Working with digital images

[TJinPV]

I have an Olympus C4000 Zoom. When I take outdoor pictures, in the bright sunlight using the automatic setting, the pictures come out completely black. I think I've narrowed it down to the shutter speed, which shows 1/850 to 1/1000 in these situations. Obviously that's wrong. I set the camera to the manual setting and adjusted the speed to 1/400 or 1/320. In this case, the pictures come out perfect. Indoors and with a flash I don't have this problem. I'm curious why the camera is setting the shutter speed incorrectly and how I might correct it.

Many thanks.

[bdery]

Hi and welcome!

I have seen the exact reverse of what you are describing happen to a friend with an old Olympus too. In his case the pictures outside turned out completely white, or almost so.

In bright sunlight, it's possible to use such a fast shutter speed, but you would have to open the aperture irisor raise the ISO value. IF the image turns out dark, maybe the iris is defective and won't open up as it should. Another person I know with an older Olympus has to rattle his camera in order to open the iris, there is probably a dust spec stuck there.

If the shutter is working well, maybe the metering system is not doing its job. If you test the exposure manually, that should tell you something about this. But I have a gut feeling that your problem is linked to the iris. Then again, since you are able to take good pictures manually, maybe I'm wrong.

[TJinPV]

It's very bizarre. When I put the camera into the automatic setting and point it at the floor, for example, the shutter speed goes to 1/30. Then I take it outside and the speed goes to 1/1000. It's like it's doing the opposite of what it should.

[Mike54]

It's like it's doing the opposite of what it should.

Actually it's doing what it's supposed to. When you're indoors (lower light) the camera is adjusting for it and slowing the shutter speed to allow for more time for light to enter on the sensor. When you go outside (brighter light) it adjusts to speed the shutter up and allow an equal amount of light (but in less time) on the sensor.
This of course is assuming the aperture is remaining the same.
Looking at the speeds you stated above it would seem that the "automatic" adjustment is misreading the available light. If for example the cameras light meter is reading the light from a single bright area of the image but the majority of the image isn't as bright you could experience dark areas of the photo but there should be some areas that would be correct (that one brighter spot).
Does the shutter speed go to 1/1000 regardless of what brightness you focus on?

[TJinPV]

I've read the manual and also the CD, neither of which help with the automatic settings. I can adjust everything manually and get good pictures, but it's somewhat of a pain. Plus, I prefer automatic settings due to the convenience. That's why I got a "point and shoot" camera.

I'll try to answer your question. Please forgive my ignorance on settings. I'm not an expert in this field.

Pointed at the same potted plant, on an outside patio and with a white wall behind it, in the automatic mode the camera sets the F stop to 5.6 and the shutter speed to 1/1000. I take the picture and get no image. I switch to manual and adjust the F stop to 8.0 and the speed to 1/400. I take the picture and get an image. If I manually adjust the F stop to 5.6, the speed goes up to 1/1000 and I get no image.

The speed changes from 1/1000 depending on the brightness. If I focus on a wall, inside, for example, it drops to 1/30.

Out of curiosity, I took my Nikon film camera outside. Aimed at the same potted plant and in the automatic mode, it set the F stop to 5.6 and the shutter speed to 500.

Thank you.

[Mike54]

Please forgive my ignorance on settings. I'm not an expert in this field.

Nothing to forgive, I didn't start out knowing about all the settings (still don't) and I'm no "expert" either.
It really sounds like your camera is metering available light incorrectly but if you don't mind another question... have you gone through the menus and checked your meterig setting? According to the review at stevesdigicams your camera has a ("new") multi point metering system, check and see if it is on or off and try the opposite of the setting.

[TJinPV]

The multimetering was off so I turned it on. The results are the same.

It's only happening in sunlight. I can take great pictures in shady spots or indoors. This is very weird to me.

Thank you.

