Freak Out, Rodeo Austin – Austin, Texas

Freak Out is my favorite ride for motion blur. The colorful base anchors the photo, while the swinging portion creates a multi-colored blur. My once a year visits to Rodeo Austin always seems to pull me for another crack at shooting this ride. This year, in keeping with my low tripod diet, I shot this free-hand using Olympus’ in-body image stabilization.

At 1/5 per second, I opted for a “safe” slow shutter speed. One that I know I can keep steady without effort. In retrospect, I should have been more daring, trying for 1/2 a second or even slower — just to see what I could achieve. The OM-D E-M5 Mark II’s IBIS, which I’m using, has now been bested by the new E-M1 Mark II. Some people claim to have shot 2 second to 4 second steady hand-held shots, with the new E-M1.

Back in 2012, with my first mirrorless camera, the Sony NEX-5, I shot image. It was on tripod, of course, at 3.2 seconds. I suppose with some luck and practice, in theory, the new Olympus E-M1 Mark II, might be able to create a shot like this without a tripod. Pretty amazing if true. I have no immediate plans to buy a E-M1 but the possibilities are intriguing. The march of technology continues.