Safety Shift

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Archive 2011 · Safety Shift

ssc45
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p.1 #1 · Safety Shift

I had enabled the safety shift on my 1dm3 for AV/TV. I had done this some months back and forgot. On my 40D I had auto ISO, which was OK, and used it a few times. The 1dm3 doesn't have auto ISO, but you can set the SS for ISO. So I am shooting the pipeline masters surfing competition here in Hawaii and take 1300 pictures the first day and when I get back to review them, many of the pics are OOF. I had set the camera to TV at 1250 and ISO to 200 and took a few test shots and got the ap at f8. However, in the changing light and conditions, the SS had lowered the speed down to 500 for some pictures. Also, the camera ran a bit sluggish and I do not know how to better say it. Just seemed slower.

Needless to say, I disabled the SS and hit the beach for day two, raised the ISO to 400 and problem solved. Just a heads-up from an idiot who forgot to check ALL my settings before hand.

Aloha, Steve

Dec 10, 2011 at 05:37 PM

EB-1
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p.1 #2 · Safety Shift

Aren't you looking through the camera and seeing the exposure settings in real time, or is it a remote rig? Manual exposure does not work for you?

EBH

Dec 10, 2011 at 05:41 PM

Fr3d
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p.1 #3 · Safety Shift

I hate safety shift, it bites me every time when I forgot that I enabled it.

Dec 10, 2011 at 07:33 PM

Richard Nye
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p.1 #4 · Safety Shift

I've got my 1D4 and 1Ds3 set up so I can download the camera settings from the SD card (I have a set of settings for surfing). That way I'm less likely to do something boneheaded.

I always shoot surfing in M because the crashing waves will really screw up the exposure. Set your exposure on clear blue sky and forgetaboutit. The camera is very responsive (doesn't have to calculate exposure each frame) and exposure is right (or close) each frame.

Dec 10, 2011 at 07:57 PM

stanj
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p.1 #5 · Safety Shift

I have been using SS since the T90 days and love it. Just think about it, what would have happened in your case had you just turned it off? You would be shooting at Tv 1250 and eventually would have ended up with underexposed shots once you had reached the maximum aperture - just like with SS on. Would that have been better? The ISO 200 would have been too slow either way, with or without SS. The problem is you forgot to bump the ISO, not that you forgot to turn off SS.

With SS on, you could have seen the different shutter speed throughout the viewfinder, as had been pointed out, if you can't hear it (which you apparently did but didn't check what's up). With SS off you would have to review the actual images to see they're underexposed. So that's even more work.

Dec 10, 2011 at 08:43 PM

ssc45
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p.1 #6 · Safety Shift

Hi all. Surfing is exciting to me and I prefer to use TV. When using manual, I have more exposure issues. We have gone from dark skys, clouds, rain, blue sky and bright sunshine in as many minutes. Plus, when a surfer clears a wave and has nothing but sky behind him vs dropping into a dark pipe or coming out of a dark wave into a sea of white foam, I have had better luck with TV. Also, I am enjoying the action and don't concentrate on my settings in the viewfinder as much as tracking the surfer and anticipating his next move. So, as FR said, it bit me and as I stated, I made a stupid mistake. Further, I had no reason to check the speed because I forgot about the SS. I was checking the histogram. And yes it would have been better for me to have had underexposed shots as I would have noticed that in the histogram. I would have preferred underexposed sharp images vs proper exposed OOF shots, if those were the only choices. Frankly, I prefer properly exposed sharp pics

and making dumb mistakes like this will help me learn. And the reason I was checking the histogram was to see if I needed to bump the ISO. So, for me, the problem was that I forgot to turn off the SS. I learned a good lesson and now know if the camera seems slow/sluggish, that I need to check my settings.

Aloha, Steve

Dec 11, 2011 at 01:53 AM

jcolwell
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p.1 #7 · Safety Shift

mumble, mumble...

Edited on Dec 11, 2011 at 02:03 AM · View previous versions

Dec 11, 2011 at 01:59 AM

BrianO
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p.1 #8 · Safety Shift

ssc45 wrote: ...I would have preferred underexposed sharp images vs proper exposed OOF shots, if those were the only choices.

I think you're confusing seperate issues. Exposure errors don't affect focus, since autofocus happens before the exposure. Do you mean motion blur? That would be caused by a too-slow shutter speed.

Dec 11, 2011 at 02:01 AM

Ferrophot
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p.1 #9 · Safety Shift

There was a time when most of my FPTs (Finger Put Throughs) were caused by deficiencies in the equipment, mostly shooting action in low light with 100 ASA slide film. I seem to get the same number of Ds (Deletes) now but nearly all of these are my fault because I've forgotten some previous setting or the control dial has turned halfway between settings all by itself. Ahhhh! the joys of photography.
When shooting action the viewfinder exposure readings are not seen, you tend to be concentrating on the action, framing the shot, looking for the next moment to fire.
I was recently in Africa and got so taken by the scene in the viewfinder I forgot to press the shutter, new experience for me.

Dec 11, 2011 at 02:11 AM

jcolwell
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p.1 #10 · Safety Shift

Ferrophot wrote:
... got so taken by the scene in the viewfinder I forgot to press the shutter, new experience for me.

