DSLR Help - Blurry Pics

[Rob2006]

Some pics come out really good. Some pics come out blurry. Even in bright sunlight as well. It can be my twitchy hands but I never used to have that problem. The slow shutter speed I can see where the problem would lie.

 

[Daniel]

You could set your camera to 'shutter time priority', that way you set the shutter time and let the built in light meter calculate the apature for you. Have a look into the manual of your camera how to do that.

 

[malweth]

I have the most problem with low light scenarios (indoors) and with my son and the dog - seems that they require 1/125 or better!

Dark objects also give me problems - we have a burgandy colored rug and a chocolate lab. Taking a picture of my son and the dog on the rug apparently means I need 3-4 extra stops (I need to remember to change ISO) - this is indoors at 3pm on a super sunny day (white walls & plenty of light coming in).

 

[zedin]

Well don't sell your d50 to get a point and shoot. You don't want to have that money wasted since you won't get as much for it as you paid. While you are learning use the pre-programmed modes on your selection dial. Those are the little picture symbols on the left side dial. So the picture of a moutain is for landscapes, the person running is action shots, the person's head with a hat is for portriats, etc.. Those modes should be described for you in the manual. Just be patient and learn your camera and you will love the d50.

 

[Rob2006]

Do you think a VR lens would help?

 

[Boston®]

IF you have 3 lens, I wouldn't invest in another, but rather sit down, read the manual and experiment with it. Use your 50 MM lens more as it will provide wider apertures so more light can come in than those other zoom lens. If you are taking mainly spurr of the moment shots, use the Auto mode, it'll fire the flash if it needs to that way.

 

[D-50]

I would suggest investing in an expensive VR lens until you fully understand your camera. I tend to shoot in A so I can egt the depth of field I want and not worry about setting the aperature and shutter speed. I always kee my shots slightly unerexposed as well. I find this works well for spur of the moment shots, although in low lighting I would use the 50mm. Dont give up on your camera yet, just keep shooting and you realize how to get good shots.

 

[Rob2006]

I think I found some of of my problems. I went into the blurry pics deeper and see that in allot of the pics the focal point is not the subject I wanted. Rather an object past the subject. Would dynamic area be better than single area for this?

I did experiment with DOF shots and its tough until I know what F-Stop matches what ISO and metering.

I guess to loose DOF I would need to use a slower shutter speed but a tripod.

I took some more pictures in the house of my daughter using a 1/110, 1/160, 1/400 and there is no blur there. I tried setting the Aperature to F16 and the pic is dark. I guess crank up the ISO to 1600 but that would be a grainy shot.

 

[Luke]

I think I found some of of my problems. I went into the blurry pics deeper and see that in allot of the pics the focal point is not the subject I wanted. Rather an object past the subject. Would dynamic area be better than single area for this?

I did experiment with DOF shots and its tough until I know what F-Stop matches what ISO and metering.

I guess to loose DOF I would need to use a slower shutter speed but a tripod.

I took some more pictures in the house of my daughter using a 1/110, 1/160, 1/400 and there is no blur there. I tried setting the Aperature to F16 and the pic is dark. I guess crank up the ISO to 1600 but that would be a grainy shot.

okay
you're definately suffering from a lack of knowledge of how shutter aperture and ISO interact. It's comlex, so I won't teach here, but internet info is readily availible. My advice is, start using proper auto focus, where you actually choose what to focus on, and get rid of the zoom, the best zoom you have is on your feet, if you have time to change lenses, you have time to walk right up to your subject. Once you know how to use your 1.8 you can achieve more with Depth of field and sharpness etc.
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[Unimaxium]

If you're shooting indoors or in other low-light conditions, you need one of three things: a fast lens (one that lets a lot of light through, i.e. a low f/number); a high ISO (causing the camera to require less light to make an image, at the expense of graininess/noisiness); or a very steady hand or a tripod. If you had been using your 50mm f/1.8, for example, you could have used a shutter speed of 1/100th to get the same exposure, because it lets that much more light in than your f/3.5-5.6. Alternatively, you could have used a high ISO, which makes the sensor more sensitive to light. I'm guessing you had the camera set to Auto ISO, which won't set the ISO above 400. If you had used 800 or 1600, you could have used a 1/20th or 1/40th shutter speed, respectively. These speeds are much easier to handhold. In low light with a slow lens, you have to trade off camera shake for the graininess of a high ISO. It's your choice which to eliminate. But you can't eliminate both without a tripod or very steady hand.

PS: "allot" is not a word (ok actually it is, but not in the way you're using it), and it's spelled "aperture" ;-)

 

[xfloggingkylex]

I have been experiementing with ISO for the first time and I must say, WOW. With my Pentax istDL I can take handheld shots in somewhat low light with the kit lense (18-55mm f/3.5-5.6) at 1600 ISO with no problems. The pictures have some noise so I wouldn't print them, but for capturing moments you want to remember forever, it definitely works well.