To get the best from any lens here are some things that you should be doing:怎样充分挖掘一支镜头的潜力?建议取下:
Use a solid tripod For 95% of the landscape, nature and wildlife work that I do I use a tripod. Religiously. I own three; big, bigger and biggest. Just about the only time I hand-hold a camera is when I'm doing documentary-style street shooting. Hand-holding usually leads to inferior images, particularly in landscape and nature photography.
使用结实的三角架我的风景摄影,自然和野生动物摄影95%都使用三角架。严格的说我有三个三角架:大的,更大的,和最大的。只有一种情况我会手持相机拍摄- 那就是街头纪实摄影。手持相机常常会导致劣质图象,特别是风景和自然摄影时。
Use mirror lock-up and a cable release. Vibration; any vibration, is a sharpness killer. Don't hand-hold a lens at a slow shutter speed and a wide aperture and then worry about whether the lenses sharp or not. What are you thinking of?
使用反光板锁定和快门线。 震动,任何震动都是锐度的死敌。不要在慢速快门和大光圈时手持相机,然后再去担心镜头的锐度。你到底在想什么?
Image Stabilization. Whether it's Canon's IS or Nikon's VR, this is one of the greatest innovations in lens design of the last quarter century. It works, and it works damn well. for serious long lens work, even when working on a tripod, Canon's family of Image Stabilized "L" series lenses are worth their weight in gold (which partially explains their price).
图象稳定器 不管是佳能的IS(image stabilization)还是尼康的VR(vibration reduction),都是近25年来镜头设计上最伟大的发明。它们确实真有用,而且是真TMD有用!当使用长焦镜头来进行严肃的摄影创作时,即使是使用三角架,佳能“L”系列IS镜头的图象稳定器之作用也珍贵如金,这也就是为什么它们都那么贵。
(猫熊声明:此处有朋友提出异议,因为传统上大家认为上架子后为了获得最好的质量,一般建议是关闭防抖系统的,总之一家之言,仅供参考)Use the lens' optimum aperture. This is typically not with the lens wide open, and never when stopped all the way down. Only the finest lenses are as sharp wide-open as when closed down somewhat, and no lens is at its best when stopped down to f/22 or f/32, due to diffraction effects. Most lenses have their optimum aperture at 2-3 stops down from wide open. 用镜头的最佳光圈 一个镜头的最佳锐度通常不在最大光圈或者最小光圈处。只有那些最昂贵的镜头在最大光圈时才会和光圈小两档时的光学表现一样好。由于衍射作用,没有一个镜头的最佳锐度是在光圈F22或者F32。绝大多数镜头的最佳锐度在最大光圈小两到三档处。
Use fine-grain, high-resolution film You want to be able to see what you've paid all that money for, don't you? Of course using such film means ISO speeds of under 100, which means that a tripod, cable release and mirror lock-up are a necessity when combined with the use of the lens' optimum aperture. 用细颗粒高解像度胶卷 花了那么多钱,你一直想得到最佳解像度的图片,不是吗?当使用最佳光圈时,你还应该同时使用ISO100或者更低速的胶卷(如ISO50的 FUJI VELVIA - 译者注),相机的反光板锁定功能,三角架,以及快门线。
Your image processing technique and equipment must be as good as your photographic technique and your lenses. Whether in the chemical or the digital darkroom; whether using an enlarger or a computer, anything less than the finest tools and techniques will obviate whatever investment you've made i n fine lenses. 你的图象后期处理设备和技术也应该和你的摄影技术和镜头一样好不管是传统的化学药水暗室还是现代的数码暗室;不管是用放大机还是用电脑,一旦你的后期处理设备和技术不是最好的,你在镜头上的投资将化为乌有。
Can you honestly say that your prints match your hopes for a given image? It may not be your lens that's at fault. It may be what you're doing and the tools that you're using after the photograph was taken that's limiting your ultimate image quality. 有时候你也许会抱怨:这照片质量怎么这么差?!但那可能不是你镜头的错。那很有可能是你的后期处理设备和技术不够好,镜头再好也是白搭。(冲洗药水配方不精确或者反复使用次数太多,或者冲洗时间把握不好,相纸不够好,打印机不够好,或者PHOTOSHOP水平太烂等等等等-译者注)
If all of the above are not part of your everyday shooting technique then you're likely not getting the most from your expensive lenses. Only when you've given a lens every chance to show its best do you have the right to determine if its performing at its best. 如果以上这些你没有全部做到,你的那些昂贵的专业镜头也没法得到好照片。只有当你注意了以上所有这些,你才能决断你的镜头是否达到了它的最佳性能。
