S5 IS pic samples - Fuzzy or great - nothing in between.

Hey guys, it was requested that i post some of the pictures I have to show what I am talking about regarding noisy pictures.
I'm very happy with the responses I've received, just wanted to say thanks.

How does the rebel with the default lens match up to this camera? If 70% of the shots are going to be indoors and the rest , outdoors and pretty close up?

I had a few responses regarding the s5 stating that to get optimal pictures, I would have to adjust all the settings. That kinda sounds like a DSLR to me, so at that point - wouldn't it be worth it to get the DSLR if I have to go through the effort to make all the adjustments?

Opinions please...

Here are two pretty good pictures of some valentine day roses with mixed flowers:

Macro settings - P mode (due to the bandwidth I will be removing these images in 1 month)





And here are the images I speak of that are extremely noisy. They all look like this pretty much, in auto or P modes:
Local Basketball game:



Bathroom remodel:



and



and



Believe it or not, this picture was snapped quickly in auto mode from about 40 feet away at full zoom, THROUGH a tinted FILTHY window with alot of outdoor moisture, not too bad - I was surprised



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How do you work this crazy thing?

First of all:

1. Are you setting your camera on Auto ISO? If so, your camera is choosing some shots at ISO 400 - which results in exceptionally noisy scenes such as some of the ones you posted here. I checked the EXIF ratings and sure as heck...the indoor basketball court shot was at ISO 400 - so yes, you will have noisy shots. Remember, the camera will arbitrarily pick different ISO settings - especially as you move indoors to a lesser lighting scenario. And with these small sensors, the higher up in the ISO chain you go...the noisier things become (especially above ISO 200).

2. Do you have your IS set to on?

The first and most important thing is to ensure is that you don't have Auto ISO set as the default ISO setting. Set your ISO's manually otherwise, high noise levels will creep in big time as the camera elects to up the ISO levels.

Do you have your IQ set to the highest level JPG Fine? Another consideration. Having a higher compression setting coupled with auto ISO - well, that's a recipe for disaster.

Also, if you have your saturation settings set to high, this can increase noise also.

Remember, we're talking about 8 MP on one of the smallest sensors on the market and something has got to give IQ-wise. Knowing your camera, knowing your environment, and keeping in touch with basic photographic principles, will go a long way towards your achieving superbly taken images.

Good luck...
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As always - good shooting....

Ben

Some of the terms I understand, others I do not.

I did however read much of the things you mentioned, and it would be a pain in the ass to constantly change settings on this camera for every shot.

The pictures of the bathroom (at least the one) is with iso200 and of course, you can checkout the settings...but why does IT look so bad?

I'm actually holding the camera against door frames to try to make it nicer thinking it was shake - just the same result.

So again I ask, with having to change all your settings - wouldn't it be the same as having a dSLR camera at that point but the results would be far better?

I saw a comparison a guy had here with a S3 and his dSLR camera - and honestly I would have tossed the camera in the garbage (s3) after seeing those shots. Even the $50 pands's at the drug store take better shots, and he knew what he was doing.

Maybe it's Canon? I might post some of my 6 year old camera pictures.
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How do you work this crazy thing?

I played with an S3IS and a G6 this weekend... my buddy and I were watching the kids all weekend while the moms were away on "retreat"...

ANyhow, we sat around, day and night, taking pics, 90% indoors. I didn't get one single pic as bad as any you posted above. Changing the settings, once you get familiar with the cam (which I did in about 1 hour) is a snap. You can literaly change ISO, exposure, etc.. in a matter of a 5 seconds or less... the other stuff the guy above mentioned dont need to be changed ever again after you set them... leave the camera on the highest resolution it has, leave IS on...

Shoot ISO 80. Thats all I use. We took pics in a room that was only lit by a computer screen (as we were surfing DPreview) and a tiny little reading lamp and the graininess was barely noticeable unless you zoomed in bigger than computer screen size.

I'll try and get my buddy to send a few of the pics to my computer...and I'll post them for you..

You've got a great camera, I have no doubt and am probably going to write a check for one soon...

Finally, unless you are willing to take the time to change settings and learn how to take pics, the DSLR will do the SAME thing... especially in those indoor shots...

Ernie

You need to use the flash. I bet all of the cameras you are comparing it to were using the flash and you are trying to go without it. These cameras do not work well in low light. Indoor sports without a flash are difficult with a dslr so it isn't going to work for you without a flash.

James

Lighting - you have to have good lighting to get the most out of this camera. They are not really designed for indoor use unless you use a flash. I guarantee you that if you used a flash in the bathroom and bounced it off the ceiling, you would get a nicely exposed, low noise image (set the ISO to 80).

It's really an outdoor camera that needs good light and ISO at or below 200.

When I took this camera to Ireland, the outdoor scenic shots were great and with a flash, indoor shots were just fine.

Like most will tell you here, you need a dSLR with high ISO performance to get good indoor shots with available lighting. The other option is to run your noisy images through software, such as NeatImage, to clean it up which works very well.

The S5 is a great camera. You just need to understand its limitations and always give it good light to work with. Good flash techniques will get you outstanding images as well.

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Best regards,

Rusty

Hmmm, isn't 80 REALLY slow to take the pictures thus it takes every little shake translated to blur?

Sorry - I'm pretty new to this (can ya tell ?!)

So can someone compare the quality of the rebel with the standard lens that comes packaged with it (I think it's around $450) vs this camera? I mean, if I have to be adjusting settings - then why not a DSLR right?

Please advise thanks again guys!

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How do you work this crazy thing?

Well, I know ho wyou feel, I bought a S5 because I was a few dollars short for a DSLR. Now I'm wondering if I regret it. the SUPER MACRO is awesome but useless because in most cases the cameras shadow would destroy your shot.

I bought my mother a $107.99 samsung camera from bestbuy and it takes nicer pictures at 1600 than my Canon at 400... go figure.

I'm really trying to learn how to get better DOF when taking certain pictures and i'm defintley learning more about this camera to the point where I feel I'm tricking my cam into doing things it shouldnt.

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Yes, sounds like what my father's camera is doing. Far better indoor shot results. Crisp, beautiful colors, great focus and overall - pretty darn nice. Better quality than my 5.

I'm going to say what I am thinking and will possibly get some raised eyebrows on this - and YES I know that I do not know how to use the camera to it's fullest capacity - but, I think some of the belief that the s5 IS lovers may be feeling is possibly because they like the canon name or maybe they don't want to believe they made a poor decision in their purchase.

I mean - if you read through another thread I had that started me down this path - there was a response from someone explaining what I would have to do to get DECENT quality pictures. Not tricking it or anything just, have to adjust all the settings different than what the auto or p modes offer.

Well at that point, it sure sounds like a DSLR camera but the DSLR would produce FAR better results eh? Sooooooo doesn't that lend merit that for another 100 or so you could get a inexpensive DSLR (rebel) with a lens that equates to the S5 and do the same thing or far better?

I may experiment with this. It's pretty easy - just go order it from costco then if I don't like it return it and get the S5 back and live with the results / setup a light farm to take pics indoors.


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How do you work this crazy thing?