Been there. A few years ago, I was staking out a big tree with a Bald Eagle nest in it. The base of the tree is next to a 40-50ft cliff, which is about 30 ft above a river. You can go to the top of the cliff, and you're about 30 ft below the nest, which is about 70 ft above the base. Anyway, I was standing there, gears in hand, waiting for one of the adults to come home. I heard the wind flowing over its wings as it approached the tree. It was flying low, near the river. I saw it swoop upwards, preparing to land on a big branch about 6 feet above my head. As it approached, it fanned its wings with talons extended, and then it looked sideways into the forest, and saw me... Then, it did a sort of discontinuous, aerial double-take, glided up and over the branch, and it was gone. I forgot to raise the camera to my eye, let alone push the shutter button. Regardless, it's still in my mind's eye.

Dec 11, 2011 at 02:33 AM

ssc45
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p.1 #11 · Safety Shift

Brian, you are correct. I did not express myself correctly. Thanks for the clarification. And yes, I have learned over the years that most issues are my fault and not the equipment. I do know what you all mean about shooting exciting situations. Got into a bit of a scrape with a black rhino in Zim and all my pics were underexposed.

Aloha, Steve

Dec 11, 2011 at 04:29 AM

BrianO
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p.1 #12 · Safety Shift

ssc45 wrote: ...Got into a bit of a scrape with a black rhino in Zim and all my pics were underexposed.

You managed to get any photos?!?

You're a braver man than I!

Underexposed or overexposed wouldn't have been an issue with me; I would have been, like...

(I don't see a "Climb a tree and shake like a leaf" emoticon.)

Dec 11, 2011 at 11:58 PM

BennyR
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p.1 #13 · Safety Shift

First thing I do when I get a new camera is enable SS. I'd rather get a shot outside of the preferred setting than get a badly mis-exposed shot.

Dec 12, 2011 at 03:11 AM

ssc45
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p.1 #14 · Safety Shift

Had three too close encounters with Black Rhino, but it is the too close encounters with snakes that cause me to run, screaming like a little girl.

Cheers, Steve

Dec 12, 2011 at 04:33 AM

Beni
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p.1 #15 · Safety Shift

I don't have SS for iso on my 5D but love it there, I'm a wide open shooter and often it will save me when the sun comes out, shooting at f2.8 rather than f1.8 is better than blowing out by two stops!

Dec 12, 2011 at 01:16 PM

Scott Stoness
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p.1 #16 · Safety Shift

I don't like shutter priority or safety shift for that reason. In the heat of the moment you get surprises. I have been burned on wolves that are almost a once in the lifetime event by shutter priority underexposing.

Aperture priority with auto ISO or just aperture priority or manual is the answer.

Scott

Dec 12, 2011 at 01:54 PM

Ian.Dobinson
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p.1 #17 · Safety Shift

Ok this is slightly off topic but since you mentioned it
ssc45 wrote:
I had enabled the safety shift on my 1dm3 for AV/TV. I had done this some months back and forgot. On my 40D I had auto ISO, which was OK, and used it a few times. The 1dm3 doesn't have auto ISO, .

Aloha, Steve

The auto iso On the 40D (and any other body I have used per the 40D) is absolutely crap. It basically just thinks you either need 400iso or 1600iso . I had a 50D for a very short time and can say that in that body (and probably others since) was a joy. I used it for a couple of days just set to auto and reviewing all my images the iso's used were probably the complete set from 100 upwards (including all the in between ones)

Dec 12, 2011 at 02:41 PM

BrianO
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p.1 #18 · Safety Shift

Scott Stoness wrote: ... I have been burned...by shutter priority underexposing. Aperture priority...or manual is the answer.

How would Av not underexpose but Tv would? Although Tv might give an unwanted DoF by setting an aperture that's "wrong" for the subject (just as Av might cause motion blur by picking a shutter speed that's "wrong"), the actual exposure values the two modes pick would be the same, wouldn't they?

Dec 12, 2011 at 06:54 PM

Scott Stoness
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p.1 #19 · Safety Shift

BrianO wrote:
Scott Stoness wrote: ... I have been burned...by shutter priority underexposing. Aperture priority...or manual is the answer.

How would Av not underexpose but Tv would? Although Tv might give an unwanted DoF by setting an aperture that's "wrong" for the subject (just as Av might cause motion blur by picking a shutter speed that's "wrong"), the actual exposure values the two modes pick would be the same, wouldn't they?

Aperture priority with auto iso, will first increase the ISO to maintain the 1/mm of lens, to 3200 ISO, and then move down the shutter speed if it needs to. Which corresponds to what I would do in poor light. Shutter priority/with auto ISO, increases the ISO until 3200, but then underexposes to maintain the shutter speed. I would rather try for a shot with a lower shutter speed than have severely underexposed shots. But paying attention to lcd from time to time is needed to optimize the choices in any event. I was referring to a quick opportunity that does not leave you time to change.

Dec 12, 2011 at 07:38 PM

BrianO
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p.1 #20 · Safety Shift

BrianO wrote: How would Av not underexpose but Tv would? Although Tv might give an unwanted DoF by setting an aperture that's "wrong" for the subject (just as Av might cause motion blur by picking a shutter speed that's "wrong"), the actual exposure values the two modes pick would be the same, wouldn't they?

Scott Stoness wrote: Aperture priority with auto iso, will first increase the ISO to maintain the 1/mm of lens, to 3200 ISO, and then move down the shutter speed if it needs to. Which corresponds to what I would do in poor light. Shutter priority/with auto ISO, increases the ISO until 3200, but then underexposes to maintain the shutter speed.

Okay, you're saying that Av with Auto ISO can give a different exposure than Tv with Auto ISO. That wasn't clear to me from your post above when you wrote, "Aperture priority with auto ISO or just aperture priority or manual is the answer."

I follow you now. Thanks.

Dec 12, 2011 at 07:46 PM

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