Settings for live shows?

[livewire]

Hi all!

I recently invested in a Samsung S1060, since I have wanted a good camera for so so long!

I mostly use my cameras for live shots at gigs etc. but I can't seem to get the settings right, my pictures always come out blurred. I have taken some great videos (even the sound is great on this camera btw) but my still shots are dire unless the subject is completely still!

I have followed the cameras instructions for taking pictures in low light etc but it doesn't make much difference. Any ideas?

Thanks.

[annc]

You probably need a tripod and remote to avoid movement of the camera during the long period the shutter is open in low light situations.

[livewire]

Well in a live concert situation that's not really appropriate.
I think it's just a case of finding the right settings. I know someone with basically the same camera but the 8MP version (mine is 10MP) and her pictures turn out great.

[terrie]

livewire: I have followed the cameras instructions for taking pictures in low light etc but it doesn't make much difference. Any ideas?What do you have the camera's iso setting set to when you are shooting in low light?

What f-stop are you using?

Some people can hold a camera steady at low shutter speeds and some can't--might explain why your friend's images are sharper than yours...

You might take a look a monopods rather than a tripod...

Terrie

[livewire]

What do you have the camera's iso setting set to when you are shooting in low light?

What f-stop are you using?

Some people can hold a camera steady at low shutter speeds and some can't--might explain why your friend's images are sharper than yours...

You might take a look a monopods rather than a tripod...

Terrie

The ISO can be between 50 ans 1600, I had it set at 100 which produced great quality videos but not pictures.

The f-stop was 4.9.

I think a quicker shutter speed might help, especially when the subject is moving, how do I change that?

Thanks.
Chloe.

[terrie]

livewire: The ISO can be between 50 ans 1600, I had it set at 100 which produced great quality videos but not pictures. Well...no wonder you're having problems...'-}}

Kick that sucker up to 1600--you will get more "noise" but you can play with that in processing.

You might experiment with the higher ISO setting by taking the same shot in a room that will have similar lighting to the places you've been shooting. Shoot at 1600, then set the ISO down to the next lowest ISO setting (probably 800) and shoot the same scene. Repeat for each lower ISO setting until you get down to 100--you already know what 100 will give you.

Needless to say...you can do the same thing working up the ISO settings if that's easier but the key is shooting the same image in the same low-light so that you have something you can compare.

Then take a look at each shot using whatever imaging software you have and see which one works best. You want to get the speed you need with the least amount of digital noise and the higher the ISO, the more noise.


>>The f-stop was 4.9.

Is that as open an f-stop as you can go? Open your lens up as wide as it will go--your depth of field (what's in focus) will be narrower but you'll gain more light...


>>I think a quicker shutter speed might help, especially when the subject is moving, how do I change that?

You need to look in your book--each camera is different and your shutter speed is generally determined by your f-stop.

Most cameras allow you to select:

1. Shutter-Priority - you select the shutter speed and the camera determines the appropriate lens f-stop.

2. Aperture-Priority - you select your f-stop and the camera determines the shutter speed.

Personally, I use Aperture-Priority because I want to select my own f-stop as this allows me to play with the depth of field more easily. For low-light shots, I think Aperture-Priority is better--open your lens wide and then let the system determine the shutter speed.

The best way to determine what will work for you is to set up a series of test shots as I described above--adding playing with both the aperture and shutter setting.

Take notes!!! '-}}

Terrie

[Howard Allen]

How are the pictures blurred? The first thing you need to do is assess what the problem is. There could be (at least) 3 different things going on here:

1) Focus: some cameras with autofocus don't perform as well in low-light situations. You might have to use manual focusing, if that's available. There are other issues with autofocus, as well. Some cameras allow you to specify different points on the viewfinder screen as the "target" for the autofocus. If you inadvertently set the target point to the right side of the screen, say, then you might be aiming at a subject in the centre of the screen, but the autofocus is focusing on the right side of the screen, throwing your central subject out of focus. (I've done this myself, fiddling with the controls without realizing it.) Check your user manual.

2) Subject movement: this is the problem you're going to have the most success at fixing with higher ISO settings and faster shutter speeds. In this case, you should notice that stationary objects (stuff hanging on the walls, etc.) are sharp in the picture, but animated objects (people moving on stage?) will be blurry.

3) Camera movement: while higher ISO settings/shutter speeds will help somewhat with this problem, if your camera is swinging around or shaking, there's not much room for improvement until you practice holding the camera still (or use a tripod, though that probably isn't practical in the situations you're describing). In this case, everything in the picture will be blurry, including stationary objects.

[Steve Rindsberg]

Unless the lighting is WAY bright, 100 won't be adequate.

Try bumping it up to 1600, take some photos round the house at low light levels and see if the noise gets really obnoxious. Lower the ISO until you arrive at something that produces acceptable noise levels.

Check to see if the camera offers image stabilization. If so, turn it up to the max.

Is everything blurry or is the focus off? If the latter, force the camera to prefocus on the main subject, lock onto that, then compose.

