I have a digital SLR camera....but was just wondering howcome everytime I take a picture and the flash is off it blurs (I mean EVERYTIME...even if I'm outside and its failry sunny, and on ANY setting)....The only time it doesn't do it is if I'm outside and it's EXTREMELY bright.......
Is this supposed to happen??
I'm sure I've seen SLR pics of people taking pics of their kids etc.....while they're INSIDE their house and you can tell they haven't got the flash on (cos the pic has that softer natural light look to it)
Any help would be great......Thanks... Sounds to me like you have camera shake in one form or another. Things to check are:
1) Have you set the aperture to a very high number (e.g. f32) and as a result your shutter speed is slow?
2) Have you set a slow shutter speed manually?
3) Are you"snatching" when pressing the shutter release?
As a rule you need a shutter speed of 1 / focal length or faster to avoid camera shake blurring. i.e. if you are shooting with a 100mm lens you need a shutter speed of 1/100s or faster to avoid excessing camera movement during the shot. Personally at 100mm I'd go for 1/200s or faster, but then again my hands shake quite a bit :-)
To make sure it's not a fault with the camera try switching it to fully auto mode and taking a few shots in reasonable light to see if you still get blurring. Also check the shutter speed for the photos you take to make sure they are faster than the 1 / focal length rule.
Finally you may need to practice your technique when pressing the shutter release - I use one of the focal points in the viewfinder and something within the scene to get an idea of how much the camera is moving prior to pressing the shutter release - if it's moving a lot I try to find something to rest against, or get my monopod or tripod out. (1) Hand shaking,(2) Wrong Shutter Speed maybe setted at 1/15 seconds,Aperture at f/2.8,(3) Outdoor setting at 1/250 seconds,aperture at f/16 to f/22, (4) once you taking picture without flash on, you have to put your camera with a Tripod,so that it won't given blur images. Well most likely your shutter speed is set really low because of a combination of utilizing a small aperture f16, f22, f32 and using a low ISO perhaps 100 ISO. Anyhow when your shutter speed is set below around 1/30th of a second you are going to get some bluring unless you have a really steady hand. Solution, if you aren't using your flash and are in a situation where the lighting is dim use a large aperture f2.8, f3.5, f5.6 and a relatively high ISO setting ISO 400, 800 or 1600. Larger apertures let in more light, and higher ISo numbers are more sensitive to light. The follow excerpt is from Wikipedia - the guide also applies for DSLR (remember to use the equivalent focal length of a 35mm SLR):
The ability of the photographer to take images without noticeable blurring by camera movement is an important parameter in the choice of slowest possible shutter speed for a handheld camera. The rough guide used by most 35 mm photographers is that the slowest shutter speed that can be used easily without much blur due to camera shake is the shutter speed numerically closest to the lens focal length. For example, for handheld use of a 35 mm camera with a 50 mm normal lens, the closest shutter speed is 1/60 s. This rule can be augmented with knowledge of the intended application for the photograph, an image intended for significant enlargement and closeup viewing would require faster shutter speeds to avoid obvious blur. Through practice and special techniques such as bracing the camera, arms, or body to minimize camera movement longer shutter speeds can be used without blur. If a shutter speed is too slow for hand holding, a camera support 鈥?usually a tripod 鈥?must be used. There are also stabilized lenses available. Press the shutter release half-way down and be sure that you get the beep (if set to audible) that confirms the autofocus process has completed. If you just plain old press the button down immediately, the camera may not have focused properly.
I'm guessing that the high output of the flash or high lighting in the bright outdoors is forcing your camera to select a small aperture (like f/11-16 or so) and the depth of field is sufficient to make it appear as if everything is in acceptable focus. | 