sharp focus or need to calibrate?

[Molly B]

When I shoot with my Nikon 70-200 f2.8, my focus often seems soft. I also wonder if it's me not holding this heavy lens steady enough.

I am looking for feedback before I attempt to calibrate.

1/1000, f2.8. ISO 800
Shot at 200mm
Focused on doll's eyes.

Thanks.

[Damien Symonds]

That focus is exquisite to me!

[Molly B]

Thanks for the feedback.

In this case, I couldn't tell if it focused slightly more on the lace of the dress rather than her eyes.

Looks like this photographer needs more practice with her lens when shooting real people.

 

[Damien Symonds]

2 hours ago, Molly B said:

In this case, I couldn't tell if it focused slightly more on the lace of the dress rather than her eyes.

Both equally perfect, I assure you.

Can you show us some "real" photos where you've noticed a problem?

[Brian]

Focus looks good. The eye is a tad sharper than the dress but not by much. Lenses are usually not at their best wide open. I'm never at f/2.8 on my 70-200, I've found that f/3.2 is more forgiving and I shoot mostly at f/4 if I want "SHARP."

Keep in mind that not all focus points are the same. The better ones are known as "Cross Type" and the strongest AF Point is the center one. There needs to be enough contrast swing for the AF system to lock on. So standing 20-30 feet away zoomed in on someone's eyeball may not yield the best results. That is the limitation of a Phase-Based AF system and not the Photographer. As far as your camera is concerned, it has no idea it's an eyeball, and it needs to be sharp; it's just a darker spot against a bigger blob.

Speaking of Photographer: If someone shoots with a 70-200 on a crop body, they will find that most, if not all photos are sharp @ f/2.8. When they upgrade to a full frame body, you do not produce the same results. There is a Angle of View Change between Crop and Full Frame. Since the Crop Sensor is physically smaller than a full frame one, it's only using the center-most portion of the lens, which is the best part of the lens. f/2.8 on a crop body is more like f/4 on a full frame camera; people just don't know how shallow f/2.8 is until you get a Full Frame Camera. Crop Bodies allow you to "F2.8-All-the-Things." ? So if you are finding that this photographer is blowing shots, I suggest that they should stop down slightly and see if things improve.

[Molly B]

Thanks Damien and Brian for the feedback.

Here's a recent example of a "soft" photo. This is SOOR, though I didn't do the noise adjustment (I read in a previous post you asking someone to post their photo without the noise adjustment or sharpening.)

1/320, f/5.6, ISO 800

When I looked up the info on this image, I noticed it was in AF-C rather than AF-S. Would this make that much of a difference?

(Yes, this image needs to be straightened, but not worrying about that for these purposes.)

 

[Damien Symonds]

That focus looks excellent.

Please read the bolded paragraph about 2/3rds of the way down this page.

[Brian]

Focus is fine. If they were moving, even slowly, it’s better to have the camera set to AF-C. 

It sounds like you shoot Nikon. Since you are worried about focus, set the A1 and A2 menus to “Focus Priority.” Meaning the camera will not take the photo unless it feels that things are in focus. Also, this is a zoom lens, and while your focus is fine...it’s not a prime lens. You aren’t going to get that wow factor  or “...damn that’s sharp” feeling. You will need to tweak sharpness in PS. 

[Brian]

One more thing. Since it’s crooked, I’m thinking you ar jamming your finger on the shutter button a bit too hard. LOL! I do it all the time. The other thing to check is what VR mode are you set to. It should be set to “On” and “Normal” for the Shutter Speed you were set to. If it’s the new 70-200 FL, VR normal should be chosen. Make sure it’s not set to “Action” or “Sport.”