HELP Fuji FinePix HS10: Why do my pix look crappy? (PIC) - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Undercover_Man · 09-25-2010, 02:32 AM

Posted elsewhere and I'm not getting much help so I thought I'd try here aswell because I'm attending a family reunion in the afternoon and I want to take good pics.

I used a Panasonic DMC-FZ20 before this one and my pics looked sharp and edges looked smooth and closeup pix looked awesome.

Take a look at this poor little duck.

Code:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/metallica_band/5020010433/

Poor thing looks alright far away but look at the original file and it sucks. The duck isn't all nice and crisp nor very sharp. It's like blotchy. Most likely a setting I'm overlooking that I'm not used to. My other camera I'd just normally shoot in automatic mode. Sometimes I'd need to play with the other settings. This newer camera has more features that I'm still learning.

Let me know what you think I need to change with my settings.

EDIT: Couldn't make a link to the pic. The forum has some feature that I don't know how to use and reformatted my URL link to something weird so I just used the CODE thing.

Xirax · 09-25-2010, 07:18 AM

According to the exif data it looks like the pic was taken at an ISO of 1600, which is going to introduce a lot of extra noise into the photo. That, coupled with the JPEG compression might account for the less-than-sharpness of it. Does your camera allow you to control the ISO? If so, try turning it down to an amount where you can still get a decent shot with the available light.

Undercover_Man · 09-25-2010, 07:33 AM

Ah, yeah. That high ISO would do it. I didn't notice that. Wonder why the camera would do that on Auto. I'll check my settings again.

Baraka_Guru · 09-25-2010, 07:37 AM

^ Yeah, you're better off relying on a slower shutter speed and wider aperture (given the limits) than you are on a higher ISO.

You can hand-shoot as low as 1/30 of a second if you're careful. Most would only go as low as 1/45 or 1/60. With a wide aperture (say, f4 or whatever), be careful of focus/shallow depth-of-field issues.

Generally keep your ISO as low as you can manage given the shutter/aperture limitations.

If you're doing any manual settings (i.e. overriding automatic/light readings) be sure to bracket your shots.

Undercover_Man · 09-25-2010, 08:23 AM

It looks like it was set at auto 800. What should I set it to?

Ah, I think I have been used to just using the P setting. On this, there's different menu settings for each priority dial switch thing. When should I use Program AE? That has different ISO settings you can pick from as well as AUTO numbers too. It was set on Auto 800 and I think I might have been using that.

Would SR AUTO (Scene Recgognition) be what I should be using for now until I get used to the other camera settings? That seems to be fully automatic.

Baraka_Guru · 09-25-2010, 08:27 AM

You should have a portrait setting you can use if you're photographing people during the reunion. That should be fine. Just be sure to fill enough of the frame with people rather than background or other distractions.

Undercover_Man · 09-25-2010, 08:59 AM

Yeah, I'm good at knowing where to pt ppl in a photo and keeping an eye for the background and stuff. My thing I need to learn are the settings. I get what they do, I just can't remember what to use when in what conditions and/or situations and getting the combinations right. I dunno. I wish there was a good video tutorial/class I could go to or view. I'm better learning from doing and watching rather than reading and memorizing.

09-25-2010, 02:32 AM	#1 (permalink)
Undercover_Man Insane	Fuji FinePix HS10: Why do my pix look crappy? (PIC) Posted elsewhere and I'm not getting much help so I thought I'd try here aswell because I'm attending a family reunion in the afternoon and I want to take good pics. I used a Panasonic DMC-FZ20 before this one and my pics looked sharp and edges looked smooth and closeup pix looked awesome. Take a look at this poor little duck. Code: http://www.flickr.com/photos/metallica_band/5020010433/ Poor thing looks alright far away but look at the original file and it sucks. The duck isn't all nice and crisp nor very sharp. It's like blotchy. Most likely a setting I'm overlooking that I'm not used to. My other camera I'd just normally shoot in automatic mode. Sometimes I'd need to play with the other settings. This newer camera has more features that I'm still learning. Let me know what you think I need to change with my settings. EDIT: Couldn't make a link to the pic. The forum has some feature that I don't know how to use and reformatted my URL link to something weird so I just used the CODE thing. Last edited by Undercover_Man; 09-25-2010 at 02:44 AM..

09-25-2010, 07:18 AM	#2 (permalink)
Xirax Psycho Location: Toronto	According to the exif data it looks like the pic was taken at an ISO of 1600, which is going to introduce a lot of extra noise into the photo. That, coupled with the JPEG compression might account for the less-than-sharpness of it. Does your camera allow you to control the ISO? If so, try turning it down to an amount where you can still get a decent shot with the available light. __________________ perl -e 'print $i=pack(c5,(41*2),sqrt(7056),(unpack(c,H)-2),oct(115),10);'

09-25-2010, 07:37 AM	#4 (permalink)
Baraka_Guru warrior bodhisattva Super Moderator Location: East-central Canada	^ Yeah, you're better off relying on a slower shutter speed and wider aperture (given the limits) than you are on a higher ISO. You can hand-shoot as low as 1/30 of a second if you're careful. Most would only go as low as 1/45 or 1/60. With a wide aperture (say, f4 or whatever), be careful of focus/shallow depth-of-field issues. Generally keep your ISO as low as you can manage given the shutter/aperture limitations. If you're doing any manual settings (i.e. overriding automatic/light readings) be sure to bracket your shots. __________________ Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing? —Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön Humankind cannot bear very much reality. —From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

09-25-2010, 08:27 AM	#6 (permalink)
Baraka_Guru warrior bodhisattva Super Moderator Location: East-central Canada	You should have a portrait setting you can use if you're photographing people during the reunion. That should be fine. Just be sure to fill enough of the frame with people rather than background or other distractions. __________________ Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing? —Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön Humankind cannot bear very much reality. —From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

09-25-2010, 07:33 AM	#3 (permalink)
Undercover_Man Insane	Ah, yeah. That high ISO would do it. I didn't notice that. Wonder why the camera would do that on Auto. I'll check my settings again.

09-25-2010, 08:23 AM	#5 (permalink)
Undercover_Man Insane	It looks like it was set at auto 800. What should I set it to? Ah, I think I have been used to just using the P setting. On this, there's different menu settings for each priority dial switch thing. When should I use Program AE? That has different ISO settings you can pick from as well as AUTO numbers too. It was set on Auto 800 and I think I might have been using that. Would SR AUTO (Scene Recgognition) be what I should be using for now until I get used to the other camera settings? That seems to be fully automatic.

09-25-2010, 08:59 AM	#7 (permalink)
Undercover_Man Insane	Yeah, I'm good at knowing where to pt ppl in a photo and keeping an eye for the background and stuff. My thing I need to learn are the settings. I get what they do, I just can't remember what to use when in what conditions and/or situations and getting the combinations right. I dunno. I wish there was a good video tutorial/class I could go to or view. I'm better learning from doing and watching rather than reading and memorizing.