A40


Status
Not open for further replies.

GKF

New Member
Apr 23, 2002
148
0
0
Singapore
Visit site
Was taking pictures of plaza singapura yesterday ... with auto mode .. the pics i took were dim ... very dim indeed ...

so i meddle around and found out if i take the pics with no flash the pictures will be bright like what i see with my naked eyes

but i need to have stable hands and the object cannot move while i take ...


any advise will be appreciated ...thanks
 

post the dim pic and the settings here to let us see

a picture will tell us a thousand words ...
 

what time was it, and how was the lighting conditions?

yup post a pic here so that we can help you.
 

sorry but i deleted the pics once i found it unstatisfied

I try to explain as much as i can.

Dim pictures, real dim , like cannot see all the lights
Using Auto mode with flash on.

Bright pictures, bright, like what i see with my eyes, but need to have stable hands and object cannot move while i take the pic.
Using Auto mode with no flash.


Every where is bright like a normal shopping centre with lots of lights here and there.

Hope these help.

Thanks a lot

Regards
Guohui
 

Ok although you didn't provide all the info I will need to come out with an exact deduction, I will make some guesses here:

the lighting condition is too low, you were probably taking indoor shots, or evening/night outdoor shots of plaza sing. When you use flash, the camera will be set to think that since there is flash, there is enough light, and it will use a fast shutter speed, say 1/60s, to capture the scene. But your flash range is limited, to say 3m, so large and far subjects like buildings will not be illuminated enough, so they appear dark as the exposure is too fast at 1/60s.

However when you don't use flash, the camera knows there is no assisted light source, so it must take the scene as it is. The scene is dimly-lit, so the camera will use a slower shutter speed, say 1/2s, to capture the scene. And that will be the correct exposure, that's why you said the pic turned out to be what you see with your eyes. However, 1/2s is too slow for humans to handhold, our hands will tend to shake and move. So using a tripod is necessary. Alternatively, you can try to bump up the ISO so that the shutter speed can be faster and thus reducing camera shake, but the noise level will increase. Note that you can only increase ISO in the manual modes and not in full auto.

Hope this explains your encounter.
 

erm, could it be auto mode with no flash actually delays the shutter speed? Tats why ur hands must be steady.....???
 

I think so too ...

but how to maintain steady hand and the object u take not moving ???? Must have some way to overcome .....
 

Originally posted by GKF
I think so too ...

but how to maintain steady hand and the object u take not moving ???? Must have some way to overcome .....

was my explanation helpful? I did mention ways to overcome that in my post....perhaps you missed it.
 

oh ..sorry Tweek...didn't see your part ...

Thanks

Your explanations helps
but that means i have to carry tripod around whenever i go ??
Hope to just carry camera around and take what ever i want.
 

No probs, yup if you want to take anything huge and far away in dim lighting conditions (indoors, evening, night etc), you will definitely need a tripod. You can consider a monopod, but a monopod can't help in longer exposures like perhaps slower than 1/6s or something.

If you don't want the bulkiness of a tripod, you can consider getting one of those compact tripods that cost only $20+. These tripods are not very very sturdy but are good enough to hold up smaller cams like your A40 and my c700uz. It folds up to a size that fits into any normal-sized bags, and is light enough to carry around. Can find them at your neighbourhood photo shops, brand is Tristar.

Some people in the forum were eagerly against getting such a cheapo tripod, cos it isn't sturdy enough, and that we should invest in a good and sturdy one to make sure our equipment do not suffer any falls. My argument here is that, sturdiness and weight is inversely proportionate to portability and compactness. So if one's priority is the latter, and the cam is small and light enough not to require a very strong tripod, then it makes more sense to get the cheapo compact tripod.
 

Thanks a lot ...

Btw i already got a tripod ... the brand is sakurei FT362
Bought at AP at $20. Looks quite sturdy and light to me ...
What I am thinking is that what happens to me does it apply to other people with the other cameras ??
 

Originally posted by GKF
What I am thinking is that what happens to me does it apply to other people with the other cameras ??

Yes it does, don't worry, it's a physics thing rather than a camera limitation thing. :D
 

Hmm ok .... will try to perfect my skills and unleash the best of A40 ...

Thanks a lot ... :)
 

Status
Not open for further replies.