Canon SX50 Specs (1 Viewer)

[GrahameNZ]

Hi Steve,
When you do that the center frame should turn orange and you can then move it with the < > etc keys.
another press of it and it should recenter and become white again.
Works for me in Av mode.
You don't have face recognition or something like that selected do you ?
That will interfere with some functions.

 

[GrahameNZ]

Another thought.
When reviewing images will the button let you delete an image ??
Just thinking about a stuffed button.

 

[Steve Babbs]

Another thought.
When reviewing images will the button let you delete an image ??
Just thinking about a stuffed button.

Yes it does let me delete. I have turned face recognition off.

 

[Stephen Prower]

Grab shots

Stefan

Re-inventing the wheel? Almost certainly so, but I don't recall seeing any recent posts on the subject.

You and Jkarpin2 set me thinking about that 'automated' setting for grab shots.

Today in good but variable light in the garden I tried:
* Shutter speed priority
* Auto ISO
* Focal length 1200mm
* EV Bracketing set at +1 to -1
* Jpeg (SL quality).

That way I set the shutter speed to choice, and the only adjustments I may have to make in shooting are to change shutter speed or EV figure.

I chose a shutter speed of 1/125 sec and EV 0. I stayed with 1/125 sec, and only had to change EV 0 for a couple of shots.

I am not an experienced photographer. I guessed at half a stop latitude in post-processing for the EV bracket setting. That covers my most frequently used settings: -4/3 for bird against darker background, and +4/3 for bird against sky, and gives me a little extra either way.

I normally shoot in RAW, but I don't bother about white balance coming out wrong in Jpeg because Canon DPP offers a 'Click on White area' tool to correct white balance for Jpegs as well as RAW.

However in RAW I found that a burst of three bracketing shots took too long. When I miss focus, I want to be ready for my next crack at nailing focus as quickly as possible. Plus using EV bracketing to avoid the need to set the correct figure for compensation means you don't want the bird to have time to strike three different poses.

Result: In good light shooting at 1/125 sec I was happy with the ISO and aperture settings that the camera chose. I miss RAW though -- It's pure prejudice because I only occasionally think that I have saved a shot by post- processing in RAW: and I may not be right!

I attach best shots from a half hour session.


Stephen


I'd like greater bracketing speed, but I'm not yet ready to compromise on Jpeg quality

 

[HermitIbis]

The bracketing speed can be jazzed up with CHDK, but I am not tempted to try CHDK, it is such a hassle. In my comparison shootings, I usually set either C1 or C2 on EV -1/3. The difference isn't large, and in situations when I feel that the SX50 errs on the bright EV side (which it often does), I can improve the EV quickly.

I've used Canon's DPP, when the camera was new (2012), later mainly preferred Photoshop Elements 11. I've never bothered to download the latest DPP version, but maybe I should.

In my dipper photos, the second shot has more feather detail. It's surely worth to study iso, completely ignored by me in two years of photographing on auto iso.

 

[Stephen Prower]

ISO priority

Stefan

There's nothing wrong in making good better! But in fairness to the camera, the 'highish' ISO performance of the Canon SX50 can offer as pleasant a surprise as the performance of the Image Stabilisation. In response to JKarpin2's 'Iso priority mode' thread, I just now had a first systematic glance at the ISO settings of my 'best shots'. To my surprise I found the attached Blue tit crop at 1200mm; 1/50 sec; f6.5; ISO 800 (I also attach the original conversion to Jpeg from RAW before cropping).

Maybe that's why, per your recent post on JKarpin2's thread, you say that up until now you've more or less ignored ISO!

In fact I've now found and attach a best Starling shot at 1600 ISO, which I don't normally use; rather my normal choice of maximum ISO is 800 ISO. I can only suppose, as the 'magic' third ingredient in achieving such shots, the sensor of the SX50 is able to squeeze the maximum benefit from favourable lighting.


Stephen

PS Your Dipper was more cooperative than mine! The comparison of feather detail in favour of low ISO suggests that the occasional shot that still comes off well at high ISO may statistically be a fortunate shot

 

[HermitIbis]

[...] I just now had a first systematic glance at the ISO settings of my 'best shots'. To my surprise I found the attached Blue tit crop at 1200mm; 1/50 sec; f6.5; ISO 800 (I also attach the original conversion to Jpeg from RAW before cropping).

Maybe that's why, per your recent post on JKarpin2's thread, you say that up until now you've more or less ignored ISO!

In fact I've now found and attach a best Starling shot at 1600 ISO, which I don't normally use; rather my normal choice of maximum ISO is 800 ISO. I can only suppose, as the 'magic' third ingredient in achieving such shots, the sensor of the SX50 is able to squeeze the maximum benefit from favourable lighting.

Stephen,

yes, the camera's choice of iso sometimes surprised me. The two starling photos below were taken in March 2014. The first was 1/500 second at iso 200. For the second the camera used 1/1250 and iso 1000. It was a bit strange, but apparently the light was good enough so that the high iso didn't hurt much.

Besides, two photos from yesterday.

