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I'm a newbie. What is mirror lock up for and under what circs is it used? I don't mean for CCD cleaning.

This is emberrasing, but I am a newbie and D70 doesn't have this.

Alex

Don't be embarrased they only reason I know is for CCD cleaning!!!

Looking forward to the real reason (if that is not it).

W00DY

Mirror lock up is used for long exposure, to reduce camera movement when on a tripod. IE: say 1 second to 30 seconds as an example

Hope this helps

Big Pix

Oh ok...

So this is used in the Bulb setting is it?

W00DY

MLU is very similar to the pre-flash on the SB800. When you press the shutter on a MLU enabled camera the mirror flips up and comes to rest (very quickly) before the shutter curtain opens. As Big Pix said it is very useful for certain speeds but it is also extremely useful when doing macro work.

A Nikon EH-5 AC adapter required to use with MLU.

P.S: with the D100 and other AC adapter for the D2h and D2x

W00DY wrote:Oh ok...

So this is used in the Bulb setting is it?

W00DY

The simple answer is no. The D70 does not have MLU.

sirhc55 wrote:

W00DY wrote:Oh ok...

So this is used in the Bulb setting is it?

W00DY

The simple answer is no. The D70 does not have MLU.

Thanks for the clarification.

Actually - there are 2 answers here and Birddog has touched on the other one which is the locking of the mirror for CCD cleaning - but this is not MLU as defined on cameras that do have MLU

Ah OK.. now I understand (See Alex... we were all waiting for you to ask this question )

I can see that this would be useful for short exposure macro photography (in lighted conditions), but for long exposures (Bulb) surely the same effect could probably be achieved with a black card over the lens until you were sure that the camera had settled...

I personally don't see it as the big issue some seem to. Mirror Lockup is really only relevant in exposures long enough to be impacted by any movement, but short enough that the small amount of movement generated by the mirror is noticeable. I'm not really sure what range this translates to, but my experience so far is that I haven't seen any real need for MLU on the D70.

John - in long exposures the MLU is not really necessary as the mirror does stop bouncing very quickly and has no real effect when the exposure is over 1 second

sirhc55 wrote:John - in long exposures the MLU is not really necessary as the mirror does stop bouncing very quickly and has no real effect when the exposure is over 1 second

OK... So it's really only useful for Macro???
i.e. where a very little shake will create a very big effect on the photo???

What about the camera shake created by the actual shutter release??? Isn't that the same, but horiz... rather than vert.???

John - the time that MLU is most effective you would either be using a tripod or perhaps these days VR (not sure on that point)

Thanks for explanations guys. I would have thought that MLU would be unnecessary with a good tripod.

Alex

In the old days of film SLRs, didn't MLU allow for more frames per second to be achieved with some motordrive equipped cameras?

MLU is very useful when shooting with very long lenses (500mm upwards) as shutter shake is more noticable at these lengths. I use a 500mm lens and a 2x teleconverter for moon shots and i notice the effect of shutter shake quite badly on images shot at 1/60 or thereabouts. I have to dampen the camera and tripod with a heavy weight and a blanket draped over the camera, which makes taking the photo harder. MLU would allow me to not have to go to such lengths.

However when shooting astrophotography shot with the camera mounted in the telescope i don't have this problem as the telescope provides enough weight to prevent shutter shake. (40kgs of telescope)

Then again, the D70 isn't very good for astrophotography anyway, it's too noisy, especially over 30 seconds or more exposures. The D2X would be nice i reckon.

Killakoala

Have heard your complaint about the D70 and a complimentry D2h body is on its way to you. If it does not live up to your expectations then please return it at your convenience.

leek wrote:Ah OK.. now I understand (See Alex... we were all waiting for you to ask this question )

I can see that this would be useful for short exposure macro photography (in lighted conditions), but for long exposures (Bulb) surely the same effect could probably be achieved with a black card over the lens until you were sure that the camera had settled...

Except for the heating of the CCD, then yes. As long as you didn't wait too long before removing the card, then no worries.

Obviously, be careful when removing the card from the exposure path, so as to avoid knocking the camera or lens.

Matt. K wrote:Killakoala

Have heard your complaint about the D70 and a complimentry D2h body is on its way to you. If it does not live up to your expectations then please return it at your convenience.

I wouldn't mind trying another camera on my rig just for comparison Also would require some clear skies. Tonight looks good so far.

Alex wrote:Thanks for explanations guys. I would have thought that MLU would be unnecessary with a good tripod.

Not really; the physical handling of the camera can still induce some vibration into the setup. The idea of MLU is to try to remove any and all movement from the situation before opening the shutter.

Killakoala correctly points out that the effects of camera movement are exaggerated when using a long lens (hence VR technology) and so MLU can be very useful under those conditions.

And Philip, yes, it did. Sort of. The way that worked was that the mirror flipped up before the first exposure was made, then all exposures were made, then the mirror was released. But that wasn't really an MLU function per se, it was just the way the camera worked, and from an engireening perspective, it was a simple but logical way to improve the available FPS.

For those who are interested, the way it worked on many older (mechanical) Nikon film cameras is that when you engaged the self-tiimer, the mirror would flip up as you pressed the the shutter release button. With a (typical) 10 second delay, the camera then would have those 10 seconds available to settle, before opening the shutter.

The mnirror would return to its normal at-rest position upon completion of the exposure.