Help I need a camera expert or anyone using a power shot pro1.

[M. Python]

My wife just bought me a Canon power shot pro1 and I find it takes excellent photos, except when I take pictures of the tank, close ups look grainy and full tank shots look like rubbish. You canââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t make out individual corals all the colors look like crap and I donââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t know what is going on. I got better photos with a Toshiba 3.2 mega pixel camera. Does anyone have this camera and how do you get clear photos of your tank, full shots and close ups? I read the book and tried different settings this is the best I could do after photo shopping it. It was washed out originally and the corals were out of focus, not that they are any better now. HELP ME, I knew I should have taken photography in high school. I have no idea how a camera works or what all the terms mean. I just want to know how to get a good shot of the tank. Any help with this would be appreciated, thanks.

 

[aberg12012]

Although I'm certainly not an expert (an amature at best) I'll offer my oppinion.

Is it the camera? Unless it has a malfunction of some sort, probably not. Any camera can take great pictures. (With a few exceptions, like my camera phone. :lol: ) It's a matter of being familiar with your camera, it's functions, and the basics of photography. The best advice I can give you is to check out GHO's tutorial on reef tank photography HERE.

As for specific advice on the photo you posted:

First, beautiful tank! Second, the photo is over exposed. Lots of blown highlights. (The bright, pure white areas of the photo.) It looks like your letting the camera make all the choices, and because a reef tank is a very special situation, the camera dosn't make the right choices. (Even the most expensive DSLR cameras don't do well in "Auto" mode in this situation.)

In this example, I think it over exposed, using a longer shutter speed, which caused some motion blurr. Thats assuming you weren't using a tripod. Use of a tripod should keep the photo sharp, and experiment with different exposures. Third, be careful about what you do in post processing. Make sure to read GHO's section on resizing and other processing tips. There are specific things you can do in resizing to make sure sharpness and quality is retained.

 

[Sk8r]

The light balance---there's a trick to getting it, and the Photography forum has some good tips on shooting past the MH lights, etc. I'm using 800ASA and letting the automatic Program handle things for now with a Canon EOS, and through trial and discarding a lot of shots, I'm beginning to get the knack of getting it to focus. I know with my two digitals, I'd get a certain sure quality out of the old Sony, but the wider range of parameters on the Canon make it a real learning curve. The bennie is that ultimately the Canon will do better than the ancient Sony, and once I learn the environment, it won't change too radically.

 

[M. Python]

Thanks, Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢ll try to get better photos and post them here in the future. The top of the tank in the photo was completely white, you almost couldnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t see that there were corals up there. Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢m going to play with it and see if I can improve, itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s all new to me. Photography, something else to study, just what I always wanted.

 

[aberg12012]

Yeah, dealing with the dynamic range of harsh MH lighting is tough. It's always a compromise. Too bright on the top, too dark on the bottom and shaded areas. But done right, the contrast can lead to a very pleasing photo.

I think you photo is about 1.5 stops over exposed. Dial in about -1.5 EV (experiment... I'm just guessing) and you should have a much better exposure. Then the tops of all your SPS won't be pure white, and you'll have more contrasty shadow areas. You should also end up with less camera shake due to a higher shutter speed. Keep ISO as low as possible to avoid digital noise, and use a tripod because this will make for longer shutter speeds. As for WB... if your camera can shoot RAW, worry about that in post. In either case, concentrate first on getting the exposure right. Then worry about WB and other issues.

Also, I'm guessing that even hand holding you should get minimal camera shake, as I'm sure you've got plenty of light for those beautiful SPS. But use a tripod anyway, as this will eliminate camera shake as a possibility. If the photo is still blury, then you know it's something else.

Also, make sure your camera isn't focusing on reflections on the surface of the glass. Turn off all other room lights, and block out any window light.