Revisiting the old Point and Shoot

As most of you know, there are basically two types of digital cameras, the Point and Shoot(P&S) digicams and the big and expensive (looking, sometimes) DSLRs (digital single lens reflex). Basic technical difference is that P&S cameras have fixed lenses and DSLRs have removable and replaceable lenses). There are so many other differences, I won't blog them all, but will be sharing an experience I had recently were I was "forced" to use only a P&S.
Photo above was taken by a P&S.

My wife and I recently celebrated our first wedding anniversary at one of the beaches in Batangas, Philippines. So I packed my photography gear and advised my wife to bring our old Panasonic digicam in case of emergencies. Whenever you're at the beach, you may wanna bring less-attention-attracting gear if you plan to swim and leave them semi unattended. And of course if the weathers not looking good, you may wanna just risk bringing your smaller camera you can put in a plastic bag in case it rains.

Too bad the weather wasn't cooperating. We were there for 3 days, and there was not a single day that the weather didn't change from sunny to rainy in a matter of minutes. I had no choice but to bring the P&S. Our room was a bit far from the beach and I didn't want to risk it.
To my surprise, I was able to get some shots that was sharp enough that I could compare them to shots I made with my DSLR. With the help of some sunlight (at a great angle I should say) and some camera tweaking (plus a little picasa magic), I was able to get some clear shots that I'm really proud of. A lot of the shots below were taken by my wife, as I was too busy swimming. : )

Point and shoots really do well on silhouette shots......


This was the sharpest shot I made that afternoon. Click here or click the photo below for the full size copy to see the details. You can even see my reflection in her eyes!
Some tips on how to maximize your Point and Shoot:

- Look out for the Sun - the 12pm sun is too harsh for pictures. The sun at 3pm to 5pm is great for lighting portraits as it lights your subject at an angle

-Use your camera's WB and Exposure Evaluation feature - WB (white balance) is a common feature in cameras now, use it when in bright sun or when using tungsten lights to color correct your photos. (click here for a great link for learning more about WB) Exposure Evaluation (EV) is the ability of your camera to brighten or darken your photo. If your P&S is giving you a very bright picture, put your EV to a negative value and vice versa. Look for the +/- sign in your camera for this.

-Don't use your flash always - cameras nowadays are smart enough to choose almost the correct exposure for your shot. turn your flash off when outdoors. Use the sun when outdoors.

Hopefully this helps everyone take better photos.