Camera....

[Since1976]

Technique, technique, technique.

You can take great pictures with even the cheapest camera. For example, it took me way too long to realize that the Flash on my camera was *ruining* all of my night shots. It may seem counterintuitive, but now I use the Flash more during the daytime, specifically when my subject is in shade and/or backed by sunlight.

You'd be surprised by how even the simplest methods can produce great results. You may have to unlearn what you think you know about cameras. Do a search for "Disney World photo tips" and you're sure to get some great advice.

 

[PhotoDave219]

And yet no matter what I do or how much I learn, I can't get this camera to take even half way decent photos in low light most of the time. And I'm not just talking about at night....I'm talking about inside my house. And unless there is bright sunlight, the outdoor pics are not even all that great. The only pics that really turn out great are the ones taken in bright light, fairly close to the subject.

Again, I'm not questioning the fact that the user can play a large part in pictures turning out badly. I just wanted to point out that not 100% of all problems with pics not turning out are related to technique or the user not understanding the camera. The camera can play a part in it.

Sounds like something still isn't set right. I've used a couple of Sony's cyber-shots and had very good results with only having the camera out for 5 minutes. (Unless it is one of those completely automatic cameras which is completely useless beyond self portraits at a bar, IMO)

As for exposure problems, you're off the mark here. In bright sunlight, the exposure on a $3000 dollar DSLR will be 1/ISO at f/16. Same principle applies to the point and shoot - exposure would be 1/ISO at f/16. Meaning, if your ISO is set to 200, then you exposure in bright sunlight (say looking at the castle) is 1/200 at f/16 irreguardless of what camera you use. The intensity of the light does not change based on the camera you are using.

For low light photos. Generally, you'll want to boost the ISO value to as high as it will go and shoot on an Aperture priority mode, getting the f/stop value as far open as you can get it to let the most light in.

Most automatic camera settings don't see what you see or what you are trying to go for. Cameras like to back focus or expose for that bright light way over there or the whatnot. You have to learn what your particular camera's bad habits are and learn to work around that. Me, I shoot everything (including point-and-shoots) in manual or Aperture-priority mode because i know what i want and the general exposure of bright sunlight.

So my advice for everyone is to really learn how to use your camera before you go. Like the above poster is stating, if you cant get good low-light photos at home, you're not going magically get it during Spectro. Just wont happen.

I swear i should start writing that book.....

 

[cameronmouse]

for the last 4 years we've been going down to wdw, we have been using my wife's kodak easy share which actually takes good pictures. This past january when our son was born I bought a canon rebel (a digital slr ) and cant wait to take it down with us. A little bulky but takes amazing pictures.

 

[WDWFigment]

My advice is to read PhotoDave's advice carefully. I learned a lot of what I know about taking pictures at WDW by reading his threads. Another book I'd recommend is Understanding Exposure; it mixes the technical along with commentary and rationale for the technical, making it easier to digest than most photography books.

Also, using some sort of manual mode is a must. I've found that 'studying' others' EXIF data is helpful, too. If you'd like to see any of my pictures, or access my EXIF data, the link to my Flickr page is in my signature. Good luck!

 

[pilka214]

i have two cameras, an olympus FE-340, and for it's price ($200) was the best i could find in it's price range, it's got a 5x optical zoom, image stabilizer and 8mp. so for it's price it's great

i also have a canon rebel xt, and i love that thing. but that'll run ya up a lil more, and unless you have experience using an DSLR you might like using it on you vacations

but i'd def. reccomend the olympus it's a great camera.

 

[LVROFDSNY]

I actually really love my Sony..I have gotten some great shots from it...but I am worried about the zoom...as it is only a 3x optical zoom...and I would like to have something bigger. I have worked with DSLR's (I was a photographer in High School and took many of the yearbook shots) and really love them...and eventually will be a proud owner of one...just not within the next 4 years...I need something in between what I have (Sony SuperSteadyShot 8.1 megapixel 3x optical zoom)...and what I want (DSLR).

Started looking and found a few cameras in my budget...and with what I think I would like to have...any insight on the following cameras would be awesome!!!

These cameras are in my budget:

Fujifilm FinePix S1000fd
Kodak EasyShare Z8612-IS

These cameras are at the top end of my budget:

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H10
Panasonic FZ18
Nikon CoolPix P80

Anyone have one of these cameras...or any insight on them..or a camera that is similiar that I might be interested in?

Thanks for all the help so far...y'all are awesome!