[Mike54]

Not trying to push you away or anything TJ but perhaps a more specific forum can help better. You might try the Olympus Forum @ dpreview. At least you would be asking a group whose members are familiar with the camera.
Just remember, ya'll come on back, ya heah?

[TJinPV]

Thank you. I feel that something is wrong with the camera. This is a replacement for an identical model that was stolen. I never had any problems with the old one. I just turned it on to "P" and shot away.

[Mike54]

Is a recent replacement that perhaps you can return?

[TJinPV]

I bought it from someone on E-Bay. It was supposedly brand new. It's bad enough that my other one was stolen, but to buy a replacement and have it defective is like being robbed twice. I can't return it but I can cancel the credit card payment and I will. Probably my digital camera days have ended, unless I can find something suitable to replace this one. I really like this camera and it's features but it's become a real headache.

I almost bought a new Canon A620 instead, but my research indicated an inherent "E18" error problem with the lens, which Canon refuses to correct. So, I went with something I knew was reliable. At this point, I have no idea what I'll do. Olympus would probably charge me a fortune to repair the thing and it's not available new any more.

[Mike54]

If you can stop the payment and return it that might be a good idea. Don't give up on digital though. Take a peek back over at dp review and see what the latest and greates are. I'm sure you can find something suitable. I have a little Fuji FinePix (3.2 mp) that works just fine though I do prefer using my DSLR.  

[TJinPV]

It's a rather long story on this one. Pretty much, I can't really return the camera. However I haven't finished paying for it either. So I think I can work out something with the seller.

I never took many pictures until I got my old camera. I just hate that it was stolen. Really pissed me off! There are a lot of others that would probably work. I've read many, many reviews. I didn't use most of the features on the camera but appreciated the quality. It seems like Olympus got it all right with this model and hasn't copied it since. I was considering a C7000 but it doesn't seem to be as good as the 4000 plus I hate pop-up flashes which many cameras seem to have now. One thing that I did not like about the 4000 is the size. Although fairly compact compared to many, it's still too large to take to the beach, restaurant, etc. without having a camera bag, which is often an inconvenience. I don't know. Maybe I'll just shop around and see what I can find. In the meantime, I'll use this thing in the manual mode.

Like I said earlier, I came very close to buying a Canon A620, which has everything the C4000 has. But then I began reading about the dreaded "E18" error that seems to plague many Canon cameras. Canon apparently doesn't acknowledge the error and there are several class action lawsuits against the company. There are many sites devoted to fixing the error. Apparently the cameras are great except for this one flaw, which affects the lens. Have you had any experience with this model?

Thanks

[ShutterbugGail]

Like I said earlier, I came very close to buying a Canon A620, which has everything the C4000 has. But then I began reading about the dreaded "E18" error that seems to plague many Canon cameras.

I've heard of this error but never experienced it. We've had the Canon A510 for over a year and I've had my Canon S2 since last May and give it quite some workout.

Have you had any experience with this model?

I don't have personal experience but participate in photography forums where there are plenty of users of the A620 and A610. Some have quibbled about the quality of the build, others praise it. But I haven't heard one person complain about the image quality. I've looked at a lot of A6XX photos from all levels of users. I am more than impressed with what this camera can do!

The camera hasn't been on the market that long but, so far, there have been no reports of E18 errors.

[bdery]

Probably my digital camera days have ended, unless I can find something suitable to replace this one. I really like this camera and it's features but it's become a real headache.  

I understand how you feel but I hope you won't let this get you away from digital imagery. There are many good cameras out there.

I almost bought a new Canon A620 instead, but my research indicated an inherent "E18" error problem with the lens, which Canon refuses to correct. So, I went with something I knew was reliable. At this point, I have no idea what I'll do. Olympus would probably charge me a fortune to repair the thing and it's not available new any more.

That E18 error is scary, but there aren't that many users having these problems. Never had it with my Canon, nor have I seen it on any of the Canon cameras owned by people I know. On the other hand, I also have a Nikon camera, and I had to have the shutter repaired. So you never know, whatever the brand.