Canon Digital IXUS 500 User Manual

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Shooting
 When you use flash photography at higher ISO speeds, the chances 
of white streaks appearing in the image increase the closer you 
approach to the subject.
 Since a slow shutter speed is selected in dark places when the flash 
is set to Off or Slow Synchro, take care to avoid blurring the image.
- Shooting in   Mode
Be careful to hold the camera still to avoid camera shake.
- Shooting in   or   Mode
Fix the camera to a tripod to shoot in these modes since the 
shutter speed will be slower than in the   mode. If an image is 
dark in   mode, reshooting it in   mode will make it brighter.
 The flash can be fired when the indicator lights a steady orange after 
pressing the shutter button halfway.
 The flash may take up to approximately 10 seconds to charge. The 
recharging time will vary with such factors as the shooting 
conditions and battery charge. Shots cannot be taken while the flash 
is charging.
 The flash fires twice. The main flash follows a preparatory pre-flash. 
The exposure reading obtained from the subject with the pre-flash is 
used to set the optimal flash intensity for the main flash, which is 
used to capture the image.
 When using the flash, be sure to shoot from at least 46 cm (1.5 ft.) 
away from your subject for standard photography and at least 30 cm 
(1.0 ft.) for macro photography.
Red-eye Reduction
 Light reflecting back from eyes can make them appear red when the 
flash is used in dark areas. Under these conditions, use the red-eye 
reduction mode. For this mode to be effective, the subject must be 
looking right at the red-eye reduction lamp. Try asking them to look 
directly at the lamp. Even better results can be obtained by 
increasing the lighting in indoor settings or approaching closer to 
the subject.
 The shutter will not activate for approximately 1 second after the red-
eye reduction lamp fires in order to improve the effect (excluding 
when using the quick shot function). If you want a more immediate 
shutter response, set the flash to  ,   or  . 
 
						

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 Shooting Close-Ups/ Infinity Shots    
  
To cancel the macro/infinity mode
Press the
  /   button to remove   or  from the display.
 Use the LCD monitor to compose close-ups in macro mode since 
images composed with the viewfinder may be off-center (p. 39).
 The exposure may not be optimal when the flash is used in macro mode 
in the range of 5 to 30 cm  (2.0 in. to 1.0 ft.).
Macro
Use this mode to record subjects in the range of 5 to 46 
cm (2.0 in. to 1.5 ft.) from the lens tip when at wide-
angle end and in the range of 30 to 46 cm (1.0 ft. to 1.5 
ft.) when at the telephoto end setting.
InfinityUse this mode to record landscapes and distant objects.It can also be used for compositions combining both 
near and distant objects.

						

							61
Shooting
Image Area in Macro Mode
When the zoom is set between the telephoto end and the wide-angle 
end, the distance from lens to subject is the same as when the zoom is 
set to the telephoto end.
Distance from Lens to 
SubjectImage Area
Telephoto End 30 cm (1.0 ft.) 107 x 80 mm (4.2 x 3.1 in.)
Wide-Angle End 5 cm (2.0 in.) 58 x 43 mm (2.3 x 1.7 in.)
 
						

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Using the Digital Zoom
When the LCD monitor is on, images can be zoomed to the following 
powers with the combined optical and digital zoom functions.
DIGITAL IXUS 500: Approx. 3.8x, 4.9x, 6.1x, 7.6x, 9.3x, 12.0x
DIGITAL IXUS 430: Approx. 4.3x, 5.3x, 6.7x, 8.2x, 11.0x 
The digital zoom cannot be used when the LCD monitor is turned off.
Images become coarser the more they are digitally zoomed.
1Press the DISP. button to turn the 
LCD monitor on.
2In the   (Rec.) menu, select  .
See Selecting Menus and Settings (p. 43).
3Use the  or  button to select [On] 
and press the MENU button.
The display will return to the Rec. screen.
4Press the zoom lever toward  .
 The combined optical and digital zoom 
factor appears in the upper right of the 
LCD monitor.
 When you press the zoom lever toward  , 
the zoom stops when the lens reaches the 
maximum optical telephoto setting.
Press the zoom lever toward   again to 
activate the digital zoom and further zoom 
the image digitally.
 Press the zoom lever toward   to zoom out.
 
						

							63
Shooting
 Continuous Shooting
In this mode, the camera shoots continuously while the shutter button is 
held down. Recording ceases when the shutter button is released.
 
