G2 fuzzy pics

I've had a G2 for about 2 years now. Lately, I've noticed that my pics on the Auto setting are quite blurred, even when the subject has minimal movement. This blurring increases as the distance increases. I know that the digital zoom is not as effective as the optical but I could swear that I'd get some great action shots in the Auto mode a year or so ago without any problem, even at the max zoom setting. I'm wondering if this is some type of internal software issue. My lens is clean, the camera has never been dropped or treated harshly. Examples would include shots of my kids at swim meets from about 50 feet away and at concerts where I'm approximately 20 to 30 feet from the performer. I love this camera but I swear it's not working as well as it used to. Thank you!

Feldrew

G'day!

I would suggest you look at your EXIF data. Since in AUTO mode the camera will set its own aperature and shutter speed depending on auto exposure. Your zoom settings will also affect the f-stop the camera would achieve in that mode. For G2 at maximum zoom the f/2.0 and f/2.2 are not available for example.

It would be good if you can post an example of an image with EXIF data. You may find that the camera is not in fault and you are just asking too much out of it. Or else at least you can then pinpoint your problem if EXIF shows that you should get a good and clear shot.

I've owned G2 since Oct '02 and after taking over 3500 shots founds it still works as well as when I purchased it. However when I do get a blurry picture or under/over-expose I can quite often look at EXIF and see why that happened. Its usually easily explained by looking at Shutter speed/ Aperature/ISO

Regards,
Flagpole

thank you for your quick reply. You mention EXIF data and this is something I'm not familiar with. Could u please elaborate?

Also, is there a way to "reset" it to it's initial factory settings, either through a button push command - I suppose my question too would be, is there something that I could have screwed up that is now affecting my settings?

thank u!

G'day

The EXIF data is the data your camera records together with the image. It includes things like time/date, camera settings, shooting mode and etc. Any good search should find you lots of links explaining it in details. You should see that info in ZoomBrowser if you look at file properties.

I don't shoot a lot in AUTO anymore preferring the Aperature priority of Manual mode unless its bright and sunny and I need to shoot a few fast shots.

Not sure if there is. You can try taking both batteries out and then wait for a minute or so before inserting them back again and see if that reset the camera. But be warned it may reset your file numbering as well.

But honestly it would be difficult to pinpoint your exact problem without seeing in person what you are trying to do, lighting conditions, subject distance and etc. All those have a marked impact on sharpness of the image.

Regards,
Flagpole

Thank you again Flag - I'll see what I can do in examing that data. I'll have to figure out a way to post a shot, since I don't have a handy url to load my photos to.

For reference, you can check out some shots on one of the web pages I manage here: www.modernbujutsu.com

In particular, if you look at the Masters Promotion Ceremony page ( http://www.modernbujut​su.com/masters.htm ), you'll see that many of the photos are rather fuzzy, and it's not like they were all action photos. And the the thing to remember is, even the poor shots here were better than the ones that I took and then deleted.

two points - I do use the built-in flash (don't have the $ for a separate one for the hotshoe) and I do tend to use the auto setting. Maybe I should go for shutter speed instead, but I figured my shots would suffer then in terms of lighting.

Finally, I'm no pro, obviously, (I'm a school teacher, musician, and karate instructor) but I use MS Digital Image Pro9 to edit my photos, so what you're seeing on those web pages has already been edited to some extent.

Thank you for your patient guidance and wisdom.

Feldrew

OK, realized I didn't have ZoomBrowser installed. Installed it, used it to analyze the following photo from this webpage:

http://www.modernbujut​su.com/masters.htm

If you look at the top of the page, in the first horizontal row across, 2nd photo in, this is the info I got when I looked at the original in ZB (the one on the web page has been reduced in size a bit):

File Name
DSCN4773.JPG
Shooting Date/Time
8/21/2004 2:49:35 PM
Tv( Shutter Speed )
1/6
Av( Aperture Value )
3.1
Exposure Compensation
0
ISO Speed
100
Flash
Off
File Size
569KB

Does any of that info give you a clue as to why the shot is blurry? I DO wait for the green square in the middle of the screen before I full depress the button to take the pic. thank you!

Feldrew

G'day again!

Yes. The four things that you can really look at are these:

Tv( Shutter Speed )
1/6
Av( Aperture Value )
3.1
ISO Speed
100
Flash
Off

Lets analyze them in details. First of all as you can see you obviously did not shoot it with flash. Flash has a great significance for indoor shots as it provides your subject with some external ilumination. It can however be distracting and also cause 'red-eye' which is a downside of using a camera flash. Secondly in AUTO mode the camera will automaticly set shutter speed/aperature/ISO for you. Please download and read this for better understanding of these settings- Exposure by John M. Setzler, Jr.

In a nutshell the smaller the aperature the less light enters the camera. The large the aperature the more light. Now imgaine if you are shooting in complete darkness with only 1 candle as a light source. What would you need to do to capture anything on film or sensor? Well you can go 4 ways: 1)You can open your aperature right up to let as much light as possible in 2)You can increas the time your shutter stays open or 3)You can do both or 4)You can increase film sensitivity. The more sensitive the speed the less light it needs to produce an image. That is increase ISO

In the above example you are shooting in very dim light (indoors with high ceilings) and no flash. The camera meters the scene and decides that the only way to get the data is to decrease your shutter speed to 1/6 sec, open your aperature right down to 3.2 and pump the ISO up to 100. However 1/6 sec is extremely slow. There is another rule in photography which is sometimes called Tripod Rule:

Tripod Rule: Use one for every photograph. If your shutter speed is slower than the reciprocal of the focal length of your lens (I.E.< 1/200 sec. with a 200 mm lens), use a tripod. If your subject is moving, double this shutter speed. If you are moving (such as in a boat or plane) triple the speed. If you are doing macro work (.25 magnification or greater), always use a tripod. If you're using a format larger than 35mm, use a tripod. To be safe, weld your camera to the tripod.

Now I can't see how far your lens is zoomed in. I would assume that you zoomed in as far as you can which is 21mm or equivalent of 102mm in 35mm standart. If you follow the Tripod rule anything below 1/125 sec would show some bluriness. And if you shooting action ideally you want to be at 1/250sec and higher. However at that speed you shutter is openned for such a short amount that virtually no light would reach the sensor resulting in underexposure.

Ways around it are to learn your camera better. Look at http://www.shortcourse​s.com/ as a first stop. They have a book dedicated to G2 so if you want buy that. Its a very good introduction but mirrors what is freely available on Dennis Curtin site. I bought it long time ago and ocessionally always go back for a quick refresher if may need. Secondly you can shoot with flash. The G2 flash range varies with zoom settings. It ranges from about 2.3 to 14.7 feet in wide-angle and 2.3 to 11.8 feet in tele zoom. Hence if you are further than 5 meters from th subject get in closer cause the flash will not be much use. You can also of course switch to some of the manual mode and use Shutter priority (note that default shutter speed by Canon for flash photography is usually 1/60 sec. This can be rather slow. With external flash you can find sync speed are increased to 1/250 sec). However you should at least understand what is meant by exposure before setting out to shoot some important family event, only to find that all your pics are severely underexposed.

I hope it points you into right direction for your problem. I hate to think that its the camera as my G2 has been a trusty workhorse for my rather poor photographic skills

Good shootings,
Flagpole

Superb info, thank you for your patient and detailed response. I will sit down w/ my manual and make a dedicated effort to better learn my camera. I will reference that site and have already saved the pdf to be printed and carefully studied. Thank you again!


Feldrew