Ovalpiston wrote:.

Hi,.

Bought a new S3 IS..and I am very new to digitalphotography(photography in general to be honest!)..after readingreviews after reviews in dpreview I do understand aperture,shutterspeed ,ISO and how they are related. Perhaps buying a S3 IS as myfirst camera wasnt such a good decision..i just took a few pics andthe colors seems to be too bland..here is what I did..after usingthe auto mode for a few snaps I started plying with the dial..tookit to the "program mode" and thats my first question..what is thedifference between a program mode and auto mode?.

Http://www.dpreview.com/learn/?/Glossary/Exposure/Manual_01.htm.

Program Mode is basically an Auto Mode but it allows you some flexibility to choose WB, exp. compensation, sharpness etc. and also aloows you to have control over shutter-aperture combination values..

The red-blinking aperture means, camera warns that aperture limit has been reached while more light still needed for proper exposure. So pic will be dark..

2) Moved onto the shutter speed mode..in fast shutter speed modethe aperture started blinking RED..even after using the flash itbackground came out pretty dark..i fail to understandonething..whats the use of having a seperate modes for shutterspeed priority and aperture priority when one alters the otherautomatically? I mean..using a fast shutter speed opens up theaperture automatically..and similarly using a low aperture slowsthe shutter speed automatically....

Read below:http://www.dpreview.com/...learn/?/Glossary/Exposure/Aperture_Priority_01.htmhttp://www.dpreview.com/.../learn/?/Glossary/Exposure/Shutter_Priority_01.htm.

3) Tried using the manual mode..and no matter what I did..thepictures came out completely dark  what am I doing wrong?.

Underexposure that is..

4) Loaded the pictures onto my laptop..just 8 snaps came to angargantuan 14.5 MB!! Is this normal??.

Absolutely, even better! The hit-rate will improve as you learn..

Regards, Ajayhttp://picasaweb.google.com/ajay0612..

Hello ovalpiston,.

Please read below ....

Ovalpiston wrote:.

Hi,.

Bought a new S3 IS..and I am very new to digitalphotography(photography in general to be honest!)..after readingreviews after reviews in dpreview I do understand aperture,shutterspeed ,ISO and how they are related..

From reading further below, I have the feeling that you might have an *idea* of what all this means but no understanding yet. That doesn't matter though, because you will learn and that, I am sure, rather quickly. I don't mean this in any way offensive or demeaning. It's how everyone - me included once started..

Perhaps buying a S3 IS as myfirst camera wasnt such a good decision...

That depends: I own the S3 myself and it is a fabulous camera. If you give it a little time and patience you will find great joy in this camera. I think it's particularly great for "beginners", that don't know much about photography yet, but want to learn and want the option to expand on their knowledge and test features as time goes by..

I just took a few pics andthe colors seems to be too bland..here is what I did..after usingthe auto mode for a few snaps I started plying with the dial..tookit to the "program mode" and thats my first question..what is thedifference between a program mode and auto mode?.

Auto mode and Program (P) mode a similar in regards to that they are both full automatic mode. The difference is that Auto mode really means *auto* and you have next to no options to manually adjust. P mode means that exposure settings (aperature, shutterspeed) are chosen for you, but the camera still allows you to adjust certain settings. On the S3 do this: Camera on turn the dial to Auto mode and the press "menu", look at what settings you can change. Now do the same, but have the dial set to P mode. Notice a difference? Also, refer to the camera user manual.

Unfortunately, it seems that camera manuals are the single most neglected piece of information when it comes to learning and understanding your camera. So many pages, so much technical verbiage and so much too remember. Well, you don't have to read it all at once. Start slowly and read the basics, or pick out and the sections that interest you about your camera in that moment. It's really a good resource of information and will help you get the most out of your camera..

2) Moved onto the shutter speed mode..in fast shutter speed modethe aperture started blinking RED...

