 Bruce K. |
Digital frustrations Love Digital Photography, but am frustrated with some aspects. Have Pentax Optio 430RS and Kodak DX7590. Frustration is mainly with low light. Problem areas - indoor photos apear darker than actual situation was or fuzzy and same with wildlife outdoor day or night - snow shows up as blue grey even in good sunny conditions. Is there a good Digital out there that is easy to use and good in those situations ???? I'd like a camera that will work !! I can SOMETIMES fix the photos using computer and software - not always. THANKS !
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W. |
Hi Bruce, "indoor photos apear darker than actual situation was" Don't confuse what your eye/brain system 'sees' with reality. Your eye/brain system ADAPTS permanently. It INTERPRETS and ENHANCES the scene. Which your cam cannot. Your cam shows you the real situation. Your eye/brain system fools you all the time. "snow shows up as blue grey even in good sunny conditions." Of course! Cams have to contend with the entire range of light. From the purest white to the blackest black. So cams' light meters compute everything to an average of 18% grey. Which is what you see. Want really white snow? Then you need to overexpose. Try bracketing +1 stop, +1.5 stops, and +2 stops. "Fuzzy"ness can be caused by camera shake (at slow shutter speed) or subject movement. The first is usually the cause (in 95% of cases). "I'd like a camera that will work !!" The probs you describe are not attributable to the camera(s), but attributable to the photographer! Have fun!
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Bruce K. |
Thanks for the response W, But your answers seem to assume that I am an idiot. I don't want to be negative about this, but I have tried the auto settings for "scenes" and other settings when time allows -- I'm not going to set up a tripod and take 5 min. to set the camera for a candid shot of the dog (if I don't get it NOW - she is gone. Are you telling me that there are NO Digital cameras out there that do a better job with indoor situations and bright outdoor shots ?? I had (still have) a Pentax ME Super that would handle most of this in auto with fast film. Unfortunately, the ME shutter has stopped working and it isn't digital anyway. Thanks, Bruce
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David A. Bliss |
WS, I forget the name of the camera... Maybe you know it. It is the one that takes really good pictures in any situation while set to auto. I wish I could remember it, because I am interested in picking one up.
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W. |
You're right, David! And I'll send you that brand name after I receive your 10 bucks....
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W. |
"Are you telling me that there are NO Digital cameras out there that do a better job with indoor situations and bright outdoor shots ??" Not as long as YOU don't change your m.o.
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Bruce K. |
OK guys -- I know I'm not a PRO -- I'm not dumb either -- Isn't there a Digital "point N shoot" that does better with low light ?? -- I can handle the snow and it is fairly easy to fix with the photo software. I know the cameras can't ALL be set up the same. Thanks, Bruce
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W. |
"I know the cameras can't ALL be set up the same." They aren't. But you wouldn't know the difference.
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David A. Bliss |
Bruce, for handholding in any light, you need a fast enough shutter speed to keep camera shake from making your image blurry. No matter how steady you think you are, even just a little shake will produce a blurry picture. There are a couple of ways to keep the shutter speed higher in low light. One is having a very "fast" lens, which means it has a very large aperture. Since this isn't something you have control over, since you are using a fixed lens camera, what you want to do is use a higher ISO. A lot of newer P&S (fixed lens) cameras have settings for low light. Really, all it is doing is raising the ISO to 800 or 1600. A buddy of mine has that option on his camera, and that is exactly what it does. The trade off is getting an image with a lot more noise. If you are not going to be printing larger than 8x10, this shouldn't be a huge issue, though even at 8x10 it could be noticeable. I would suggest doing some research on the internet, and comparing the different settings of different cameras. There will be a few that have the options for which you are looking. There isn't going to be any P&S camera that will allow you to keep a fast shutter speed on a low ISO in low light. Just the nature how long it takes to expose a picture (either on a digital sensor, or on film).
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Bruce K. |
Thanks David, Yes I know that shutter speed, good flash, ISO, and a good lens are all factors and I know that blurry pictures are caused by a combination of slow shutter and moving. I didn't explain that I knew these things because I was hoping that I wouldn't get answers that assume lack of knowledge. I was hoping someone already knew of a camera that allowed High ISO and had a good flash. I'm sorry that W is so quick to assume that he is more brilliant than EVERYONE else. I taught Industrial Tech. for 30 years - have done some developing, and have some great pictures that were done both with film and digital cameras. It must be GREAT to be as brilliant as W ! Thanks again David !
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David A. Bliss |
In WS's defense, your original question did sound very much like someone who doesn't know anything about cameras, and you were looking for a magic one. As for your question about a camera with high ISO and a good flash, really any of the new higher end and a lot of the mid range P&S cameras will give you what you are looking for, except for a good flash. There really isn't such a thing as a "good" on board flash ;-)
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Bruce K. |
Thanks David, When I go back and look, I see that it MIGHT have been taken like I didn't know much about photography or cameras. The WORST of the responses from W was "They aren't. But you wouldn't know the difference." How does he know how much or how little I know? To WS : It might be intelligent to ask how much someone knows before assuming that they know nothing! I was looking for some advice about newer digital cameras and their low light and bright outdoor capabilities. I'm not looking for MAGIC - I would like a camera that has auto modes for different situations and handles them (relatively)well ! Thanks All, Bruce
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Bruce K. |
Hi Again, It looks like the Canon Powershot A640 would have all the auto features I'm looking for - without sounding ignorant - has anyone had experience with this camera ? Thanks, Bruce
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anonymous |
Bruce Unfortunately, if you choose to only use auto settings then, you will probably most of the time, not be happy with the exposure of the image, there are way too many factors to take into consideration when taking the perfect photo, and the auto settings aren't made to handle them, they are made to handle an average scene - for that particular auto setting. As for our eyes, they are amazing things, man will probably never be able to replicate a camera as good as our eyes, at the moment I am sitting under fluro lights, but the room doesn't look green. Take a photo of me (without whitebalance set) and the image will be green - which is how the scene actually looks. Our eyes are amazing, and because we use them all the time, we take advantage of how complex they are. Don't expect your camera to take a photograph exactly how you see it - especially in Auto mode.
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Bruce K. |
I do understand all the exposure and lighting factors AND that the eye/brain compensate. I was hoping that with all the advances in digital photography that there was a good camera out there that might compensate better than average (especially for indoor candid shots). When I have time and am looking for great pictures - I use the manual settings and get good results. I am partial red/green color blind myself - I see all the colors - just not in the same way as others. I have ArcSoft Photo Impression 5, MS Digital Image 10, ACDSee 7.0, and the software that came with the Kodak - so I can usually clean up and make the pics acceptable. Do you have any recommendations ? I'm not rich on a retired teacher salary, but would be willing to pay a little extra for less frustration. attached: Just 1 decent picture. Thanks Again, Bruce
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Bruce K. |
OK Natalie - and Thanks! I do understand all the exposure and lighting factors AND that the eye/brain compensate. I was hoping that with all the advances in digital photography that there was a good camera out there that might compensate better than average (especially for indoor candid shots). When I have time and am looking for great pictures - I use the manual settings and get good results. I am partial red/green color blind myself - I see all the colors - just not in the same way as others. I have ArcSoft Photo Impression 5, MS Digital Image 10, ACDSee 7.0, and the software that came with the Kodak - so I can usually clean up and make the pics acceptable. Do you have any recommendations ? I'm not rich on a retired teacher salary, but would be willing to pay a little extra for less frustration. Thanks Again, Bruce
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Bruce K. |
Sorry for the double post - decided not to add picture and the first post went out anyway !! Bruce
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