coj Loc: NJ, USA

That would be funny, but I am not using PS or LR. I'm too cheap to bother until I get to be better at photography.

SteveR Loc: Michigan

I don't know if anybody asked, but did you turn the VR off?

jrodenhuis Loc: Southeast NH

I shoot in jpg & raw, i only had the jpg files locally for upload in a size that would work so that's what i posted. Wanted to get something up instead of delaying to crop and reduce size (from 15meg)

jrodenhuis Loc: Southeast NH

I tried with and without, just couldn't seem to get a good focus visually using the viewfinder or screen

coj Loc: NJ, USA

Maybe I am not clear, when I refer to crop I mean enlarge, not reduce. At 300mm, the size of the moon on the monitor screen is fairly small. If you do not crop it, you will see no details. The photo I displayed was cropped. Oh, yes, one more thing, I shoot with very large files, so there are lots of MP's to go around and support the crop. Also if the image gets a lot of noise, turn it into a jpg and then use the Windows Photo Gallery software to do noise reduction. It will lose a bit of detail, but then you can sharpen it up again& repeat the process until you get the best image possible. There really is no reason to use raw and jpg, it just eats up valuable space and you wind up with duplicate images. The raw file has much more data for you to work with if you adjust the image. It takes very little time to do minor adjustments and then convert a file to a jpg for posting. Refer to the photos below. I will show you the moon shot I took (all converted to jpg) right out of the camera, cropped, then adjusted so that you can see the sequence visually. I used a 120mm initially to be a little dramatic.

This is the moon at 120mm before cropping


This is my shot that you saw (300mm) after cropping


This is the moon shot that you saw cropped & adjusted

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

http://www.bythom.com/nikon-vr.htm (Nikon VR Explained, by Thom Hogan)

...and from The Nikon D3300 Reference Manual Technical Notes, Page 355:

"...VR II lenses support vibration reduction (VR), which reduces blur caused by camera shake, allowing shutter speeds up to 4.0 stops slower than would otherwise be the case (measured at [maximum focal length] with a DX-format camera according to Camera and Imaging Products Association [CIPA] standards; effects vary with the photographer and shooting conditions). This increases the range of shutter speeds available and permits hand-held, tripod-free photography in a wide range of situations.

To use vibration reduction, slide the vibration reduction switch to ON. Vibration reduction is activated when the shutter-release button is pressed halfway, reducing the effects of camera shake on the image in the viewfinder and simplifying the process of framing the subject and focusing in both autofocus and manual focus modes. When the camera is panned, vibration reduction applies only to motion that is not part of the pan (if the camera is panned horizontally, for example, vibration reduction will be applied only to vertical shake), making it much easier to pan the camera smoothly in a wide arc.

Turn vibration reduction off when the camera is securely mounted on a tripod, but leave it on if the tripod head is not secured or when using a monopod."


My own tests with a 24-120mm VR lens (and other VR/IS/VC lenses from various manufacturers) bear this out. There is simply no action-stopping benefit to VR/IS/IBIS/VC technologies, whether in-lens or in-body. There is a very real and useful *camera motion* blur-stopping benefit for hand-held photography and photography on a monopod or loose gimbal headed tripod. The latest lenses let you go three or four stops slower on the shutter speed dial. Older VR type lenses only gain about two or three stops' benefit.

--- (off-topic reply follows)

Craig, I've been burned a few times, and found my images used on sites I did not post them to, and in one case, used as a background in an ad! Never again. I simply don't post images on the Internet for which I'm interested in retaining the copyrights and reproduction revenues. I cannot post any images from my career at Delmar, Herff Jones Photography Division, or Lifetouch, because they are all now the property of Lifetouch.

I'm working on a blog site, which at some point will become a showcase for my own Q&A training materials. Until it's released, I don't post at all.

My primary experience in photography has been in yearbook photojournalism, nature photography, photo illustration of products, processes, and machinery, and corporate PR and training work — not portraiture. I taught portraiture, after developing training materials from the advice and input of many subject matter experts, but it's not my passion (despite 33 years in the business!).

I was the "photo consultant of last resort" at Delmar and Herff Jones Photography. I would take the customer calls no one else in that Charlotte lab could answer. I would research the issue, make tests, and do whatever it took to repeat a problem, find a solution, and explain it to the curious client. (I had a large studio, where I tested and documented Canon, Nikon, and pro lighting gear for training.)

It was a customer complaint about lack of sharpness that led me to test this VR stuff on my own. He was making available light senior portraits, on a secure, heavy-duty Bogen tripod, at 1/30 second, with VR turned on. His images were sometimes fuzzy, sometimes sharp. Once I figured out he needed to turn off VR when on a tripod, his problems disappeared. Once he figured out he could shoot at 1/60 all day long with VR on, and NO tripod, he was happy.

coj Loc: NJ, USA

I agree with this. Even though the manual said not to use VR on a tripod, I experimented with adjusting focus, VR, autofocus etc. while doing moon shots on a tripod. For one reason or another, they came out non-focused and all the PP in the world could not save them. As soon as I went back to my standard moon shot settings I got clear focused images. If other people can make VR work on a tripod, good for them. It simply does not work for me.


From Burkphoto - "tripod, at 1/30 second, with VR turned on. His images were sometimes fuzzy, sometimes sharp. Once I figured out he needed to turn off VR when on a tripod, his problems disappeared. Once he figured out he could shoot at 1/60 all day long with VR on, and NO tripod, he was happy.[/quote]"

anotherview Loc: California

Have you set Mirror Lockup? Doing so will eliminate the tiny internal movement of the camera from influencing the image.

This action, on a Canon camera, involves two steps: One to lock the mirror out of the way of the light path, and Two, to release the shutter.

You have to push the shutter button twice.

Use a wireless remote or a cable to release the shutter. Then no motion affects the image.

Note: After pushing (or triggering) the shutter button first time, let the camera settle for several seconds. If you put a bubble level in the hotshoe, you will see the slightest of movement causing the bubble fluid to show motion after the mirror lockup action.

I also weight my tripod with a sandbag or with my camera bag suspended from hook in the center in the upright pole.

Using Mirror Lockup will result in the sharpest images your lens is capable of.

coj Loc: NJ, USA

The OP is using Nikon. Just FYI.