Newbie help

BC Bound · Jul 1, 2010

I have been a huge fan of photography for years but only ever had a point and shoot camera, recently i was given Fuji S5000 semi automatic , i took some pictures while visiting a local port town with limited success, some photos were blurry and exposure too bright.

I enjoy learning over time but tomorrow i am going to see some tall ships that are here so i want to get some good shots, i am wondering if anyone has some settings advise, the S500 is not a fully manual camera but there are some setting options.

Thanks

Dan Deffett

AgentDrex · Jul 1, 2010

Note: Do you have any examples so far to show us?

As you can tell by my sig under this message, I too only use a P&S...I like to set the EV (exposure value?) down a 1/3 of a stop or so...

It seems the camera likes to overexpose (no ababysean, you may not take that comment elsewhere in your mind) all the shots...

So what I do with my POS, I mean P&S, is set the area of exposure to "Spot" under the "Program" mode and then find an area that isn't too bright or too dark and let the camera set the exposure to that place and lock it in (AE lock) by pressing the shutter button halfway down and pressing on the exposure button...

You'll have to either read the manual that came with the camera, or do what I did and just try every single button and menu choice in the camera to figure out how to use it...

My manual is still sealed in the original packaging...

Looking forward to seeing some examples...

MrBarney · Jul 1, 2010

Woo! I know this camera. Very similar to my old S602 Zoom. (although I've just had to edit some things I had written because they're different! Doh)

You have more manual control than you might think. There is a full manual mode on the dial as well as P, Av and Tv modes, plus full auto, a Scene Program modes position and a "movie" mode. Manual control is also provided for ISO, flash, focus and three metering modes. Definitely read the whole manual, but it should perform quite well in full auto until you get to grips with the other modes.

Some things to note:

ISO range (on my S602) is 160 to 1600. Check yours. If outdoor shots are over-exposed it might be too high. Also check the metering mode. You probably want "Multi", but try the others too.

The shutter release has two stages. a "half press" triggers the auto focus and metering. If you quickly give a full press this process may not have completed before the photo is taken. If the sound isn't switched off, you will hear a double beep when focus is achieved. It may not be able to focus first try, especially in low light. Also remember that the focus point is in the centre of the lens (not true - you can set your S5000 to "mutli" point focus in the menu, but center may still be better) so you need to position the subject there when you half-press the shutter. You can then re-compose the shot keeping the shutter half pressed before fully depressing the button to take the photo.

There is an auto / manual focus switch on my camera, but I can't see it on the S5000 so it may be a menu option. If you find it, you want it in auto. The LCD isn't really good enough for checking focus before or after shooting unless you use the digital zoom to look really closely.

There are two macro modes for use when the subject is very close (closer than 1.6 feet). Mentioned in case you take any detail shots.

Set the camera for the highest possible quality JPEG, which on mine was 6M, Fine. You can use "High" but that stores TIFFs and slows the camera horribly.

Use NiMH rechargable batteries and charge them on the day you need them. This camera eats alkaline batteries.

There is no image stabilisation, so in low light without the flash you will have to learn to brace the camera against a solid object, or your body and keep it very still to avoid camera shake. Also, it has limited aperture settings so it tends towards long exposures (I believe in Auto it will go up to 2 seconds, manual might go as long as 15s). Any shots in low light of something which is moving are just going to be blurred unless they are close enough to use the flash, which is harsh but quite powerful.

One of my favourite features of this camera was the "last five" motor-drive mode. Not much use for ships, but read about it for fun later!

Other than that, read the manual (have I said that already?!

) and enjoy it.

Here's a random shot I took about 5 years ago with the S602 with almost everything set to automatic.

BC Bound · Jul 1, 2010

Thanks all for the advice !!!!!!!

I have the manual on my PC and i have read some of it, guess i was hoping for fast crash course before tomorrow, Drex i didnt keep any of the fuzzy photos, if i take any bad ones tomorrow i will hold on to them

AgentDrex · Jul 1, 2010

Well, then...you'll be taking after me...posting all the rubbish...just kidding...but my stuff really does suck...looking forward to the possible posts tomorrow...