D850 Techniques to get sharp photos

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Ado Wolf

Ado Wolf

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I recently decided to purchase the D850 (my first full frame camera). Why not the Z 7ii? because I dislike the use of the FTZ and I am heavily invested in F glass (not to mention the price difference).

I read (reviews) and heard (on Youtube videos) that one must improve his technique to get sharp photos with the D850 (drawback of a 45 MP sensor -> flaws magnified). Other than higher speeds (due to smaller pixel size) and the use of a tripod (whenever possible) what technique improvements do I have to consider?

I assume using the D850 Hand-held is still possible, right? If not, then it defeats the purpose of me buying it.

Thanks in advance and happy shooting.
 
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Ado Wolf said:
I recently decided to purchase the D850 (my first full frame camera). Why not the Z 7ii? because I dislike the use of the FTZ and I am heavily invested in F glass (not to mention the price difference).

I read (reviews) and heard (on Youtube videos) that one must improve his technique to get sharp photos with the D850 (drawback of a 45 MP sensor -> flaws magnified). Other than higher speeds (due to smaller pixel size) and the use of a tripod (whenever possible) what technique improvements do I have to consider?

I assume using the D850 Hand-held is still possible, right? If not, then it defeats the purpose of me buying it.

Thanks in advance and happy shooting.
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Hi Ado. I agree with Pistonbroke, absolutely no reason not to hand hold a D850. I use a D5, D850 and Z6 and I hand hold and use tripods with all of them. I love the D850 and it is arguably one of the best SLR camera ever made. I always shoot RAW, so there are no images that are not processed in some way. I certainly have no issue with sharpness in the final images. I personally like working with the D850 files the most, although they are the largest.
Agree with you on the FTZ. I love the new Z lenses but until I can justify spending a lot more money on Z lenses and there is more availability, SLRs will be my choice 70% of the time. The FTZ works OK but is a slight compromise. What does sway me towards mirrorless and Nikon Z lenses the most, are lenses like the Z14-30f4. For a much cheaper price than my 14-24f2.8, it is more compact and out performs it. If that continues in the future, it will be my way forward.
 
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ingweDave said:
Agree with you on the FTZ. I love the new Z lenses but until I can justify spending a lot more money on Z lenses and there is more availability, SLRs will be my choice 70% of the time. The FTZ works OK but is a slight compromise. What does sway me towards mirrorless and Nikon Z lenses the most, are lenses like the Z14-30f4. For a much cheaper price than my 14-24f2.8, it is more compact and out performs it. If that continues in the future, it will be my way forward.
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Couldn't agree more (y) With time I too will make the jump to Z system and will replace lenses along the way.

@Pistnbroke thank you for the "hand-held" confirmation. That is why I handle YouTube Info with precaution and rely more on real-life experiences and inputs from this Forum.
 
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I hand hold my D850 and get decent results.

I found that going from my beloved D700 to a D810 resulted in me having to up my game, principally abandoning the 1/focal length shutter speed rule. I had to go 1.5x or more.
Same thing happened when I got my D850. Now 2x focal length minimum.
 
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Ado Wolf said:
I assume using the D850 Hand-held is still possible, right?
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Yup, as others have posted I hand hold my D850 all the time. I do tend to bump the shutter speed a bit over what I might do with lower resolution cameras and might be a bit quicker to grab the tripod as light levels drop compared to say my D5 but I shoot a lot of images hand held with my D850.
 
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I use a tripod when convenient or when testing a lens for sharpness with my D850; otherwise it is all hand held. Really good glass helps too; I use only Nikon glass. Don't be shy about upping the ISO when using a D850; I was at Disneyland in June 2019, took pics of "Phantasmic", the laser and light and pyrotechnics show after dark; I had no choice but to shoot hand held and at ISO 1600, most of those shots came out fine. My personal favorite lens to use for after dark work is actually an old Nikkor 28mm f/2.8 manual focus from film days. I believe shooting technique is very important; I know people who get fuzzy shots even when using a VR type Nikon lens. My opinion, practice as much as you can and use anything available to help steady yourself for the shot.
 
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When I made the jump to full frame, it was from a D7100 to a D850; jumped into the deep end of the pool. I had a Z6 II and FTZ adapter for a couple of weeks, back when B & H was offering their extended return policy for the holidays; I never turned on the Z6 II, did not even charge the battery. It was my first time having that FTZ in my hands. Just did not like the idea of using an adapter in spite of what others have said about it. Returned the Z6 II and adapter and am content with my D850 and D7100; I use only full frame glass even on the D7100. It helps me to have enough lens on the D850 to balance out the system for hand holding. That Nikkor 28mm prime is dwarfed by the size of the D850 body; not so with a 24-70 f.2.8 or 70-200 f/2.8 on the D850, the extra weight helps me.
 
