Taking Pictures withou the Flash w/ SD300 Elph

[c2ironfist]

Hey guys..

I've just bought my SD300 and I love it especialy for videos.. however

taking pictures with it is great but there is one thing though that bothers me..

When I take pictures in auto mode without the flash my pictures turn out blurred hazzy....

Though when I take pictures with it with the flash its very clear.. though the objects that are close to me are very clear, bright and the background is really dark..

to eliminate this I have to use my camera without the flash. Then the pictures look natural however it gets hazzy and blurred..

I read that changing the ISO setting would help with this and it does but.. I get a lot of noise when I up it up I changed it to ISO 400 and the picture is clearer but with more noise the less the ISO is the more lured the more the more noise..

What can a guy do? I'm fairly new so please bare with me :)

[variozin]

only one answer !!! use a tripod or just rest the camera securely on a firm and stable surface.use timer for best results. If you keep or rest the camera on something other than tripod, dont forget to avoid any object or surface lying close to the lens that may dazzle by the flash and will cover the subject in white haze. its better to keep the camera as close to the edge of the surface( a bit risky though).

goodluck

[c2ironfist]

thanks for the pointer but I've never experienced this with my previous Optio S40. It took great pictures without the flash while just holding the camera with my hands. As long as I held it to autofocus it was fine.

I've did numerous testings with my SD300 (took many shots) and no matter how steady I hold it along with waiting for the autofocus to adjust I can't seem to take clear pictures without the flash or setting the ISO to the highest level (400) but that increases noise.

So am I stuck with this problem for good or are there any other tricks to solving it?

I'm still new to this photography thing but I'm definatly sure that there is a way because if my older cheaper Optio S40 can perform well under the same conditions I assume my newer camera will be able to as well or even bettor

[David Metsky]

I haven't noticed this problem as much as you have. I can take indoor photos without flash, but this camera does require a good amount of light to take handheld images. Still, with a fair amount of light in the room I can get clear images. Mostly I use my camera either with the flash or outside, so it's really not been a problem for me.

Check the lens speeds for the Optio, it may have had a faster lens and thus required less light. Newer technology doesn't necessarily mean better in all ways.

-dave-

[c2ironfist]

hi dave

when you say faster lens do you mean shutter speed? If so then yes the Optio S40 did have a faster shutter speed.

I think it was 1/2000 of a second and the SD300 was 1/1500 of a second. I think I've read somewhere here that that probably wouldn't make much of a huge difference.. I also compared lenses (not shutter speed) with reviews and the SD300 lens is slightly bettor..

What I'm experiencing is that some shots turn out alright and I do take shots that have enough light its just images are blurred occasionaly, sometimes very badly this is without flas of course.

You know how when you zoom into the pics you can really see detail.. without the flash when you zom into the pic there is a blur instead of good crisp details..

Maybe my problem has to do with metering.. something I'm not familiar of yet..

Jimmy

[David Metsky]

I'm not referring to shutter speed which isn't playing a role here. I'm talking about the f-stop of the lens, which among other things is an indication of how much light the lens lets in. As it turns out, the cameras have similar f-stop ratings, the Pentax being slightly better.

In a low light situation, the camera is going to leave the shutter open longer to make sure you have enough light to take the picture. Without the flash, this means that you will sometimes have blur either from the camera moving or the subject moving, or you push the ISO up enough that you get noise. Changing the metering may help, but some cameras perform better in low light than others. I haven't noticed it as a major problem with my SD300, but I don't take many photos without flash in those situations.

[c2ironfist]

Hmm... this is really interesting... I understand what your saying Dave...

Though I'm finding things just not right... with my SD300 performance... maybe its lack of understanding how to use it properly lol

For example my previous camera in situations where it was really dark and when I shoot without the flash indoors and outdoors I'd get dark pictures and they'd be clear, if I used a flash then they'd be brighter.

However ahh forget it lol

It think I'm just going to have to live with it :rolleyes:

If anyone wants some picture examples I'd be more then willing to send some over for you to check out :D

[variozin]

how do u compare the brightness of the blurred photos of your sd300 with that of your pentax optio ? I guess your pentax will be having slightly dark images if they are not blurred.Also can you check the shutter speed that was used to take the image by optio. All this is just to understand why optio
seemed to have satisfactory results in dark no flash job.
the thing I would suggest you to get something out of canon is to use kid/pets shooting mode that will set faster shutter speed and turn the flash off as you want to have natural or original light in your picture.I hope this could give you satisfactory results to som extent.

goodluck~

[c2ironfist]

how do u compare the brightness of the blurred photos of your sd300 with that of your pentax optio ? I guess your pentax will be having slightly dark images if they are not blurred.Also can you check the shutter speed that was used to take the image by optio. All this is just to understand why optio
seemed to have satisfactory results in dark no flash job.
the thing I would suggest you to get something out of canon is to use kid/pets shooting mode that will set faster shutter speed and turn the flash off as you want to have natural or original light in your picture.I hope this could give you satisfactory results to som extent.

goodluck~

Actualy I have never tried kids or pets without the flash.. but I will do so.. I'v tried indoors but that didn't seem to work much.. kk I will try...

But I think I'm starting to accept that the pictures aren't gonna be perfect..

The one thing I can't accept is the amount of memory I get for videos on my SD300 over my Optio :mad:

[c2ironfist]

That doesn't work but.... I'm good its all over I've accepted it...

Its all good regardless though my SD300 takes bettor pics then my Optio S40

its just the flash issue that bothers me.. wanting it to look natural instead of really dark with a flash indoors.. but its all good

I'm over it quit happy with the camera :)

Thanks guys for your help

[digitalblade]

I also have a problem with low-lightning conditions and was wondering what to do to fix them. I don't know if your camera has very much manual settings, but what worked for my Canon A75 was manual mode 1/10 exposure, iso 200, no flash, indoor lightning setting, neutral filter. It produced a crisp clear shot, the one you would expect on a sunny day, even though I was only using 1 60 watt bulb for the room lightning. Even better quality than using Auto with Flash.

[David Metsky]

The SD300 doesn't have manual shutter speed control, but 1/10 of a sec is pretty much impossible to hold still by hand. You'd pretty much need a tripod to guarentee a clear shot at that speed.