Will I absolutely have to use a tripod for the 70-200 L is f/4?

cruelkitti · Apr 17, 2012

I am renting a couple lenses for my trip to Bonnaroo in June one being the 70-200 L is f/4 (or would you recommend 2.8? I think I'm counting on good light, but am also going to be doing night shooting), and a decent wide-angle lens.
My question is, will I absolutely have to use a tripod with the L 70-200? I not opposed to it, but I'd like to have mobility on my side sometimes. I have a 50 mm f 1.8 II, the kit lens that came with my t3i, which I'm not fond of, and a super cheapo wide-angle extension, but I really want some pow to commemorate the experience. Of there are any lenses I should consider renting, please feel free to say so. I'm mostly aiming for atmosphere, people,art, not so much the bands, but maybe some shots of the crowd. street photography style.

mobile Kat

480sparky · Apr 17, 2012

Depends on your shutter speed and how steady YOU are.

cruelkitti · Apr 17, 2012

Ack, please forgive my misspellings, I'm only just entering the world of touch screens and auto-correct.

mobile Kat

cruelkitti · Apr 17, 2012

So hand held is possible with high shutter speed? Thanks, that's great to know.

mobile Kat

imagemaker46 · Apr 17, 2012

You can hand hold almost any camera and lens, strength is relative. That lens shouldn't be a problem.

cgipson1 · Apr 17, 2012

Just keep in mind that for optimum sharpness, you should stop down about two stops on the aperture.. which is going to cut light even more...

STM · Apr 17, 2012

Whether it is a zoom or a prime it is pretty much irrelevant, a good rule of thumb for handholding is 1/focal length. So at 70mm, I would not go much below 1/70 (or 1/60 of you prefer) unbraced. Now, keep in ming that is for YOUR movement; subject movement is another animal entirely. If you are steady, you can get below that, but the rule of thumb is a good starting point.

cruelkitti · Apr 17, 2012

Thanks, I was under the impression that the longer barrel would make for more vibration, and therefore rough without a tripod. And I've never seen anybody use one without a tripod. But this is great news, thank you tons. Magnitudes more helpful than other resources I've attempted to tap.

mobile Kat

mjhoward · Apr 17, 2012

cruelkitti said:
Thanks, I was under the impression that the longer barrel would make for more vibration, and therefore rough without a tripod. And I've never seen anybody use one without a tripod. But this is great news, thank you tons. Magnitudes more helpful than other resources I've attempted to tap.

mobile Kat

I've used the 800 5.6L handheld at a college football game from the press box. Photos came out tack sharp... my arm was pretty tired though and I'm not sure if they would have come out nearly as well without IS enabled. For 70-200 f/4 which only weighs 1.5 lbs, you should have no problems. As long as your area is well lit, you should have enough shutter speed to mitigate any 'shake'.

cruelkitti · Apr 17, 2012

Thanks so much, I can't express my gratitude enough. I'm new to dslr ownership and have never used any other lenses aside from the ones I own, so it's great to get advice from those with experience. I don't know any photographers personally that are willing to divulge their hard-earned knowledge, so again, thanks

mobile Kat

TCampbell · Apr 17, 2012

There's a formula that gets you in the ballpark: In order to have a photo free of blur caused by camera movement, the minimum shutter speed should be 1/(focal length)*(crop factor)

So if you're shooting with an APS-C camera (crop factor = 60% or 1.6) and you're at 200mm, then your minimum shutter speed should be 1 / (200 * 1.6) or 1/320th.

The BIGGER question is: Can you take your camera & 70-200mm lens to Bonnaroo? Most music venues won't allow you to bring in a camera that has a "removable lens".

I just came back from Coachella and that's the rule there (point & shoots & camera phones were all welcome... but no "professional camera" where "professional" was defined as any camera with a "removable lens".

cruelkitti · Apr 17, 2012

Oh no! I've taken my camera to music festivals...I just assumed that it would be acceptable at Bonnaroo, but if Coachella doesn't allow 'em...oh man, I'm worried now :-( thx for the heads up. Ugh.

mobile Kat

sovietdoc · Apr 25, 2012

Whenever I try to shoot people with my 70-200, by the time I've taken it out, and mounted my camera to tripod, there is nobody left to shoot. They've all ran away..

..scared.

I guess big glass with a lens hood on and "Canon" spelled out really intimidates people.