 

[Senderella]

Nikon CoolPix P80

I want one in a bad way! I've read a lot of great reviews on it. If anyone's got one, please post your thoughts on it! LOL That's likely a deciding factor for me too.

 

[WDWFigment]

I want one in a bad way! I've read a lot of great reviews on it. If anyone's got one, please post your thoughts on it! LOL That's likely a deciding factor for me too.

Although I haven't actually used it myself, I've heard nothing but good things about the p80.

 

[RiversideBunny]

These cameras are in my budget:

Fujifilm FinePix S1000fd
Kodak EasyShare Z8612-IS

...
Anyone have one of these cameras...or any insight on them..or a camera that is similiar that I might be interested in?

Thanks for all the help so far...y'all are awesome!

I have an earlier model of the Kodak Z8612-IS.
Great camera for the price. Used it last December at WDW.
(Not to be confused with the cheaper EasyShare models)
You can set it for Manual mode or go Automatic.
Good zoom.
The newer model has image staballization.
Excellent lens for such a camera.

Actually I think the very latest model is Z1015IS, 10MP/15x zoom.
Link:
http://www.amazon.com/Kodak-EasySha...?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1223489239&sr=1-24

There's also the Z1012, 10MP/12x zoom.
Link:
http://www.amazon.com/Kodak-EasySha...2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1223489411&sr=1-2

Whatever you get I would suggest getting a better camera strap. The one that comes with the camera is often so thin it cuts into your neck.
One like this is good. I have it.
http://www.amazon.com/Optech-Comfor...?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1223489643&sr=8-12

:king:

 

[bugsbunny]

Optical zoom is old school and IMHO, still rocks. Digital zoom just doesn't impress me. That being that, I have a 15x optical zoom on my Sony Cybershot DSC-H7 8.1MP Digital Camera with 15x Optical Image Stabilization Zoom. I bought it for around $300 about the Jan of 08.

It can use point and shoot mode, but it also has the ability to go completely manual. It takes pics right up there with SLR cameras, but it certianly is not as nice in darker settings. As long as I use my noise hood during the bright Florida sunshine, it takes superb outside shots.

As a lot of the other posts have said, learn your camera and understand how it works. I bet some of us could take a $99 Walmart special and still take better pics than some people using a $500 camera. Just like a race car, its all about the operator.

Night time pics are extremely hard to do without a tripod since you are holding the shutter open for a long period of time. So without it being rock solid still, you are going to get blurry pics. Sitting it on a hard surface or preferebly on a tripod and using a remote control is the best way to go. The BIG problem with setting it on a surface is that it can easily be knocked off or over, but more so than using a tripod, IMHO.

And if you can take the pics in "raw" mode, that is the best way to go. Then, you can manipulate them on a PC as if you are actually taking the picture all over again. Its amazing what you can do with a bad picture if you take it in this format. The big draw back is that the pics are WAY bigger than your standard compressed JPG format most digital cameras would use.

Photography is a very lengthy hobby to learn about. I highly recommend getting something like the "Photography for Dummies" books or similar.

One other way to learn your camera is to take a picture of something in auto mode, then start adjusting the Fstop, the ISO, the white balance, saturation, etc; but keep taking the same picture of the same subject. Then when you look back at the pics, you learn how greatly each setting can effect your outcome. You can take a picture of a red rose and depending on your settings, it can be anywhere from bluish to pink and also have "noise" in it if its too dark.

Needless to say, that is why so many people just buy "point and shoot"!

 

[Deadmanwalking]

Unless you have a oil well in your back yard... I'm afraid you will have to make trade offs....
a good point and shoot will capture most things that you want, good enough for most people unless they are low light situations.... for low light you would need to go to a DSLR... and even then you would have to invest more money into a fast lens or high end DSLR or both... and god forbid you wanted to do low light with zoom... well then your talking about very special lenses that cost more than you are likely willing to pay.

Frankly if your not into photography right now and don't have money to burn, just get a good point and shoot and learn how to use it... that mean practice before you go WDW... get yourself a book on photogarphy and by all means read the manual that comes with the camera... a lot of pictures people take could be 100 times better if they had taken the time to just read the manual and understand all the functions they had... Too often people get a camera set it to auto mode and assume it will do everything right... Auto mode is probably the most dangerous button on a camera because it really only works perfectly in perfect situtations which don't happen all the time.

So if you go with a point and shoot.. you might look at a Sony DSC-H10 or a DSC-H50.... the 10 has a 10x zoom teh 50 a 15x zoom... you wont get perfect picture in low light... but if you understand the manual controls and use them correctly you can get decent picture.

