Manual Control Options
The Canon PowerShot S410 has most of the standard manual control options offered by the point-and-shoot camera on the market today. The majority of these manual settings are accessed through the Function button in conjunction with the Four-Way control keys, both located on the back of the Canon PowerShot S410’s camera body.
Focus
Auto (8.0)
The Canon PowerShot S410 employs AiAF (artificial intelligence auto-focus) technology along with Focus Lock, which allows for focusing to occur under a variety of detrimental conditions, such as in low light, near bright objects, with low contrast, and so forth. By pressing the shutter halfway, the user engages the camera in focusing the shot. If a shot is changed, the user merely needs to depress the shutter button again to adjust for any alterations. In dark lighting situations, or other times when the camera has difficulty focusing, the camera may engage the AF beam assist, which will emit a red light upon the scene. This feature can be turned off in the settings accessed through the Menu button under AF-assist beam.
Manual (5.0)
To use Manual Focus on the Canon PowerShot S410, the user must switch the Mode Dial to the red camera followed by the capital M, and then press the shutter partially while pressing the left arrow of the four-way controller (the Macro/Infinity dual control) until the proper focal length is chosen. When the green AF frame appears, the image is locked and the frame can be shot. This quasi-manual focus control is just that: a melding of both automatic and manual control, neither truly one or the other.
White Balance (8.0)
White Balance is controlled on the Canon PowerShot S410 by entering the Function Menu and scrolling down using the four-way controller until the White Balance settings are highlighted. It is important to note that there are no manual control settings for White Balance available when the camera is in Automatic Mode. The settings available are Automatic, Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent/Fluorescent H, and Custom, allowing the user to engage their own specific White Balance parameters.
ISO (7.0)
The ISO settings are also accessed, like the White Balance controls, via the Function Menu button. Also, as with White Balance, this setting is not available in Automatic Mode. Once this subsection is highlighted using the four-way controller’s up and down arrows, the user can then engage the left and right arrows to scan between Automatic, 50, 100, 200, and 400. The higher the ISO speed, the more noise will appear in the image, and the user should make sure to always use the lowest ISO speed possible for the scene. To return to shooting the scene once the proper setting is selected, the user must press the Function button.
Exposure (7.0)
Exposure settings are also available via the Function Menu on the Canon PowerShot S410. Once highlighted, the user can choose exposure compensation settings of -2 to +2, controlling the amount of light available to the overall image while the shutter is being engaged. To exit, depress the Function button, and proceed with shooting. To reset the Exposure Compensation setting, return the scale to zero. The user can also control Exposure by using the AE lock feature by setting the Camera to Manual mode, and pressing the shutter halfway. Once these two steps are completed, the user then presses the up arrow on the four-way controller until the AEL symbol appears on the LCD screen. At this point, the Exposure is locked and the image can be captured. This setting, like the Manual Focus setting, is only partially manual.
Metering (7.5)
By pressing the up arrow on the four-way controller, the user can choose to switch among three preset metering modes. These settings are Evaluative, Center Weighted, and Spot. When in Evaluative, the camera divides the scene into multiple sections and adjusts for multiple lighting situations. When in Center Weighted, the camera meters light for the entire frame, but gives the most weight to the subject found at the center of the image. Finally, Spot Mode allows the camera to focus the Metering solely on the exact center of the image.
Shutter Speed (6.0)
It is possible for the Canon PowerShot S410 to shoot at a selection of slower shutter speeds, allowing for brighter or darker images to be captured. The longer the shutter is open, the brighter the overall scene will be, and vice versa. To enter into the longer shutter speeds, the user must enter the Function menu and scroll down until Exposure setting is highlighted and selected. When the setting is at +/-0, the user can then press the Set button and choose from among the following shutter settings: 1,1.3, 1.6, 2, 2.5 3.2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 13, and 15 seconds. It is important to remember that, if a longer shutter speed control is to be engaged, the user must first enter the menu brought up by the Menu button, and scroll down until Long Shutter Speed is highlighted, and the setting changed from Off to On. It is only then that the Function Menu settings for Shutter Speed are accessible.
Aperture (0.0)
There is no manual control available in regard to Aperture on the Canon PowerShot S410. These settings normally appear as F-stop settings, a holdover from SLR cameras.
