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Pardon my ignorance; TIA Anonymous
I just purchased a Canon Powershot A640 recently (I wanted an SLR, but they were too expensive), and I'd like some hel/p/ that the manual didn't quite provide:

• I know what an aperture is, but what do the different F-settings mean? All I've noticed is that higher apertures darken the shot when the flash is disabled.

• MF? I press it once, and I see a flower. I press it twice, and I sometimes get a slider bar. I press it again and the flower (or MF icon) disappears.

• What does night mode do? Neither my roommate nor I can find any discernible difference between this and automatic mode.

• If an image is too dark or too light and I'm in manual mode, what should I boost first: ISO, shutter speed, aperture, or flash strength?

(Picture related, but I didn't take it. It's hard to take a picture of your own camera.)
>> Anonymous
>I know what an aperture is, but what do the different F-settings mean? All I've noticed is that higher apertures darken the shot when the flash is disabled.

well, you dont actually know what aperture is then. the smaller apertures (bigger f/number) increase depth of field, but since less light is getting to the sensor you will need a longer exposure time to get the same exposure as with a wide aperture.

>MF? I press it once, and I see a flower. I press it twice, and I sometimes get a slider bar. I press it again and the flower (or MF icon) disappears.

the flower means macro mode. it lets you focus really close to the lens. if i remember correctly you might have to jump to the manual focus slider bar using the button that uhhh jumps around the settings in manual mode.

>What does night mode do? Neither my roommate nor I can find any discernible difference between this and automatic mode.

i believe night mode uses a slow sync flash meaning it will flash with a long exposure, that way it exposes both the foreground and background, while auto mode will just flash with 1/60 or whatever exposure and only expose for the foreground.

>If an image is too dark or too light and I'm in manual mode, what should I boost first: ISO, shutter speed, aperture, or flash strength?

iso gets pretty bad at 400+ or so. youll probably be at the widest aperture most of the time so that usually isnt an option. shutter speed if you can still get the capture if you want with a slow speed. pretty much depends on the situation.
>> Anonymous
1. f-stops increase depth of field (not a big deal on that camera, since it has such a deep DOF anyway) and let less light in. the bigger the number, the less light comes in. wikipedia for more info.

2. there's regular autofocus (20 cm to infinity, no icon), macro focus (flower icon, 4cm-20cm) and manual focus (adjust the slider to focus from closest to infinity with the directional pad). this is definitely in the manual.

3) night mode presumably allows the camera to take photos with a shutter speed longer than 1". You won't see any difference during the day or in dim lighting. this is probably in the manual too.

4) use shutter speed to make the image brighter or darker. leave your aperture set on 2.6 (or whatever number is smallest) for now. if you're indoors and beyond the limits of sharp handheld shots (say, 1/15 @f2.6 ISO 80), use a) a tripod if you can get one, b) raise your iso (not a good option for a point and shoot) or c) use a flash (destroys the lighting of your photo, though indoor lighting is usually nothing special).
>> Anonymous
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>>81570
Is it pretty much a rule of thumb to use the lowest ISO possible?

Picture unrelated, but one that I took. No tripod, as I took this while walking to class.

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeCanonCamera ModelCanon PowerShot A640Camera SoftwareQuickTime 7.2PhotographerColin R. CogleMaximum Lens Aperturef/2.8Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandImage OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2007:09:12 22:25:52Exposure Time1/800 secF-Numberf/8.0Lens Aperturef/8.0Exposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternFlashNo Flash, CompulsoryFocal Length7.30 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width3648Image Height2736RenderingNormalExposure ModeManualWhite BalanceManualScene Capture TypeStandard
>> Anonymous
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Picture still unrelated. It was late at night and dark, so I used nothing but a 15-second shutter and a tripod. Of course, my fat, purple-clad friend walked outside during the shot.

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeCanonCamera ModelCanon PowerShot A640Camera SoftwareQuickTime 7.2Maximum Lens Aperturef/2.8Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandImage OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2007:09:02 16:16:36Exposure Time15 secF-Numberf/3.2Lens Aperturef/3.2Exposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternFlashNo Flash, CompulsoryFocal Length7.30 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width3648Image Height2736RenderingNormalExposure ModeManualWhite BalanceAutoScene Capture TypeStandard
>> Anonymous
>>81606
on point and shoot cameras, yes because the noise becomes excessive very quickly as you go up ISO
>> Anonymous
what exactly does ISO do? i use a digi camera too and its hard to take shots in the dark because of how the camera focuses
>> null
the way the train people at my work to describe it is that it is similar to the iso rating of film higher speed for motion/ darker]
now i have no idea if thats accurate
>> Anonymous
>>81562
>iso gets pretty bad at 100+ or so.
Fix'd

(Keep in mind that this is a p&s)