Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

[SEEGERMANY]

I have a Sony Mavica digital camera that I bought when they first came out back in the mid 1990s. The camera takes great up close pictures, but when I back away approximately 3 or 4 feet, my pictures become "grainy." I experience this condition more indoors than outdoors. Am I experiencing a lighting problem? Is there some adjustment I can make?

The camera is self-focusing and the only adjustments that can be made manually are brightness and zoom. I'd review the owner's manual, but I have about as much chance of finding that as I would finding Jimi's Strat under my bed. The only other specs I can provide are that it's a quick access FD Drive 2X and a 10X optical zoom.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[Brad]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

What Megapixel is it?

[SEEGERMANY]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

Damned if I know. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] It's not designated anywhere on the camera.

[Brad]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

Well, that may be part of the problem.... The less megapixel the granier the photo will be.... [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] Mid 90's, huh? It may be time to go down to Office Depot and get a new one that has writing on it. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] I'd say you have just about depreciated that one down and gotten your money out of it. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[SEEGERMANY]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

[ QUOTE ]
Well, that may be part of the problem.... The less megapixel the granier the photo will be.... [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] Mid 90's, huh? It may be time to go down to Office Depot and get a new one that has writing on it. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] I'd say you have just about depreciated that one down and gotten your money out of it. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

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I was afraid that was the response I was going to get. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] Now here's a dumb question. Do digital cameras still use 3.5 discs or do they use some other form of storage. Quit laughing, I know zilch about this crap.

[LesPaulCustom]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

Hmmm...digital cameras...thats ToeJams dept... [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

The one we have is a HP and has this teeny weeny little thing that you can slide in (sounds like midget porn to me!!!) to save the pics, and you can use it for small video clips (didnt know that til this weekend....friends used it to ummm...well ya get the picture) and came with a HP photo printer....

Sounds like you need to upgrade your camera in a bad way....

Mrs LPC

[InflamedMonkey]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

I love my beater Nikon 2100, great camera for the price, they run like 150 or so.

[wulfe13]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

That camera is not even 1 megapixel. Sony still makes 1 of the Mavica's that use the floppy, I think, but it's either 1 or 2 megapixels... I've got a 4 mp Sony Cybershot, they use memory sticks now. It's definitely time for an upgrade for you my friend. Make sure the camera you get has Optical zoom and not just digital, and make sure it has a good Macro mode (upclose pics). Hope this helps....

[Number Of The Priest]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

There are quite a few digital camera storage formats now. Just browsing the digital camera categories on Ebay, they come in Secure Digital, MultiMedia (which to me look like Secure Digital anyways), SmartMedia, Compact Flash, Sony Memory Stick, and xD Picture Card. Make sure you get the right card format for any new camera purchase... check which formats your new camera accepts!

Okay, the thing that confuses me most is why bother going with anything higher than 3 megapixels if all you're doing is taking 640x480 sized photos for forums, e-mail, and general web sharing applications. If you multiply 640 by 480, you get 307,200, which is a THIRD of one megapixel. I shoot ALL my photos in 640x480 and I'm getting better and better results every time I practice, even after I put 21% software compression on my pictures to keep the filesize down. Nobody wants to look at a true 4-10 megapixel photo on their 1024x768 (still less than one million pixels!) resolution monitor. If you're intending on printing out photos onto photo paper with your photo printer, then yes, high megapixels allow you to print out even ginormously large posters and banners without loss of quality. It's like an ignorant 16-year-old having a 500hp sports car if all he's going to do is drive it to school and back home a block away. It's overkill and a true waste.

Now, OPTICAL ZOOM... that's the next price-determining factor. You want true zoom, not cropped and pixellated crap otherwise known as digital zoom. Digizoom is a useless feature in my opinion. They should sacrifice it to slash prices a wee bit because I NEVER USE IT. It ruins your shots if you use it, so don't, unless you have a REALLY HIGH megapixel count to sort of compensate it. Still, nothing beats true optical zoom.

