Moonlight

[Autumn]

I was trying out the starry sky mode in my little Panasonic Lumix. I shot this through the window using a bendy tripod. I found it EXTREMELY difficult to get the tripod straight because as soon as I moved it I lost the moon. The magnification seemed enormous. I used full zoom. I think the light on the tree is from the flashing lights outside the bungalow. The flashing lights are white but the tree glows orange?

It is straight out of the camera except for straightening the roof a little. I know it is blurry. I don't know why because it counts down 15 secs and then another 15 secs and then takes the picture. I didn't touch it.

It was blowing like crazy outside so taking it inside was the only option.

I should be interested to hear your comments.

I think the border is a bit harsh. I tried to blend it with dissolve but it seemed to affect the whole picture so I left it.

Audrey

[Stephen]

Re: Moonlight

I was trying out the starry sky mode in my little Panasonic Lumix. I shot this through the window using a bendy tripod. I found it EXTREMELY difficult to get the tripod straight because as soon as I moved it I lost the moon. The magnification seemed enormous. I used full zoom. I think the light on the tree is from the flashing lights outside the bungalow. The flashing lights are white but the tree glows orange?

It is straight out of the camera except for straightening the roof a little. I know it is blurry. I don't know why because it counts down 15 secs and then another 15 secs and then takes the picture. I didn't touch it.

It was blowing like crazy outside so taking it inside was the only option.

I should be interested to hear your comments.

I think the border is a bit harsh. I tried to blend it with dissolve but it seemed to affect the whole picture so I left it.

Audrey

Pretty sure that may be the answer Audrey

[Tinka]

Re: Moonlight

Hi Autumn,
A pretty spooky image, the blurry image is maybe because of the slow shutter speed and the trees etc: blowing around in the wind, the moon itself although burnt out a little is not blurred.

[Archangel]

Re: Moonlight

I was trying out the starry sky mode in my little Panasonic Lumix. I shot this through the window using a bendy tripod. I found it EXTREMELY difficult to get the tripod straight because as soon as I moved it I lost the moon. The magnification seemed enormous. I used full zoom. I think the light on the tree is from the flashing lights outside the bungalow. The flashing lights are white but the tree glows orange?

It is straight out of the camera except for straightening the roof a little. I know it is blurry. I don't know why because it counts down 15 secs and then another 15 secs and then takes the picture. I didn't touch it.

It was blowing like crazy outside so taking it inside was the only option.

I should be interested to hear your comments.

I think the border is a bit harsh. I tried to blend it with dissolve but it seemed to affect the whole picture so I left it.

Audrey

Hi Audrey,

The cause of blurriness is the wind.
To avoid objects turn orange or reddish in color, experiment also with "Incadescent" WB.
To avoid blown highlights from light at night use the camera in manual mode and adjust f-stop and shutter in such a way that the camera shows you that the final exposure would be -1.
If you camera doesn't offer these manual settings (since you mention you have a little Panny), then I guess you don't have many options.

No comments about the frame. That is totally personal preference of each photographer.


Regards

George

[Ian]

Re: Moonlight

Hi Audrey,

The cause of blurriness is the wind.
To avoid objects turn orange or reddish in color, experiment also with "Incadescent" WB.
To avoid blown highlights from light at night use the camera in manual mode and adjust f-stop and shutter in such a way that the camera shows you that the final exposure would be -1.
If you camera doesn't offer these manual settings (since you mention you have a little Panny), then I guess you don't have many options.

No comments about the frame. That is totally personal preference of each photographer.


Regards

George

I'm not absolutely sure all of the motion blur is down to the wind. A point to remember is that when using any firm mounting, like a tripod, image stabilisation, which the Panasonic FX01 has, should be switched off as the IS correction can be inadvertently triggered even when there is no movement and this will add motion blur that wasn't already there.

Ian

[Autumn]

Re: Moonlight

I'm not absolutely sure all of the motion blur is down to the wind. A point to remember is that when using any firm mounting, like a tripod, image stabilisation, which the Panasonic FX01 has, should be switched off as the IS correction can be inadvertently triggered even when there is no movement and this will add motion blur that wasn't already there.

Ian

I think it was switched off Ian, because I remember a red hand saying IS switched off and I thought perhaps it should be switched on and so pressed the button, but nothing happened and the red hand was still there, so I didn't try again.

Any thanks everyone for your comments.

[lumix]

Re: Moonlight

I think it was switched off Ian, because I remember a red hand saying IS switched off and I thought perhaps it should be switched on and so pressed the button, but nothing happened and the red hand was still there, so I didn't try again.