To cancel continuous shooting
Press the 
 /   button twice to display  .
Standard Continuous 
Shooting
Use this mode to view images on the LCD 
monitor as you shoot continuously. The 
shutter interval is longer in this mode than 
in 
 mode.
High-Speed Continuous 
ShootingUse this mode to shoot continuously with a 
short shutter interval. You cannot check 
images while shooting continuously.
1Press the  /   button to display 
 or  .
 The continuous shooting function shoots 
at the following rates.*
Approximately 1.5 frames/sec.
DIGITAL IXUS 500:Approximately 2.2 frames/sec.DIGITAL IXUS 430:Approximately 2.5 frames/sec.
* Large/Fine, LCD monitor off mode. (These 
figures reflect Canon’s testing standard. The 
actual figures will vary according to the shooting 
conditions and settings.)
 
						

							64To change the continuous shooting speed   
 The interval between shots may lengthen slightly when the camera’s 
built-in memory fills.
 If the flash is firing, the interval between shots will lengthen to 
accommodate the flash’s charging requirements.
 Using the Self-timer
With this function, images are shot 10 or 2 seconds after the shutter button is 
pressed. This is useful when you want to take a memorable photo with everyone 
including yourself in the picture. The self-timer can be used in any shooting 
mode.
To cancel the self-timer
Press the 
 /   button to display  .
1In the   (Rec.) menu, select  .
See Selecting Menus and Settings (p. 43).
2Use the   or   button to select   
or   and press the MENU button.
The display will return to the Shooting 
screen.
1Press the  /   button to display 
 or  .
 When the shutter button is pressed fully, 
the self-timer will activate and the self-
timer lamp will blink.
 When the self-timer is set to   ( ), 
the shutter activates 10 (2) seconds after 
the shutter button is pressed fully.
 
						

							65
Shooting
Changing the Self-timer Countdown Time
The self-timer sound can be changed with the Selftimer Sound item in 
the   (My Camera) menu (p. 51).
1In the   (Rec.) menu, select  .
See Selecting Menus and Settings (p. 43).
2Use the  or  button to select   
or   and press the MENU button.
 The display will return to the Shooting screen. When   is selected, the self-timer 
sounds and the blinking gets faster 2 
seconds before the shutter activates.
 When   is selected, the self-timer 
sounds at the same time as the shutter 
button is pressed. The shutter activates in 
2 seconds.
 
						

							66
 Shooting in Manual Mode
In this mode, you can change various settings and shoot as you wish.
1Slide the mode switch to   (Rec.) 
and turn the mode 
dial to  . 
2Change the settings.
See Functions Available in Each Shooting 
Mode (p. 160).
3Shoot (p. 53).
If the subject is difficult to focus on when 
the shutter button is pressed halfway, the 
beep will sound one time and the lower 
indicator beside the viewfinder will blink 
yellow. 
The AF frame will also appear yellow. (If the 
AiAF option is set to [On] (p. 76), the AF 
frame will not appear.)
 
						

							67
Shooting
 Shooting Panoramic Images (Stitch Assist)
Stitch Assist can be used to shoot overlapping images that can later be 
merged (stitched) to create one panoramic image on a computer.
To merge the images on a computer, use PhotoStitch, one of the 
supplied programs.
Framing a Subject
The PhotoStitch program detects the overlapping portions of adjoining 
images and merges them. When shooting, try to include a distinctive item 
(landmark) in the overlapping portions.
 Compose each frame so that it overlaps 30 - 50% of the adjoining image. Try 
to keep the vertical misalignment to less than 10% of the image height.
 Do not include moving items in the overlap.
 Do not try to stitch images that include both distant and close items. 
These items may appear warped or doubled up in the merged image.
 Make the brightness in each image consistent. The final image will appear 
unnatural if the contrast in brightness is too great.
 To shoot landscapes, swivel (pan) the camera around its own vertical axis.
The overlapping seams of 
several adjacent images 
can be joined into a single 
panoramic image.
 
						

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 To shoot close-ups, slide the camera over the subject, keeping it parallel to 
the subject as you move it.
Shooting
Images can be shot in two sequences in Stitch Assist.  
Left to right horizontally
Right to left horizontally
1Slide the mode switch to   (Rec.) 
and turn the mode dial to  .
2Use the   or   button to select the 
sequence direction and press the 
SET button.
3Shoot the first frame in the 
sequence.
The exposure and white balance are set and 
locked with the first image.