Stefan

 

[punta]

First ever reed bunting in my garden. Lucky my daughters SX50 camera now sits in the conservatory :t:

 

[HermitIbis]

Congratulations - a great photo. I never saw a reed bunting, neither in my garden nor anywhere else.

 

[HermitIbis]

Winter is over, my local Dipper shows nesting activities. The last photo (BIF) is technically miserable, I know. Just an attempt to motivate others to take their SX50 out of the closet and post something better. It's great that digital photos don't cost anything - I don't think I'd have even tried to shoot Goldcrests in flight in the analog era. So much room to experiment today.

 

[anth005]

Recently purchased an SX50 hoping to get some decent pics of a pair of nesting bald eagles that are close to where I work. Left the station this morning and they were sitting in a tree about 20 yards behind one of the neighboring houses. I have a lot to learn but hopefully I'm getting there, any advice or constructive criticism would be welcome.

 

[crazyfingers]

Excellent first results!

 

[anth005]

Thanks CF these were shot using the settings that you posted!!

 

[HermitIbis]

I've bought another SX50, used. In first tests the camera did OK, but when I tried the "iso priority" setting mentioned earlier in this thread, it shows an unusual behaviour. Retreating with the zoom to 171mm and shorter, the f changes not to 5.6, but only to f=6.3.

I am not a technical expert. Does the unability to retreat to f=5.6 mean that the camera is a "lemon"? Maybe someone here can help. The seller insists that the camera works perfectly, but I have my doubts.

Edit: Problem solved. Just another case of user error. So my new SX50 works just as fine as my two other SX50s.

 

[HermitIbis]

My hit rate with Goldcrests is low, most of the 300+ photos from Monday were rubbish. The silence of a SX50 is an advantage, the bird stayed for 37 minutes. When I buy a used SX50, I love it when it shows little wear and the former owner hasn't even put the sound off. Clear signs that he/she isn't a birder.

 

[HermitIbis]

Index

The following is meant as an index for this long thread. Maybe useful for newbies. Often the post cited was a starting point for a discussion, so it's worth to read on.

Early sample photos [IanF] pp. 1-10. For example: Bee-eater, Waxwing, Kestrel BIF
Recommended settings [crazyfingers] p.16, #389
Digital Converter [IanF] p.17, #418
TV and AV mode [RoyC] p.25, #603
Macro photos: Raynox DCR 250 [George Edwards] Fly (p.19, #469) and more p.20, #484
Jpeg vs Raw [kNiks] p.25, #557
Manual mode [Kenn3d] p.25, #624
Raynox DCR 250 + adapter [rob lee] p.38, #929, sample: Green Tiger Beetle devouring Ant (p.39, #952)
In-camera sharpness for Jpeg via "My Colors" [RoyC] p.39, #951
Thoughts on Auto ISO [IanF] p.51, #1273 and p.54, #1331
Exposing to the right = ETTR [RoyC] p.55, #1353
Question re settings [sarah durha, crazyfingers] p.55, #1355 and replies below (up to p.56, #1377)
Macro: Raynox DCR 250 [Frogfish] p.56, #1389 and p.56, #1397 and p.62, #1528
Avoiding the self-timer [TRT45] p.56, #1392
Settings [marcobf] p. 67, #1661
Latest settings [crazyfingers] p.68, #1689
ISO priority mode p.73, #1824

 

[crazyfingers]

Lots of work there! Now just need to remember post number 1856

 

[Marcobf]

That's a great resource -thanks. And that Waxwing capture is truly excellent with this little sensor

Have you dropped the idea about saving the longest zoom where aperture is still 5.6? #1830

 

[crazyfingers]

I have not added a lot to this topic recently and thought I'd contribute something today.

I was in Japan for a week the end of Feb and start of March and although I've been to Japan for business 25 times now, this last trip was the first that I took my good camera along. The good camera being the SX50. I have two of them now and felt OK risking one in my suitcase for the long ride and flight changes.

With about 6 hours of nice weather on a Saturday I was able to find a park with a lot of birds. That combined with a few city parks during the weekday, I was pretty happy to have photographed 24 bird species.

List below

Azure Winged Magpie
Black-Eared Kite
Brown Eared Bulbul
Bull Headed Shrike
Common Eurasian Teal
Common Pochard Female
Common Pochard Male
Eastern Great Tit
Eastern Spot-Billed Duck
Eurasian Tree Sparrow
Great Cormorant
Great Egret
Hawfinch
Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker
Japanese White-Eye
Jungle Crow
Little Egret
Long Tailed Tit
Northern Pintail
Rock Dove (Pigeon)
Tufted Duck
Turtle Dove
Varied Tit
White-Cheeked Starling
White Wagtail

Here are some of the examples:

Little Egret, Great Cormorant, Great Egret, Brown Eared Bulbul and Japanese White-eye.

The Bulbuls are all over the place, as are crows. The white-eyes are hard to photograph mainly because they are not just very small but they are in constant motion and just don't sit still for a moment it seems.

 

[mzettie]

Wow HermitIbis, great index, thanks!
Nice images from your Japan trip, Crazy.....especially the Bulbul against the floral background.