Why do low-light pictures suck with my digital camera, or is that a generic problem with all ?

[Magnum357]

I have a new FujiFilm Finepix 2600 2.0 megapixel digital camera and whenever I am taking low light photos with the flash off they are very blurry. Even mounting the camera on something to keep it steady will yield blurry photos sometimes. Is this a general problem with all digital cameras, I used to have a Canon A40 which did the same? I like to keep the flash off a lot of the time so I hope there is some kind of solution.

 

[MajesticMoose]

It's probably because the picture is underexposed and not properly focus because it can't "see" anything

 

[Magnum357]

Due to the lack of light, I presume ?

 

[MajesticMoose]

yeah. The camera needs like to be able to focus as well as to create the image. To shoot in low light you need long exposures from a tripod and probably manual focus.

BTW, I'm basing this off of my minimal experience with 35mm, so i may be wrong since it's digital

 

[kherman]

With my digital camera, an olympus, I ran into similar problems.

The camera has setting for exposure, etc, but I amlazy. here's what I do:

Low light, no flash. The camera actually takes multiple samples. That's why it is blurry.
Low light, with flash. The camera forces itself to take one sample. no blur! Very good pictures.

The solution I found is to always use the flash. You can probably read your manual to learn about the other features of your specific camera and it should tell you what those adjustmensts do/mean.

Karl

 

[dionx]

yeah, i have the same prob with my sony dsc-p7. so i just use flash unless i don't want the flash to overexpose colors then ill just try to setup alot of backlight and take the shot without flash

 

[Magnum357]

Ok thanks guys.

 

[kag]

it's a problem common to pretty much all digital cameras... most of the time, you need to use a higher ISO setting and/or a longer exposure time.

 

[PsychoAndy]

The problem with shooting indoor pics is usually not enough light, and to compensate, the camera uses a longer shutter speed for a longer exposure (1/8th of a second on mine, rather than 1/30 or 1/45 with flash). The only solution would be to use flash or add some light in the room.

 

[PG]

Low light is tough for any camera, film or digital. Look for lens specs in the future. The Aperature size is very important, the lower the number the better. I have a 35 mm film camera with a f/ 1.7 lens which works really well in low light situations, but most lenses these days don't open more than 3.5 or 4.0. Say the total area for light to pass through a lens in theory is X. Then take Y/X where Y equals the area of the lens left when it's set to wide open. The answer is the the aperature size. Maybe I'm not explaining this very well, but as I said the lower numbers are much better for low light. There's a huge difference between someting like a f/ 1.7 and f/3.5 or f/4.0. A f/ 2.0 lens has 1/2 the lens area left open. A f/ 4.0 lens only has 25% left open.

 

[Deeko]

I had that problem with my Fuji 4800, I returned it and picked up an Olympus C2040 instead. I take alot of low-light shots without a flash. What did the 2040 have over the 4800 in this aspect? Much better lens for it(min. apeture 1.8), also the ability to change the shutter speed. The blurriness is coming from your camera setting a slow shutter speed. In low light without a flash, it will set it to 1/4", maybe even 1", somewhere in that range, can you hold a camera perfectly still with everything in view perfectly still for that time?

 

[rootaxs]

I have a Fuji 2600z myself and with a tripod and using the timer to take the photo's i've been able to take rather clear low-light photo's. From what i noticed even with a tripod the blur comes from vibrations transmitted to the camera when you click on the shutter button.

This was taken in Aruba using my 2600z

 

[Zenmervolt]

Remember too that the ISO equivalent is 200 speed for most digital cameras (at least the point and shoot variety). Some get up to 400 ISO, but the majority are ISO 100 or ISO 200, which means that they need long exposure times when the light is low.

ZV

 

[WW]

Originally posted by: rootaxs
I have a Fuji 2600z myself and with a tripod and using the timer to take the photo's i've been able to take rather clear low-light photo's. From what i noticed even with a tripod the blur comes from vibrations transmitted to the camera when you click on the shutter button.

This was taken in Aruba using my 2600z

you can avoid the vibrations from pressing the button by using the self timer feature....I think the fuji only has a 10 second setting. Or if you had a camera with a remote you could use that.

 

[rootaxs]

Originally posted by: WW

Originally posted by: rootaxs
I have a Fuji 2600z myself and with a tripod and using the timer to take the photo's i've been able to take rather clear low-light photo's. From what i noticed even with a tripod the blur comes from vibrations transmitted to the camera when you click on the shutter button.

This was taken in Aruba using my 2600z

you can avoid the vibrations from pressing the button by using the self timer feature....I think the fuji only has a 10 second setting. Or if you had a camera with a remote you could use that.

Didn't i just say that?