Given a choice, I'd rather take a 2.1 megapixel camera with 10x optical zoom than an 8.0 megapixel camera with 3x optical zoom. Sadly, I don't think any of those exist. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] All the high megapixel cameras typically come with decent zooming capabilities and all the lower-end cameras typically have no more than 3x optical zoom, sometimes even having NO optical zoom. Some Hewlett-Packard cameras come to mind and that's why some of those are so damn cheap, as well as those tiny keychain cameras.

If you are a decent photographer with a little bit of know-how, you can make killer 640x480 shots with a 1 megapixel camera (obviously depending on how good quality your lens is). There are some people who take photos in the highest resolution setting possible on their camera and then resize them down to 640x480... what is the point? You don't get any extra quality and you don't cram a large amount of pixels into a smaller area to "concentrate quality". I myself just shoot 640x480 shots straight with the camera and upload them right away without any resizing or any of that processing crap other than saving the images onto my computer with a little bit of compression to keep the filesize down. Take a look at some of my most recent guitar-related photos, all taken with 640x480. I swear I am getting better and better shots every time.















Alright, I'm done. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[SEEGERMANY]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

Thanks for the information, all of you. The pictures above are all closeups. As I stated earlier, that's not my problem. It's when I back away several feet while shooting indoors. That's when everything becomes grainy.

Someone made the correct assumption in that for the most part, I only use the camera to record my guitar collection and for random shots around the house (the dog, flowers, naked chicks in the pool, etc, etc).

Let me ask one more question. Can a 3.5 disk go bad? I have one disk that I've stored pictures, erased pictures, so on and so on. Should I shite can that floppy and start fresh or is that a waste of time? Again, thanks guys (and gals). [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[Brad]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

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Should I shite can that floppy and start fresh or is that a waste of time? Again, thanks guys (and gals). [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

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You could try that first.... Definitely would be a cheap easy fix.... I am notfamiliar with the older floppy cameras. I have always been slow to accept "new" technology and the was late getting into the digi cam craze. I would try a new disk first just to see.

[Number Of The Priest]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

Dang, I got WAY too caught up in my rant that I forgot you were looking for faraway shots. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

And that first acoustic guitar picture that I posted is from a few feet away. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Anyways, in that case, I don't really know why your distance pictures are grainy while your closeups remain clear.

Naked chicks by the pool... hmmm, got any pictures of them to show that they're grainy? [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[SEEGERMANY]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

OK, after a little problem solving, with the emphasis on "a little," I've determined that it's not a disk problem and it seems to be a lighting problem. Granted, I probably need to upgrade my equipment, but it seems that this camera works best in natural light. Even under cloudy conditions, the graininess disappears. So, I'll wait for a partly cloudy/sunny day and give it another shot.

I'm very impressed with many of the shots taken and presented on these boards. I'd be interested in the type of equipment you use, the approximate cost, and if you recommend the purchase. Thanks!

[Number Of The Priest]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

I'm lazy and cheap, so I just use my camera and natural light streaming in through my bedroom window. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] I don't even own a freakin' tripod yet. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] I should though... I think I'll ask for one for Christmas. It will help steady and sharpen my shots.

Everything looks better in natural light, like your human eye. Diffuse light is the best, so take photos on a cloudy day (also minimizes unwanted reflections, especially on glossy guitar bodies) or in a large shadow (side of your house) on a bright sunny day. You look at Toejam's outdoor pictures compared to his indoor pictures taken with the same camera... the indoor ones are grainy while the outdoor ones are MUCH sharper and vivid.

[Brad]

Re: Camera - Photo Experts, I Need Some Advice

Mine is a Kodak DX7630... Just point and shoot... Unles you are taking pictures of birds at 200 yards it is all you would really need. It is a 6.1 megapixel with 3x Optical Zoom.... Like I said, Just point and shoot... Oh yeah, make sure you always include the headstock tip or the JCF photo police will come arrest you. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]
Here's a link to the one I have.

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2004_reviews/dx7630.html