Speed up Your Trigger Finger

If you have a compact digital camera, you might be frustrated with how slow the camera responds when you press the shutter button to take a picture. Especially if you are trying to photograph an erratically moving subject, such as a small child or pet, it seems like your subject or their expression is gone before the camera makes the photo.

There is a way to speed up the camera's response, though. Nearly all digital cameras (SLRs included) have a feature called Continuous Shooting or Burst Mode. This setting makes the camera take a series of pictures as long as you hold down the shutter button. (It's the equivalent of a motor drive or winder on a film camera.) So your camera takes several pictures instead of just one, increasing your chances that you capture the moment you want.

The symbol for continuous shooting looks like a stack of photos. The opposite of it is a single photo (rectangle) called single shot. Often the button or menu choice that controls this is the same one by which you turn on the self-timer. Check your camera manual for where this control is located on your model.

Continuous Shooting icon

Once continuous shooting is turned on, you still have to press the shutter button half-way to focus and set the exposure. But once you are past this delay, the camera is ready to take a series of pictures as soon as you press and hold the button.

 

Consecutive frames made with a 

compact camera in continuous shooting mode

There are a couple of things to know about continuous shooting mode. The first is that you should turn off the flash if your camera does not do so for you. If you leave the flash on, then one of two things is likely to happen. First, the flash might fire for the initial picture in the series but not for any of the others because it hasn't recharged yet. This makes your first picture properly exposed and the rest too dark because the camera figured the exposure based on the flash going off. Without it, your pictures are underexposed.

Second, if the flash does fire with every frame, your camera will take pictures much more slowly because it has to wait for the flash to be ready. This defeats the purpose of using continuous shooting in the first place. So remember to turn off the flash when you turn on continuous shooting.

If the camera wants to use the flash to make your photos, it probably means the light is pretty dim in your situation. Instead of turning on the flash, try raising the ISO or Sensitivity setting to a higher number, like ISO 400. (You might have to change the camera to Program mode in order to have access to this choice.) The higher ISO setting helps your camera "see in the dark" without the flash and keep your photos looking good.

On some cameras the burst mode setting is described as "last best" or "first best". In these cases, the camera takes a series of photos but only saves the sharpest one at the beginning of the series or the sharpest one at the end of the series. It automatically erases any others. You'll need to read the manual to find out if your camera works this way.

Finally, if you can't find your camera's continuous shooting setting, use the Action, Sports, or Kids & Pets scene choice. This setting turns on continuous shooting, turns off the flash (usually), and raises the ISO to about 400. Then all you have to remember is to hold down the shutter button for your series until the moment has passed. Much faster on the draw than trying to press the button faster!

 

Sports or Action scene icon

Optical vs. Digital Zoom

Rodeo Bull

Wilsall, Montana 

Almost every digital camera today comes with a zoom lens, one that lets you adjust the length to include more (wide angle) or less (telephoto) of the scene. Most of these cameras have lenses that provide a 3x or 4x increase in lens length. If your camera lens extends from 24mm to 100mm, it's providing a 4x zoom (100mm/24mm = ~ 4x). Other models sport 10x or even 12x zoom lenses.

In both these cases, the difference in how much the lens zooms is determined by how the optical pieces of glass in the lens are adjusted. So this is called "optical zoom" because it's based on the optics of the lens itself.

Many compact digital cameras also have a feature called "digital zoom." (Digital SLR cameras don't have this feature.) This produces a "super telephoto" effect, you might say. Using digital zoom makes your photo look as though the camera has an even longer telephoto zoom. But this is an illusion!

Digital zoom is actually not an effect of the lens at all. It is software in the camera which crops out the center part of the picture and enlarges it in the camera to make it appear as though you used a longer zoom. This sounds neat, you say! How do I use it?

Well, let me caution you. As good as this sounds in theory, you might not like the actual results. Below are two photos of the same scene. The first I made using the maximum optical zoom on the camera. If you enlarge this on your screen (just click on it for a bigger version), you will see that everything looks nice and crisp.

Optical zoom photo

In the second photo, I backed up much farther and used the digital zoom to frame the same thing. If you enlarge this picture on your screen, you'll notice that details are blotchy and edges are smudged. This is the result of the in-camera crop and enlarge process.

Digital zoom photo from farther away

You can almost always get a much better cropped version of your photo by doing it yourself, with photo editing software, than you can by using digital zoom. So I recommend that you test out your digital zoom and see if the quality is acceptable. If you decide it's not, then refer to your camera instruction manual for how to turn off this feature. Your photos will be sharper as a result!

The Monopod That's a Tripod

 

One of the tips I always repeat to beginning photographers is the importance of a sharp photo. If you're photographing a stationary subject, the best way to ensure a sharp photo (one that's free of blur due to camera movement) is to put the camera on a tripod. And if you want to try photographing night scenes or inside without using the camera flash, a tripod becomes a necessity. (Exposure times in these situations are usually too long for you to hold the camera steady and get a sharp image.)

There is an almost endless variety of tripod designs, sizes and prices. For most people with compact digital cameras, I recommend starting with a table-top or mini tripod. These are inexpensive (usually $30 or less), lightweight, and small enough to fit in a fanny pack. (Does anyone use these any more?) With these advantages you're more likely to take the tripod along with your camera and have the support when you need it. A Gorillapod, a Flexpod, or even just a plain Pod (a beanbag camera support) all fit into this category. If you want a mini tripod more traditional in appearance, check out models from Slik, Sunpak, Hakuba or Manfrotto.

GorillaPod, The Pod, Hakuba Table pod

Last weekend I discovered another camera support: the TrekPod! This model is designed to serve as a monopod, tripod and walking stick all in one. It has a telescoping main section with a padded grip. The lower section fans out to three short legs, providing more stability than a monopod (one leg) alone. And it has a cool new camera attachment system...a super-strong magnet! You attach one magnet piece to the tripod socket of your camera and this magnet snaps to the top of the TrekPod, holding your camera securely in place, even when turned sideways.

While the TrekPod offers a taller support for your camera than a mini tripod, and one that weighs less than a traditional design, it's still not going to be as sturdy as a regular, three-legged tripod. Especially if you own a digital SLR (like a Canon Rebel or Nikon D40), I recommend buying a quality full-sized tripod for your camera support. Companies such as Manfrotto, Slik, Velbon, Impact, and Giottos all make good entry-level tripods for reasonable prices (~$150).

Look for models that do not have center braces (metal pieces) between the legs, which prevent you from lowering the tripod all the way to the ground for low-level shooting. And prefer a model that has a Quick Release (QR) method of attaching your camera. This is a separate plate that you attach to the bottom of the camera and click into the top of the tripod for mounting. To remove the camera, you release a lever and the camera clicks out. Way faster and more convenient than screwing your camera on and off the tripod screw!
 
Most people pay too little for their first full-sized tripod and fight with it every time they try to use it. It doesn't hold their camera steady; it doesn't let them position the camera the way they want to; maybe it doesn't even stand up!! As you might expect, these people hate their tripods and avoid them like the plague! But as soon as these people spend money for a quality tripod, they can't believe how easy it is to use, how securely it holds their camera and lens, and how much sharper their pictures become. Tripods are definitely an area where being penny wise usually means you are pound foolish!

No matter which camera support you decide is right for you, I recommend purchasing and using one regularly. You'll soon notice the difference in your pictures!