Help with Canon SD400 I got for Christmas...

[edeka]

First of all, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16830120170 is the exact camera I got.

Some example pics:
http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/3185/picture0071200x9001qa.jpg

http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/4602/stonegray1200x9006pg.jpg

http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/7530/picture0261280x9605ov.jpg

Now for the problem pics:

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/2050/picture029asd1yr.jpg
In most of my pictures, there are an extreme number of "light orbs" (I guess that is what they are called in photo language), how can I fix this? The always appear at the top.

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/7513/picture0251280x9606hc.jpg
I took this with digital macro setting, which doesn't allow the use of a flash. It looked fine on my camera, but now that it is uploaded it looks very blurry. How can I get a more stable shot using digital macro? The no-flash makes it impossible to rid of the bluriness.

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/9084/picture0401280x9604jz.jpg
Extreme amount of "noise" (I think that is what it is called) in this picture, and many others I took. How can I prevent this?

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/5396/picture0421280x9604qc.jpg
I wanted a darker picture for this (Ignore the butt shot, haha) so I turned off the flash. How can I prevent the bluriness on a regular shot without a flash? Attemping to hold it steady isn't working for me.

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/9440/picture0451280x9607zh.jpg
http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/9640/picture0461280x9604fv.jpg
Those two were taking without a flash, and no lighting except a blue flourescent light as you can see. Why is it like that? What can I do to fix? It was on "Night" setting I believe.

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/2023/picture0491280x9608jx.jpg
I thought this picture was fine until I looked at the back two people. Why the heck would this happen? What can I do to fix that?

Thanks in advance for the help.

[ktixx]

1: Pictures with low light either need a high ISO or a Slow Shutter Speed.
2: The higher the ISO the more noise in the picture
3: The Slower the shutter speed the steadier your hand and the subjects need to be.

Your pictures suffer from one problem, Low light. The reason your friends in the background of your shots are blurred is because your camera was using a slower shutter speed and they moved. Moving during a slow shutter captures the same people twice (or more) in different positions on the same frame. The shots in some of your pictures that looked noisy were because you were using a higher ISO to get a faster shutter. The only remedy for this is to (A) invest in a DSLR (Larger Sensor = Less Noise) <--Unlikely-- or (B) invest in Noise Ninja or Neat image (noise reductions programs) <--Much more likely-- Finally. To remedy that Macro shot...use a tripod or turn on the lights.

[bgreschke]

These are dust particles in the air illuminated by the flash. There's not much you can do about them other than remove them in post-processing, or retake the picture if they end up somewhere like in the middle of someone's face. They can appear just about anywhere in the picture. I think it has to do with the size of the flash tubes (tiny in these cameras).

Bob