Can not get good pics with Xti

[OranguTang]

What settings should I be using, I can not get a good quality picture with this camera, stock lens. I see no difference between this any my handheld konica-minolta! LOL....

Also it seems to be inconsistent...

 

[Lightsluvr]

???

???

What "stock" lens are you using? )1-55mm zoom?) What are you trying to photograph? The stock lens is not a macro (closeup), and you may be expecting something that is impossible...

Can you post some examples?

I use Canon 20d and 30d, and when there is anything inconsistant about my photos, it is usually "operator error"

LL

 

[OranguTang]

Yes, I am not ruling myself out!

It is mainly FTS and fish photos I have problems with.

fts just look blurry or grainy, "dirty" looking. fish seem to have off color.

The lens is an EFS 18-55mm.

 

[MCary]

One thing that may help alot is for you to get a better lens. Not that your lens cannot take good pictures, just that it is not well suited to aquarium photos. I would say, get the fantastic plastic. Thats's the Canon 50mm f/1.8. It only costs $80 and the big aperature will help you alot to take moving fish in low light. Then save up for the 100mm f2.8 macro for those really close coral shots. Unless your alteady rich, then get the 50mm f/1.4 instead and the 100mm Macro.

For now, experiment will all kinds of setting and learn how to post process. DPP is a good program. There are online tutorials for it.

Mike

 

[reefgrief]

filters help

filters help

You did not show examples of the problem shots.. but it might simply be glare... and using a polarizing filter can help reduce or eliminate that.

If its focusing .. check that u have manual exposure set or that you use a tripod.

and that the lights are daylight ( 6000 Kelvin) not 3500 or less,, and not 10,000 K or more ) .

--Playing with white balance / background settings might help here, but i havent tried that myself .. so not sure if i am helping with this suggestion.. just a thought to try if you cant change light source..

Hope this helps

 

[jallen100]

I dont think its an issue with your lens. The 18-55 is really an awesome lens. Is this your first SLR? I know years ago when I bout my Digital Rebel 6mp camera it was my first SLR and I hated it at first. I felt the same way you feel now. There is a deffinite learning curve when going from the comfort of a point and shoot to an SLR even if you are using it in auto. My suggestion is to keep practicing even though you are frustrated and your images will get better. The XTI is a really decent camera and I started out with the Rebel. I know own a 5D but the Rebel is what I used to start my photography business and I made a decent living with that camera. Also a tripod is not going to do you much good because the fish are moving. My advice would be to set your shutter at 1/500 and aperature wide open. I think its f/5.6 with that lens. 1/250 should stop motion but not always. Practice in that range 1/250 to 1/500. Try to shoot at ISO 100 if you can. You may get some dark images if there is not enough ambient light so you can play with the settings.

 

[jallen100]

I dont think its an issue with your lens. The 18-55 is really an awesome lens. The macro lens will get you in closer for a tighter shot and the lower aperature will open you up for low light situations. Is this your first SLR? I know years ago when I got my Digital Rebel 6mp camera it was my first SLR and I hated it at first. I felt the same way you feel now. There is a deffinite learning curve when going from the comfort of a point and shoot to an SLR even if you are using it in auto. My suggestion is to keep practicing even though you are frustrated and your images will get better. The XTI is a really decent camera and I started out with the Rebel. I know own a 5D but the Rebel is what I used to start my photography business and I made a decent living with that camera. Also a tripod is not going to do you much good because the fish are moving. My advice would be to shoot in shutter prioity and set your shutter at 1/500 and aperature wide open. I think its f/5.6 with that lens. 1/250 should stop motion but not always. Practice in that range 1/250 to 1/500. Try to shoot at ISO 100 if you can. You may get some dark images if there is not enough ambient light so you can play with the settings.

 

[sunfish11]

These pictures were taken with the XTi with the stock 18-55 lens on auto/no flash and sports settings.

Just keep practicing. I have lots more that may be better than this but this is just to show you.

Lisa

 

[spline9]

I dont know why people knock the 18-55mm kit lens so much. Nice pics, Lisa!

 

[juniormc8704]

PM me.

 

[jokercykoe]

If the pictures are coming out too grainy, check what ISO you are shooting at.

If the pictures are blurry, shoot with a faster shutter speed.

You're going to need to play around with the aperture/shutter speed/iso a bit until you get used to it.

 

[spline9]

Dont forget to make sure your glass is clean! Haha.

Shoot straight at the glass, avoid shooting at an angle. The glass will distort the image if you do.

Turn off the pumps. Your light may not be strong enough for a quick exposure. If youre trying to take pics of coral and they are swaying in the flow, it'll just blur.

As for the color, check your white-balance. You can always try to correct it in photoshop or something but if you can set it on the camera right, you'll save yourself time fiddling in post processing.

A flash helps and even more so if you can position the flash above the tank (by using a cable or remote trigger). Preferrably not on the same side of the glass. Dont drop it in the water! This option costs more money, though.

Hopefully this will get you in the right direction but if you post some pics it'll help us figure out what the actual problem is.

 

[ironmics]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12051350#post12051350 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by OranguTang
Yes, I am not ruling myself out!

It is mainly FTS and fish photos I have problems with.

fts just look blurry or grainy, "dirty" looking. fish seem to have off color.

The lens is an EFS 18-55mm.

Check your ISO and white balance settings. A high ISO can give a pretty grainy picture sometimes. Wrong white balance setting will mess up all your colors. Also, try using a tripod to avoid using a flash, that should take care of some blurriness. Make sure you put it on the 2 or 3 second timer whatever your camera has, this will reduce shake from pressing button. Can't think of anything else, so good luck