Still having problems with soft images what am I doing wrong!!

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ukranger

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Hi Guys & Girls,

For a while now I've been struggling to take sharp long range action/sport shots.

I have a Nikon D3100 & Tamaron 70-300 lens, I'm reaching the end of the zoom range most of the time while taking the shots. So would that be the cause of my soft shots?

There's seems to be a light film over them, I've cleaned the lens & body also the camera is great on macro shots & portraits with the same lens...

The cameras confirming its in focus & I'm choosing the right focus types & zones

Maybe it's the camera speed, F-stop or ISO but they certainly lack impact & sparkle. :-(

The four shots below were taken at 400 ISO. F6, 1/500


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Can anyone help?

Thanks
Rob
 
All but the last appear out of focus but that said it is hard to find where the focus point is in those shots.
They generally appear soft across the frame.

At 1/500 I would be expecting a good sharp image but the Tamron 70-300 (with macro) is known for producing soft results at the far end of the zoom.
You could always try closing it down a stop to f8 and see if that helps with things

I take it you got it as part of your camera/lens deal?
 
Are you using A lens hood to prevent stray light rays?
Also, try removing your uv filter if you have one.
 
I bought the tamaron seperate a few months ago.

No Tripod but I made sure I was as steady as could be (If that helps)

I'm using the hood that came with the camera

I was using a UV filter but removed it halfway through but no difference :-(

Do you think it might be the lens?
 
ukranger said:
I bought the tamaron seperate a few months ago.

No Tripod but I made sure I was as steady as could be (If that helps)

I'm using the hood that came with the camera

I was using a UV filter but removed it halfway through but no difference :-(

Do you think it might be the lens?
Click to expand...

I reckon the lens is the major factor in the problem.
At 300mm and 1/500 you should be able to nail steady sharp shots fairly easy.
 
It does appear to be a lens problem at the long end if macro and portraits are sharp.
Have you tried other lenses on the camera just to be sure it is a lens prob and not a body issue?
 
I used to have one of these and had the same problems now have a Sigma 70 - 200 problem solved.
Alan
 
I had the old version of this lens many moons ago and anything above about 200mm was soft in a number of the lenses I tested. However I managed to get one which was notably sharper though NOT great!

Weird but true. The same lens is not always born equal. But these Tamrons are often guilty of being soft.
 
Cheers peeps, I think I'll maybe pop the lens back to Jessops & see what they say.
 
I've also owned this lens but it was never as soft as that at any length. Maybe not the sharpest, but these shot are way beyond what I would expect. Are you using AF-C focusing?
 
Bump to ISO800, or even 1600 for a faster shutter. That way you can rule out shakey-hands. Not everyone can hold steady at 1/focal length. It's an average guide at best. A windy day, girls in neoprene.. could be a shutter speed issue..
 
ukranger said:
I was using a UV filter but removed it halfway through but no difference :-(
Click to expand...
Assuming those images are posted in chronological order, and given that the last one looks by far the best, are you quite sure that removing the filter accomplished nothing?

UV filters have been known to cause severe problems with some long lenses and their removal can make a world of difference - sometimes. Have a look at the comparison images in this post....

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1029&message=34143019
 
Do you have active-D turned on.
Some time ago I took a few long shots with little forground detail and trees in the distance, when I got home they looked foggy:'(.

Eventually I found out the active-D had altered contrast and brighness, fixed them in viewNX and the image came out perfect, now activeD is OFF and Ill tweak the RAW myself.

Now I cant blame the camera for bad shots..:D
 
How much sharpening are you adding? All digital images suffer some softening via processing.

Also, you say you are shooting at 1/500 on a 300mm lens. But, isn't this a crop-sensor camera? If so, your `effective` focal length will be longer (1.5X on the 3100?). So, you are getting close to the `rule of thumb` limit to hand holding. And you are shooting from distance, standing on a soft surface, in a wind... Personally, I wouldn't try to shoot in those circumstances at anything less than 1/1,000th -more if possible.

And think about this: Wind + sea = spray.

The blurring could be a film of salt on your lens. Which is, of course, why I personally wouldn't dream of shooting in those conditions without a hood and uv filter. A cheap filter can, perhaps, degrade images, but a good one will make no discernible difference. And if the sun is bright, a polarising filter will help reduce glare (brief digression: why do you hear so few people claiming that polo or grad filters degrade their images??).

But, my bet would be that if you up your shutter speed, clean your lens, and add some sharpening, you'll see quite an improvement.
 
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I have this lens and it can be soft in low light , but having said that ,it shouldn`t be a problem in this instance, a lens hood would stop light across the lens ,lower iso and higher shutter speed all contribute.
Here`s a photo with mine in good light and although not at full focal length gives some idea of good light shooting

Duck by Harvey Young, on Flickr
Having said all that i`ve recently got myself a canon 70-300 is usm and there`s been an improvement in quality hope this helps Harvey
 
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How much did you pay for that Tamron 70-300? The best 70-300 lenses are the wrong side of £1k, and the best of the best 300s are several times that on top. Good long lenses need expensive glass.

