Photography Tips

[nanny_56]

This information comes courtesy of Melody Rose from Dave's Garden (with permission).

This is information to help us poor souls who have bought these wonderful digital cameras, but have no clue on what all those darn settings can really do!

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This thread is in response to several folks who want to take better wildlife shots, or macros of insects and flowers.

Ask any question, and I'll try and help. Hopefully, some of the other photographers will chime in and contribute too. If we get enough good information on this thread, I'll ask to have it made a sticky. It is up to you all to ask what you want to know.

This is for basic camera settings, and how to use them...especially if you don't have a clue about any techno camera terms. Feel free to ask about any doo-dad you are unfamiliar with. And we'll get it broken down into terms that everyone can relate to.

First of all, remember that a camera lens is like a human eye. The shutter is like your eyelid. The shutter is what 'blinks' to actually record an image. Now do this exercise. Open your eyes up wide and try not to blink. The longer you can hold your eyes open, the more detail you can record in your brain. (your brain is the 'film') The quicker that you blink, the less your brain (film) remembers. If you squint your eyes slightly, you can hold them open longer than if you open them wide. This works the same way with a lens. There is a mechanism inside the lens to control the amount of light that enters, and it is not always best to have it open all of the way. More detail can be recorded with a smaller lens opening and a slower shutter (eyelid) speed. There is just a fine line because the longer your camera looks at an object, (especially a moving animal) the more likely you will have a blurry shot. That is what all of those mysterious do-dads and buttons on the backs of your cameras are for. They will help you achieve the shot you want.

Most cameras have an 'auto' setting, and 90% of folks never move that button, figuring that their camera will be forever messed up if they do. Well, the lucky thing about that is...'auto' is always 'auto'. No matter what you do, when you switch back to auto, all of the other stuff you twiddled with is left behind.

It's like changing channels on TV. You can be watching Gilligan's Island on one channel, and surf around to see what else is out there, but old Gilligan and the Professor will still be back there, trying to contact someone with a radio made of coconuts. When you come back, They'll still be there.

Don't be afraid to play with your settings. My only warning is that it may not be wise to do so at your sister's wedding, or your grandkid's kindergarten graduation. In these days when we are filmless, shoot 20 shots of the same thing using different settings. It may be a rusty rake, or your garden hose, but experiment with an inanimate object that can't walk away.

Now, who wants to ask a question? Come on, don't be shy...fill this thread up.

[nanny_56]

Lesson #1

Ok, here's the first explanation/exercise. We're gonna do this slow, so I don't overload you with too much information to process at once. This is the closest setting to 'auto' so, we'll start there.

P...or Program
You select a few optional features, and the camera will finish with complimentary settings.

With most cameras, you'll have to remember to manually turn on the flash if you want to use it. P mode is not 'auto' in that respect, and the flash will not fire without hitting the button. The flash button looks like a little arrow shaped lightning bolt.

Features that can be selected vary from camera to camera, but most all will give you an ISO option in the P mode.

What is ISO?

It is just like film speeds. The lower the number, the more light needed to get the shot. Most auto settings will default to a low ISO. To change this setting, turn camera button to P and then access your settings menu. (each camera is different as to how you get to this screen)

You will see ISO somewhere in this menu screen. Scroll till it is highlighted. There will be several numbers available...different cameras have variable options. The better/more expensive cameras will have higher ISO# choices. They almost all have 100 and 400, with some cameras having the option of going all the way to 3200 ISO. The higher the number, the less light needed.

Now, you may shout and cheer and ask why can't I shoot here all the time? The problem is, the higher ISO, the more 'noise' your camera records. (some models handle this better than others) If there is no other way to get the shot, bump up the ISO setting to a higher number. Do some test shots in various lighting conditions, to see if the images are acceptable. Shoot with, and without the flash turned on. Sometimes at certain events, flash photography is not permitted. Know the limitations of your camera before heading out.

I went and saw the Lipizzaners perform not too long ago. No flash allowed. I bumped my ISO up to 800 and happily shot away. (I did some other things too, but we're not there yet)

There is the article that I wrote about them. The shots were taken with my short zoom lens. The longer zoom needed more light to function properly, so I went with the little guy. Take a look and notice the 'noise' (kinda grainy) For the situation, it was well within my toleration limits, but still yielded less than absolutely perfect shots. (by my standards)

The more you zoom in, the more motion your camera records. Everyone has watched some kind of race on TV, or a newscast where they have to shoot from a long distance. The image kind of jumps and wiggles around. That is because you are focusing on such a small area. EVERY little motion is recorded...sometimes just heat waves make an image wiggle. (Area 51 alien hunter video) When shooting in low light, remember that by zooming in, you may have blurs. Different people have varying degrees of steadiness, and your mileage may vary depending on how still you can hold your camera. With practice, you can get better.

