I'm going on a cruise in the Caribbean in May and want to get the most out of my camera for this trip. I am a complete idiot when it comes to these things, all I know is I push a button once the picture I want is in the screen and magical things happen and the photo winds up on a memory card. I've got a cheap point and shoot, a Sony 6 megapixel Cybershot DSC-S500 and don't plan on buying anything more expensive (a DSLR crossed my mind, but they're too expensive, and I rarely use my camera enough to justify it).
First of all, batteries. My camera takes regular AA batteries, nothing fancy. I have some rechargeable NiMH ones that charge in 15 minutes which is convenient. But this camera sucks up a battery like nothing else I've seen, and not to mention, NiMH batteries seem to have a huge auto discharge rate as well. I can have my fully charged batteries just sitting there and after a week, they'll be dead. Is there another type of battery (preferably rechargeable) that I can buy that will get me better life? When you're out at some places, recharging isn't possible and the longer I can go without charging, the better.
Second, and this is probably a loaded question, but how do I get the best quality pictures? I've found that in auto mode, if the lighting is pretty good, they come out great. But in the dark, you can't see a damn thing in the photo (yes, I'm using the flash, I know that much 😉) So I switch it to ISO 400, and you can see more, but it's a bit grainy. Then if I leave it on ISO 400 and take pictures with enough lighting, the graininess is even worse. So I guess the key here is auto mode when there's enough ambient lighting? What's the best way for night photos then? My camera has a night mode, but those come out blurry since I can't hold the camera completely still (I guess it's designed for tripod use?) Also, what's white balance and what should that be set on? Auto, I guess? Just explain to an idiot how to get the best pictures possible from his cheapo camera and I'll be happy 😀 Any other tips you have would certainly be helpful. Thanks in advance
First of all, batteries. My camera takes regular AA batteries, nothing fancy. I have some rechargeable NiMH ones that charge in 15 minutes which is convenient. But this camera sucks up a battery like nothing else I've seen, and not to mention, NiMH batteries seem to have a huge auto discharge rate as well. I can have my fully charged batteries just sitting there and after a week, they'll be dead. Is there another type of battery (preferably rechargeable) that I can buy that will get me better life? When you're out at some places, recharging isn't possible and the longer I can go without charging, the better.
Second, and this is probably a loaded question, but how do I get the best quality pictures? I've found that in auto mode, if the lighting is pretty good, they come out great. But in the dark, you can't see a damn thing in the photo (yes, I'm using the flash, I know that much 😉) So I switch it to ISO 400, and you can see more, but it's a bit grainy. Then if I leave it on ISO 400 and take pictures with enough lighting, the graininess is even worse. So I guess the key here is auto mode when there's enough ambient lighting? What's the best way for night photos then? My camera has a night mode, but those come out blurry since I can't hold the camera completely still (I guess it's designed for tripod use?) Also, what's white balance and what should that be set on? Auto, I guess? Just explain to an idiot how to get the best pictures possible from his cheapo camera and I'll be happy 😀 Any other tips you have would certainly be helpful. Thanks in advance
