Handheld Night Scene Mode

[] (Handheld Night Scene) mode enables handheld shooting for night scenes. In this shooting mode, four shots are taken consecutively for each picture, and the resulting image with reduced camera shake is recorded.

Tips Shooting tips

  • Hold the camera steady.

    Keep your elbows close to your body to hold the camera steady (). In this mode, four shots are aligned and merged into a single image, but if there is significant misalignment in any of the four shots due to camera shake, they may not align properly in the final image.

  • For portraits, use an external flash unit.

    If your shots will include people, use an external flash unit. For nicer portraits, flash is used for the first shot. Tell the subject not to move until all four consecutive shots are taken.

Caution

  • Compared to other shooting modes, the image area will be smaller.
  • RAW image quality cannot be set.
  • Autofocusing at night or in dark scenes may be difficult when points of light lie within the AF point. Focus manually in this case, either by pressing the Left key key to specify [MF] focus mode or by setting the lens focus mode switch to MF (, ).
  • Flash photography is available only with an external flash unit attached.
  • Shooting subjects at close range with an external flash unit may cause overexposure.
  • Using an external flash unit in night scenes with limited lighting may result in blurry pictures from misaligned images.
  • Using an external flash unit that illuminates both people and a nearby background may result in blurry pictures from misaligned images. Unnatural shadows and unsuitable colors may also appear.
  • Flash coverage angle with a Speedlite:
    • When using a Speedlite with automatic flash coverage setting, the zoom position will be fixed to the wide (wide-angle) end regardless of the lens’s zoom position.
    • When using a Speedlite requiring manual flash coverage setting, set the flash head to the normal position.
  • If you shoot a moving subject, the subject’s movement may leave afterimages or the surrounding area of the subject may become dark.
  • The image alignment may not function properly with repetitive patterns (lattice, stripes, etc.), flat or single-tone images, or images significantly misaligned due to camera shake.
  • It takes some time to record images to the card since they are merged after shooting. “BUSY” appears on the screen as images are processed, and shooting is not possible until processing is finished.
  • Shots will look slightly different from the preview image shown on the screen.