1. Hold the camera STILL until AFTER you RELEASE the button
The Little Cyclops actually takes its still pictures as you RELEASE the POWER/SHUTTER button.The reason it does this is that it doesn't know that you want to take a picture, rather than turn the power off, until it knows how short a time you held the button down.
You can use this to your advantage. If you know something is going to happen in the next second or so, press the POWER button and when the event happens RELEASE the button and you should have a picture of the event you wanted. This works better than waiting for the event then rapidly pressing and releasing the POWER button, when you are likely to miss the event by a fraction of a second. But, it can lead to you accidentally switching off the camera if the event doesn't happen quickly enough.
This way the camera works probably explains much of the camera shake that users get with the Little Cyclops. If you are used to cameras taking photos as the button is pressed, you may be moving the camera by the time you release the button and the photograph is being taken.
I have my "ordinary" camera set up to take multiple shots as I hold down its shutter button. So, my normal way of working is to hold down any shutter button until the action I am interested in stops. With the Little Cyclops I have to change my way of working and quickly press and RELEASE the POWER button.
This takes us on to the next tip...
2. If the subject is moving take a Video or Timelapse Movie!
I have friends who always blink or make funny faces when I take their photos. And with the Little Cyclops it takes so long to record a still picture to the microSD card that it's not practical to take a sequence of photos in quick succession. So, Video or Timelapse is your saviour.You can press the POWER button to start your recording, wait for your subject to move and settle down and then once you think you have captured the image you want, press the button again (as if you were taking another photograph) to stop recording.
Back on the computer you can single frame step through the video (my Linux movie player needs you to use the "." and "," keys for single step). Find the best shot and save it as a still picture.
This technique also works for subjects that you think might not quite fit into the Little Cyclops picture area. Take a video and slowly sweep across or up and down the subject (as appropriate to the direction in which you think you are short of space) and hopefully one of the frames will manage to record the full picture.
3. Set VideoImageSize = 1600
If you are going to be using Video mode to capture still photographs, it's worth making sure that you use the maximum (2 megapixel) image size for videos.4. Aim the camera at the MIDDLE of the photograph
Without a viewfinder or an LCD screen it's difficult to know where to aim the Little Cyclops.The normal temptation is to aim at the "subject". But, for example, if you are taking a group of people, aiming for the eyes will give you too much sky/ceiling. So, if you want to include all of a group of people all nicely centred, aim for the belly button of the middle person!
I have a mantra that I now say as I aim the Little Cyclops: "Where is the centre of the picture?" It makes for a much higher success rate...
5. If you photograph a room, stand in the corner
The Little Cyclops lens is wide, but not that WIDE! As you see from my test with a toy protractor the horizontal field of view is about 115 degrees.
This photograph shows the local antique shop. I couldn't quite get into the corner due to all the clutter standing on the floor. But you will see the shop door on the right of the photograph and most of the left wall.
Take another photograph from the opposite corner and you will have captured everything in the room.
I hope these tips get you started. If you have any other useful tips for the Little Cyclops, let me know.
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