Canon Digital Elph Cameras
I have a Canon S400 Digital Elph camera. Night time outdoor pics are too dark. What should I do?

The user manual explains how to adjust ISO speeds and exposure compensation etc. but doers not specifically address my problem.

The first thing you should understand is that flash have very limited reach outside with nothing to bounce off. Indoors you have walls and ceilings that reflect and bounce the light. Outside you should figure on 10 feet of correct exposure. Light drops off extremely fast and in a very short distance. There is a mathmatatical formula for that but I can’t remember it. Just realize that only a couple of feet further out will be very underexposed and almost black.

The built in flashs on any camera have this limitation. To get beyond that, buy a separate flash unit and use that when taking outside pics. Even that will have limitations but you will more than double the distance from the built in flash.

Norm

Canon Digital Elph Cameras

How can I fix my Canon Elph camera?

When I try to take a picture with my Canon Digital Elph PowerShot SD1000 camera, the screen is black. The camera still flashes and takes a photo, and you see the photo after you take it. But the screen is blank as you’re clicking the button so you can’t see your subject. If anyone has this camera or has experience with these kind of things, please help.

Press the “Disp.” button. It’s on the back at the bottom-right next to the “menu” button.