Camera help needed

G-Money

Hello,

I have a Canon IXUS 80 camera and while I don't know loads about digital camera's, it seems good enough.

However I've noticed something and I'm wondering if someone might be able to give me some tips. I usually have the camera set on Automatic mode and for outdoor, day-time pictures, this seems to work well. However I was in the O2 at an event that was reasonably well lit, but anytime I used the Automatic option, the pictures would come out very dark.

I switched to Manual mode and it seemed to pick up the indoor lights in the O2 better and the pictures were much brighter. The only problem was that if there was even the tinyiest movement, the picture would come out blurry. And with so many people moving around on the row of seats I was in, it was almost impossible to eliminate any movement.

So I was left with either dark, but in focus pics, or bright but blurry pics (unless I could sit absolutely still).

I'm guessing there's probably some other mode or options I could set on the camera to help me get brighter pics, but not have the camera so completely sensitive to movement.

A friend suggested putting it in some sort of "action" mode. Although off the top of my head, I can't remember if it has such a mode. I will be going to similar events soon to the one I went to in the O2, so I'd like to get better pictures this time if I can.

Any tips for settings etc that I should use?

Thanks.

CabanSail

I am sorry to tell you that you have found the limitation of your camera.

The O2 may look bright to you but the light is quite low. In Auto Mode your camera will try to remedy this by making the sensor more sensitive, which will give lots of noise, & firing the Flash, but it's only good for a few feet.

Using the Manual mode will give you brighter pictures but this is because the exposure time will be longer butthis will mean you get blur.

The promoter's know that it's almost impossible to get good quality photographs with low end cameras, that is why they ussually allow them in or turn a blind eye.

To get good photo's you will need to have a decent quality body & some quite serious lenses. These do not come cheap & if you did have them you will not be allowed with gear like that.

G-Money

Really?

I seen pictures from someone else who was at the same event. They didn't have the same camera as mine, but they definitely didn't have a super fancy camera with a big lense or anything. From what I understand they just have a fairly normal digital camera. That made me think I could just tweak the settings on mine to try and get some better pictures??

Sleepy

Using a slower shutter speed lets in more light which gets brighter pictures but when the shutter speed is slower, you need to hold the camera steadier. A little bit of knowledge goes a long way with a camera grandmaster. Have a read up on exposure and learn the various options you can set on your camera in manual mode (iso, aperature & shutter speed - though on a point and shoot camera you may only be able to change one or two of these - the camera will decide the rest) and you'll get better pictures.

Size isn't everything with cameras and it's very difficult for someone without knowledge of the hardware to know which cameras are better than others so it's possible the other person could have been using a very good compact camera or just known how to use it better and your idea of a 'decent' picture is different from CabanSail's (quite probable!).

peter1892

I've used a compact camera at a few gigs in large venues (the old Point & the M.E.N. Arena in Manchester). Results vary but here's what I figured out:

In Manual mode, use a shutter speed of 1/60, the widest aperture available (e.g. f/2.8) and an ISO setting of 400. I've used those settings on an old Canon Powershot. At 1/60 there will be the risk of blurred images, and you' have to rely on the stage lighting being strong enough to light the scene for you.

Here's one I shot earlier: http://www.flickr.com/photos/peter1892/329457175/

CabanSail

Just looking at the Specs of your camera.

There are a few things I would read up on in the Manual which may give you a bit of an improvement.

High ISO Auto (incorporating Motion Detection Technology)

Mode - Night Snapshot
Scene Mode - Fireworks

The camera will go up to ISO 1600 which will give you a noisy photo but less motion blur. I would use that setting. You will have to steady the camera somehow, so holding it on some sort of a solid surface. The more you Zoom in the worse the camera shake will be, so try to use it as wide as possible. Turn the Flash off unless you are shooting someone within a few feet of the lens.

This will give you a better chance at getting something usable.