First Attempt at this

[karenl39]

Hi,

This is my first attempt at taking photos of ornaments. I am failing miserably. This one turned out ok, but I cannot get the settings down and if I use a flash, it turns out awful.

Here is the information about my camera, etc. and here is my photo:





Camera Model Name
Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL
Shooting Date/Time
12/3/2004 8:22:59 AM
Shooting Mode
Manual
Tv( Shutter Speed )
1/15
Av( Aperture Value )
5.6
Metering Mode
Center-weighted averaging
Autoexposure Bracketing
-2
ISO Speed
1600
Lens
75.0 - 300.0 mm
Focal Length
170.0 mm
Image Quality
Fine
Flash
Off
White Balance
Tungsten
AF Mode
Manual Focus
Parameters
Contrast +1
Sharpness +1
Color saturation +1
Color tone Normal
Color Space
sRGB
File Size
332KB
Drive Mode
Single-frame shooting
Owner's Name
Camera Body No.
1660521771

http://webpages.charter.net/blynch45/ornamentredsmall.jpg

[Radtech1]

Where, specificaly, do you see this as a "Failure". I mean, what was in your mind that did not end up on the image. For me, I find this very hard to look at because the bulb looks out of focus. Maybe the stenecling is just soft, but I keep trying to squint to focus it.

This cannot be what your complaint is, though, because you would know to focus, so, where does it fall short to you?

Rad

[karenl39]

Thanks for your quick reply. I wanted it to be focused more than it was, but it was focused as much as I could get it to. I know it must be my settings somehow. I wanted it to really stand out without using a flash and to sparkle. I used a tripod and I still know I must have jiggled it or something.

I keep trying to get perfect photos of my Christmas tree and they all end up so dark you can't even see them. I want the lights to stand out somehow. I've never done this type of photography before so I am learning, but it can be frustrating.

Karen

[boomer1959]

Karen, how far away was the camera from the ornament?
perhaps if you were to close thats why it wouldn't focus.

[edsarkiss]

karen

- use a tripod
- if you're on a tripod, ISO1600 is not necessary ... go down to ISO100 or ISO200 to get better quality (unless you're after the grainy look of 1600)
- the bright lights in the background are distracting. turn them off or use more light on the subject (red ball) to make it brighter relative to the background.
- when working close up, it's almost always best to switch to manual focus
- this is digital -- shoot tons of pictures. differnet apertures, different focus points, different flash settings. leave the camera on the tripod, remove the memory card, check your work on the computer. if you need to re-shoot, the camera is still set up. this is a FANTASTIC way to learn how all this works.

i really like the reflection of the other tree in the red ball. keep trying lots of things -- you're bound to learn a ton and come away with that "perfect" picture.

[edsarkiss]

karen -- you have "Auto Exposure Bracketing" set to -2 -- that's probably why your pics are coming out dark. the bright lights in the background may also be fooling the autoexposure system.

more advice bullet points:
- i see that you were on shutter-priority (Tv) mode for this shot. since the subject is not moving, you should use aperture priority (Av) mode, since what you really want is to control the aperture to control depth of field. with the camera on a tripod, shutter speed is inconsequential.
- even better, switch to manual exposure mode (M). under controlled conditions, the autoexposure features of the camera will remove control from you that you need to make the "right" picture.
- if the DRebel has a "mirror lock-up" mode, you can use that to reduce camera shake
- you can use a cable release (err, remote release?) rather than pushing on the shutter button to reduce shake

keep playing with the camera, and pay attention to the settings you change and use and how that impacts the picture. this is the only way to learn how to use your equipment properly.