Any thanks everyone for your comments.

That little red hand will show even if the IS is switched on. It is telling you that the slow shutter speed/focal length combination will give camera shake. The IS on the Panasonic is very good but there are limitations to how much you can push it. 15 seconds is asking a lot. Set it to off and use a solid tripod is the answer. I would not expect my Lumix to stabilize below 1/20 sec. BTW the picture may not be what you desired, but I think it is very effective and overall a pleasing image.

[Autumn]

Re: Moonlight

That little red hand will show even if the IS is switched on. It is telling you that the slow shutter speed/focal length combination will give camera shake. The IS on the Panasonic is very good but there are limitations to how much you can push it. 15 seconds is asking a lot. Set it to off and use a solid tripod is the answer. I would not expect my Lumix to stabilize below 1/20 sec. BTW the picture may not be what you desired, but I think it is very effective and overall a pleasing image.

Thanks. What I was saying is that I was trying out the "Starry Sky" mode and I had no control over the settings, other than 15, 30 or 60 seconds from what I remember. Although the red hand was there, it say that the IS was switched off. I don't know whether I could have put it on at that point, but I didn't. This camera is new to me and I am trying out all the fixed modes whenever I can.

[Archangel]

Re: Moonlight

Thanks. What I was saying is that I was trying out the "Starry Sky" mode and I had no control over the settings, other than 15, 30 or 60 seconds from what I remember. Although the red hand was there, it say that the IS was switched off. I don't know whether I could have put it on at that point, but I didn't. This camera is new to me and I am trying out all the fixed modes whenever I can.

Audrey,

I do have a Panasonic FZ5, have experiment too much with it and have discovered some interesting things.
Here are some hints that you can probably test on your Panasonic.

I have managed to take totally blur free shots even at speeds of 1/6 sec, or even 1/4 sec!
Usually at night at typical street light I shoot at 1/10 and 99% of my shots are blur free. The photo "Mall Cafes" posted in the New Year's Day Photos is at 1/10. Actually all photos I took that night were in Shutter Priority Mode and shutter was set at 1/10sec.

When you shoot at night even at that speed, there is no need to switch of the stabilizer. Even with the camera on a tripod and the stabilizer set to "ON" the camera gives tack sharp results. But anyway you can stick to "OFF" when the camera on a tripod.

Also when shooting at night use the stabilizer in Mode1 at speeds lower than 1/10sec. Mode1 for me gives better results at low light.


Regards

George

[Steve40]

Re: Moonlight

Autum.

I have a little "Panny TZ" also, don't use timed exposure on the moon. That is part of your problem over-exposure. Be sure the OIS is off, use ISO 80, and spot focus. Watch out for those little bendy tripods they will dump all your fun in the floor, and break it. You may find you need to even compensate a little with your -ev, even if you get a little under-exposure you can always correct that.

[Autumn]

Re: Moonlight

[QUOTE=Steve40;7955]Autum.

I have a little "Panny TZ" also, don't use timed exposure on the moon. That is part of your problem over-exposure. Be sure the OIS is off, use ISO 80, and spot focus. Watch out for those little bendy tripods they will dump all your fun in the floor, and break it. You may find you need to even compensate a little with your -ev, even if you get a little under-exposure you can always correct that. [/QUOTE

Thanks George and Steve.


Here http://www.cameras.co.uk/camera-revi...c-dmc-fx01.cfm is my little camera. It does not have all the bells and whistles that me Fuji S9500 or Canon G3 have but it does take a good picture and I was trying to see what each mode would do.

I know what you mean Steve about the bendy tripod, but I was inside and the camera is very small and light. I do have a couple more small robust tripods for my other cameras.

[Steve40]

Re: Moonlight

[QUOT]Here http://www.cameras.co.uk/camera-revi...c-dmc-fx01.cfm is my little camera. It does not have all the bells and whistles that me Fuji S9500 or Canon G3 have but it does take a good picture and I was trying to see what each mode would do.[/QUOTE]

No! but it does have a low ISO, and spot metering. Try it, and see what happens. Just use the little red camera setting, not scene mode.

[Blank Page]

Re: Moonlight

Sorry, Audrey, but this is a bit like my light streaks (now I get the reference you made in my thread).

It does seem that the wind is not entirely responsible for the blurring. There seems to be a ghosted, double image of the trees which suggests the camera moved somehow during exposure, though of course I won't bet my house on it.

But like most experiments, it was worth the try.