Do I need a new lens?

[rherrell]

I have a Canon Power Shoot S2IS and I can't seem to take close up photos that are in focus. I've tried every adjustment the camera has and have spent countless hours here and other camera sites reading everything I can and I just can't get it. Is this not a good macro camera? Would a new lens help? Amazon has a Canon 500D 58mm lens for $89. I'm "photographically challenged" so I need all the help I can get. All of the photos in my album are shot on auto mode and I'd like to do better. Thanks in advance!

 

[CrazyBear]

Are you trying to take a macro style shot ie. the camera very close to the pen. if so why not try setting the camera up on a tripod a couple of feet away and then using the 12x zoom to zoom in on the pen. you should be able to focus that way.

 

[CrazyBear]

I am no expert on photographs but having looked at your album the only problem I see is depth of field focusing ( where you are in focus at the nearest point and out of focus the further along the pen you go)What I tried. Set up the camera on a tripod. Adjust your F.stop( thats the little numbers on the bottom which say 2.8 etc)the higher the number the wider your focal length will be(I may have got that bit the wrong way round)Set your camera to timer mode and no flash. Take the pic and let the camera sort out the photo. Its digital so play about with the F.stop numbers till you get a photo that you like(it doesnt cost you anything and you learn more about your camera this way)

I hope this helps and any mistakes I have made can be rectified by others who know better

 

[CrazyBear]

This guy gives a brief explanation on Depth of field

http://shawn.ocia.net/quick-photo-tutorial-aperture-f-stop/

 

[rherrell]

My camera is on a tripod and 8 is the highest f-stop I have. I've tried shooting from a couple feet and zooming in and close in macro mode. I have it set on 10 sec. delay so I know it's not moving when I press the button. I've tried manual focus, auto focus and hocus pocus. Nothin'. Am I being too picky? Is this as good as it gets with this camera? If so I'll get another camera. I'm getting tired of messin' with it.

 

[CrazyBear]

Rick
in my opinion(having looked at your album) I can only see the one flaw on the spalted Mango. The rest look Fine to me( far better than I have done with any of mine)

So unless you are going proffesional with your photography I would stay as you are doing. I dont see where you see your flaws. Perhaps more proffesional photographers will be able to spot them. But beats me

 

[Rifleman1776]

Just try backing off. If your camera has enough mega pixels, you should be able to get an enlargement of the image to have a sharp picture.

 

[Daniel]

I agree with Frank, most lenses have a min distance you can be from the subject. I would guess that a couple of feet is to close. I shoot my pens from more like 5 feet away and use a tripod. I zoom in and crop the photo. Here is an example of the finished photo. originally the photo was the size of the white area.

 

[gerryr]

Looking at your photos, I don't think the camera is the problem. The best photos you have are the ones where the pen is essentially parallel to the sensor. The worst ones are the ones where the pen is at some relatively steep angle to the sensor. You need to keep the pen as parallel to the sensor as possible to have the entire pen in focus. Even at a distance of 3-4 feet, the depth of field is going to be extremely shallow.

 

[rherrell]

THANK YOU everybody. I tried backing off a little and it seems to be getting better. I'll keep fine tuning and I'll post something when I can't get it any better. Then maybe you can tell me what else I need to do.Thanks again!

 

[toolcrazy]

Focusing Range
Normal: 1.6 ft./50cm-Infinity (W), 3.0 ft./90cm-Infinity (T)
Macro: 3.9 in.-1.6 ft./10-50cm
Super Macro: 0-3.9 in./0-10cm

The problem your going to have is as f8, you are not going to be able to get the depth of field you need. You will have to use the above suggestions and move the object parallel to the camera lens. And changing lenses isn't going to work for you either. From the research I did, the lens you have now isn't removable (I may be wrong). Your camera is more of a point and shoot and not a DSLR. Meaning it's not going to have the control.

 

[rherrell]

Thanks Steve. I really appreciate you taking the time to help me out. I have alot to learn. What kind of camera would I need to have more control? I don't need top of the line stuff but I would like to take better pics. Maybe I can talk to Santa real nice!

 

[gerryr]

I still don't think the problem is your camera, but if you want a better one, the Canon S3-IS or S5-IS would be similar and possibly better. I think quite a few people here use both of those. I'm pretty sure there are auxiliary lens available for both. Getting a DSLR, for fully interchangeable lenses, is a slippery slope because it can easily lead to "lens lust." I have a Nikon D40 that came with an 18-55mm lens and I used it to take pen photos initially and it worked pretty well. I now use a different lens for photographing pens, but I happen to like photography as a hobby and own 4 Nikon bodies and 10 lenses.

