Handheld

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DavidT

DavidT

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Is it just me or does seeing someone post a picture and specifically call out it was handheld annoying?

I just don’t get why handheld, tripod, monopod, window support and lord knows how many other contraptions people use matters.

Maybe I’m just being grumpy but I don’t get the badge of honor one displays by making this claim.

I shoot 90% of my wildlife handheld and I don’t do it to brag I do it to be agile and frankly because I’m lazy to carry out tripods and set them up. I at times do but don’t feel it is necessary to distinguish the camera support used.

How about you?
 
Yep, i think you are being grumpy. I agree and also don't care what f number, shutter speed, or iso they used or if they did or didn't use noise reduction.

In fact, if it's general photo discussion or someone else's presentation thread, i'd rather they didn't post a picture at all, unless it really truly demonstrated what was being discussed. Shoo, half the time I don't want to look at my own pictures. Probably because I shot hand held....
 
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bleirer said:
Yep, i think you are being grumpy. I agree and also don't care what f number, shutter speed, or iso they used or if they did or didn't use noise reduction.

In fact, if it's general photo discussion or someone else's presentation thread, i'd rather they didn't post a picture at all, unless it really truly demonstrated what was being discussed. Shoo, half the time I don't want to look at my own pictures. Probably because I shot hand held....
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Lol
 
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bsinc1962 said:
I feel like it's a remnant of the days before we all had 8 stops of vr.

"hey look at this shot I took handheld with my ais 500mm f4". A 15lb 3ft long manual focus lens without image stabilization. Back then it might have been impressive and a badge of honor.

Technology has made it a moot point.
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I couldn’t agree more!
 
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Contrary to the majority of posters, I like the technical details included with the photos published on forums or on specialized photo webs. It is so because I am inherently interested in improving the practical side of my shooting. As an example here is an ad-hoc list of the benefits:
  • When looking at a good pan blur it is interesting for me to know if it was hand-held or panned on tripod as it may teach me the limits of it
  • I am definitively interested to see how long times are others capable of, while hand holding a particular lens
  • I am interested to find limits that are present when following quick subjects using a tripod a monopod or handheld
  • It is good to know the f-stop of a picture when thinking about depth of view for a particular composition
  • It is good to know ISO, when deciding what setting to use in similar situations during my own shooting ...
But I find mostly irrelevant the information about the brand of equipment. Such information is useful only if I have an info about technical details of the product. (e.g. the load for a ball head or the min/max height of a tripod)
I agree that such info is not relevant on exhibitions or any other public presentation of the final photo.
 
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DavidT said:
Is it just me or does seeing someone post a picture and specifically call out it was handheld annoying?...
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Generally agree unless there's some sort of contextual reason for mentioning it.

However I also agree with Tibor:
Tibor Hrnko said:
Contrary to the majority of posters, I like the technical details included with the photos published on forums or on specialized photo webs. It is so because I am inherently interested in improving the practical side of my shooting....
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I find value in EXIF data, it informs and educates at a glance by using a common language we can all understand. Stating things like "handheld" less so.

I have strong feelings on this little facet. We're all here for different reasons. I once mentored a fellow that took extensive notes and researched equipment, literally for years. It was an epiphany for me when I realized that it was in the analysis that he found joy. The lesson for me was that I need to make room for everyone. Hobbies can be highly technical and creative at the same time.
 
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While I somewhat agree when viewing wildlife images, it is important information for me when viewing architectural images where precise perspective details are rendered perfectly.... i.e. perpendicular and horizontal lines, etc. in buildings, rooms, ceilings, etc. It takes great skill and attention to detail to create such an image without a tripod.

If that person also enjoys other photographic genres such as wildlife photography, landscapes, etc and their method of tagging their photos includes "handheld" where appropriate, I can't see why it would bother others.

Generalizations - and especially assuming a negative purpose - as to why others do something is likely to lead to false assumptions. I'd like to see folks being a lot less judgemental....but hey! that's just me.
 
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Butlerkid said:
While I somewhat agree when viewing wildlife images, it is important information for me when viewing architectural images where precise perspective details are rendered perfectly.... i.e. perpendicular and horizontal lines, etc. in buildings, rooms, ceilings, etc. It takes great skill and attention to detail to create such an image without a tripod.

If that person also enjoys other photographic genres such as wildlife photography, landscapes, etc and their method of tagging their photos includes "handheld" where appropriate, I can't see why it would bother others.

