What kind of camera?

[jcardona1]

i'm guessing that ISO is too high for your point n shoot. a higher ISO means your camera is more sensitive to light but it also means you get a lot more noise (grainy pics). DSLRs excel at low light and high ISO performance. you should read up on the basics of photography like shutter speed, ISO, aperture, etc. until you do, all your settings will seem like gibberish and you wont know what to change in order to improve your pics

here's a nice comparison of ISO 800 between a point n shoot vs a DSLR

 

[Fishman1318]

i'm guessing that ISO is too high for your point n shoot. a higher ISO means your camera is more sensitive to light but it also means you get a lot more noise (grainy pics). DSLRs excel at low light and high ISO performance. you should read up on the basics of photography like shutter speed, ISO, aperture, etc. until you do, all your settings will seem like gibberish and you wont know what to change in order to improve your pics

here's a nice comparison of ISO 800 between a point n shoot vs a DSLR

Yea see thats what I want! I'm sure I can figure the camera out once I get it and read the manual. It's just I got these point n shoots that have no manual so most of the numbers I'm looking at are gibberish. Except ISO, I get that.

 

[onlybigfish]

I was waiting for the D700 replacement from NIKON (no idea when)
and bought a D300s instead.
eventhough I had some year of experiense in photography ( with a D100)this camera was the first one for me to get good shots of my fish , not just the glass or the lights.
I use a sb900 on a slight angle to get the best lighting.
I would show some pics but will have to wait for the pics managment to work again.
i use the 24-70 lens which is fast and awsome

 

[SteveR]

Here are a few sample pics on a Cannon Powershot A520. ISO is at 400(max) and 1/100 and F 5.0. whatever that means lol.

Basically your limited by that camera. The grain is terrible for ISO 400. But you'd need to spend a good bit of money to get a good one. Also it's still slightly blurry since your speed is only 1/100. For fast fish 1/250 MIN if you want good sharpness. Problem is your already on ISO 400 and loosing light.

 

[SteveR]

i'm guessing that ISO is too high for your point n shoot. a higher ISO means your camera is more sensitive to light but it also means you get a lot more noise (grainy pics). DSLRs excel at low light and high ISO performance. you should read up on the basics of photography like shutter speed, ISO, aperture, etc. until you do, all your settings will seem like gibberish and you wont know what to change in order to improve your pics

here's a nice comparison of ISO 800 between a point n shoot vs a DSLR

What this man said!

 

[SteveR]

Yea see thats what I want! I'm sure I can figure the camera out once I get it and read the manual. It's just I got these point n shoots that have no manual so most of the numbers I'm looking at are gibberish. Except ISO, I get that.

That's your problem. Manuals do not tell you how to be a photographer. Read online there is a massive resource out there for this, google! Manuals only ever give you if any, very BASIC tips. The manual is designed to teach you the settings and how to get them, not when to use them or how...

 

[Fishman1318]

Hmm, well I can try to speed up the camera to 1/250 and see if that helps at all. But I guess I'll have to read up on the techniques of camera use. I've been wanting one for quite some time but I'll probably still want to wait and ask for it for christmas or something(I just had my birthday) lol.

 

[SteveR]

Hmm, well I can try to speed up the camera to 1/250 and see if that helps at all. But I guess I'll have to read up on the techniques of camera use. I've been wanting one for quite some time but I'll probably still want to wait and ask for it for christmas or something(I just had my birthday) lol.

Not much point mate. You'll have even less light then, and if you use ISO 800 (if your cam even has that) the grain will be horrible if it's bad at 400. Better camaras have better sensors, better lens, are clearer at higher ISOs (as Jcardona1 demo'd here nicely). You'd need a better camera for the type of clarity you want.

Best advice : google stuff like "photography basics" "how to manual photography" etc.

Read about shutter speeds apetures exposure Iso.

 

[Fishman1318]

Well I messed around with the camera but the pictures sucked either way. I just need a better camera. Plus it doesnt have ISO 800.

 

[ScatMan]

you might be interested in a digital photography class, check your local community college. they'll teach you the basics of photography and probably a little photoshop.

i looked into it a few years ago, it was about $300, but i didn't have the time to go.

also, i have a cousin who's a pro (shoots weddings and stuff) that took some awesome pics with my camera because she knew how to manipulate the settings and lighting to get what she wanted. i know my camera can do it, but i lack the technique and know how.

i'm pretty sure with all the skill in the world, you still might have a hard time getting really good shots with that camera...

like i said earlier, i don't know much at all, but i would put it in macro mode, lower the iso (reduces the grain) and put more light on top when shooting. a flash will almost always show on the glass (unless you press the lens against the glass) and angled shots tend to distort the fish. good luck!