flower out of focus

[audrey-g]

hi
i was trying to get the rose in the foreground in full focus with a shallow DoF. i put my camera on the A mode and zoomed in. i had to shift to manual focus to adjust the focus, but even with maximum adjustment it still looks quite out of focus. the camera was on the tripod and i set the macro mode with the biggest aperture the camera could take (i think it was f3.5)
the rose was behind the window and i had the polariser filter on.

what can i do to improve?
thanks for your help

camera: fuji finepix S5600

[audrey-g]

can anyone PLEASE answer my question because i feel COMPLETELY LOST
i really can't understand what am i doing wrong and i tried adjusting f-stops, distance from subject, used manual focus... the only things that are coming to mind are either the zooming in loses focus or my camera is not good enough for macros. but i want to learn on this one before buying a DSLR.

i hope someone will be kind enough to show me some light to my problems.
thanks
audrey-g

[kencaleno]

Originally Posted by audrey-g

can anyone PLEASE answer my question because i feel COMPLETELY LOST
i really can't understand what am i doing wrong and i tried adjusting f-stops, distance from subject, used manual focus... the only things that are coming to mind are either the zooming in loses focus or my camera is not good enough for macros. but i want to learn on this one before buying a DSLR.

i hope someone will be kind enough to show me some light to my problems.



thanks
audrey-g

OK Audrey g, what camera have you got? are you using a tripod?

Set camera on tripod, in macro mode shooting mode A/Av set at F5.6 (If you can) take polarizer off
Adjust distance from flower so camera is within macro range
Set self-timer for 2 seconds
carefully press shutter button, and wait
If result (assuming no wind) is still blurry,maybe 2 seconds was too short a time to stop camera movement(depends how sturdy your tripod is)
set self-timer for 10 seconds,press shutter button,and wait
This should give you a sharp image

Regards, Ken P.S. Let me know how you get on.

The image below was made with a $100 camera, (below) hand held.

[audrey-g]

hi ken
thanks for your quick reply. i will try what you told me and will let you know results. yes i was using a tripod. my camera is a fiji finepix S5600.
audrey-g

[kencaleno]

Originally Posted by audrey-g

hi
i was trying to get the rose in the foreground in full focus with a shallow DoF. i put my camera on the A mode and zoomed in. i had to shift to manual focus to adjust the focus, but even with maximum adjustment it still looks quite out of focus. the camera was on the tripod and i set the macro mode with the biggest aperture the camera could take (i think it was f3.5)
the rose was behind the window and i had the polariser filter on.


what can i do to improve?
thanks for your help

camera: fuji finepix S5600

Your camera focused on the window glass,not on the flower behind it,and your polarizer didn't help-What you must realise is that F3.5 on your camera is equivalent to F9.5 on a dslr Ken

[audrey-g]

hi ken
i tried what you have told me and the result is much better now! i set the self timer to 10sec.
i think the problem was either the tripod movement or else i was zooming into the digital zoom and that loses focus. the rose is wilting now and it's not nice to capture, but i'm after technique in this photo not beauty. i'm sure you can understand!!
my initial idea was to get a sharp rose in the foreground with a blurred background, while using the zoom. so there is no need to lower the f-stop to its minimum when using zoom?

thanks for all your help
audrey

[kencaleno]

Originally Posted by audrey-g

hi ken
i tried what you have told me and the result is much better now! i set the self timer to 10sec.
i think the problem was either the tripod movement or else i was zooming into the digital zoom and that loses focus. the rose is wilting now and it's not nice to capture, but i'm after technique in this photo not beauty. i'm sure you can understand!!
my initial idea was to get a sharp rose in the foreground with a blurred background, while using the zoom. so there is no need to lower the f-stop to its minimum when using zoom?

thanks for all your help

audrey

Please! NEVER, EVER use digital zoom-why cameras have it I will never know-every shot will be crap!-just use your optical zoom.In macro ,if you want deep depth of field-use F8 if you want shallow,depth of field use 2.8 if you have it,or the widest you can go.but for general photography, do not go smaller than F4 set shooting mode to A or AV. Regards, Ken

[CharlieJ]

One other slight issue is the fact that you're shooting through glass. That will cause some distortion. Try the same settings, but without the glass between your camera and the rose. Looks like you're on the right track, though.

One of the best things about using macro is the DoF. Also, remember that most lenses have a sliding minimum aperture. As you zoom in, the min F-stop gets larger. So, at 50mm, it might be F2.8, but at 80mm, it might be F4.2. If you can, move the camera in close and then shoot with varying degrees of zoom ~OR~ vary the aperture at the same distance. See what effect that has on your photos -- and decide what you like best.

I hope this helps!

[audrey-g]

charlie j thanks for the comments. i'm doing what you told me and yes i'm starting to realise that you can get a background out of focus with the zoom and a larger f-stop.

[jiminyClickit]

audrey-g,

A word of encouragement: I use the Fuji S3100, and you can get this with it -



Learn all you can about your camera, then about the basics of photography, then practice. There are no limits to what you can do.

Did you take your own avatar? With the Fuji?