Hints for the beginner?

BoxcabE50 Jun 2, 2005

  1. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    Wonder of wonders! I have been loaned an almost brand new digital camera. May have it for most of the summer. [​IMG]

    It's a Fuji S5100!!! :cool:

    Now for my question. I have had an SLR for many decades now. So am thoroughly familiar with it's quirks and functions. Anyone have a few gentle hints for me on this newer camera? Settings for outdoor (RR) use. Roster views, versus moving trains. Auto versus manual. And?

    :D

    Boxcab E50
     
  2. chessie

    chessie TrainBoard Supporter

    6,183
    6
    79
    I am not familiar with that specific camera... However, in general, most things that apply to "film" cameras also apply to digitals... i.e.: use large aperture for still shots (like rosters) and faster shutter speeds for moving trains. One of the best advantages is "no waste"... delete what you do like with no print cost!!

    Harold
     
  3. Kenneth L. Anthony

    Kenneth L. Anthony TrainBoard Member

    2,749
    524
    52
    No, use SMALL aperture for still shots where you don't need speed and can use longer exposure, and larger aperture where fsat shutter speed is critical.

    Larger f/stop "number" means smaller aperture. The f/stop number is the BOTTOM number of a FRACTION.
    f/2 means "1/2 of whatever the focal length is".
    f/4 means "1/4th of focal length"
    f/8 means "1/8th" and so on.

    f/2 is a larger aperture than f/4 and much larger than f/16.
     
  4. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    Well, believe I'm doing something wrong. Earlier today, I snapped a picture of my work bench. I came out well focused. This evening, I did the same, with and without flash. Both are fuzzy.

    All times, I was using a tripod. And the "Auto" setting.

    Could it be batteries? As near as I can tell, these are the originals. Never been changed out. (Not rechargable.)

    It's got to be something simple. But what?

    [​IMG]

    Boxcab E50
     
  5. N_S_L

    N_S_L TrainBoard Member

    3,040
    4
    46
    Auto focus is... off?
     
  6. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    I'll check it again tomorrow. But I'd swear it was on.

    [​IMG]

    Boxcab E50
     
  7. HemiAdda2d

    HemiAdda2d Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    22,014
    27,407
    253
    I have the sister camera, the S5000, last year's model.
    Diagnosis? You shook--it kills sharpness.. Camera shake is a #1 culprit for turning a nice image unusable. Usually happens in low-light conditions, or at long telephotos. Low light can mean anything that's not quite full sun, or indoors--normal indoor lighting is never adequate for photography. Most layouts, that have additional lighting are still not up to the job of photography, without more light.

    On a side note, I rarely use auto mode on my camera. I use program (P on the dial), aperature (A) and (S) shutter priority. Night shot on my model is mostly useless, all color is lost--AP or program works best for me.
    Portrait mode works decently, for the times where you take pics of something other than a train. [​IMG]
    Full telephoto is less than stellar at sharpness, but lengths closer to wide do a good job. 8x10's printed come out sharp, and well-done. Not a bad camera in its price range, sub-$350. If you have any more Q's, email, PM, or post 'em here!
     
  8. HemiAdda2d

    HemiAdda2d Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    22,014
    27,407
    253
    There is a manual focus, but I still have never used it.
    The lever with a small button on the camera, on the LH side of the flash, has a 'C/S/M' on it, slide the lever forward, and hit the button. Should show either Single Autofocus, continuous (good for fast moving items), and manual.
     
  9. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    :rolleyes: Well, problem appears to be solved. Apparently I wasn't shaking the camera. Don't know how, but I'd knocked the autofocus setting off it's locked position. It had been on CAF. And now it is again.

    I will also be replacing the batteries, as they are questionable. This hadn't been used much. And these are still the originals.

    Playtoys..........

    :D

    Boxcab E50
     
  10. HemiAdda2d

    HemiAdda2d Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    22,014
    27,407
    253
    FWIW, C-AF wears out batteries faster than S-AF.
    Also, NiMH rechargables last pretty well in this camera. The higher the mAh rating, the longer they will last. AFAIK, 2500 is among the best rating you can get. Using the LCD screen wears out batteries faster than the viewfinder, as well.
     
  11. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    I'll need to experiment a lot more. Have yet to try the S-AF setting. My photos could be a lot sharper.....

    Am not using the LCD viewer. The only time I have noticed it, is when downloading.

    Not certain what's in this camera for battery quality. Must be decent, to have lasted until now. I have some 2300mAH, and a charger to try.

    :D

    Boxcab E50
     
  12. Sir_Prize

    Sir_Prize TrainBoard Member

    255
    0
    19
    I have that model.
    I found the long distance on auto with CAF
    (Continous Auto Focus) on stationary loco's
    comes out quite well. I do have it on the 2M
    setting for images (1600X1200).
    The flash and LCD screen are what chews the
    batteries. The unit will show a red low battery
    symbol in the upper right, or just shutdown
    the camera when juice runs out. Up to then
    pics just keep rolling out.
    The neatest thing i found is if you cut the
    folder (and paste it to your PC)and start more
    images the unit just keeps counting; no back
    to zero... No double image names.

    I can share other things ive found if you want...
     
  13. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    Sure! Anything you want to pass along! Thanks!

    :D

    Boxcab E50
     
  14. Sir_Prize

    Sir_Prize TrainBoard Member

    255
    0
    19
    Sorry...
    Got super busy.
    Trying to think of the stuff though...
    some of it I've just been doing automatically.
     
  15. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    No problem. Anything that comes into mind. From taking photos, to downloading, and any editing hints.

    :D :D

    Boxcab E50
     
  16. Pete Nolan

    Pete Nolan TrainBoard Supporter

    10,587
    237
    125
    Ken is exactly correct here. What puzzles most people is this question: why do we have a progression of f stops that read as follows: 1, 1.4, 2. 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22 . . .

    Here's why: a 50 mm lens at f1 has an opening of 50 mm in diameter. The area of the opening is 25 mm raduis squared x pi.

    How do we cut the light in half? We reduce the area of the opening by half. Which means we reduce the radius of the opening by the square root of 2, which is 1.4 (since pi, or 3.1416, remains constant).

    So f 1.4 allows half the light of f 1.

    f 2 allows (being the square root of 4) one quarter the light of f 1.

    f 2.8 allows (being the square root of 8) one-eight the light of f 1.

    And so forth. f 22 allows about 1/512 the light of f 1--actually it should be f 22.6--but someone rounded the wrong way a long time ago--perhaps because two "stops" above was f 11.

    Why did we number it this way? It's more or less mathematically precise, I'd guess, although you have to know your square roots and squares to figure it out.

    What becomes important is the increasing depth of field (and slower shutter speeds) you get as you "stop down." An f 22 stop is using only a very small part of the lens (1/512 of an f 1 lens, 1/256 of an f 1.4 lens, etc.) A smaller aperture for a given lens means more can be focused--basically, it's an optics "law." A pinhole camera--I've built a few--can have an f stop of f 128 or so--but then light, being tricky, tends to defract rather than focus, and vignette the corners severely.

    BTW, it's possible to have a lens of f 0.8--i.e., less than f 1. Nikon made one in the mid-60s--a 55mm. It may have been f 0.9--I just don't remember. I owned it, as well as a 135 mm f 1.5. The latter was a huge beasty. Neither was very good at maximum opening.
     

Share This Page