Generalizations - and especially assuming a negative purpose - as to why others do something is likely to lead to false assumptions. I'd like to see folks being a lot less judgemental....but hey! that's just me.
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Well with software I think it makes the skill a lot less than it once was. Take architectural images, you can use software to fix so many technique and equipment issues is it someone had technical skill taking the picture or fixing the picture? I guess if we take this approach someone should list all of the layers, brushes, and adjustments with a RAW file to really understand how the image was created. To me I don't care.

For others who say we learn from seeing exif data I would ask how? Just because someone has the strength, stability etc to achieve a specific shot say handheld does not mean you will be able to. People have different strengths, age, other limitations or lack of limitations that will allow them to do things you can or can't. As for limitations of my gear, it is better for me to get out and try it and learn for myself than use others getting out and shooting to learn from. There is no replacement for doing it ones self vs watching others do it.

To expand on that say ISO well every camera handles ISO differently, add in was the image properly exposed, cropped, software to overcome noise etc. unless someone is giving you 100% of the story are you really learning anything? Now go out and try for yourself and see what is to your taste, what you can do with your skill level with software matters more to what you will achieve.

I know I have seen reviews of some gear that got crapped on by someone who didn't even know how to use the gear. I have had personal experience that proves otherwise. Who is right and who is wrong? IDK and to me it doesn't matter, to me it is what can I do and what passes my standards.

Just my 2 cents.
 
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DavidT said:
or others who say we learn from seeing exif data I would ask how?
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I said "EXIF" so I think this is me.
I said that I find value in EXIF data. EXIF data is just that, data. That data can be useful to me by helping me to think about how things like shutter speed might change an outcome. Can you allow that one of the motivations for haunting these boards is to learn by seeing what others are doing? I would humbly submit that our host teaches by publishing and explaining specific camera settings of all manner. I understand that "YMMV " always applies.

To say it another way EXIF might help me like this: "There's an awesome image by another guy with the same equipment, conditions and settings. I need to work on...... " (fill in the blank) or "From the EXIF I see what you did there and if I was doing that I would try ......"

I mostly agree with the spirit of what you said and maybe I took us on a tangent. To clarify - I also don't generally care for captions with a tone that implies bragging or excuses like "handheld" or my personal favorite disclaimer "test shot". You are right, at the end of the day I don't know how an image was created end to end and mostly don't care (unless we're specifically discussing software or technique or something). Good images stand on their own with no qualifications.
 
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PhotonThief said:
I said "EXIF" so I think this is me.
I said that I find value in EXIF data. EXIF data is just that, data. That data can be useful to me by helping me to think about how things like shutter speed might change an outcome. Can you allow that one of the motivations for haunting these boards is to learn by seeing what others are doing? I would humbly submit that our host teaches by publishing and explaining specific camera settings of all manner. I understand that "YMMV " always applies.

To say it another way EXIF might help me like this: "There's an awesome image by another guy with the same equipment, conditions and settings. I need to work on...... " (fill in the blank) or "From the EXIF I see what you did there and if I was doing that I would try ......"

I mostly agree with the spirit of what you said and maybe I took us on a tangent. To clarify - I also don't generally care for captions with a tone that implies bragging or excuses like "handheld" or my personal favorite disclaimer "test shot". You are right, at the end of the day I don't know how an image was created end to end and mostly don't care (unless we're specifically discussing software or technique or something). Good images stand on their own with no qualifications.
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That is fair. I suppose it depends on the info provided and the why.
 
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I find it interesting to know how someone took the shot. If there is too much information about the shot, I can always skip the excess. Or not continue. I am happy for people to present as much information as they see fit, and I will read as much as I see fit, and no hard feelings.
 
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I don't find it the least bit annoying, and I'm baffled as to why so many are. Technical data on a photo may be of interest, especially to newer photographers. I also think it's quite rare that a photographer would post that a picture was hand held to "brag."

That said, there are things that bug me in life that most other people don't get. LOL. To each their own. :)
 
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Well crap, I just searched my own posts and found more than a few where I used the H word :eek: ! In retrospect, I think I was doing so, not to brag but subconciously because I can think of several instances where I wish I knew more about the story behind others' images. A couple of examples that come to mind are low light shots and slow shutter speed wildlife panning techniques that @Steve published about. Not everyone has the latest top-of-line gear and/or access to photogenic subjects and these are the cases where I am particularly interested in how the shot was "nailed".
 
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Calson said:
I find it mildly annoying when a picture is published in a photography magazine and they indicate the brand of tripod and ball head and even the brand of memory card that was used by the photographer.
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Prolly the manufacturer gives the magazine/photographer compensation for mentioning their product.
 
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