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As others have said the D850 is hand holdable ... the "technique improvement" really boils down to not getting sloppy with your every day technique, keep VR on, hold with solid stance elbow placement etc., roll shutter do not jab etc. nothing really new. Although as @DRwyoming mentioned and @Steve has said in his videos, AF book and sharp photos with long lenses especially on BIF benefit from faster shutter speeds. The rule of thumb of shutter speed at least equal to the focal length can be fudged a lot more with today's VR technology but I still stick with it best I can with my D500 and D6 and even more so with my D850 in fact if I am at 600 mm my default starting shutter speed on my D850 is 1/1250 a second and gets faster as the action gets faster unless I want to blur wings etc. to show more motion.
 
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@DRwyoming yes, I am starting to "train myself" to always take my monopod with me. I know it will add weight to my bag, but I am considering leaving one camera body behind (in the future), Now I have the D7500+300PF and D7200+16-35f4 combo. In the future maybe I will just take the D850+300PF and only the 16-35 f4 lens.

@flyguy Yes, I do my best to steady my hand-held shots, like leaning against a tree, placing the camera on my knee (in squat position), etc. I too use only full frame glass on my D7200 and D7500, cause I knew I was going to make the switch one day (budget was and is the only restriction). For low light situations I use the 24 mm f1.8 (it would have been amazing if that lens had VR). The only 2 lenses I still have on my wish-list are the 24/70 f2.8 and 500 PF

@Ken Miracle yes, I am not done reading Steve's book, but I did come across "double your speed on the D850". Since I go almost daily in the woods, I will test the different speeds and ISO combinations to see where my "acceptable sharpness" limit lies. My subjects / critters are mostly in relaxed mode (feeding or wondering about), only 10% of my shots are in full action, and that is only because the critter saw me and is trying to flee.
 
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Ado Wolf said:
@DRwyoming yes, I am starting to "train myself" to always take my monopod with me. I know it will add weight to my bag, but I am considering leaving one camera body behind (in the future), Now I have the D7500+300PF and D7200+16-35f4 combo. In the future maybe I will just take the D850+300PF and only the 16-35 f4 lens.

@flyguy Yes, I do my best to steady my hand-held shots, like leaning against a tree, placing the camera on my knee (in squat position), etc. I too use only full frame glass on my D7200 and D7500, cause I knew I was going to make the switch one day (budget was and is the only restriction). For low light situations I use the 24 mm f1.8 (it would have been amazing if that lens had VR). The only 2 lenses I still have on my wish-list are the 24/70 f2.8 and 500 PF

@Ken Miracle yes, I am not done reading Steve's book, but I did come across "double your speed on the D850". Since I go almost daily in the woods, I will test the different speeds and ISO combinations to see where my "acceptable sharpness" limit lies. My subjects / critters are mostly in relaxed mode (feeding or wondering about), only 10% of my shots are in full action, and that is only because the critter saw me and is trying to flee.
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I also did not mention I have a long history of shotgunning (bird hunting and sporting clays) and target rifle shooting and with long lenses my holding/stance and panning techniques come from many thousands of hours of muscle memory :) And to use the heavier lenses that by themselves add stability I lift weights 3 times a week ... at 72 I have to work hard at staying fit to photograph.
 
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Lessons learned in shooting competitive rifle, the breathing and squeezing off the shot, help me with tracking targets and following through and releasing the shutter with minimal disturbance. There have been times when, getting ready to release the shutter, I will have to restart the process especially the breathing part, then proceed.
 
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Ken Miracle said:
I also did not mention I have a long history of shotgunning (bird hunting and sporting clays) and target rifle shooting and with long lenses my holding/stance and panning techniques come from many thousands of hours of muscle memory :) And to use the heavier lenses that by themselves add stability I lift weights 3 times a week ... at 72 I have to work hard at staying fit to photograph.
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Apart from the age we share the same "hobbies". I too started hunting at the age of 10 (as well as fishing). It was hard for me at first (being an animal lover) but when I realized that we ate everything we shot, it became easier with time. So yes, muscle memory helps with setting up the shot quickly and finding the critter with long lenses. You also quickly take the "stance" to provide a higher degree of stability.

@flyguy Absolutely, breathing and pulling the trigger is a great way to increase stability and sharpness of photos (something passed from hunting over to photography).
 
