Steve'sDigicams

apnymph · Jul 18, 2004, 11:46 AM

Cybershot455 wrote:

Quote:

I rarely find images straight off camera (any camera) are 100% as I want them, and have developed a 3-click procedure to lift them a little.

David,

I'd love to hear about your 3-click procedure. Is it possible for you to explain it? Perhaps you've posted it previously?

Thanks,

Scott

Probedude · Jul 18, 2004, 8:14 PM

I did it, I just bought a Canon A80.

The W1 feels better made - the A80 has a lot of plastic. The W1 has that gorgeous big LCD vs the miniscule A80's LCD. In the sun the A80 LCD is hard to view. The W1 is more responsive.

However where it counts, picture quality on 'my' real life shots, the A80 is winning. Indoor portraits and activities are very sharp with none of that smoothing that I see with the Sony.

I really wanted to keep the Sony - been agonizing over this since this past Wednesday. Took a lot of shots, even outdoors as suggested, in manual mode, sharpening turned up, contrast turned down (which helped, but only ~50% of the time). There was some exceptionally good shots taken (I think a total of 3) I got with the Sony. Even 1 of my Chow Chow dog (see attached), but it was too hit or miss.

I can't wait to see what Sony comes up with next year - the W1 is a winner if it wasn't so 'soft' (for me anyways).

http://www.dschmidt.com/images/DSC00035.JPG

TC3 · Jul 19, 2004, 1:55 AM

Sorry but i find it hard to believe that picture of your dog was taken with a 5m camera...it is not very good at all and i think you did the right thing sending it back

Old Rooster · Jul 19, 2004, 5:00 AM

I think you made the right call, buying the A80. I recently went through the same decision making process, tried the W1 in the store (brought pics home on a memory stick to print and view), and decided on the A80. Yes, the LCD is small, but that rotating feature is invaluable. You'll be surprised how much you use it. Plus, the ability to select all apertures and shutter speeds, as well as having a full range of pre-selected modes (unlike the odd selections of the W1), gives you great options. And, of course, the flash will readily reach to 14'. Good choice!

Dave

sane11 · Jul 19, 2004, 5:49 AM

Having recently got my W1, I don't seem to find the same faults. I think the picture of the little girl seems pretty good. Though the strands of hair on the dog and cat do seem to be quite fuzzy. Tho i guess i don't really know anything much about photography to really comment on the pictures. As for me, im quite happy with the camera. I'm sorry you had to return yours. Do you mind posting pictures taken from your A80? I'd like to see how sharp the images turn out compared to the W1.

iBluetooth · Jul 22, 2004, 2:07 PM

Hi all, I recently purchased the Sony DSCW1 camera. I love it so far except for three really annoying things that I can't seem to figure out and Sony Support has just not been of any help

1. Focus Frame.
I am used to using a Canon S400 digital Elph. If I half press the shutter button, a green box appears on the LCD showing me exactly where the camera is focusing. The Sony has either a green box that stays in the middle or four brackets that surround a huge area of the LCD screen. Because of this I have taken photographs where the wrong item in the frame was in focus and the item I really wanted to have in focus, was blurred. Is there any way to get the Sony to have a green box that shows exactly where the camera is focusing?

2. Intrusive AF Assist Lamp
This thing is really too bright. It can be invasive to subjects you are trying to photograph eg, animals, artists at concerts etc. Any chance of changing the settings to reduce the brightness of this lamp or use settings that don't require that the lamp come on but still get that camera to focus?

3. Anyone have some settings recommendations for photographing Tennis on a bright sunny day. For example a shot of a player in the middle of a serve motion when they are just about to hit the ball? ISO? Exposure? Lighting? and everything else.

Thanks for the help in advance.

Fen · Jul 23, 2004, 4:30 PM

I just got my W12 on Tuesday. I have to say that the answers to 1 and 2 couldbe RTFM.

1. In the default mode the camera brackets exactly what it has focussed on in green - sometimes several objects. If that isn't what you want then you need to enter the menu and select Center AF in place of Multi AF - note you can't do that in the full-auto (green camera symbol) mode.

2. Some modes don't use the assist lamp - twilight for instance. You also have the option of entering the menu and picking a preset distance from the focus menu (again not in full-auto mode) which disables the lamp, or of turning the lamp off in the menu all together.

3. The highest ISO and lowest aperture numbers will get you the fastest shutter speed, but at the expense of noise and depth of field respectively. Nobody can give you exact numbers because more than just 'sunny' comes into it.

I have to say that I'm impressed with the camera so far - albeit most of my pics have been in the dark with long exposures. With all this talk of soft or out of focus pictures I suspect either there is a bad batch of cameras with a focus problem or lots of users just aren't letting the camera focus before they fire the shutter. I think in the interests of quick response Sony has allowed a full shutter push to force a picture regardless of the focus being done.

Fen

iBluetooth · Jul 23, 2004, 5:00 PM

Fen wrote:

Quote:

I just got my W12 on Tuesday. I have to say that the answers to 1 and 2 couldbe RTFM.

1. In the default mode the camera brackets exactly what it has focussed on in green - sometimes several objects. If that isn't what you want then you need to enter the menu and select Center AF in place of Multi AF - note you can't do that in the full-auto (green camera symbol) mode.

As far as I know, when I select the center AF instead of multi AF, the green box just appears in the center. What if the subject isn't in the center of the frame but off to the left or right or top or bottom. Not all photographs have to have the subject directly in the center of the image. Is there anyway to get the box to display where in the image, the camera is focusing on?

