robinboulton Loc: Madison WI

Hi - It seems most (everyone?) on here is using more sophisticated equipment than I have and may not have any advice to offer but any that is offered will be gratefully received.

I have a Canon Powershot sx60 HS, the best I could afford when preparing for a long trip. I love the 1365 mm equivalent zoom, but I am having other problems that may be related.

(Before continuing I should add that I am basically a hopeful amateur; I have used another dSLR (Nikon D40) but hardly use it any more. I have read SO many articles about DoF, apertures, ISO, AEB HDR AWB etc. I feel I have a lot of knowledge - but the more I learn from reading, the more confused I seem to get when shooting and the worse, overall, my results seem to get). All the web sites refer to much more modern, more complex cameras than mine and I have concluded that much of the info available simply doesn't translate to mine.

So the specific issue(s) I am having: I choose my aperture setting according to the DoF I want, but I 'm not getting the right results: the focus seems off or the image is blurry. I think what I am trying to do is to constrain AF to work within the DoF I'm seeking (I don't know know if that makes sense but it's the only way I can think of to describe it). Does anyone know if there's a way to control AF +within+ the view I'm seeing through the viewfinder?

On a related note, I have been seeing/reading a lot about back button focus lately and I believe in it and want to try it, but... I can't figure out a way to make it work with my camera. Any ideas?

Thanks for taking time to read, and extra points to anyone who can offer suggestions that work!

ORpilot Loc: Prineville, Or

I have the sx50. When I want a wider DOF I go to "Av" and bump up the F stop to the max. If you only push the shutter release half way down it will lock the focus to where ever you point the camera. Therefore you cane trick the camera into moving the DOF where ever you want. I then varie the image via the +/- to suit my light-dark. Unlike older lenses there is no scales on the lens to figure out you DOF. Nor is there a preview button to actually see the DOF. You just have to go ahead and shoot the photo to see your final results. No big deal since if you don't like it, just delete it and start over. I love my SX50 especially the long zoom but my Sony cameras a6000, a65, and a99ll all will highlight in outline color what the DOF is before I shoot the photo. It is called focus peaking in my Sony cameras. Remember that DOF is wider in Wide angle and narrow in telephoto. After about 200mm DOF remains very narrow no matter what f stop you chose. My SX50 does not have a back focus button so I can't help you there. Happy Shooting

mineart

HI,

I would say to hold off on back button focus until you solve the Image Quality issue you are grappling with now.

Q: Do you get sharp images if you use auto?

You should be able to grab focus(no matter what aperture you set) by holding the shutter release 1/2 way down. Does this work for you? You can also (i don't know your model) set a focus point as a default. You place that over your main subject, press 1/2 way down then shoot. If you want better speed, you can place the focus point over the subject, press 1/2 to get focus, then recompose the shot before pressing the shutter the rest of the way down.

Not sure if this help. BTW, can you post a picture illustrating the difficulty you are having as well as what f-stop, shutter, and ISO you were using?

PHRubin Loc: Nashville TN USA

You didn't exactly say it, but I suspect you are using Av to select the f stop. You didn't mention the ISO setting. I suspect that what is happening is that by reducing the aperture, you increase the time the lens is open. This can cause blur from hand/camera movement. The higher the zoom (toward the tele end), the more the camera movement is amplified. Use of a tripod would help. You didn't mention what you are shooting, so I don't know if a tripod is practical. Also, a higher ISO would help, but too high and sensor noise will become objectionable.

One way to see through the viewfinder is to use the "depth of field preview" button (I can't say if your camera has one). This stops the lens down to the f stop selected while the button is depressed while you are viewing. You can see through the viewfinder (or LCD screen) exactly what the sensor will see when the shot is taken.

ORpilot Loc: Prineville, Or

Ref. Back focus button. Just another button that does the same thing as holding the shutter release button down half way. I doubt that your SX60 has a back focus button. Check the manual for sure. There are several U-tube videos that demonstrate this function on DSLR cameras. Happy Shooting

ORpilot Loc: Prineville, Or

this camera has a pretty good image stabilization but it can't work miracles. The longer your zoom ie 1200mm you will need to brace yourself and the camera on something solid like a tree or your car or a tripod. Make sure you are in auto ISO until you get use to what you are doing. Happy Shooting

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Bridge cameras have different depth of field properties than you're used to with slr's. You'll note that the smallest aperture you can select is f/8. If you are wanting shallow depth of field, such as for close shots of flowers, try backing up and zooming in. The longer your focal length, the smaller depth of field you'll get.

