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Note: This camera was first sold in Feb 2006. It has been replaced by the Canon S5 IS.
Canon PowerShot S3 IS
Canon PowerShot S3 IS
B-
HQ Grade: B-
A is outstanding and exceptional, rated in the top 10% of digital cameras.
B means they are good, with some standout features.
C means they are mediocre, and probably more trouble than they are worth.
D & F mean they are absolutely awful or old. Avoid at all costs.
  • 4 out of 5
"Apart from the noise, great camera"
  • 4 out of 5
"Photographer in Training..S3 filled all needs.."
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Question Answered!
KK (onlykk) 27 pts
May 6, 2007 3:52 AM
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what is the best settings to get action shots of racecars on a race track going about 100 mph

I take pictures at a racetrack so I need action shots of the cars, I bought this camera today and tried to read over it really fast for tonights race but I did not get any action shot that were not blurry. What do I need to set the camera on?
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Answers This question has been answered!
China Mark (chinamark) 847 pts
May 6, 2007 6:42 AM
1 people rated this answer helpful, 0 people rated this answer not helpful
 
I'm not sure what the preset shutter speed is for the "sports" setting on this camera, but it may be to long. The best thing you can do is set the camera to shutter priority "TV" and then select the fastest shutter speed, which is 1/3200th of a second on this camera. That should give you a nice sharp shot.
Good luck!
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KK (onlykk) 27 pts
May 6, 2007 12:55 PM
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I am not really understanding what you are saying. What I need to know is HOW to set the camera. Yes I now that is a dumb question I guess I bought a camera more advance than myself. The camera I used before was a Canon PowerShot A530 and it too great pictures. But it was dropped. Even some of the action shots were good but now great that is why I got this one. Do you think there is a class on how to use these cameras somewhere? I have looked at all of the books that came with it but still no luck and I actullay can't test it for real until next Saturday. I mean not many cars on the highway run as fast as a racecar. LOL
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China Mark (chinamark) 847 pts
May 6, 2007 1:12 PM
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I've got the S3 IS as well so I'll try and talk you through it step by step. There are two options so I'll give you the more straight forward one first:

Sports Mode
1) Look at the large dial on top of the camera to the left of the "off" button. It starts at "C" then goes "M", "AV", "TV", "P", "AUTO" etc. Further round there's a picture of a man and it looks like he's standing on one leg (he's supposed to be running), that's the "Sports" mode. Turn the dial so that the man lines up with the white dash mark to the left of the dial.
Now the camera is in "Sports" mode and the settings are ready for you to take pictures of things moving.

Shutter Priority Mode
2) If you take a picture of the racing cars (or anything else you can find going really really quickly:)) using "sports mode" and the pictures still come out blurred, try this:
Back to the dial and turn it so that "TV" lines up with the white dash on the left. Now the camera is in "Shutter Priority Mode". On the LCD screen towards the bottom left of the screen you'll see numbers. It could be 0"5, 1/4, something like that. Press down to go right on the directional pad (above the "set" and "menu" buttons), and every time you push right you'll notice the numbers changing. Keep pressing it until it says 1/3200. This is the fastest shutter speed for the camera and should be able to freeze the fastest of actions.

Until next saturday, just try shooting anything that moves really fast:) Let me know how you get on.

Best Answer
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KK (onlykk) 27 pts
May 7, 2007 12:16 AM
1 people rated this answer helpful, 0 people rated this answer not helpful
 
Thank you so much. I will be taking some pictures tomorrow. My husband suggested going to my brothers car lot and taking pictures of cars coming by. So I will let you know. Do you have a private e-mail address? I have so many other questions? Mine is picturesbykk@yahoo.com
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DN 0 pts
May 8, 2007 9:14 PM
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I want to say, your not the only one with this problem. I too don't understand the shutter speed. I own a kodak z730 with video mode. Can any body advise me of a book or website to understand. I like taking pictures of up close flowers and nascars on the track. My E-Mail is 57dreamin@prodigy.net. I need help!
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Robbyne 0 pts
May 24, 2007 11:42 AM
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I have this problem also. The cars aren't going as fast they are quarter midgets but they come out blurred, we have a huge race in july and I want to be able to get good shots. I do alot of concerts also and one entertainer is all over the stage what would you reccomed for gettinggreat shots of him? Thanks!!!!
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KK (onlykk) 27 pts
May 25, 2007 6:30 AM
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I have found out that to stop speed you can use the TV setting and that seems to work pretty good for me as long as it is not dusty. If it is dusty I catch the dust with the shutter speed being so fast. When I took the pictures at Road Atlanta I used this speed at 1/3200 and I was stopping sprint cars in thier tracks. The sports mode works good when they are not as fast like during hot laps and stuff. But if you are shooting cars not on dirt tracks I would use the TV mode. Also the concerts are good in the tv mode also. Let me know if this helps. Also you can see some of my race photos at www.myspace.com/kkmomof2. You can e-mail me at picturesbykk@yahoo.com I would love to see some of the work you have done
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mitzu 0 pts
June 6, 2007 8:26 AM
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u need to be careful though, increasing shutter speed means less light will reach the sensor, so if u're taking shots of an amber object the camera will react by increasing it's sensors sensitivity which will, in turn, increase the noise and degrade the quality of the photo. So! u might want to try slower shutter speed and see if works for better quality.
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triple t 0 pts
March 10, 2008 11:12 PM
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The main thing you need to learn, to photograph anything moving is to pan the camera. That simply means the camera moves (you rotate at the hips) the speed of the camera will basicly reduce the speed of the object and you wil get a clear picture. As for bumping shutter speeds up. THe dirt tracks in Georgia are way to dark and dusty to shoot a real fast shutter speed so be sure to spend a little money on a powerful flash, shoot at the flash sync speed for your camera and keep your camera moving. It is not something you learn overnight, but with alot of practice you will learn it. Also you can pratice with cars on the highway; even though a race car is traveling @ about 100mph in the straight a ways, he is going alot slower in the corners, and he will almost stop when the his speed in the camera speed match, giving you basiclly a still shot.
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Tropi 0 pts
July 3, 2008 12:08 PM
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Must remember this area is specifically about Canon S3 IS.
The maximum flash range of the S3 IS is listed as 13-17 feet. I would have some doubt that spectators are allowed that close to a high speed racing car (and with good cause). In which case, the flash would be useless for this purpose.

It might help to know that, at just 60mph, a car is travelling at 88 feet per second.
From this, you can easily calculate that it moves a whole foot in around 1/90 second
and covers an inch in around 1/1100 of a second.
It's pretty simple arithmetic to calculate for higher or lower object speeds and gives some insight into just how fast the shutter needs to operate in order to 'freeze' fast movement. But of course, panning does help enormously.
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