Mirror Lockup

One of the biggest challenges photographers face is capturing sharp photos (Figure 10.5). A number of factors come into play: ISO, shutter speed, aperture, subject movement, environment (wind, for example), lens quality, and so on. But you could take care of all those variables only to realize that a slight vibration had occurred when you pressed the shutter release button. How does this happen? Inside your camera is a mirror that allows you to see what your lens is pointed at when you look through the viewfinder. For light to reach your camera’s sensor, that mirror has to flip up and out of the way, which can cause a subtle shake. This can be enough to cause your image to lose a touch of sharpness and focus.

Figure 10.5. To get an incredibly sharp image, you need to control as many variables as possible.

Luckily, the 6D has a simple solution for this problem: the Mirror Lockup feature. When the Mirror Lockup setting is enabled, your first press of the shutter button flips up the mirror, and then your second press of the shutter button takes the picture. This feature is even more effective when used with either a 2-second delay (see Chapter 7) or a shutter release cable (see Chapter 3).

Enabling the Mirror Lockup Feature

1. Press the Menu button on the back of your camera.

2. Use the Multi-Controller to select the second camera menu from the left (A).

3. Select Mirror Lockup, and press the Set button.

4. Select the icon that enables Mirror Lockup (B), and press the Set button.