I'm about to throw my brand new Canon A430 out the window...

[Kim&Chris]

This camera, purchased about 5 months ago, takes gorgeous pictures. It eats batteries like kids eat candy, but I was aware of that prior to buying the camera, so I just keep a good supply of batteries on hand (planning on investing in rechargeables).

Anyway, here's my dilemma....when I press the stupid button to take a photo, sometimes it takes about 5 seconds for the stupid camera to take the stupid picture. Why does it take so long? I generally keep the 'display' off, and almost never use the close-up feature. By the time it finally snaps the photo, the baby has stopped laughing or the dog has looked away .

I'm wondering if it has something to do with the memory card. I have a Sandisk Ultra II 512. The first time DH burned the pics to a disc, he did not re-format it, which he should have done. When he realized he forgot to do so, he re-formatted it in the computer (the instruction book clearly says to re-format the card INSIDE THE CAMERA). Since that initial error, the card has been re-formatted in the camera approximately three times.

So, do you think the card is damaged? Should I invest in a new one?

Just an fyi...I am a complete novice with cameras. The last time I bought a new camera was in the early 80's , and that just died last year.

So, I'm looking to my fellow DISers for advice. Thanks!

 

[caniswolfie]

There could be a couple of reasons that it takes that long to take a shot. I'll list a couple here.

The first is the shutter lag on the camera. This is the time it takes when the camera is already focused and ready to go for the camera to take a picture. I looked up the camera on the net and a review on Zdnet mentions that the shutter lag on that camera is 0.7 seconds in bright light and 0.9 seconds in dim light.

On top of that the camera needs to focus and get the settings it needs to use for the exposure. Usually you can preset this information by hitting the shutter button halfway. If you are setting up a shot you can do this to lower your time.

Apparently from the review I read on Zdnet, if you are using the flash the time between shots is 5.5 seconds. Otherwise it will be 1.8 seconds. I don't know what kinds of pictures you are taking but if you are taking multiple flash pictures in a row quickly you may have this problem.

 

[RadioNate]

I think knowing more about your shooting conditions would be helpful. Indoors? Outdoors? Flash? AutoMode?

It is likely shutter lag which is going to be an issue on all p&s digital cameras. Some are better than others but unless you go dSLR there is going to be some lag.

Are you pre-focusing? Like Caniswolfie pointed out that can definitely help.

 

[Anewman]

This camera, purchased about 5 months ago, takes gorgeous pictures. It eats batteries like kids eat candy, but I was aware of that prior to buying the camera, so I just keep a good supply of batteries on hand (planning on investing in rechargeables).

Anyway, here's my dilemma....when I press the stupid button to take a photo, sometimes it takes about 5 seconds for the stupid camera to take the stupid picture. Why does it take so long? I generally keep the 'display' off, and almost never use the close-up feature. By the time it finally snaps the photo, the baby has stopped laughing or the dog has looked away .

I'm wondering if it has something to do with the memory card. I have a Sandisk Ultra II 512. The first time DH burned the pics to a disc, he did not re-format it, which he should have done. When he realized he forgot to do so, he re-formatted it in the computer (the instruction book clearly says to re-format the card INSIDE THE CAMERA). Since that initial error, the card has been re-formatted in the camera approximately three times.

So, do you think the card is damaged? Should I invest in a new one?

Just an fyi...I am a complete novice with cameras. The last time I bought a new camera was in the early 80's , and that just died last year.

So, I'm looking to my fellow DISers for advice. Thanks!

FIRST. Rechargables are not really that expensive, you can get a set with charger for about the price of a set of good ALKALINES(duracell,Energizer).

Click here for $9.99 set of rechargables

Ok

Once you have the Nimhs feel free to use the display, it will help you understand what is going on. Like if the auto focus is hunting you will see that.

IMO it is an AUTO focus issue, but could also be a flash charging issue which would be helped by the nimhs.

Things that help increase auto focus speed.
1. more light
2. focus on a contrasty subject with the center point(then recompose if needed)
3. Use auto focus assist beam if available.

Also the speed of the card should not come into play until AFTER the picture is snapped, and even then even the slowest card will not be that much of an issue on the canon A430