Question about lens

[jaelen]

Hello, everyone-
I've just got a question about whether or not I should think of possibly getting a zoom lens for my camera.

I consider myself just a beginner at photographing birds... although years ago I did several adult education photography classes- back in the days when film was still used!

I understand the basics of film processing, but have always had problems with the technical side of things when it comes to the camera. I seem to have some kind of weird dyslexia when it comes to numbers and what I call 'codes'... ie. any sort of abbreviations, so it makes it very difficult, (sometimes impossible) for me to remember or relate to references to f-stops and apertures... needless to say, I failed maths MANY times!

So, any kind of zoom lens is going to have to be pretty easy to get to grips with, (I find camera manuals incomprehensible!)

The camera I have now is a Fujifilm S-5500, which is second-hand. I think it takes pretty good pictures...but I'd like to be able to get sharper images- they seem to blur or end up out of focus very easily. These are two I took today; both on full zoom and un-cropped, to show what I mean-

The first of the woodpecker is from about 15 feet, while the hawk was several metres further away. I don't know how to get it to focus when there is a lot of foliage, and the camera seems to choose at random what to home in on at times- which is very frustrating, (when that suet feeder turns to side profile, it will focus on the trees in the distance.)

Would using a zoom help with this? Sorry for the rambling post, but thanks for any advice!

(edited to add... one of the reasons I'm asking is because a second-hand zoom that should fit my camera has turned up on eBay.)

[Tringa]

A zoom lens will get you close to the subject, if you see what I mean, but won't help with any focussing problems you may have.

The auto focus on any camera has to decide what to focus on and it works best where there is a clear distinction between one part of the scene and another. In overgrown areas such as woods that is difficult and as you have found the camera focusses on the wrong thing!

However, I don't think there is a problem with focussing in the two photos you have posted. The woodpecker looks fine to me and the I think the BoP photo is just a little soft which is something that can happen at the top end of a zoom lens.

Increasing the zoom will make holding the camera steady more difficult, it could make it more difficult for the camera to focus and the top end of the zoom may give even softer photos. I have just looked on eBay and think I have seen the item you mention. I don't know it, but for that price it may be worth a go.

Dave

[Ferret]

I am not familiar with this camera but I suspect some of the problem is down to focusing points. The camera will have a pattern of points dotted about the frame (mine a Canon has a total of 7, 5 across the centre of the frame and 1 above and 1 below) you should be able to choose whether you use all of these points or one in particular (or even groups of them on more sophisticated cameras) I suspect that you have them all selected so the camera just picks the area where the most points are in focus or the one that gives it the best lock and assumes that is what you want, if change the settings and just have one focus point active, say the centre one then as long as that point is on the subject you should have more success.
The reason you have more luck when you zoom in is that more focus points are on the subject.
Getting a zoom lens will make no difference to the focus other than that more of your subject may be filling the frame which will mean more focus points are on your subject.
You may find that a longer lens means that there will be more occasions when the lens will not focus at all as there is insufficient light entering the lens, and has already been said auto focus systems struggle when there is low contrast.
You could always use manual focus of course.

Hope that helps, Ferret

[Jersali]

Hello jaelen, I'm guessing from your comments that you set your camera on auto for taking (zoom) pics.
Some early reviews of the camera suggest that you have a range of settings that you have control of (including manual focus)
In addition you are likely to have control over where the auto - focus spread is, typically in the centre or central area or what may appear as random points in your picture as Ferret has suggested.
There are reviews available via the internet on your camera which would help you get the best from it and determine which features may be useful without getting too complicated.
I purchased a 2.2x Teleconverter for my bridge camera which I am well pleased with, however it's not so good in bad light and hand held at full zoom can sometimes be disappointing.
Good luck
Al

[Jersali]

Just found this site - it indicates you have different settings for the area of focus in a review of the camera

Digital Photography Review

[jaelen]

Thanks for all your help, everyone!

I've had another go at the manual, without any luck... I think what I need to do is find someone who can understand it, and sit down with them and go through it... making notes as I go.

It was cloudy here today, but I was trying to take a photo of a goldfinch on the feeder... and surprisingly it let me get closer than I have been able to before- it just sat there, watching me. I focused carefully, and was so pleased, thinking I'd got a nice photo... but nope, when I got it uploaded- out of focus.

I think i'm just going to have to accept photography on overcast days ain't gonna work! At least not until I figure out the instructions... but I will keep trying.

[Tringa]

Jaelen if you can you post the photo of the goldfinch on here it could help us to suggest a solution.

However, as you suggest taking photos on overcast days, possibly at full zoom, is not going to be easy and you are being unkind to yourself when you feel you have not understood how your camera works.

Poorly lit scenes are ones where autofocus struggles but it would be useful to see the photo and have the details of the camera settings.

But do keep trying

Dave

[Lancashire Lad]

Originally Posted by jaelen

....I've just got a question about whether or not I should think of possibly getting a zoom lens for my camera....

