Camera built in flash very slow on Full Auto

[Tinderbox (UK)]

Hi.

I was just messing with my new camera, see sig, i took a photo in very low light in my kitchen which is not very big and the camera slowed the shutter speed to 1/15 of a second, the flash is the camera`s built in one, i think the guide is only 7 at iso 200

Was the slow shutter speed because of the weak flash and the camera needed a longer exposure to get a accurately exposed photo, below is the exif data from the photo.

Thanks

John.

Make: FUJIFILM (Home | Fujifilm Global)
Camera: X-E1
Lens: 18-55mm F2.8-4
Software: Digital Camera X-E1 Ver2.20
Focal length: 18 mm (equiv. 27 mm)
Aperture: F2.8
Exposure time: 1/15"
ISO speed rating: 3200/36°
Program: Program AE
Metering Mode: Pattern
White Balance: Auto
Focus Mode: Auto
Noise Reduction: 256
Flash: Flash fired, auto mode

 

[Robin Usagani]

The slow shutter was due to the AUTO mode! You are letting the camera do whatever it wants. It really depends on how fuji programmed the camera. It probably has algorithm to use a certain minimum shutter for different focal length (if dark). BUt like I said, it is however they programmed the puter. I have no idea how the puter decides when to make aperture smaller, higher the ISO, change the shutter faster.. etc. It is all fuji programming.

 

[Gavjenks]

Yikes, f/2.8 1/15, ISO 3200??? That's 2EVs of ambient exposure, i.e. about as bright as you would expect with a subject lit by candles only a few feet away... not a whole room lit by any sort of modern lighting. Your room probably wasn't actually that dark -- that's just what the camera was metering for with ambient. There's a good chance that it had a low limit of 1/15th second programmed into it (perhaps using a formula based on 18mm focal length) and wasn't allowed to go slower, so it just went as far as it could and dumbly stopped without really "considering" the consequences. Then it set ISO based on the flash, and never went back to readjust shutter, and blah blah.

End result, your camera is making a horrible mess of multiple stupid decisions. It set an ambient exposure that is almost certainly way too low to matter anyway, and yet still burdened you with a sluggish 1/15th shutter that might be just enough to show blur and ruin the photo. In other words, it set you up for the highest possibility of failure that was possible here, almost. What it should have done, or what I would do as a human, in very low light is EITHER:
1) Break out the tripod and use as long of a shutter as necessary, even several seconds or whatever, with much lower ISO too. OR
2) Give up on ambient exposure and commit to giving up on it, with as fast of a shutter speed as the flash can sync with, like 1/200th of a second. Rely entirely on flash.
Don't waffle in between and get the worst of both worlds (talking to the camera I guess, not you).

If the only flash I had was built in, I would always choose #1, too. Unless I absolutely had to life or death, career or unemployment get some sort of sharp image of that room right then and had no tripod.

Especially since your flash is only rated to light a room up to about 12 feet at max power even at ISO 3200, it might still not even be enough, depending.



Solution, I suggest all of the below:
1) Practice and learn manual settings to know how to out-think the camera.
2) Get a better flash like even a $50 Yongnuo, which has 100x more powerful output AND can swivel and other things (to bounce off ceilings). With that, if you needed to, you could light the whole room with ceiling bounced flash, without it even being particularly unpleasant, and without all the noise of 3200 ISO. And you can do of course many other important things with a real flash.
3) Consider a tripod for dark interior shots if you want to use ambient instead. Kitchens don't usually move around much, so it's a fine subject for a tripod.

 

[Designer]

My kitchen jumps when I enter. Jumps for joy and anticipation.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

I manually set ISO 200 and 1/250 and the flash photo`s came out great, plenty of light from the flash no problems, just don't rely on auto.

Thanks

John.

 

[Derrel]

Gav mentioned something that not a lot of people think about: using a fairly powerful flash unit on a small camera. About ten years ago, before the "affordable" d-slr revolution, many photo enthusiasts were using small, advanced point and shoot zoom cameras, like the Nikon 900-series, or the Canon G-series, or the Olympus 3030 series, cameras like that, with full-sized speedlights. I myself had a small Canon G2, and used it with a Nikon SB-28 flash...the difference with a "real" speedlight and the Canon's itty-bitty little built-in flash was remarkable. THere weas even a fairly popular web site devoted to teaching people how to use speedlights + compact digital cameras effectively.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

I just tried my little Fuji F600EXR compact and the same thing happens on auto with flash it picked f3.5 at 1/15 and ISO 800 for the tiny sensor.

Now my ancient Canon A590 compact picked f2.6 at 1/60 ISO 200 when using flash in full auto mode.

John.

 

[Robin Usagani]

Different camera system meters differently on Auto Mode (and programmed differently). It is also depend what is in the frame. One camera may have wider field of view and include more lighter scene, and one doesn't.

 

[Derrel]

Different camera system meters differently on Auto Mode (and programmed differently). It is also depend what is in the frame. One camera may have wider field of view and include more lighter scene, and one doesn't.

THIS, yes! ^^^^^^^^^^^^

Sometimes I have to wonder what the he[[ camera designers are thinking when they set up the exposure programs... but one thing I know is that "some" cameras shoot really GOOD photos on AUTO mode if the camera is simply tripod-mounted. Meaning, in dim areas, if the camera is placed on a tripod and triggered with the self-timer, the camera can often take a fairly long timed exposure, either with or without flash, depending.

If the camera's sensor is very small, even a wide f/stop like f/2.8 to f/3.5 gives deeeeep depth of field due to the ultra-short focal lengths and the fairly close hyperfocal distance that goes with teeny-tiny formats and lenses in the 4mm to 10mm length range. But ISO 3200 at f/2.8 at 1/15 second PLUS a flash pop???Was there a "subject" that was close-in and which was focused upon?? Or was it a total WTF? type experience?

 

[Robin Usagani]

But ISO 3200 at f/2.8 at 1/15 second PLUS a flash pop???Was there a "subject" that was close-in and which was focused upon?? Or was it a total WTF? type experience?

Perhaps his kitchen has dark wood, black fridge, black back splash, black granite counter top, etc. lol.