Think about the variables standing between a scene in front of the camera and a print hanging on the wall. A large number of factors determine whether or not the print will be sharp. 看看那些挂在墙上的照片,回想一下相机镜头前的实际场景,它们之间可能有很多差异。有太多因素决定一张照片的最终清晰度,或者锐度:
The lens' resolution capabilities; The film's resolution capabilities; Camera and/or subject motion; Aperture used and consequent depth of field as well as use of optimum aperture. Film flatness — is the pressure-plate doing its job properly? Film thickness — are all layers in the film (color) bringing the image into focus.镜头的解像能力;胶卷的解像能力;相机或被摄体的移动;所用的光圈以及其相应景深;是否使用了最佳光圈;胶卷平度- 相机的压力盘(压住胶卷的那个小长方形盘)正常工作吗?(也就是胶卷是稳妥的否上好了-译者注)
胶卷厚度 - ???(这里我不知道怎么翻译,请各位高手指点。译者注。)
Film grain — sometimes grain makes images look sharper — sometimes the opposite! 胶卷颗粒- 有时候颗粒使图片看起来更锐利,而有时候则正好相反!
Enlarger parallelism — many aren't, and sharpness suffers 放大机的平衡度- 许多并不平, 所以也达不到最佳锐度;
Negative carrier precision and film flatness 底片输送机的精确度和胶卷的平度;
Enlarging lens quality and aperture used 放大机的镜头质量和所用光圈;
Resolution of the printing paper used 相纸的解像度;
Of course digital post-processing has its own issues, including... 当然数码后期处理也有相应的问题, 它们包括:
The film flatness capabilities of the scanner's carrier; The native resolution of the scanner chip and firmware; The Sharpening level applied in post-processing ; The native resolution of the printer; The resolution of the printing paper used. 扫描仪的胶片输送器是否平整?扫描仪本身的解像力以及其所用的驱动软件;后期处理对锐度的调整;打印机本身的解像度;所用打印纸的解像力;
For digital cameras many of the same issues as for film cameras apply, as well as those for digital image processing.
See what I mean? The sharpness of a given lens is just one of a myriad of factors, and usually not the most important one, in determining if a print will look "sharp". 对数码相机来说,传统相机的许多注意事项和数码后期处理的原理也同样适用。
那我以上所说的到底是什么意思?镜头的锐度只是决定最终照片锐度的众多因素之一, 而且往往不是最重要的因素。
The Bottom Line
Are you ready for this? Here's the big one. The one big truth that I've learned about this subject after more than 40 years as a photographer, and which summarizes the points above. 底线
准备好了吗?这就是最终答案。作为摄影师40年来我一直在钻研镜头锐度这个问题,答案就是我上面所总结的这句话。
“Most Lenses are Better Than Most Photographers"
Does this idea make you uncomfortable? Good. That's what it's meant to do. Think about it. “大多数镜头比大多数摄影师要好”
这句话让你觉得不爽吗?很好。这正是我要的效果。想想看。
Yes, there is a difference between brands. There definitely is something special about many Leica lenses, and Zeiss lenses are generally superb. Top Nikon and Canon glass can be as good as it gets. On the other side of the coin, some Sigma-Tamron -Tokina lenses are indeed so much junk. Some though are pretty good. 是的, 镜头品牌之间是有差异的。莱卡(LEICA)镜头肯定有它特别之处,蔡司(ZEISS)镜头总体上来说是顶级的。顶级的尼康和佳能镜头也几近完美。从另外一方面来说,有些镜头,如适马(SIGMA),腾龙(TAMRON)和图丽(TOKINA)简直就是垃圾,但有些确实也相当不错。
All of these statements are based on personal experience. None though are universal truths. But it's my unquestionable experience that it is rare indeed that I ever see photographs taken by folks that fret about these issues that even come close to matching the capabilities of even the least pretentious of lenses. 以上这些都是我个人经验的总结。没有一个是绝对正确。但是这是我个人不容置疑的宝贵经验。这些年来我遇到不少摄影者,他们对怎样发挥镜头的最佳解像度一知半解或者根本一无所知,却老是在那里抱怨镜头不够锐利。
