Canon PowerShot SX10 IS photo taking tutorials/techniques?

Question

Is there any tutorial site out there that have tips or techniques on how to use Canon PowerShot SX10 IS? The camera is great but I am having trouble doing the following two styles:

The first one I want to do is portrait mode focusing on just the model/person. I have tried Portrait mode but I still manage to capture every single thing so clearly :( How do I set it so that it blurs out the background and focuses just on the person?

The second thing I want to do is take photos of small objects and capture the details while NOT zoomed in. I have the camera close to the item, but the item is small. I want to be able to capture the details and have troubles doing that.

I do have the manual and I am working on it. I hope someone has a site or tutorial somewhere that can give me quicker and better answers.

Thanks!

Answer 1

For portraits use the aperture priority and set the camera for as large an f/stop as you can get away with. You may have to adjust your ISO for exposure control. And tripod mount your camera for the lighting conditions outside. You should also use a lens (set your zoom) at 85mm for portraits of young people, or at 135mm for portraits of under age 50 crowd. and at 200mm for those over age 50 with lots of wrinkles.

When I shoot people with wrinkles, I also use a Tiffen FX/soft #3 filter.



The setting I gave you above will render your subjects face sharp and the background will gently change to a soft blur. The idea is to emphasize the subject not the background.



Good Luck.

Answer 2

The main difference between the Canon Powershot Sx10 IS and the Canon Powershot Sx20 IS is that the Sx20 IS has a better video feature. But I say if you want video buy a camcorder! So the Canon Powershot SX10IS is my favorite (if you can find one). The Canon Powershot SX30 IS has a longer zoom lens and I fear that one should use a tripod whenever possible even with lens stabilization.

Answer 3

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