[livewire]

Thank you for your advice everyone, I will try your ideas!

I have an event Friday I'm supposed to take photos at (not a concert but an event in my student union) so I will do some work on improving my shots and test it out Friday night!

Thank you all for taking the time to help me out.

[lurkalot]

Take a look at this Guest blog over at Scott Kelby's site, might give you some pointers. THREE SONGS, NO FLASH (http://www.scottkelby.com/blog/2008/archives/2063) ;)

[livewire]

How are the pictures blurred? The first thing you need to do is assess what the problem is.

2) Subject movement: this is the problem you're going to have the most success at fixing with higher ISO settings and faster shutter speeds. In this case, you should notice that stationary objects (stuff hanging on the walls, etc.) are sharp in the picture, but animated objects (people moving on stage?) will be blurry.

I think this is the main problem, the actual picture isn't that bad, but it looks as though it's been dragged across the screen, with a trail behind it.

I think 4.9 is the maximum value I can set for the f-stop but hopefully I should have some success with changing the ISO.

[livewire]

Take a look at this Guest blog over at Scott Kelby's site, might give you some pointers. THREE SONGS, NO FLASH (http://www.scottkelby.com/blog/2008/archives/2063) ;)

That article was really good, gave me a lot of ideas, thanks!!

[JohnC]

Experiment with the ISO before you go out to the real thing. Compact cameras rarely offer good quality at higher than ISO 400. And compared to the dSLR used in the article above, even at 200 it will be pretty noisy/grainy.

I wasn't able to find info on the S1060, but I did find an S1050. It looks like it has a variable aperture zoom lens. At the short/wide end of its range it is f/2.8. But at the long/telephoto end it has a maximum aperture of f/4.4. You might do better to take wider shots. DOF shouldn't be much of a consideration at the distances you are working at with a small-sensor camera like this.

[dthomsen8]

I think this is the main problem, the actual picture isn't that bad, but it looks as though it's been dragged across the screen, with a trail behind it.

I think 4.9 is the maximum value I can set for the f-stop but hopefully I should have some success with changing the ISO.Friday live photos? Let us know how it works out.

Post some examples, good or bad, that may help the camera buffs here figure out what to do. Of course, digital editing after taking photos is important, too. What are you using for that?

[livewire]

Friday live photos? Let us know how it works out.

Post some examples, good or bad, that may help the camera buffs here figure out what to do. Of course, digital editing after taking photos is important, too. What are you using for that?

I will do! I have managed to get some passable pictures around the house with the ISO at 800 so far, so I will try it out tonight and see what I can produce.

I have actually never edited my pictures at all. They either turn out great and so I don't see the need in editing them, or they are terrible and I just dispose of them.

[dthomsen8]

I will do! I have managed to get some passable pictures around the house with the ISO at 800 so far, so I will try it out tonight and see what I can produce.

I have actually never edited my pictures at all. They either turn out great and so I don't see the need in editing them, or they are terrible and I just dispose of them.Irfanview is a free tool to work with photos. Paint Shop Pro is inexpensive compared with Photoshop, and does almost as much. I use it regularly, and I prefer the old version 6. Either of these or both can be obtained quickly online by searching Irfanview download, or Paint Shop Pro.

I will leave it to others to comment on the benefits of editing, but at a minimum adjustments in brightness and contrast, and judicious cropping can make a dramatic difference. Also, sometimes size must be reduced to send by email or upload to some forums. This forum, for example, has limits on attached photos.


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[BobRoosth]

I hate be critical, but the bottom line is that you purchased the wrong camera for that kind of application. The lens spec on that camera is f2.8 (wide) - f4.6 (tele). You need closer to f2.4 at ISO 800 to come close to an acceptable shutter speed under the lighting conditions I am sure you are seeing. Even the inexpensive DSLRs have a problem because their stock lenses are just as slow at your camera, although they do better at noise control when the ISO is bumped up to 1600/3200.

[lurkalot]

Also if you want some good free software to reduce the noise in your photographs, you could do much worse than download the free version of Imagenomic Noisware.

Info here, www.imagenomic.com (http://www.imagenomic.com/)

And download here, Download (http://www.imagenomic.com/download_nwsa.aspx) Use the free Noiseware Community Edition at the bottom.

This software works very well. ;)

[livewire]

Thanks guys, I'll take a look at those.
Are they relatively beginner-friendly? You're talking to a girl who had to ask for step-by-step instructions to crop an image in PagePlus...I think it's safe to say I'm relatively software incompatible!

Stuff happened last night and I wasn't able to get to the event I was meant to be photographing for the uni but I will get some experimental pics in here asap!

[iamback]

Also if you want some good free software to reduce the noise in your photographs, you could do much worse than download the free version of Imagenomic Noisware. (...)
This software works very well. ;)I was all ready to download when I saw the free Community version is for XP/Vista only - the other versions support Win2000, too. Besides, it only saves as Jpeg - that's not good enough for a "master" version that may need further editing like straightening and/or cropping.

I'll stick with Helicon Filter which I've already paid for...