This is why there are those folks that makes the claims that they do about some lenses or brands, or countries of origin, while there are others who say that they don't see the differences. This isn't a case of "the emperor's new clothes". It's often just a matter of experience and skill, each of which can be acquired if one has the will. 这就是为什么有的人坚持说不同镜头品牌,不同镜头系列,或者不同产地的镜头之间差别甚大,而有的人说他们看不出有什么区别。这并不是新编“皇帝的新衣”。通常这是摄影经验和技术所造成的,如果你愿意的话,这些经验和技术都是可以学到的。
So, unless you are utilizing all of your photographic skills and know what to look for and how to achieve it, stop worrying so much about sharpness. Buy the lens that fits within your budget and that meets the needs of the type of shooting that you do. Most of all, stop worrying and just enjoy doing your photography. 因此,在你完全掌握所有摄影相关技巧之前,别再过多担心镜头的锐度了。买那些你买得起的镜头,以及那些与拍摄类型相符的镜头。最重要的,别担心了,好好享受摄影的乐趣吧。
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版权声明:任何转载请先征得我的书面同意,我也将和原英文作者联系。谢谢合作。原文联接如下:
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/sharp.shtml 本文的原作者Michael Reichmann 是一位从事摄影40年的职业摄影家。他的个人网站网址如下:
http://luminous-landscape.com/ 在文章中Michael Reichmann提到了一个非常有趣的寓言, 翻译如下:
Once Upon a Time.... Once upon a time there was a young career photographer. He was talented, but he didn't have much money. Nevertheless, because it was the mid-'60's and he was reacting to his depression/war era parents, he thought that money wasn't important ?
art always came first. Consequently while as his peers, who were developing their careers alongside his, bought Nikon Fs, M series Leicas and Hasselblads, our hero had to satisfy himself using Pentax and Minoltas along with inexpensive third-party lenses from Tamron, Tokina and the like. He reveled in the simplicity of his ways. And, our hero succeeded. His photographs, made with cheap cameras on even cheaper lenses were widely published in major magazines, his better work was collected by major galleries and national institutions, and he was able to make a decent living as a freelance photojournalist.
Meanwhile his colleagues and competitors continued to tease and distress him about his not using "the best". Then the illness struck. He started to believe that they might be right. As quickly as he could he started to buy top rated cameras and lenses. Nikons, Leicas, Contax, Hasselblads ?all the top brands. His family's life-style suffered as he plowed more and more money into the finest camera bodies and lenses available.
Finally his career as well as his personal life were in jeopardy as his spending exceeded his financial abilities. Years later he reviewed this period of his life. With hindsight he saw how in fact his best work from that time of his life was done when he was poor and using so-called "amateur equipment". There was a freshness and a clarity of vision that became veiled by the later obsession with lines/mm, titanium bodies, exotic lens elements and the like.
Today he can afford to buy whatever equipment he wishes, and he does, and enjoys every one of them. But, he always remembers the lesson that that difficult period of his life taught him. “从前有一位年轻,有天分但贫穷的摄影师。那是60年代的战争时期,他想钱也许不是最重要的,艺术总是第一位的。那时的职业摄影家拥有的是尼康FS,莱卡M和哈苏相机,而这位可怜的贫穷摄影师只买得起宾得,美能达和一些副厂镜头如适马,腾龙的。他只玩得起这些业余级器材,但是他成功了。他用这些二等相机三等镜头所拍摄的照片被大杂志社广泛采用。他的图片也被艺术博物馆和美术馆收藏。这让他赚了不少钱,成为了一位自由摄影师。
不过,他的同行和竞争者们总是在嘲笑他的业余级摄影装备。久而久之他开始动摇。他想也许他们说的是对的。很快他也开始购买顶级相机和镜头。尼康,莱卡,康太时,哈苏等等。以致于他的家庭生活也受到影响,因为他在摄影器材上花了太多的钱。
到最后,他的摄影生涯和家庭都处于危险之中,因为他在摄影器材上投入的钱财超过了他的经济能力。后来他总算明白了,他的那些最好的作品都是在他贫穷的时候用那些业余级器材拍摄的。后来购买的那些顶级器材如钛金属机身等等反而遮住了他的摄影眼光和感觉。
今天这位摄影师已经能负担得起他想买的任何顶级摄影器材,他也从这些器材中得到了乐趣。但是,他记得最清楚的还是在他贫穷时的故事,和教训。
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