When I go anywhere, I take a few test shots at different settings. Looking for the best combination of settings for the conditions. You are prepared and ready when things start.

Ok, any questions on the P setting? I promise we'll get to shutters and apertures shortly, but you need to do this slowly.

[nanny_56]

If you are toying with shopping for a new camera, a high ISO setting would be a great asset for you. Mine only goes to ISO 1600, but that was state of the art nearly 5 years ago. I haven't found that 1600 is a hardship at all though. Something else that has come a long way in the past few years is shutter lag times. "Shutter lag" is that annoying period of time when you have to stand there and hold the button, and the camera sits and ponders taking the shot. It was one of my biggest gripes about digicams, and I've seen where it poses a problem to you because the raccoon, (usually Dennis) simply walks away and finds something else to do, while you sit there with the button mashed and wait for the camera to fire. My camera can take 3.5 images a second, and that is waaaay slow anymore. Some can do 10 or so.

Understanding that ISO relates to the amount of light that the image plane, (film) can record will help bundles. That is all that it is, an industry standard that allows folks to speak the same language. You wouldn't use ISO 1600 on a bright sunny day at the seashore, or even in your flower garden at noon...too much light can be as bad as too little.

Bright light= LOW ISO
Low light= High ISO


Messing with your camera settings will give you familiarity with the functions. Makes you comfortable when you change settings. As an exercise, take 10 shots of the same thing, using 10 different configurations. Different ISO's, to start with, and in the P setting. Then go to the Shutter priority and use different shutter speeds AND ISO's. If you are really brave go to the Aperture Priority and do the same thing. Write down what you did each time. (your camera records all of this info, but if you write it as you do it, it 'sticks' better)

by raising the ISO, your camera senses that there is enough light to allow for a slower shutter speed. (blink) By lowering the ISO, the camera senses that the 'eye' needs to stay open longer to get the correct exposure. So they are interconnected.

Everything in between= middle value ISO's

[nanny_56]

That concludes Lesson #1


Now we know there are lots of good, even professional, photographers here on Hallson's. So please feel free to jump in with any tips, tricks or advice you want to share!

The rest of you be sure to share on how you are doing. If you have a ny questions I can relay the to Melody for you if you would like. Will post updates as they are available.


I played around with the 'S" mode yesterday, but i am not understanding that at all!

[kHT]

Maybe Chris should set up a Camera forum for this?
Our cameras came with a CD on how to use the camera and the photoshop we use also come with an instruction on the basic on editing photos, which I hate using if you have an eye for the artful stuff. Plus I'm not a member at Daves and find bring this here . . . . . sorry!

[nanny_56]

If Chris would like to add a Photography Forum that would be great. Though over time, I am not sure how much it would be used. The number of people visitng regularly here seems to be dropping.

I am not understanding your last part..I know that not everyone belongs to Daves. That is why I am bringing the information here to share. I thought a number of us might find it useful and presented in a 'user friendly 'way that makes sense to us who are not techies!

This is Chris' sight, he is free to delete this whole thing if it wrong to bring this here.

[Tracy_Zone5]

Claudia,

Thank you so much for posting this useful information. I know how almost all of the features on my camera work and I use them, but I was never clear with the ISO thing, and my manual is useless on this point.

I check in here at Hallsons almost everyday and read posts. I don't post much, but I have learned a lot. Since I am not a member of Dave's I would never have learned how to use this handy feature if you had not passed it along.

Thanks again,
Tracy

[nanny_56]

Thanks Tracy...glad it you found the information useful and understand I was just wanting to share the information. AND, I have been in touch with Chris regarding this thread and there seems to be no problem. I have changed the title and dropped 'wildlife' since I think this will be a more general information on how to use the functions of ones camera.

Chris may decide to move it he thinks there is a more appropriate forum for it.

[eastwood2007]

Hi, Claudia -

I love the idea of being able to get photo tips! Photography is something I am very eager to learn about. Personally I don't see anything odd or uncomfortable about this....I don't know how it is different than any other topic we open posts about? I don't know what difference it makes where the info comes from...

I also heard from some of the other forums I visit that this time of year is typically slow because, especially of the gardening forums, people are actually getting to be outside enjoying their gardens! Yipppeeee!!!!

I, too, like Tracy, check in almost everyday, but just don't take time to post.