 

[PhotoDave219]

My advice is to read PhotoDave's advice carefully. I learned a lot of what I know about taking pictures at WDW by reading his threads. Another book I'd recommend is Understanding Exposure; it mixes the technical along with commentary and rationale for the technical, making it easier to digest than most photography books.

Also, using some sort of manual mode is a must. I've found that 'studying' others' EXIF data is helpful, too. If you'd like to see any of my pictures, or access my EXIF data, the link to my Flickr page is in my signature. Good luck!

Thanks! Glad it helped someone!

I'm really working on trying to communicate the basics on a level where most everyone can understand or point people wherein they can learn the basics.

For the newer posters:
1 - I really am a photojournalist and do this every day of my life. My job is to walk into a situation, assess it for 30 seconds to a minute and start making good, artistic photos that my employer can print. So i do know what i'm talking about. (As well as Laura and EpcotTim and a few others)

I'm really not as snarky as I may seem.

2 - Used to live in Orlando, have a ridiculously huge archive of Disney photos over the course of three years living there. (Used to post these photos here on this site until too many people started ripping them off and occasionally claiming them for their own.) I've photographed a lot of the shows, almost every parade, almost every firework show, as many on-ride photos as i can do without a flash and lots of still life.

 

[Senderella]

Thanks! Glad it helped someone!

I'm really working on trying to communicate the basics on a level where most everyone can understand or point people wherein they can learn the basics.

For the newer posters:
1 - I really am a photojournalist and do this every day of my life. My job is to walk into a situation, assess it for 30 seconds to a minute and start making good, artistic photos that my employer can print. So i do know what i'm talking about. (As well as Laura and EpcotTim and a few others)

I'm really not as snarky as I may seem.

2 - Used to live in Orlando, have a ridiculously huge archive of Disney photos over the course of three years living there. (Used to post these photos here on this site until too many people started ripping them off and occasionally claiming them for their own.) I've photographed a lot of the shows, almost every parade, almost every firework show, as many on-ride photos as i can do without a flash and lots of still life.

Hey Dave I've got a suggestion that might be helpful for all of us wanting your "lessons". Have you considered taking a collection of your pictures and writing captions that explain the ISO used and all the other technical stuff so we can see an example of where exactly it'd be used at WDW? So it's the visual picture, an example of what type of situation the instructions would be used it (like - this & this iso: spectro, HM, etc etc or whatever) and an explanation of why it works best? I think that'd be a really cool "cheat sheet" and it'd use WDW examples rather than the books that have pics of everything else and every other for instance but never tells you what to do when you're in Figment! LOL

 

[PhotoDave219]

I've actually debated writing a book much along the lines of what you've suggested...

.... as for Figment, Ummm.... 1 - Nap and 2 - Hold breath before Skunk Smell :lol:

 

[Senderella]

I've actually debated writing a book much along the lines of what you've suggested...

.... as for Figment, Ummm.... 1 - Nap and 2 - Hold breath before Skunk Smell :lol:

I think you should

LMAO BTW, I like Figment. The "skunk smell" reminds me of coffee!!

 

[PhotoDave219]

I think you should

LMAO BTW, I like Figment. The "skunk smell" reminds me of coffee!!

Don't get me wrong, i like figment too. I just enjoy the air conditioning and try and relax on it. .... Photo wise, you're going to want to use something in the 800+ ISO range as well 'spot metering' off figment - exposing for the spotlight that hits him. You need something fast and wide open; if you have a dSLR you'll probably want a 50/1.8 or 85/1.8.

The upside down scene will be hard to shoot - its dark and you are moving. Best scene to get useable photos is the final one. Stills of Eric Idle will be hard to get because of the nature of photographing video, you'd need a shutter speed of around 1/30th and there's going to be blur from the spastic nature of the guy in the video.

I'm slowly trying to put thoughts down on paper, a "where do i start" bit for advice. I have trouble with the "I need help because i have no clue" questions because I'm not that good a teacher without actually seeing what is wrong.

Fireworks are easy, exposure in front of the castle at 2PM is easy. Trying to tell you what you have to do to make your pictures expose properly (without sounding like an A$$) is difficult.

 

[Senderella]

Fireworks are easy, exposure in front of the castle at 2PM is easy. Trying to tell you what you have to do to make your pictures expose properly (without sounding like an A$$) is difficult.

LOL Well A$$hattery sometimes is a part of it when you know something and there are no other words to explain/describe. Sometimes it can't be helped. :shrug: