Yeah, if anything, we were ripping your technique, not your camera :D

Just kidding though, that's what learning is all about. P&S cameras are capable of a lot, you just have to put more thought and care into it to achieve certain results. Night shots are a good example of that - they'll be inherently noisier than most DSLRs, so you have to compensate other ways.

Even with a DSLR though, that shot would at the very least benefit from a tripod. Lower ISO will improve noise/grain, but increase the need for a tripod.

Actually, that sort of shot might benefit from HDR technique... which would be a lot more difficult, though not impossible, with more P&S cameras, especially if they don't have exposure bracketing.

I took some night shots last night -- walked to the nearest church and snapped some corridor / lighting shots @ ISO 80.

Results were much improved (in terms of being natural), but like you said -- i either need metal gear solid SNIPER DRUGS (to stop hand shake) or a TRIPOD for the next step up.

Gonna work on my hands though and use the 2 second drive mode at night.... lol

might post a few of those pics later for constructive crit'

we're talking cameras :p

thx again

Just so you know, for a small camera like that, you don't need to run out and drop $200+ on a ball-head, carbon-fiber, super-duper tripod... even a small video tripod will work well and make a world of difference. Actually, a Gorillapod would be a great little investment for you;

http://www.joby.com/images/gpod_hanger.png

^ i looked at that gorillla pod briefly in BB -- how does it work though? it just rests against your body or something?

No... not meant to be resting on your body but I guess you can do that if you wanted to. It works like a tripod except the legs can twist and bend. If you straighten the legs, you can make it into a tripod. If you curl the legs, you can make it wrap around branches, poles, etc. You can even hang it upside down.

^What Denny said. Check their webpage, they have assorted pictures of it "in action". Check the links for the SLR and SLR-Zoom versions as well.

http://www.joby.com/images/webcam.jpg

http://www.joby.com/images/gorillapod-family.jpg

http://www.joby.com/images/gorillapodslr_camera.png

http://www.joby.com/images/slrzoom-macro.jpg

Wow, that's actually pretty sweet that it can hold up a big SLR camera. I might get me one of those :D

Ask phatpower, he's got one and loves it.

that seems like a good little invention, but i'm on the move right now ;)

the newest pictures are all great guys

thats right soundy I love mine it works great for my nikon s51c cool pix and works great with my nikon d80 as the pix show on soundy' thread is how they look in use you cant beat the price..

I use mine all the time right now I use it more then my tripod lolol :)

Knockoff Gorillapod here: http://www.kaidomain.com/WEBUI/Produ...px?TranID=3066

I picked one up and it works great. Only nitpicky thing about it is that I have found the knockoff less stiff than the original....though it's still pretty stiff in itself. Holds up my camera with a 17-40 without any problems.

if you have a d80 with a grip & a 18 200 mm vr lens.... do you want to trust it with something like that I wouldn't... just words of wisdom that's all

I don't trust it with that kind of setup for sure. I do however trust it with my strobe.

That works I do that too

rename this forum to "GUNS R US" and we're all going to jail lol

"WE FUCKING HAVE YOU GUYS ON RECORD TALKING ABOUT TRIPODS AND LENSES!"

EDIT:

i'll keep posting my crappy pics until they get better lol
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h...n/IMG_0065.jpg
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h...n/IMG_0056.jpg
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h...n/IMG_0044.jpg
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h...n/IMG_0068.jpg

the cat has an epic story behind her

LCV.
The images will more than likely come out blurred if you're shooting slower than 1/80. Some have a more steady hand than others, but with the A series, it's very hard to keep still since it's so small. Either get a tripod, or rest the camera on something and use it's self timer.

First cat pic is 1/8, second is 1/10s shutter; both are using a 9.9mm focal length.

The rule-of-thumb is that you're generally safe hand-held as long as the shutter speed is higher than that focal length of your lens - ie. 1/10s should be okay for a 10mm lens; handheld on a 250mm lens should be at least 1/250s shutter; and so on.

IS will usually get you an extra stop or two of latitude, so for example, you could get away with 1/60-1/125s shutter on that 250mm lens, or 1/3-1/5s on a 10mm lens.

Both the night shots, on the other hand, are 1s exposures, so a tripod is definitely called for...

to add, posting more shit pictures doesnt make them better. however, shooting more, posting less might.

you can usually get away with as slow as 1/10 if you have IS

I found I could shoot as low as 1/6 on my canon 17-85IS

30D, Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8
f/4.5 1/1600 ISO100

Tofino, BC

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3068/...9db98509_b.jpg

nice action shot!

Finally finished my homemade beauty dish :D It's rough, but it kinda works!

http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/1650/img0777ad3.jpg

http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/5695/img0776sd8.jpg

And here's the results:

http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/8462/img2136fc4.jpg

Hopefully imageshack didn't muck up too much.

Nice capture!

Gotta love sunshine :)