If there is a concern by some about Chris having a problem, then I guess it would be good to check with him.

[LucyGoose]

Hi Claudia!

I like having this, too.....I am one of those, *all auto* settings camera people... I see nothing wrong here.....Chris will let you know if there was..... Thanks for sharing!!

[nanny_56]

Thanks!

[Ginger]

Thanks Claudia! This has been a very helpful lesson
I am going to try it out today and tonight with my camera on P mode and see how it all works. I don't know how hight my ISO setting will go, but I am gonna find out...
I am so excited, please tell Melody thanks for sharing!


And "Thank You" Chris, for allowing us to have a camera tutorial on the forum

Ginger

[GrannyNanny]

I can't stress too strongly the necessity for trying out different ISO settings on the same subject, so you can compare how much "noise" (i.e., grainy look) each one gives you. For crisp, clear photos, the smaller the ISO the better, but ISOs up to 800 will usually give pretty good results. I don't think I'd use anything higher than 1600 anyway, unless the camera were a very expensive one that would give better results on higher ISO numbers. Try setting up a garden still life -- rake, hoe, birdbath, etc -- and then take it with various ISO settings. Then put them on your computer, blow them up so you can see detail, and compare. Phyllis

[baja220]

Wow, this is awesome!!! I'm gonna try this too. I've read my manual for my camera, but don't understand most of it. The explanation of blinking or not blinking make all the difference in the world.
Can you post a link to the thread on Daves. I tried to find it but didn't.

[caliloo]

I am also one of those "auto" setting people. I am going to go try some of those buttons I have been afraid to push! WHat fun this will be!

Thanks so much for posting this - it is a wonderful tutorial and I really appreciate the effort that has gone into writing it!

Alexa

[nanny_56]

Thank you for your input Phyllis! I did just that the other night and with some shots of the moon. I always seem to be trying to take pics in less than ideal light situations. Those of you "in the know' please join in with any tips

My came with a great manual but it explains how to work all the functions. I think the manufacturers assume we know what they are for and how to best use them. Silly people.

I didn't know that I would NOT affect the AUTO MODE by changing other things! DUH

[nanny_56]

Please take your time and practice and don't feel you have move on until YOU are ready or even want to. There will NOT be a test at the end!!
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Lesson #2 - Shutter Speed

Yes, slower speeds for more light---faster speeds for stopping action. There is a fine line to walk, and each photographer will have to find out for themselves how slow they can go. Generally, most folks can hand hold their cameras at the 1/60 setting and above. That is one sixtieth of a second. With practice, and good camera habits, you can lower these speeds by quite a bit.

In lower light when you need slower speeds, use your viewfinder (yeah, the old fashioned look-through thingy) hold your elbows next to your body and plant your feet well. One of my pet peeves is someone using their LCD monitor at arms length, holding it with 3 fingers, trying to snap pictures. And they are so puzzled as to why they are blurry. If you need to use the monitor, and I understand that some folks do, at least hold your camera with BOTH hands.

Ok, we'll discuss shutter speed for a bit. Shutter speed is how fast the 'eyelid' blinks across the lens..'eye' There are several ways to control what image you get, and the shutter speed can do that in a few ways.

By speeding up or slowing down the 'blink' (shutter speed) you can allow more light into a dark situation, or stop motion.

for stopping motion, you use higher numbers the faster something is moving. A running person, like a kid on a football field, start at about 1/250 of a second. Adjust higher if you want to completely stop action, (1/500) but most times, that is a pretty good rule of thumb. Sometimes it is neat to have blurred legs or arms, lower your shutter speed slightly to get that effect. The less light that you have, the slower your shutter needs to snap to get a properly exposed image.

Do this. Take several images with several shutter speeds. Turn your cameras to TV, or S, Shutter Priority. You can then set your shutter speeds and ISO. Your camera will set the other stuff. Take shots with different speeds, and then change your ISO and do it all over again. By raising your ISO#, you can speed up the shutter so that your shot won't be as blurry. That's what I did with the Lipizzaners. By making my ISO higher, I could use a faster shutter speed and stop the action of the horses' legs. Light was low, so I needed to let my camera absorb as much as possible. I knew that I had to get those legs stopped, and I knew that that would be somewhere in the 1/125 of a second range, depending on what they were doing. I raised my ISO till I could set my camera at 1/125 of a second and the little green light in the viewfinder said it was ok to shoot.

Sometimes you want the motion blurred...like a waterfall. You want the water flowing over the rocks. Lower your shutter speed to get that effect. Maybe 1/30 of a second, or even lower. When using a low shutter speed brace yourself well. Elbows tucked at your sides. Your elbows are a pivot point. The less areas that can move, the better shots you'll get.