This means you chose to fast (short) of a shutter speed for the lighting conditions. The red blinking indicated that the aperature was at it's maximum opening, but it was still insufficient to obtain a correctly exposed image. You can test this by by increasing the shutterspeed until the aperture stops blinking RED (theoretically, you can ignore this on the S3, the software is programmed in a way, that it will not allow any incorrectly exposed image to happen and will automatically override the manual setting and choose the minimally allowable shutter speed. Unless you a in M - full manual mode).

Even after using the flash itbackground came out pretty dark...

This has nothing to do with a fault of the camera. The flash is not strong enough to light up the background, if it is beyond a certain distance. By using the flash you force the camera to use a set shutterspeed. This time is not long enough to gather sufficient light to also illuminate the background.

I fail to understandonething..whats the use of having a seperate modes for shutterspeed priority and aperture priority when one alters the otherautomatically?.

In order to have a properly exposed image you always need a certain amount of light to hit the film (in this case the imaging sensor). Aperture and Shutterspeed are interconnected. Aperature is the opening that allows light into the camera. And the shutter regulates how long light enters the camera. You can compare it with a bucket that you want to fill with water and a faucet. If you want to fill a bucket with water, you can either open the faucet all the way with water rushing out, which means the bucket will fill in less time.

This will then require more time to fill the bucket. Makes sense?.

It's the same way with cameras and light. Big aperature, short(er) shutterspeed, small aperture - long(er) shutterspeed. A short shutterspeed you want to use to freeze action and to avoid motion blur or hand shake. Longer shutterspeeds you might want to use to express motion (car lights at night, people walking, ...). Aperture you can use in different ways also. Either to focus on just one subject and have the rest of the image blurred and out of focus (with a large aperature), or (with a small aperture) snap a landscape picture where everything from the blades of grass in the foreground to the distant mountains is perfectly sharp and in focus..

The different modes give you freedom to experiment and to be creative in you photography..

... to be continued ()..

Continued from previous thread ().

I mean..using a fast shutter speed opens up theaperture automatically..and similarly using a low aperture slowsthe shutter speed automatically....

3) Tried using the manual mode..and no matter what I did..thepictures came out completely dark  what am I doing wrong?.

What did you do wrong? Your shutterspeed was to short and/or the aperature was to small to allow enough light to enter the camera to produce a properly exposed picture. (to go back to the bucket example: You only opened the faucet to a drizzle and closed it again too quickly before the bucket was all the way full with water). I would ignore manual (M) mode for now until you have a solid understanding of how shutterspeed and aperture relate to one another..

4) Loaded the pictures onto my laptop..just 8 snaps came to angargantuan 14.5 MB!! Is this normal??.

That indeed is normal, one image is between 2-3 MB big. You can change the settings in the camera, so you use less space. Read the manual how to do that, but be aware that by changing the settings you will change either the size of the picture (less pixels) or decrease the quality a bit.For small prints this is very negligible however..

I know the above are all pretty lame questions..but I am new tophotography..and all of you have been of a great help tillnow..would much appreciate your responses!.

Last not least:Try these websites for info, tutorials and other valueable knowledge ...http://www.luminous-landscape.comhttp://www.cambridgeincolour.com... and get yourself one book to learn about photography in general..

Other than that, go out and shoot shoot shoot and enjoy what you are doing. It's digital and there is no wasted film or cost other than your time involved..

Hope this helps! Don't get encouraged and have fun!cheers,Simon.

PS. Excuse my plethora of spelling, punctuation and other grammatical errors...

Thank you so much Becksi and Ajay for taking your time to explain so wonderfully...like you said I need to do a bit of a reading and lots of practice...thanks for the encouraging words ..

And rest assured. You have bought one of the finest camera in it's class. So no second thoughts on that issue..

Just learn about various modes and settings and do lot of shooting. Many will be blurred, many dark. Then have a look at their exif data (right click on file/properties/detailed). You will see the details about shooting parameters and with time will develop an idea about what settings would have helped in getting better results.Happy shooting:-)Regards, Ajayhttp://picasaweb.google.com/ajay0612..