How do you hold your DSLR?

[MarkBarbieri]

I've recently come across references to people "top holding" their lenses. That is, when they hold their camera up to take a shot, their left hand goes over the top of the lens rather than under it. That strikes me as a bizarrely unnatural and unstable way to hold the camera, but perhaps I'm missing something.

When I shoot, my left hand goes under my lens (or camera when using a really small lens) and my left elbow braces against my body. My right hand stays along the right edge of the camera.

I'm right-eyed, so I look through the viewfinder with my right eye. I keep my left eye open while I shoot so that I can see what's going on around me while I'm shooting.

So how do you hold your DSLR when you shoot? And do you view with your left or right eye?

 

[Master Mason]

I do it pretty much just like you said you do when hand held. Sometimes when I am shooting with the monopod I'll put my hand on top of the lens as it seams to steady it some with the support.

 

[blackears]

Left eye open and left hand on lense...Still getting the hang of a dslr after years of a p&S

 

[AlphaMale]

Left eye open and left hand on the lens. I am just getting used to the DSLR since I only switched from a P&S to a D-SLR about 6 months ago.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

When you guys say "hand on the lens", do you mean underneath the lens or on top of the lens?

 

[handicap18]

I hold it like you described Mark. Left hand under the lens, right hand on the right side to release the shutter and use the command dial. This is the way I was tought in photo class in high school. This was the easiest way to focus (back in the manual focus days) and also it feels easier to work the zoom. It also keeps the camera more stable in your hands.

 

[BeautyLLM]

I hold it like you described Mark. Left hand under the lens, right hand on the right side to release the shutter and use the command dial. This is the way I was tought in photo class in high school. This was the easiest way to focus (back in the manual focus days) and also it feels easier to work the zoom. It also keeps the camera more stable in your hands.

I do the same. I am strongly left eyed though, which is frustrating since dslrs (well, Canon anyway) are all designed for right-eyed photographers. You learn to compensate though...

 

[Mr._The_King]

I hold my cmera the same as the majority of folks. Left hand under the lens, right hand on the right side of the camera to activate the shutter and comand dial. Right eye to the view finder. I have a hard time keeping my left eye open but I always try to make sure I am doing so. For some reason it doesn't come natural to me ( I always want to squint it closed ).

 

[Code]

I have large hands, and I don't have any lenses (yet) that my hand cant fit almost completely around. On the (very small Olympus) kit lenses, I can grip it all the way around no problem. On my Sigma 30mm (largest diameter lens I have so far until I get the 50-200), I grip it from about 4 o'clock with my thumb all the way around to 1 o'clock with my fingers.

 

[wkrider]

This is not how I normally hold my camera...as you can see in these pictures though...I use a wrist strap not a neck strap.

This is though...I must admit that I borrowed the idea for this picture from Groucho....

 

[gruZ]

Left eye through the camera, right eye open. Right hand along the right side of the camera, left hand under the lens.

Here's an interested post from Joe McNally's blog about this very subject. LINK.

If you don't check in on (or subscribe) to this blog, you should. It's got some very good information, and IMO is very entertaining.

 

[Suburbanmom]

This is me holding my Nikon D50 with the 50mm f/1.8:

I don't think I hold the lens. I think I put my left hand under the camera base. I'll have to pay attention when I using a zoom rather than fixed lens. I am left-eyed and I tend to close my right eye tight, although I'm trying to keep it open...but it's hard to do that.

 

[Golf4food]

Left hand on the left side, underneath the lens so it isn't in the way of the flash. I also take all portrait shots with the camera turned to the right so that my right hand is underneath on the shutter release for the same reason - flash not blocked by left hand. Plus it makes editing photos easier knowing that all portrait shots should be turned 90 degrees to the right - select them, turn them all right - done.

 

[Groucho]

I think the position of my left hand varies depending on how I'm zooming or manual focusing. Without picking up the camera to remind myself, I think that mostly I hold from the side, with my index finger on the top of the lens and my thumb on the bottom, but it varies if I'm actively adjusting zoom and/or focus - especially focus. I do look through my right eye, I think it would be much more difficult to try to look through the left? (And yes, I am left-handed.)

I often have my elbows out but I know that elbows in is supposed to be more stable, so if I'm thinking about it (or in a situation where I know I'm wobbling), I bring them in next to my body.

Then there's the times where I have to shoot one-handed, which is always a challenge. Usually it's the right hand but I think once or twice I've had to shoot with my left!

Ahh, here's a shot from when I got my (second) fisheye that shows my camera-holding technique.

This does lead into another question - does everyone hold their camera the same way when taking "portrait" shots (as compared to "landscape" shots)? I generally almost always hold the camera with the grip facing up, but I think that with my film SLR, and definitely the first couple years with a DSLR, I would be just as likely to hold it with the grip facing down as facing up.

Wkrider, nice shot. For my next magical trick, I have to take a shot of a mirrored ball like that with the fisheye, for maximum distortion.

 

[Gdad]

I have no technique- but I like to take fisheye shots in mirrors too.

 

[Gdad]

Not so good at one handing the 70-200/2.8

 

[Groucho]

Just for the record, Gdad's mirror fisheye shot was first, I shamelessly copied it. (And mine's pretty terrible, really; I was trying to show off our cool mirror that has a cat looking into it, but it's difficult to tell that it's there, and it was dark, the DoF is too small, etc... oh well!)

 

[jann1033]

well groucho at least your fingernails are clean in the photo
I hold mine across the bottom of the lens with my left hand, hold the right side with my right hand and close my left eye...not that it matters since i don't see out of that one anyway:lmao, now if i also close my right eye that would account for some of the throw aways...i try to scrunch the whole thing into my forehead since i read that helps steady it. the thing i find difficult is taking a portrait orientation with a monopod on and no ball head....can't do that and walk through a doorway for sure..

 

[MassJester]

Well given some of the images I come up with, you'd think I held the thing with my feet. But no, pretty run of the mill: right hand on the grip, left hand cradling the lense.

 

[Dcanoli]

This does lead into another question - does everyone hold their camera the same way when taking "portrait" shots?

GREAT question. I AM left-handed--so I shoot portrait shots with the grip DOWN.

Again, left eye open....

Everything else, like everyone else...hand under lens, only to zoom in and out...thumb on bottom; two fingers on top. Right hand on side of camera--index finger on shutter release button, and thumb available for whatever else I need to do.

Elbows same as above--in and on body....

Anyone else on what they do for portraits?