This shot is one I took when we went to a Don Williams concert. We were in the nosebleed section nearly 300ft from the stage. I used my big bad boy long zoom, raised the ISO to 800 and set the shutter to 1/15 of a second. The shots were hopelessly blurred at that speed, even though I braced well, held my breath and carefully squeezed off a few. When using a zoom with that much power, every little thing was exaggerated. I checked my shots, and saw that there was no way that it was going to work. So I set the shutter to 1/60 and the camera said..'no way..that shot won't work' but I took it anyway, and all I had to do was lighten it a touch when I got home. Sometimes you can do something your camera does not recommend, but you may not have a choice. Things just come around once. Now I was lucky with old Don. The only things he moved were his fingers and lips for the whole show. I could not have done the Lipizzaners at that distance, and with that lighting at all.
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Okay, clearly in the original post there is a pic. Of course it will not transfer here but I feel the other info in that paragraph might be useful to someone so have included it.

I am really having trouble with this one myself. First of all I am not sure I am in the right place on my camera to try and change the speed. I need Spider here to tell me where to go!!

Again, progress at your comfort level and do share any questions, thoughts and your progress with us!! Maybe start a photo thread here in the gallery...

[Spider]

All this is so much easier on a film SLR! My subjects are gone before I can get through all those screens to set things. I'll play with it sometime though. Your last post reminded me of my Richo camera (fully manual) at Christmas time I set it on infinity (holds the shutter open as long as you hold the button down) and panned across the Christmas tree. It leaves the lights as streaks across the photo. If you do that at night on a curve on the highway it does the same thing. Fun to play with.

[nanny_56]

Lesson # 3

That Mysterious Setting Aperture!
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Ok, let's try aperture. This is a little more involved to explain, but basically you are opening up or closing the 'eye' or lens. There are lots of techie explanations, but all you need to know is that low numbers, mean more light, high numbers mean less light. (opposite of ISO, but that's the way it is) The shutter is the 'blink', think of the aperture as a 'squint'.

Most of your cameras will register 2.8 which will let the most light in. Some will register 4.0 and 8.0. Others like mine will go all the way up into the 30's. By adjusting the aperture and shutter, you can control how much light hits the 'film' and for how long. Some cameras will have an 'f' before the numbers, because you are working with the 'F-stop' when you are working with the aperture.

The AV or A is 'aperture priority'. you set the aperture and ISO, and the camera will set the shutter to compliment it. You can control how much detail that your camera records by controlling the aperture. With the lens wide open at 2.8 (or lower) it takes less time for the subject to be exposed on the image plane, so you can have a faster shutter speed. The only thing is, the faster that you expose the subject, the less detail the camera records. That is why you see some shots with just the subject in focus, and everything else is blurry. A faster shutter speed and a wider lens opening will give this effect. Sometimes you want to take a picture of your hollyhocks, but the garbage cans are in the background. By manipulating the aperture setting, you can blur the garbage cans so they won't be as obvious. sometimes you want to take a shot of cattails on a pond, and kids in a canoe further out. By making your aperture smaller (using a higher setting) the cattails and the kids can both be in focus.

When you set the aperture, check the shutter speed and see if it is high enough to stop whatever motion you may have. For something fairly still, 1/60 will be ok, for some motion, do 1/125, or 1/150. for speedboats and such, 1/1000

This is something that you will just have to mess with to understand. One of these days, it will just 'click' and you will see the pattern.

The really great macros of insects are done with a high aperture number and a slower shutter speed. That combination will record the most detail, so the ultimate goal is to have the slowest shutter and highest aperture you can stand to record, the most detail in front and behind your subject.

I know that is as clear as mud, but trust me and set your cameras. Making sure that you remember the ISO can change an exposure also. By raising the ISO to a higher number, you can set your aperture number higher and your shutter speed slower.

ISO 100 with your camera set at f2.8, and shutter at 1/60, will give a totally different picture than ISO 400 and f2.8 and 1/60.

Here is a shot with the insect in focus, and my messy yard intentionally blurred. The bug co-operated because I cooled his heels in the fridge for 15-20 minutes. Made him much slower and easy to photograph. won't work with a raccoon, but with bugs, it is a priceless tool.

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I haven't tried this one yet myself...I am still working on shutter speed! Blew a shot of a deer yesterday...

Again, the original post include a pic but the information could be useful to someone.

[mum2knm]

Great info! I'm going to play with my cameras at the cottage next week.