that would shrink the footprint even more. They are also easy to take apart and modify for almost any configuration.

Velcro would be another option if your units do not have the hot shoe attachment on the transmitter too, or some simple modifications. The whole rig is roughly 1.3 X wider than the camera body itself. so it is still quite compact. There are some cradles and mounting brackets that might be better, you'd have to look at them and see what floats your boat. If you would like to discuss refining something along these lines, PM me and I'd be glad to assist with a design effort - you never know what two heads might come up with! I'm retired so it would be no imposition to me, and I'm big on DIY....