That's where most of your answer lies I'm afraid. I expect Jessops advised you to get the UV filter as well... :(

Sorry if that sounds lens elitist, but facts is facts.
 
A bit of sharpening in Ps and all seems not so bad!
 
It does look like to me to be shake not enough shutter speed
I don't think that the tamron 70-300 lens would be that soft
Easy to check tho put camera on tripod and take some shots of a stationary subject using the self timer on camera
 
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Looking at them,I wouldn't say their camera shake,the first 3,there is just no point of focus in them,the last is a bit sharper.

1st I would test the lens on a tripod,on a static subject to see if it's focusing ok,then take it from their :)
 
As already suggested, objective testing will remove some of the variables and make determining the cause of the problem easier.

A good starting point would be shooting a still, well lit subject from a tripod, being conscious of correct focussing/focus point usage.

If the results are sharp then the problem was most likely down to low light / slow shutter speed / technique. If the results are still poor then suspect a lens issue (or local earthquake as you were shooting). :)
 
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I'd do some test shots of a wall or something at various FL's and see where it goes soft. I had a Tamron 28-300 VC about a year ago and was never really happy with it at the long end, although I did have a UV filter on it all the time. I sold it to get a Sigma 18-250 and had some similar problems with sharpness on that.
By then I'd got a 100-400 L and a 7D, which had some softness problems until I took the UV filter off and the difference was amazing. I never use UV filters now unless it's very wet or dusty and then I'm prepared to lose some sharpness for protections sake.
 
Are you using any tracking focus mode or the single shot type? For moving surfers you need the tracking type and it might be the case of the AF not working quickly enough. If its single shot then the subject has moved distance wise before its taken explaining softness.

Try a faster shutter speed (shoot wide open) and maybe up ISO if needed to see if that helps.

Also, try shooting in burst mode - if it is a slow AF then taking 3-4 in quick succession increases your chances of one being correct.
 
gnirtS said:
Are you using any tracking focus mode or the single shot type? For moving surfers you need the tracking type and it might be the case of the AF not working quickly enough. If its single shot then the subject has moved distance wise before its taken explaining softness.

Try a faster shutter speed (shoot wide open) and maybe up ISO if needed to see if that helps.

Also, try shooting in burst mode - if it is a slow AF then taking 3-4 in quick succession increases your chances of one being correct.
Click to expand...
All good points, moving waves and water in the examples shown are challenging for autofocus at best of times.
 
Thanks guys for the advice.
Im going out tomorrow do will try them out

I'll post up pics once umm home.
 
Slightly confused here. You said you used the same lens but on your canon??? I'm assuming you had the canon version with a canon body and changed to nikon with a nikon body. Is that the case? The canon shot looks fine so I'd be definitely suspecting the nikon version is way off or the new nikon body is way off. Try another lens to rule out body issues.
 
2rd one looks like the effects of heat haze that I see, albeit through a much longer focal length.

It is strange to think of heat haze in the winter, but when the air is cold and the sun heats the ground the warm air will rise, it can be visible through the viewfinder (especially when you have 700mm of lens fixed on).
 
srichards said:
Slightly confused here. You said you used the same lens but on your canon??? I'm assuming you had the canon version with a canon body and changed to nikon with a nikon body. Is that the case? The canon shot looks fine so I'd be definitely suspecting the nikon version is way off or the new nikon body is way off. Try another lens to rule out body issues.
Click to expand...

No cannon I only have a Nikon, didn't get time to get out today so will try tomorrow.
 
at full zomm of 300 with F6 I think thats only 1 stop short of being wide open at that focal length, so even if you breathe funny you might get some shake leading to soft images. I tried hand held shots with my sigma 70-300 APO at 300 with F5.6 and even at faster shutter speeds I simply couldn't keep it steady enough. Tripod sorted that out for me though

Have you tried shots at full zoom with F6 with a tripod to see if they are still soft ? ALso I think the cheaper tele lens are always soft at the high end of the focal range from what I have been reading.
 
Hi Guys
I managed to finally get out & about the other day so tried a few tips from you kind peeps that gave me some advice, like faster shutter speeds, D-lighting off & using the tripods.

Let me know what you think of the images now


Rob

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I'm viewing on my phone but from where I'm sitting, they look pretty good!
 
The lighting is doing you no favours in these two images, as flat lighting reduces contrast and this in turn reduces the apparent sharpness by concealing details rather than enhancing them. Also, at this tiny size it is pretty tough to see the truth beneath the covers. The first one looks OK. The second one doesn't look so great to me.

Clearly these are both crops, but how much of a crop, what camera settings, what sort of processing? It's personal preference, but that first image might benefit from a little cheering up. Just by changing some exposure related settings the sharpness appears better, and I've applied no additional sharpening.

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There's lots involved in getting sharp images - the gear, the technique, the settings, the light, the processing. From the two pictures just posted most of those things are unknown to us. Can you post up full size unedited examples so we can take a proper look and see if there is any obvious room to improve further?
 
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