Pipkin · Jul 23, 2004, 5:57 PM

In this situationit's good ideatouse so called "focus lock".
(If I understood correctly your topic)

Old Nick · Jul 24, 2004, 1:23 PM

Justplace the subject in the middle of the frame, press the button half way so the focus locks, and then reframe the shot.

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

Steve'sDigicams

Recent Camera Reviews

Most Active Forums

Most Popular Deals

Latest Feature Articles

Jul 18, 2004, 8:14 PM	#12
Probedude Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 16	I did it, I just bought a Canon A80. The W1 feels better made - the A80 has a lot of plastic. The W1 has that gorgeous big LCD vs the miniscule A80's LCD. In the sun the A80 LCD is hard to view. The W1 is more responsive. However where it counts, picture quality on 'my' real life shots, the A80 is winning. Indoor portraits and activities are very sharp with none of that smoothing that I see with the Sony. I really wanted to keep the Sony - been agonizing over this since this past Wednesday. Took a lot of shots, even outdoors as suggested, in manual mode, sharpening turned up, contrast turned down (which helped, but only ~50% of the time). There was some exceptionally good shots taken (I think a total of 3) I got with the Sony. Even 1 of my Chow Chow dog (see attached), but it was too hit or miss. I can't wait to see what Sony comes up with next year - the W1 is a winner if it wasn't so 'soft' (for me anyways). http://www.dschmidt.com/images/DSC00035.JPG

Jul 19, 2004, 1:55 AM	#13
TC3 Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 1,169	Sorry but i find it hard to believe that picture of your dog was taken with a 5m camera...it is not very good at all and i think you did the right thing sending it back

Jul 19, 2004, 5:00 AM	#14
Old Rooster Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Posts: 59	I think you made the right call, buying the A80. I recently went through the same decision making process, tried the W1 in the store (brought pics home on a memory stick to print and view), and decided on the A80. Yes, the LCD is small, but that rotating feature is invaluable. You'll be surprised how much you use it. Plus, the ability to select all apertures and shutter speeds, as well as having a full range of pre-selected modes (unlike the odd selections of the W1), gives you great options. And, of course, the flash will readily reach to 14'. Good choice! Dave

Jul 19, 2004, 5:49 AM	#15
sane11 Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 6	Having recently got my W1, I don't seem to find the same faults. I think the picture of the little girl seems pretty good. Though the strands of hair on the dog and cat do seem to be quite fuzzy. Tho i guess i don't really know anything much about photography to really comment on the pictures. As for me, im quite happy with the camera. I'm sorry you had to return yours. Do you mind posting pictures taken from your A80? I'd like to see how sharp the images turn out compared to the W1.

Jul 22, 2004, 2:07 PM	#16
iBluetooth Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 6	Hi all, I recently purchased the Sony DSCW1 camera. I love it so far except for three really annoying things that I can't seem to figure out and Sony Support has just not been of any help 1. Focus Frame. I am used to using a Canon S400 digital Elph. If I half press the shutter button, a green box appears on the LCD showing me exactly where the camera is focusing. The Sony has either a green box that stays in the middle or four brackets that surround a huge area of the LCD screen. Because of this I have taken photographs where the wrong item in the frame was in focus and the item I really wanted to have in focus, was blurred. Is there any way to get the Sony to have a green box that shows exactly where the camera is focusing? 2. Intrusive AF Assist Lamp This thing is really too bright. It can be invasive to subjects you are trying to photograph eg, animals, artists at concerts etc. Any chance of changing the settings to reduce the brightness of this lamp or use settings that don't require that the lamp come on but still get that camera to focus? 3. Anyone have some settings recommendations for photographing Tennis on a bright sunny day. For example a shot of a player in the middle of a serve motion when they are just about to hit the ball? ISO? Exposure? Lighting? and everything else. Thanks for the help in advance.

Jul 23, 2004, 4:30 PM	#17
Fen Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 19	I just got my W12 on Tuesday. I have to say that the answers to 1 and 2 couldbe RTFM. 1. In the default mode the camera brackets exactly what it has focussed on in green - sometimes several objects. If that isn't what you want then you need to enter the menu and select Center AF in place of Multi AF - note you can't do that in the full-auto (green camera symbol) mode. 2. Some modes don't use the assist lamp - twilight for instance. You also have the option of entering the menu and picking a preset distance from the focus menu (again not in full-auto mode) which disables the lamp, or of turning the lamp off in the menu all together. 3. The highest ISO and lowest aperture numbers will get you the fastest shutter speed, but at the expense of noise and depth of field respectively. Nobody can give you exact numbers because more than just 'sunny' comes into it. I have to say that I'm impressed with the camera so far - albeit most of my pics have been in the dark with long exposures. With all this talk of soft or out of focus pictures I suspect either there is a bad batch of cameras with a focus problem or lots of users just aren't letting the camera focus before they fire the shutter. I think in the interests of quick response Sony has allowed a full shutter push to force a picture regardless of the focus being done. Fen

Jul 23, 2004, 5:57 PM	#19
Pipkin Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 40	In this situationit's good ideatouse so called "focus lock". (If I understood correctly your topic)

Jul 24, 2004, 1:23 PM	#20
Old Nick Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 12	Justplace the subject in the middle of the frame, press the button half way so the focus locks, and then reframe the shot.