- Correct hold
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As I said in part one, your main hold of your kit should always be by the lens. Both in terms of steadying the kit, as well as for carrying it around, it's your left hand that does the heavy work, while your right hand -- which we'll talk about here -- is mostly concerned with performing precision tasks, like releasing the shutter and selecting the various settings.
Of course, if you've got large hands, you will might find this difficult as the tendency is for your fingers to be too high. Your thumb should actually be on the keyboard. That means that the palm of your hand will be underneath the baseplate and your fingers (except your index finger) will be wrapped around the front of the camera. See the first picture, above, and the various pictures below.
Original 35mm camera designs had to accommodate a film cassette on one side, a flat sheet of film in front of the shutter, and a space to wind that roll of film on the other side. These days, with digital technology, the camera only needs to big enough to hold the sensor, some kind of viewfinder, the fairly large battery, and the control buttons. Other than having somewhere to fit those controls and a battery, there's no reason why our cameras should be much bigger than their sensors. The whole camera could be minuscule.
So why are even the smaller E-M10 and E-M5 camera bodies of similar size to the 1970s Olympus OM-1 and OM-2 35mm film cameras? Well, mostly it's tradition. People have an expectation of what a proper camera "should" look like.
However, when it comes to the shape of a modern Olympus OM-D series camera body, it is far from logical or ideal in the digital age. We see all too many people (even so-called professionals, who should have been taught better) trying to hold the whole weight of a 40-150mm f/2.8 PRO zoom by the rear right side of the camera body, instead of gripping their kit at its centre-of-balance on the lens. (See part one of this article for a detailed discussion.)
But, even assuming you're holding your kit correctly -- in terms of always holding it by the lens -- there's still another problem about where the fingers of your right hand should go on the camera body. Obviously, that's a bigger problem for people who aren't aware of the Hold by the Lens rule, but even if you get that part right, it's still quite easy to place your fingers in the wrong places.
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Camera designers, especially Olympus' camera designers, who are much more interested in ergonomics than other manufacturers, did a superb job. When you place your fingers correctly, all of those quibbles you sometimes read will completely vanish. That's what this Part 2 of my How to HOLD your camera will be all about...
Let's begin by considering the role of our right hand in manipulating those controls. Firstly, the resting position of your hand should be where your fingers can easily reach all of the buttons, dials, and [where fitted] the function lever. It must also be positioned so that you don't accidentally rotate those dials.
If you're used to thinking about your main "hold" of the outfit as requiring a firm grip of the body, then it's likely your hand will be in too high a position (as illustrated below), due to the need for that firm grip. This puts your fingertips too high to conveniently rotate the dials or press the shutter release button.
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- Not on thumbrest
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- You're going to spin that dial !
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Too high a hold, and too tight a grip, will also make it difficult to reach your fingers across to the games controller type buttons that operate the menu system. Ideally, you want your thumb resting on that thumb rest that the Olympus designers placed for you. It's a bit like those raised bumps on a computer keyboard, which the designers placed there so you'll know where to centre you hands.
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- Correct
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Some people also find it convenient to fit an assessorie grip, like the HLD-8G for the E-M5 MkII. It can feel more comfortable, especially if you have bigger hands, to have somewhere to park your fingers. But, essentially, you should think in terms of a light touch on the camera body, and reserving your right hand for caressing those buttons and touchscreen, for those who use it.
Ideally, when you're using your equipment you'll be looking at the back of the camera and doing everything by touch. This is another reason why you want to practice parking your thumb on that thumb rest. It ensures everything will be where you expect it to be without having to pull your eye away from the electronic viewfinder or LCD screen.
Of course, it's only the tip of your thumb that should come near those top mounted adjustment dials. If your hand is placed too high, then there's a great risk you'll accidentally rotate a dial -- causing an unintentional settings change -- because you're thumb is right over the dial. Ideally, you should be slightly reaching your thumb upwards before it comes into contact; and never resting your thumb on the dial.
Of course, some of the camera control operations will require that you completely remove your light hold of the camera body. Such as when you want to use the touchscreen to move the focus point or even release the shutter by pressing the touchscreen. Again, this emphasizes why you can't hold a camera in your right hand while taking photographs. It's your left hand has the firm steadying grip at the centre-of-balance, while your right hand does the clever stuff, like scratching your nose.
Rob Trek has recently released one of his excellent video tutorials on the rear Mode Lever that's fitted to some OM-D cameras (see This also illustrates how Olympus' designers were thinking about the ergonomics of using their cameras. This lever has multiple possible functions, but its main use is in allowing you to change a group of settings with flick a switch with your thumb instead of having to trawl through the menus or adjust less accessible mode dials on the top of the camera body.
I hope these two discussions of how to hold your camera will help you to better understand how the brilliant ergonomics of Olympus' camera and lens design are intended to support your using your left hand to hold and steady the kit you're using at its centre-of-balance, while the role of your right hand is to do the lightweight fine detail stuff, like selecting the aperture, adjusting the exposure, moving the focus point, and pressing the shutter release button.
Just one last thing, to wrap things up, if you use a wrist strap don't forget that it goes on the left eyelet, so it wraps around your left wrist -- as that's the hand that is responsible for the security and stability of your kit. That safety strap should never come off your wrist, even when changing lenses.
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- Wrist strap goes on left wrist
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Have fun,
Rick Bear
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