Shutter Lag

[tjlamphere]

I bought a SONY Cybershot W-370. I wanted a new camera, as my old camera has bad shutter lag. I did not research this camera well, and am reading that it suffers from shutter lag.

One post I read said you can correct that with a "high speed card". Right now, my old SONY Cybershot has only a memory stick. But I think my new camera has options for both a card and a stick.

I know nothing about cards and not much more about memory sticks. Are they unique to certain cameras? How do you know which memory card works for your camera. And any truth to the statement that a high speed memory card will help with shutter lag???

Thanks for any tips, including how many gig card/stick to buy. I'd like to fit about 200 photos on a card/stick, plus maybe a couple of 20 second videos.


-A Real Photo Novice-

 

[Gianna'sPapa]

Your camera has the option of memory stick, SD/SDHC or internal memory. Usually shutter lag is caused by not enough light reaching the sensor causing the shutter to stay open longer. This sometimes will also causing blurring if you or the subject moves. This is a problem with many P'n'S cameras. I don't know the write speed of your camera. SDHC memory cards come in different speeds/classes 2, 4, 6, 10. The higher the number the faster the card. I can't help you with memory sticks because I have never had a camera that uses one. I would imagine they are similar to SDHC's.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

What do you mean by "shutter lag"? I've heard people use that phrase to refer to:

1. The length of time between when I press the shutter and it takes the picture.
2. The length of time that the shutter is open while I am taking a picture.
3. The time between when I take one picture and the camera lets me take another picture.

 

[tjlamphere]

# 1...great example is during a wedding processional...bride and father coming down the aisle....if I push the button when they are in the viewfinder, they are out of the photo before the shutter snaps....so I have to guess how far ahead of the subject I have to point and shoot..very frustrating.

Will a high speed memory card correct this? And can I buy any memory card or are there only certain once compatible with my Sony Cybershot W370 ???

 

[MarkBarbieri]

A high speed memory card would not help you at all. The only thing it helps is the time you have to wait between shots.

To improve the time between when you press the shutter and when it takes a shot, you can pre-focus. Push the shutter button down half way and the camera will focus. When you press it down the rest of the way, that is one less thing for it to do. The is particularly important in low light situations where it can take the camera a long time to focus.

I don't believe that there is anything that you can do that will improve the time lag between when the camera has achieved focus and when it takes a picture. That varies from model to model but for any given model, it is what it is.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

# 1...great example is during a wedding processional...bride and father coming down the aisle....if I push the button when they are in the viewfinder, they are out of the photo before the shutter snaps....so I have to guess how far ahead of the subject I have to point and shoot..very frustrating.

Sometimes the camera is searching for a focus as well, and won't fire until it finds one. There are things you can do to help it along in that regard in terms of learning some basic photography principles about exposure. What settings do you typically use?

 

[tjlamphere]

I never monkey with the settings...whatever the factory/camera default are, that's how they are set.

I learned something from this thread though....I rarely push the button 1/2 way down before I take a shot....did not know what that did. But based on the feedback here, especially when the camera subjects are moving, I will definitely do that. Wish I had known that the past 4 years that I have owned a digital camera....would have gotten me much better shots when there is movement in the photos.

Thanks for the tip...and finally....is a memory stick or memory card unique to each camera...if I go to buy a memory card, does one size fit all. And from a size perspective, if I want to take 200 pictures and 10 minutes of video, how many gig should a memory card be. What will an 8 gig card do for me???

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I learned something from this thread though....I rarely push the button 1/2 way down before I take a shot....did not know what that did. But based on the feedback here, especially when the camera subjects are moving, I will definitely do that. Wish I had known that the past 4 years that I have owned a digital camera....would have gotten me much better shots when there is movement in the photos.

Yes and no. It will help find a focus but again, it can be difficult even with depressing shutter halfway when there's movement and/or low light. As a pp mentioned, the sensors in point and shoot cameras are small and there's only so much information they can "absorb" at any one time to make a good shot. This is where larger sensor cameras have the advantage. But take a look at your User's Manual and read about depressing the shutter halfway to focus and you will certainly see some improvement in your photos, especially those taken in good light.

I never monkey with the settings...whatever the factory/camera default are, that's how they are set.

There is room for more improvement if you learn to use different settings. Also pick up a copy of Understanding Exposure to learn more on how to improve your photos regardless of what camera you use.

Thanks for the tip...and finally....is a memory stick or memory card unique to each camera...if I go to buy a memory card, does one size fit all. And from a size perspective, if I want to take 200 pictures and 10 minutes of video, how many gig should a memory card be. What will an 8 gig card do for me???

Certain cameras may need certain cards. What kind and how much depends on the camera and your personal shooting style. Many of us carry lots of memory. It's fairly cheap now, and having extra helps prepare you for problems if you lose cards, need more space, or need more storage. Video sucks up a ton of memory, fyi. 8GB ought to do you for what you've mentioned, but you might want to have more just in case. It can be difficult to buy these things while you're on vacation.

 

[zackiedawg]

In your camera manual you should see a grid that will give you a rough estimate of the number of photos and minutes of video you can fit on a memory card...8GB should be pretty solid for photography needs, and short video, but you might need more if you intend to take a bunch of video - photo-wise, you can likely fit 1,000 or more on an 8GB card at the highest quality and resolution setting.

As far as cards, there are some differences out there with memory cards - at this point, MOST P&S cameras take 'SD' cards...a few take different cards. Sony has the Memorystick card, but their cameras also take SD cards...so it would be most advisable to get an SD card so you have the best chance of the card being compatible with another camera if you ever change. Generally, a P&S camera doesn't require the highest-speed memory cards - with the exception being those cameras capable of shooting HD video...if you intend to use the video function, you'd be advised to get a faster card. Otherwise, the faster cards don't do a whole lot for your shooting with a P&S - they mostly just allow faster downloading of photos to a computer.

The half-press technique is a pretty standard photography rule - it's always better to use this technique in all of your photography - the act of focusing and initial metering is done on the half-press, so the camera is ready to fire...then when the composition and framing are right, fully press the shutter to snap the photo instantly. Otherwise, when you just mash the shutter button, the camera has to find focus, adjust the aperture and shutter for proper metering, choose ISO, choose a white balance, and take the photo...all on one press. That's not shutter lag - that's what all cameras have to do before taking a shot. The half press takes care of the first 4 of those 5 steps, so all the camera has to do is trip the shutter and take the photo!

 

[Gianna'sPapa]

Check your owners manual. There is usually a limit to the memory size card usable in a given camera. As far as card speed, digital video seems to like class 6 cards, but again check your owners manual. There may be a clue for their recommendations. Its uneconomical (is that a word?) to purchase a card that is faster than the camera is capable of writing.

PS Apparently zackiedawg and I were writing at the same time.