Getting The Most From P&S Cameras

Since I use my Point & Shoot a lot I thought I'd write down a few things I've learned on how I get mine to produce results rivaling a DSLR.

1. Fill that frame. - P&S sensors are small and therefore introduce noise in conditions where the camera must increase the ISO in order to get a good picture. If your subject of interest can fill the frame you'll get sharper photos with better lighting and a more accurate exposure.

2. Aperture Priority. - Put your P&S in Aperture priority, if you have that option, to get better control of depth of field. You'll get better control of your focus area and be able to move from snapshot to creative photographs by blurring your background.

3. Exposure Compensation. - Set your exposure compensation about a half stop under-exposed. I do this for better color saturation and control in the final rendition of the photograph. You have more latitude if your image contains more information than if there's insufficient data.

4. Vibration Reduction. - If you're point & shoot has vibration reduction/image stabilization, use it. Pocket cameras are much smaller than your average DSLR and make it harder to get a stable grip on your camera. VR freezes the image to a stable position just before you trigger the shutter, giving you sharper photos. Also, when using some of today's extreme pocket zooms your image will remain still at longer focal length shots and at lower lighting conditions.

100% agree with that Bob.

The major point i get from it is this.

The camera is a tool. The picture is king. Regardless of the camera it was taken on! Good pictures are the product of observation and imagination.

Well put Dave. I hear folks belittle point & shoot cameras all the time. Your right that they too, just like DSLRs, are tools, capable of producing amazing photographs. Photography basics, by and large, determine the outcome of most photographs. I've seen an awful lot of snapshots taken with expensive DSLR cameras. Knowing your camera, regardless of the type, is more important that the cost or capabilities of a piece of equipment. If the owner doesn't know how to utilize today's amazing technology what good is it to the end result?

Totally agree Bob, you often see people on other fora dismissing people because they don't have, for example, a Canon or Nikon, and you often see newbies being steered towards these options, because the others aren't "proper" cameras.

Hopefully people will be able to see that my Olympus is as capable of producing good photographs as any other.

In my case, I know my camera well, and I know what it will and won't do. So I steer things towards what the camera will do! lol

I was going to suggest that you buy a Leica DSLR but who has $27,000 lying around?

I'll have three!

Three dollars or three Leicas? LOL

Both! They would both come in useful

Good advice / tips here.

Paul

Hey Seniors,

I have Lot's of Respect in my heart for you!!!! Great Postings and Good Knowledge share...

I would like to say Thank You to all Of you For These Useful postings....

I would like to introduce the Nikon D90
Nikon scores high for offering great image quality and terrific design--including rudimentary video recording, a DSLR first.

I really Love it.... Please Try and Enjoy

Pentax Cameras | Pentax Support