Otherwise, at the wider angles f/4.5 is virtually indistinguishable from f/8. I know because I did some controlled tests with the sx50

Set your auto-focusing option as single point, center. Set white balance and ISO to auto (you might need to be in P mode for those, I can't recall for sure), ignore AEB and HDR until you have the focus and blur issues figured out.

Blurry images are most likely from your own movement or too-slow shutter speed. As mentioned, that long zoom is very unforgiving in that way.

I used an SX50 for several years, taking many thousands of photos. Post some of your shots and let's talk further. If you're shooting "fine jpg/best/highest" - whatever that's called, the image will be a good size for us to look at.

You can add photos to this topic. Click reply (not quick reply) and you'll see the area below the text box. Below is more info on how to post a photo to UHH. Be sure to enable download by checking the box titled "store original."

http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/help/how_to_post_a_picture.jsp

-

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

You don't have much of a range to adjust aperture for DoF - F3.4-F8.0 at the wide end, and F6.5-F8.0 at the long end. I would use Menu>MF Peaking Settings on the Camera tab, then Func Set, then Peaking, then On. to let the camera show you exactly what is in focus. (P80 in the manual). For precise focus, use manual focus.

Haydon

I've owned both the SX50/60 and to really take advantage of DOF, you will be forced to shoot at the very long end of the focal length and shoot around minimum focusing distance and keeping the background at a distance. The small sensor in Canon's bridge cameras are fairly limited for DOF use.

I'd highly recommend shooting manually since you have a live histogram in the EVF and adjust accordingly. Try to keep you shutter speed reasonably high with a low ISO and shoot with the aperture wide open. Your F-Stop will be limited as your focal length increases.

The IS on the SX50/60 is more than reasonable but it's easy to fall out of focus when you're at 1200 mm and shooting closely. A tripod or a way to steady your shot other than handheld at longer focal lengths is absolutely necessary. Make sure you hear/see the focus confirmation. Also with the sensor being extremely small, it will require good light to saturate color and keep the noise at a minimum.

This image was shot handheld but I was kneeling at the time and using my elbow against my knee to further steady the shot. It was at a very high focal length when shot. This was absolutely necessary to get a sharp image. This picture was shot with a SX50.

The daffodil image was created using back-light to separate the subject matter. I shot this in the SX50's macro mode.

On a special note, there is no way to achieve BBF on the SX50/60 to the best of my knowledge. All my DSLR are setup with BBF but the bridge cameras don't allow that type of custom function to be programmed.

(Download)


(Download)

joer Loc: Colorado/Illinois

An incredible shot... Almost want to sell all my gear and buy one. Maybe not

Haydon

Thank you. Agreed about the maybe not Joer. I've visited your 500 PX site. You have some gorgeous imaging there.

The SX50 is difficult to obtain now, but I really couldn't argue buying one from Canon for $150 refurbished when they were still available.

bull drink water Loc: pontiac mi.

i'm just going to address the dof issue. the longer the lens the tighter the dof. at 300mm or better we are talking inches.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I like to use a single, center focus point so the thing I want to be in focus will be sharp. At this point, I wouldn't worry about BBF. Your camera might not support it, anyway.

Patw28 Loc: PORT JERVIS, NY

On a related note, I have been seeing/reading a lot about back button focus lately and I believe in it and want to try it, but... I can't figure out a way to make it work with my camera. Any ideas?

Thanks for taking time to read, and extra points to anyone who can offer suggestions that work![/quote]

On my Lumix ZS40 I can set the fn button to AE/AF Lock as I come off auto focus. The focus stays locked until I press the fn button again.
I 'always' shoot in spot focus, AF Continuous.)

Bloke Loc: Waynesboro, Pennsylvania

There is a way to get BBF on an SX50, at least. For the life of me, I can't remember how I did it, but there is an option to assign one of the buttons on the back to perform this...