Hi Pat,
Thanks for contacting us.
To photograph images close up and detailed, you'll need a camera with a macro mode. If you have a macro setting on your current digital camera, make sure you select it when taking close-up shots.
Also, mount the camera on a tripod (or something steady) and use the camera's self-timer to trigger the shutter-release button. This prevents camera shake which is one of the main causes of blurry photos.
If you're using the digital zoom, use only the optical instead. To be honest, digital zooms really aren't great for taking photos at any length. On the rare times I use my digital zoom, I don't expect much in the way of decent image quality. Much rather use my optical zoom and crop in image editing software.
Digital zooms aren't true zooms. They simply enlarge the central portion of an image but do not actually change the focal length. Like editing software, a digital zoom pre-crops an image and reduces its resolution to give an appearance of zooming in. Reduced resolution means blurry or pixellated looking photos.
For some suggestions on close up photography, read moderator Deb's outstanding article,
Up Close and Personal, about the subject:
http://www.digicamhelp.com/learn/camera-techniques/macro-photography.htmRelated reading
Blurry close-ups:http://www.digicamhelp.com/learn/camera-questions-and-answers/close-up-photo-blurred.htmPreventing camera shake:http://www.digicamhelp.com/digital-photography-tips/camera_shake.htm
