all jammed up!...why?

[jboldbird]

:help:Hi..can someone please give me an answer to this - - I am tryilng to find my way around my new camera - canon 400d - bought 'Dummies' - so decided to try to help with camera shake by going onto something called 'Mirror lock' - i enabled it - and the whole thing jammed up and the camera went peculiar..couldnt take photos...made funny click etc...Can someone please tell me why this happened.....
i have since disabled 'mirror lock'......
hope you can help.....Jackie

[CT]

The reason you have mirror lock up, is that under normal usage, when you press the shutter, the mirror shoots up and then the shutter opens, two processes that can cause camera shake in long exposures.

Mirror lock up is used to lock the mirror up before you take the shot to eliminate vibration from the mirror. In practice, once you enable mirror lock up, you need to press the shutter twice - the first press flips the mirror up and the second press takes the shot.

Is the camera OK now?

[jboldbird]

yes...i cancelled all settings...i was so frustrated with it...i didn't realise what i had done...it kept me occupied for quite a time....
thanks for the explanation.....
is there a way of stopping camera shake other than a tripod?

[2blue4u]

is there a way of stopping camera shake other than a tripod? I have a technique that I can highly recommend. It does involve some drinking.......

:nuts:

[CT]

Have a look at this thread Jacky - it'll give you some idea what goes on inside your camera.

CLICK (http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=24171)

Camera shake isn't a problem and you don't need a tripod as long as your shutter speed is fast enough to avoid shake when hand holding. The rule of thumb is that the shutter speed needs to be at least the same as the focal length of the lens you're using.

50mm.....1/50th

100mm.... 1/100th.

and so on up to

1000mm....1/1000th.

Mirror lock up isn't something you'll need to use too often so I really wouldn't bother too much with it at this early stage. It tends to be used with extreme macro close up and very long exposures on a tripod. :)

[CT]

I have a technique that I can highly recommend. It does involve some drinking.......

:nuts:

Works for me too, but doesn't do much for the content. :D

[jboldbird]

looks good to me....

[jboldbird]

thats an easy format...i have a 60 mm....so that would be 1/60?.........thanks

[CT]

thats an easy format...i have a 60 mm....so that would be 1/60?.........thanks

You got it! :thumbs:

Consider that the minimum - go quicker if you can - us human beans are the most unstable platforms and we're all better some days than others. ;)