Action Photo Camera

marci1111

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I'm hoping someone can help me. I just purchased a Sony DSC-830 cyber-shot camera. I've noticed when taking action photos the pictures come out blurry. Is there something I'm doing wrong or is this camera just not good for action shots? I do notice when I hit the button to snap a pic it is delays which is annoying too as my dog by then has moved passed the viewing field. If the latter is the case, can someone recommend a camera (on the lower end) that will take pictures with animals running?
 
Hey, welcome!

Subject movement and/or camera movement is what causes the blur. Sometimes you can "anticipate" the action and press the shutter button slightly before the peak of action, but you'll have to practice and be somewhat lucky to do it well.

The inexpensive "point & shoot" cameras have what I call "shutter lag" probably due to their slowness in focusing and capturing data.

An entry-level DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) camera will be much faster at capturing the data.

Check out Amazon, Best Buy, Adorama, B&H, KEH, and any local stores that carry cameras.
 
Most point and shoot cameras do not allow you to control the shutter speed. In order to freeze action, you need a higher shutter speed of at least 1/200 of a second (or faster depending on the speed of what you are shooting).

My "lower end" may be completely different than yours or others on here. You can get dslrs that will freeze the action adequately for about $500 all the way up to $7,000. Which one will be best depends on what you are shooting and where you are shooting.

You could do a really good job of stopping your kids soccer game on Saturday morning with a Canon T3i or a Nikon 3100 and kit lens. But if you are shooting a cheetah in the wild, you may need something like a Nikon D4 or a Canon 1Dx with an 800mm lens.

As for what brand, that is a personal choice that you have to make based on how they feel to you.
 
Most point and shoot cameras do not allow you to control the shutter speed. In order to freeze action, you need a higher shutter speed of at least 1/200 of a second (or faster depending on the speed of what you are shooting).

My "lower end" may be completely different than yours or others on here. You can get dslrs that will freeze the action adequately for about $500 all the way up to $7,000. Which one will be best depends on what you are shooting and where you are shooting.

You could do a really good job of stopping your kids soccer game on Saturday morning with a Canon T3i or a Nikon 3100 and kit lens. But if you are shooting a cheetah in the wild, you may need something like a Nikon D4 or a Canon 1Dx with an 800mm lens.

As for what brand, that is a personal choice that you have to make based on how they feel to you.


Well I just want to take pictures of my dogs running and playing. This is just for me I'm not entering any photo contests or anything. There are no point and shoot cameras on the market today to capture that?
 
Ok I just found these to high end point and shoot cameras:
high-end point-and-shoot cameras
Nikon Coolpix P7000 1/4000 to 60 sec
Canon G11 1/4000 to 15 sec

Ron can you tell me or can anyone tell me if either one of these 2 cameras would work for capturing dogs running and playing?

I just don't know if I want to move to a professional camera as I'm challenged with the point and shoot cameras as it is.

Thanks in advance to whomever replies to this question...
 
I'm not familiar with either of these but looked at them. You should be able to put them in S or TV and select the shutter speed of 1/250 or faster and put it in auto ISO and then you should be fine.
 
I'm not familiar with either of these but looked at them. You should be able to put them in S or TV and select the shutter speed of 1/250 or faster and put it in auto ISO and then you should be fine.
Ok thanks. I'm gonna look at those 2 options and see if their listed in their description.
 
I'm not familiar with either of these but looked at them. You should be able to put them in S or TV and select the shutter speed of 1/250 or faster and put it in auto ISO and then you should be fine.
Ron This is what I found for one of them and am confused:
Exposure
Max Shutter Speed 1/4000 sec
Min Shutter Speed 60 sec

1/250? wouldn't that be really slow?
 
slow compared to 1/4000 of a second, yes. You need a fast shutter speed to stop action. 60 seconds is a long shutter speed where 1/4,000 of a second is very fast.