....The camera I have now is a Fujifilm S-5500....

....(edited to add... one of the reasons I'm asking is because a second-hand zoom that should fit my camera has turned up on eBay....

Hi jaelen,
From your original post, it is clear that you aren't at all familiar with your camera, because the Finepix S-5500 is actually a "bridge" camera with a fixed lens.
That lens is a zoom lens with a 10x optical zoom, but it is fixed onto the camera body. - So you cannot possibly buy another zoom lens to use in its place with this specific camera.

The choices of focussing modes available with the camera are:-
Autofocus / AF Area Focus / AF Centre Focus / Manual Focus.

So, you need to establish which of these options would be best for your chosen subjects.

With subjects such as birds, I'd suggest that the best option would be AF Centre Focus - on the assumption that your subject would be central in the frame.

Manual focus with this type of camera is a non-starter for subjects such as birds, because the method of manually controlling the lens's focussing will be just too slow to keep track with the bird's movements.

The only option that you would have (with this camera) for increasing the "zoom" factor, would be to buy an add on teleconverter - but rest assured, if you can't get sharp shots zoomed in with the standard lens, you most certainly won't be able to get sharp shots zoomed in with an add on converter attached.

You need to ensure that your technique is allowing you to keep the camera as steady as is possible during the actual exposure. - Any slight movement during that split second will show up on your images as blur, or at the very least, lack of sharpness. - and, that effect becomes much more exaggerated the more zoom you employ.

You also need to ensure that the shutter speed is fast enough to stop the action. - Rule of thumb says that your shutter speed should never be slower than the focal length being used. - For example, if you are zoomed out to 250mm, then your shutter speed should no slower than 1/250th of a second (and preferably faster still, if possible, to give best chance of sharp shots).

Therein lies another potential problem. - If the light isn't good enough, you simply won't be able to adjust your camera's settings to give a proper exposure at a fast enough shutter speed.

You can adjust the ISO speed upwards, to give you a couple of extra steps in faster shutter speed, but increasing ISO speed can introduce its own problems in the form of "digital noise" which is another form of image degradation.

If I were you, I'd do as you suggested yourself, and find someone with a good deal of experience who could talk you through the why's and wherefore's of your camera's settings and how to get the best out of it.

Good luck.

Regards,
Mike.

[jaelen]

Originally Posted by Tringa

Jaelen if you can you post the photo of the goldfinch on here it could help us to suggest a solution.

However, as you suggest taking photos on overcast days, possibly at full zoom, is not going to be easy and you are being unkind to yourself when you feel you have not understood how your camera works.

Poorly lit scenes are ones where autofocus struggles but it would be useful to see the photo and have the details of the camera settings.

But do keep trying

Dave

Dave- this is the photo, uncropped and as it was taken... I had it on autofocus, and I was relatively close to the bird- about 10 feet or even less, maybe? It was the nearest I'd been able to get, so I just presumed it would be a bit sharper- but like you said, it does seem to struggle on overcast days.

I don't know what the other camera settings are... because whenever I have to go into the menu I can't seem to find the same thing twice, (terribly bad with technology, I know ) so I tend to leave things alone.

[jaelen]

Originally Posted by Lancashire Lad

Hi jaelen,
From your original post, it is clear that you aren't at all familiar with your camera, because the Finepix S-5500 is actually a "bridge" camera with a fixed lens.
That lens is a zoom lens with a 10x optical zoom, but it is fixed onto the camera body. - So you cannot possibly buy another zoom lens to use in its place with this specific camera.

With subjects such as birds, I'd suggest that the best option would be AF Centre Focus - on the assumption that your subject would be central in the frame.

The only option that you would have (with this camera) for increasing the "zoom" factor, would be to buy an add on teleconverter...

You need to ensure that your technique is allowing you to keep the camera as steady as is possible during the actual exposure. - Any slight movement during that split second will show up on your images as blur, or at the very least, lack of sharpness. - and, that effect becomes much more exaggerated the more zoom you employ.

If I were you, I'd do as you suggested yourself, and find someone with a good deal of experience who could talk you through the why's and wherefore's of your camera's settings and how to get the best out of it.

Good luck.

Regards,
Mike.

Mike- thanks for all the info! You're right- I think what I'm calling a lens is really a teleconverter... I think it attaches to the lens already on the camera.

I have problems getting the autofocus to home in on what I want it to at times... I half-push the button repeatedly and it keeps insisting on focusing on the trees in the background... after three or four attempts it suddenly realises- "oh, focus on the FEEDER!" by which time the bird is long gone.

I'm sure part of my problems are motion blur, too- I'm just sitting out there near my Dad's collection of feeders, so I'm always switching between them, depending on which bird is where. Not very practical, but it makes life interesting.

I do need to sit down with someone with an extreme amount of patience to explain the manual to me... my first camera was a 35mm Minolta XG7, and even now I catch myself trying to instinctively focus by twiddling the lens.