dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

A safe way to get every day excellent shots is to use C-1 to Manual Mode, f=8 S=1/125 ISO=Auto

A friend with unsteady hands from "excess maturity" was debating taking a tripod for a shoot of on land sail races. The speeds can exceed 100 KM/Hr or about 60 mph. According to charts by "authorities" a safe shutter speed for object moving that fast about 1/500 s. For every day photos 1/125s and image stabilization should be fine. Iris open of f=8 for sharpness.

A safe way to get every day excellent shots is to use Manual Mode, f=8 S=1/125 ISO=Auto was my suggestion. The ISO may go high if the light is dim, but AI processing cleans any Hi-ISO noise away, in Computer Edit. Fast speed and f stop=8 should nail a good image effortlessly. Auto focus hold with half depressed shoot button then move to compose. Always have excess image allowing crop in edit to trim the excess. Trim is easy adding to the scene may be impossible.

Effortlessly? But, setting manual is a pain! However, most cameras have C-1, C-2, etc settings. Going to C-1 can bring up the preset manual settings effortlessly. My camera has one of the Cs set for flower close up [2-3"] large f, 5.6 and very fast shutter, using flash ... The sun light is essentially canceled out by speed, and the limited DOF blurs the junk in the background. Another C setting for the settings I recommended f=8, 1/125s, and Auto ISO. Of course Auto-Focus.

Hey, like the 1907 Kodak 2A-Brownie, f8 1/60 ISO fixed by film speed . Push the button and take a fine photo.

I could suggest the ploy of a Plaster of Paris filled Tennis ball attached to the bottom of the camera with a 1/4"--20 tpi screw. The weight adds stabilizing inertia, the ball provides for the left hand to have a firm claw grip.

Companies are still developing new sensors with higher resolution, they are fighting the last war. With AI editing programs such as Topaz Denoise AI, Sharpen AI, and Gigapixel the camera sensor is less important. Even old images from from point and shoot early 2000s cameras with low resolution and hi noise images can be resurrected and made to appear as tho modern. I address that by example in:
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-791458-1.html

Suggestions, science based corrections, and other solutions for special case photography are welcome.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

ISO bottoming out is a possibility with Auto ISO. F/8 and 1/125 is letting in quite a bit more light than Sunny 16 so ISO bottoming out is a real possibility with those settings. None of the cameras that I've had give you a warning when ISO is bottoming out.

With IBIS, camera shake is much less of a problem so slower shutter speeds would be a possibility - provided that subject movement wasn't going to be a problem. Likewise with using multi-shot blending techniques when the ISO is likely to be high.

There are obvious problems when trying to apply one-set-fits-all exposure settings. Having your suggested values would be OK but it would be a good idea when making that suggestion to include some advisory suggestions and warnings. It would be possible to have safer combinations but they would result in the use of higher ISOs. Perhaps your suggestion could be seen as a starting point from which the user could explore different possibilities.

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

With my film camera, I typically use ASA 400 film, aperture F/16, and shutter speed 1/500.

PHRubin Loc: Nashville TN USA

My camera has C1, C2 and C3. I take many photos of live music performances and have set C1 for flash (1/320, f/8, 800 ISO) and C2 for ambient (1/60, f/8, Auto ISO). I haven't set C3. The f/8 is because the zoom lens wide open at its longest is f/6.3.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Unless it’s a medium or large format camera, f16 is hurting your sharpness (diffraction)

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

People say a lot of things here
It also helps my DoF.
I am using film - I choose DoF over “sharpnesss”

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

All depends on what you are shooting. If it works for you, great, but not a good general recommendation for most types of photography

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

For fifty years, I have photographed mostly moving trains. For me, especially with film, focusing has always been more of an issue than diffraction is. I deplore the ‘clinical’ look of digital {my ‘best’ digital camera is 24MP}.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

Digital is more revealing than film, especially the high resolution digital cameras that are now available, so diffraction is more of an issue with digital. Diffraction is actually quite a good way to achieve a soft look, if that's what you prefer, and it sounds as though that's what rehess's preference is.

JohnSwanda Loc: San Francisco

He said his preference is DOF over sharpness. I shoot a lot of macro flowers, and I have found the same thing. I often use smaller apertures than f16, and testing showed that I get more apparent sharpness with more DOF, and the small loss of sharpness in the in focus areas can be helped with a little sharpening.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I can see that in your case (a long moving train), DOF has the highest priority

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Have you tried focus stacking?

Not debating that small aperture for max DOF in spite of diffraction is appropriate for a some specific applications, Just not a good general guideline, that’s all.

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

I believe digital has changed the way we think - now life seems to be about making things as ‘perfect’ as possible, often using bursts to get as near there as possible.

gouldopfl

I have found that the new sensors handle low light high ISO with relative ease.

JohnSwanda Loc: San Francisco

I'm not interested in focus stacking at all. I would have to carry a tripod, and my camera is heavy enough as it is. It also would take a lot more time to do each shot with a tripod. And outdoors any breeze would cause motion of the flowers. I sometimes shoot in a public greenhouse, and using a tripod would get in people's way. At any rate I do want some selective focus even with max DOF.