I've shot kids soccer at 1/250 of a second, so you should be fine., if not go to 1/500 or 1/1000 of a second.
 
Ok I just found these to high end point and shoot cameras:
high-end point-and-shoot cameras
Nikon Coolpix P7000 1/4000 to 60 sec
Canon G11 1/4000 to 15 sec

Ron can you tell me or can anyone tell me if either one of these 2 cameras would work for capturing dogs running and playing?

I just don't know if I want to move to a professional camera as I'm challenged with the point and shoot cameras as it is.

Thanks in advance to whomever replies to this question...
It is I, "the" Designer! At your service!

I read those two you linked to , and oddly enough BOTH had 39 people complaining about the shutter lag. !!!!

So as nice as they are in other respects, I would not recommend either of those choices.

Maybe somebody else knows one with a very short shutter lag.

Let's do a search on that.
 
Starting here: Conquering Shutter Lag - TopTenREVIEWS

and here: Extreme Performance Awards Cameras With the Fastest Shutters PCMag.com

here: Best compact digital cameras of 2015 - CNET

read a little way down the conversation on this one: POINT AND SHOOT with Minimum shutter-lag - Photo.net Casual Photo Conversations Forum

Somebody says he likes the Nikon 1 , which is not a DSLR, but something called "mirrorless". It does allow the changing of lenses, but it is not necessary.

Nikon 1 J1 Review PhotographyBLOG

Nikon 1 J1 Review - DigitalCameraReview
 
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Your camera may have a "Move" or "Children" (or possible even an Action) setting, which should bias the camera toward a faster shutter speed (freezing motion more effectively) while sacrificing other qualities of the photographs.
 
I suggest holding down the shutter button and following the subject (panning) and let the camera take its 1 frame per second shots and pick the best of the bunch. For the blurry shots just need to use a faster shutter speed and as noted above there is probably something like Sport or Action mode that may use the Auto ISO and may use the Autofocus tracking mode and may use a fast shutter speed. Also make sure you are in daylight conditions so the camera can select that faster shutter speed.

So your issue with subjects moving out of the frame is difficult to resolve with most P&S cameras, not impossible, but you can expect more missed shots than if using a DSLR.

With a decent DSLR you can pull out the camera, turn it on, focus and take a shot before most people with a P&S in hand and in the process of pushing the shutter button can take the shot.

Shutter lag, the ban of the P&S cameras. I had the Sony DSC-V1 and coming from a film SLR I did not think about shutter lag when looking for the camera. I tried my best doing prefocus, panning and such, often to no avail.

Your DSC-W830 looks like a slimed down version of the old DSC-V1. The DSC-V1 can take half a second to focus and shoot, or about 0.1 second just for the shutter release after focus is already established by holding the shutter release halfway down.
 
If you prefer a compact, look at the Panasonic TZ40 (TS30). This camera has the so called PASM modes,
so you can set the speed before you take the picture.
Has also a burst mode up to 10 fps.
Rudi
 
Ok I just found these to high end point and shoot cameras:
high-end point-and-shoot cameras
Nikon Coolpix P7000 1/4000 to 60 sec
Canon G11 1/4000 to 15 sec

Ron can you tell me or can anyone tell me if either one of these 2 cameras would work for capturing dogs running and playing?

I just don't know if I want to move to a professional camera as I'm challenged with the point and shoot cameras as it is.

Thanks in advance to whomever replies to this question...
It is I, "the" Designer! At your service!

I read those two you linked to , and oddly enough BOTH had 39 people complaining about the shutter lag. !!!!

So as nice as they are in other respects, I would not recommend either of those choices.

Maybe somebody else knows one with a very short shutter lag.

Let's do a search on that.
Thanks for your advice Designer.
After going though all the links below, it looks like the Nikon 1j1 is the best rated P&S camera. is max shutter speed is 1/16000....Would this camera resolve my problem in taking clear pictures of my dogs running?
 

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