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fcotterill said:
I recommend buying a detailed 3rd party e-manual by Thom Hogan or David Busch. This is money well spent, including optimizing the AF

Also take a moment to read back into articles etc that responded to the flood of questions etc soon after the camera was launched
including these: https://www.dslrbodies.com/cameras/camera-blogs/the-d850-blog/

The Best Lenses for the Nikon D850 | DSLRBodies | Thom Hogan

Best lenses for the Nikon D850 DSLR
www.dslrbodies.com www.dslrbodies.com
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That list from Hogan was created from old Nikon data and when he or who ever wrote it had not seen or tested the D850 lens combo ... the most real world tests are from DXOmark and even they have become a bit more suspect as they moved into marketing editing software etc. https://www.dxomark.com ... pieces from people like Hogan are what led me to @Steve and his reviews and his book on the Secrets to the Nikon Autofocus System that he updated after hands on use of the D850.
 
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Of course you can handhold high pixel density digital cameras and get good results, but there are things to focus on (pun intended). 1) practice holding the camera steady rolling your finger across the shutter button. You know you are doing it right when the focus point you see in the viewfinder does not move before and after you press the button. Practice with both VR on and VR off; 2) use the guideline shutter speed >= 1/focal length, but VR might let you get away with a bit lower shutter speeds; 3) Start a sequence with a fast shutter speed that may require a higher ISO, meaning higher than acceptable noise, then drop the shutter speed (ISO) in half and shoot again then drop the shutter speed (ISO) in half and shoot again, ... , this increases the chances of getting at least one sharp image at a reasonable ISO ; 4) IF your subject in lower light is reasonably still take several shots at a higher ISO and average them together as you cut the ISO in half by averaging 2 images in PP ;5) hold down the shutter button and take several shots. If you jerk the shutter button there is a good chance one of shots in the middle of the sequence will be sharp.
 
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My D 850 and 500 PF are my 99% camera. I shoot birds, and initially my pics were less than anticipated. I learned one must really up the shutter speed, I am usually at 1/1600, but have no problem going higher. Don’t own a tripod, and completely satisfied with my set up. Don’t have a clue what to add, after I bought the $$$ larger battery and charger for the battery grip. I rarely shoot more than 3 or 4 pics at a time, but for a bird in flight, could easily be 30 or 40.

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Ado, totally agree with the comments above, the biggest learning curve for me with the D850 was not to new too shy with a higher shutter speed. This was shot handheld using a 300mm 2.8D (Non VR) with a 1,4 tc. as a test when I first got the lens. ISO was high at 3200 as I used a speed of 1/1600 in case it flew. Post processing cleaned the noise but the key thing was getting the sharpness in the image. Yes its a learning curve from the D500 but using a high res full frame helped me to keep applying best photographic practice. Steve’s video tutorials on getting sharp pictures and also shooting wildlife contain a lot of very helpful info. Biggest problem for me with soft images is heat haze - I live in Kenya - by not getting close enough to the subject, trying to be greedy with long glass and also not filing the frame.
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I haven't seen difraction or mirror bounce mentioned yet. The D850 gives you an electronic shutter (in live view) so even the shutter vibration is eliminated, and the focus shift feature give you automatic focus stacking so you can shoot at f/8 on anything not moving. Steve has a good video on that subject. It's so easy I've worked it into my typical workflow for landscapes and cityscapes. Steve's videos and ebooks are as good as it gets on sharpness/autofocus issues.
 
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I shoot in "Q" mode with all my Nikon DSLRs; some bodies are noisier than others. For me "Q" does help some. Whenever I use a tripod for landscpes and non moving subjects I prefer to use the in camera exposure delay, custom option d5 in the D850 menu.
 
I had a D3400 then upgraded to D500 and use my wife's D7500 sometimes then, I bought a new D850 about a year ago. My image quality went up when I started using the D850. Side by side I didn't notice any loss in sharpness handheld or otherwise. The high res is nice.
 
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The key as has been stated is to get the shutter speed up. I find shooting in Manual mode with Auto ISO works very well to feel comfortable with higher shutter speeds. Acceptable and correctable noise can be had at ISOs up to 3200-6400 With the D850. In my opininion, don’t shy away from shooting toward the wide end of the aperture. While it can be important to have your wildlife/BIF subject sharp from front to back most people will find your images WOW! If you have the eye and head tack sharp. When you get the shutter speed up to 1 / 3x focal length or faster try some shots with VR off whether on a tripod or handheld. Opinions are mixed on this so just try it for yourself.
 
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Hi Ado. You made a great decision when acquiring the D850 instead of any Z camera, in addition to the points that you mention, you have to add the poor battery life, which is of the most importance, especially if you do animal photography where the burst is essential. I am a bird photographer and I use my 2 D850s - one with a battery grip and the other without - and in both cases I have no difficulty even in hand held; not to mention its performance in terms of sharpness, noise, focus speed, etc.! Go ahead and enjoy this monster camera. Greetings from Chile. Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus)
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