 

[mattgatten]

Stopping the aperture down isn't the only way to get a good Depth of Field. You can make up for a lack of aperture by stretching out the shutter. If it's 1/60th of a second, you can lengthen it to 1/20th, 1/10th, even a full second. If the image gets too hot since you can't close the aperture further, use less light. Seriously. Longer shutters increase DOF just as effectively.

Hope that helps,
Matt

 

[gerryr]

Originally posted by mattgatten

Longer shutters increase DOF just as effectively.

I'm sorry, but this is just plain wrong. DOF is a function of three things and shutterspeed is NOT one of them.

 

[gerryr]

Let me clarify my response. IF you are shooting in shutter priority mode, then decreasing the shutterspeed will result in increased DOF, but only because the aperture will close in response to selecting a slower shutterspeed. If you are shooting in manual mode, simply selecting a slower shutterspeed and leaving the aperture unchanged will absolutely not increase the depth of field.

 

[mattgatten]

Ok, Gerry. Feel better now? You've corrected me on all of the two photography posts I've made.

You could have shot me a PM on the corrections. After all, I'm new here and was just trying to help. Did I explain it wrong, yep, probably. Tell you what. You guys have a pretty informative site but I'll not post any more here. I'll lurk and use it as the awesome resource that it is.

Find some other new guy to defame. People like you are what make me stay out of communities like this.

Matt

 

[gerryr]

Defame: "charge falsely or with malicious intent; attack the good name and reputation of someone."

If you were posting incorrect information about making pens, you could use the excuse that you're new here. However, since you stated that you're a semi-pro photographer and run a photography-related website, what you post about photography had better be absolutely correct.

 

[GaryMGg]

Originally posted by mattgatten
...You've corrected me on all of the two photography posts I've made.

Matt,
In my humble opinion, it is you who is off base. Way off base.
In your intro, you stated you're a semi-professional photographer.
I'm not a photographer and it's not a hobby of mine. However, as a woodworker who also sells his products via the 'net, I have to use the camera and I need to know how to use it just like the other tools I use.
I read here to learn how to better shoot my pens.

By stating you're a semi-pro, you become a voice of authority to those who read these posts. And, by posting a response that offers solutions, those solutions must be factually correct.
It wasn't as if you were offering an opinion; were that the case, I'd see this in a very different light. Facts are facts and it is incumbent upon those posting facts to do so with accuracy so that folks like me won't be misled by mis-statements.

Gerry is merely making sure the camera-dummies, like me, aren't learning bad information.
And, for that, I appreciate his posting a correction.
That's how it works around here.

Cool your jets, untwist yer knickers, and learn about pen crafting.
Double-check your facts and teach what you know about photography.

 

[alphageek]

Originally posted by rherrell

My camera is on a tripod and 8 is the highest f-stop I have. I've tried shooting from a couple feet and zooming in and close in macro mode. I have it set on 10 sec. delay so I know it's not moving when I press the button. I've tried manual focus, auto focus and hocus pocus. Nothin'. Am I being too picky? Is this as good as it gets with this camera? If so I'll get another camera. I'm getting tired of messin' with it.

Rick,
I just came across this thread. I have the same camera, so I can help a bit. You say you used macro mode. I want to double check one thing. Macro mode really doesn't cut it for me with pens. You need to go into the "supermacro" mode.

Have you tried that? I take all my pen images very closeup and use supermacro on my s2is.

 

[wdcav1952]

Originally posted by mattgatten

Ok, Gerry. Feel better now? You've corrected me on all of the two photography posts I've made.

You could have shot me a PM on the corrections. After all, I'm new here and was just trying to help. Did I explain it wrong, yep, probably. Tell you what. You guys have a pretty informative site but I'll not post any more here. I'll lurk and use it as the awesome resource that it is.

Find some other new guy to defame. People like you are what make me stay out of communities like this.

Matt

Are you serious? Heck, even I have thicker skin that that. [8D] Give wrong information and you will get corrected. It has happened to me before and will again, regularly! If you require people to walk on egg shells around you, you likely will be lonely.

 

[rherrell]

Thanks Dean, I'll give that a try!