Can anyone offer some camera advice? I can't figure out how to...

[melissel]

Make the camera record the shot I want it to take at the second I want to take it, not three seconds later when the subject has already scampered off. I'm getting so very frustrated. This was a problem mentioned in one of the reviews I read when I was researching, but none of the cameras I was looking at was "perfect," so I made the best choice I could. Am I doing something wrong here? Is there a trick I don't know about?

TIA!

[Laura Corin]

Digital cameras tend to have a delay. The trick that I know about (with my Canons) is to set up the shot by half depressing and holding the shoot button. This allows the camera to set up focus, appropriate light, etc. Then when you see your darling in the perfect pose, press all the way down and the photo should take instantly.

Best wishes

Laura

[tess in the burbs]

turn off the flash and/or red-eye detection. that causes a delay and now I just turn off my flash if at all possible.

otherwise, do the half press of the button and hope your trigger finger is faster than the person scampering away ;-)

[BMC]

I use the half press technique too, but for DD's basketball photos, I use the sport setting and the fastest speed I can set and there is no delay.

[nancypants]

I think it kind of depends on what kind of camera you are using. I could not get away from the delay until I got my DSLR.

[melissel]

Gah! What a bummer. Well, fortunately my two girls are very hammy, so they'll probably hold still long enough for me to get most pictures :p Nancypants, I did a little research after reading the responses here and have read this same thing. Also, it turns out that my camera actually has one of the shorter delay times. It's funny, our 6-year-old, 2.1MP Kodak had none of these problems, and still takes good pictures. Maybe we should have saved our money!

Alright, I'll have to adjust, I suppose. Thank you everyone, I'll try the half-press method and see if I can learn how to time it right.

[Stacie]

You may have better luck with a faster memory card. Check the speed of your memory card and if it's a slower one, invest in a faster card. They write faster which frees up the memory in your camera faster.

Another idea is to reduce the image size. This can be influenced by different things, such as what you plan to use the pictures for and the size you choose to print. If you're only planning a 5x7 or smaller, you can get away with shooting the equivalent of a 3-4 megapixel image. For a nice looking 8x10 you can shoot a 4-5 megapixel image. You will not be able to crop a lot out of the picture, but if you set up the shot, you probably won't need to.

Fresh, fully charged batteries make a big difference. And Sports mode (the little running/kicking man) works well as already mentioned.

I hope these ideas help. Good luck!

[melissel]

You may have better luck with a faster memory card. Check the speed of your memory card and if it's a slower one, invest in a faster card. They write faster which frees up the memory in your camera faster.

Another idea is to reduce the image size. This can be influenced by different things, such as what you plan to use the pictures for and the size you choose to print. If you're only planning a 5x7 or smaller, you can get away with shooting the equivalent of a 3-4 megapixel image. For a nice looking 8x10 you can shoot a 4-5 megapixel image. You will not be able to crop a lot out of the picture, but if you set up the shot, you probably won't need to.

Fresh, fully charged batteries make a big difference. And Sports mode (the little running/kicking man) works well as already mentioned.

I hope these ideas help. Good luck!

Oooh, thank you! We are still using the measly little card the camera came with (haven't managed to get the new one yet). I bet that will help. And come to think of it, I changed the batteries right after I did some experimenting to see if I could get rid of the lag, and then didn't try after that. I'm not sure if I have a Sports mode, but I have Kids and Pets, which I would guess is roughly the same. Hopefully your suggestions will net me at least a little more time!