What am I doing wrong?? - DPChallenge Forums

Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di for Nikon

06/13/2005 10:04:13 PM · #1

Okay, here's the deal.. I just got my 7D a few days ago and have already taken a good 1200 shots, the problem is in the AF, images arent as crisp and saturated with color as I would expect them to be. Occasionally I get a good shot in here and there, but many turn out way too soft and often out of focus. I tried manual and still have the same problem. So I thought, maybe my lighting conditions were to little for my lens, so I bumped up the shutter time a little bit and increased my exposure.. now.. Great lighting, horrible picture. I used a tripod, set the timer so there would be minimal bounce on the tripod when my photo was shot... ARGH.. I've always used Minolta in the 35mm realm and never had this problem.

A little history about me: I got the 7D b/c I already use Minolta on the 35mm side, and I have a disease which causes my hand to shake, unlucky for me, it happens in my hands the most when I take pictures. So I thought hey, anti-shake, cool. I have Maxxum lenses, I'll be good to go.. right, so I thought.

So your question, lens?
Primarily, I've been using the Minolta AF 28-100 3.5/5.6 D I know that a faster lens would help me a bit. I cant go past 70mm w/o some type of deterioration in the picture quality, even in RAW format.

Obivously if it's that bad at 70, I couldn't even begin to tell you what it's like at 200 on my Sigma 28-200mm 4/5.6.. Yeah it's slow, but in 35mm it was great.

So then I question the multiplier, and whether or not I should just upgrade to a "Made for Digital" ashperical lens. But that would defeat the entire purpose of getting the Minolta.

I know a lot of you are thinking, "Gee, if he would've asked me, I would of told him to go with the 20D or 70D and sell everything else". I actually blame blemt for my decision on the 7D, she sold me on the idea. Clara... :) I love ya to death, but I think I made a big mistake.

Then again, maybe it's just yet another learning curve that I must defeat. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, I have to learn yet another camera.

I'm frustrated and am about to send the darn thing back and stick with my Sony F707, where I know I'll get clean perfect results everytime.

Any advice for this (now poor) lonely soul ? :)

~Durk

blemt

Nikon D70

06/13/2005 11:10:34 PM · #2

My first thought is it's a settings issue. The bad thing is I don't have a 7D in my store I can play with to get a feel for the settings. On any dSLR the images will be less saturated out of camera. The idea is you will make those adjustments in software. The lens shouldn't be throwing things off that much.

Feel free to call and holler at me. You also know where I work. ;) But I think this is probably just a learning curve/settings tweak. Hopefully some other 7D mavens will have a faster answer. :)

I still mantain this is a very good camera system. So nyah! ;)

Clara

Apple iPhone

Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX Aspherical DF for Nikon

06/13/2005 11:13:36 PM · #3

i have that same lens and its clear as a bell. Lets see a picture and see whats gone wrong :)

coolhar

Canon PowerShot Pro 90 IS

06/13/2005 11:15:12 PM · #4

Don't start doubting your choice of cameras just yet. You may have gotten a bad copy but having Minolta lenses was a valid reason to choose the 7D, and it is a good camera.

When I first got my Minolta A1 I felt about like you do. I couldn't get the images to look as good as my older camera. But in time I learned how to use all the various settings and my image quality came up to where it should be. I think Minolta's philosophy for digitals is to produce relatively unprocessed images out of the camera and let the user do the "developing" with software. You have more control that way but it takes some getting used to. Experiment with the sharpness, saturation, etc. settings. Try taking some shots on a tripod with AS turned off. If your images don't improve you may need to have the camera looked at by a pro. But don't give up on that 7D too quickly.

Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di for Nikon

06/13/2005 11:28:50 PM · #5

If you are comfortable that you are doing things right don't hesitate to get it checked (calibrated) by Minolta.

My bud at work has sent his 7D back for calibration twice now. When he first got it he was having back focus issues and the other his Minolta 50 1.4 Prime was just way too soft at wide Apertures. He was happy with their service and I have seen their turn around and it is pretty darn quick.

I'll ask him more detail at work tomorrow.

blemt

Nikon D70

06/13/2005 11:29:35 PM · #6

And don't forget to give us some sample shots!

nfessel

Best-Buy Easy Point & Click

06/13/2005 11:32:34 PM · #7

Originally posted by blemt:

On any dSLR the images will be less saturated out of camera. The idea is you will make those adjustments in software.

That is not true.

Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L USM

06/13/2005 11:45:28 PM · #8

Thanks for all of you inputs.. I just found out my membership expires TODAY!!!! What..? no way.. :( I will renew it in the a.m.

I will also u/l a few samples (when I get my 'puter back up - crashed last week and had to start fresh - first priority should've been Photoshop) to give you an idea of the problem I am having. Upon reviewing the photos, it tends to happen when I increase my focal length. At times the focus is good, at others, it's either non-existent or completely off center from how I originally composed the frame.

Thanks for the idea about calling Minolta, I'll try that tomorrow.

oOWonderBreadOo

Canon EOS-5D

06/13/2005 11:56:03 PM · #9

I bought the Cannon 20-D over the minolta because if you look on the minolta website even their own promo images aren't up to par. But I second guess myself every day because I can't afford to buy any of the accessories I already own in the 35mm minolta. My images would be so much better if only I had...
I think it really is a leaning curve so don't second guess yourself! :0)
(see how well I dish out advice that I can't even learn myself!)

06/14/2005 12:39:14 AM · #10

Okay, so I did a little work on [one] of my pics from today. It's fair, played with it a bit to see what I could get. Tell me what you think ;)

just realized, too much blue in my curves, or maybe it's my monitor.... Again.. If only.. I really do need a good monitor though, the colors in this one are funked out since I dropped it awhile back. :-) ~D

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM

06/14/2005 12:42:57 AM · #11

Originally posted by nfessel:

Originally posted by blemt:
On any dSLR the images will be less saturated out of camera. The idea is you will make those adjustments in software.

That is not true.

Per Canon it is

PaulMdx

Canon EOS-1D

06/14/2005 04:32:25 AM · #12

Originally posted by durkovic:

Okay, so I did a little work on [one] of my pics from today. It's fair, played with it a bit to see what I could get. Tell me what you think ;)

What shutter speed did you get with that shot?

It is definitely soft.

Edit --

To me it looks like non-uniform softness, which would indicate either the lens or lens mount being misaligned or similar.

To be quite honest with you, with the kind of quality you got, I would take the whole lot back and either ask for a replace or my money back.

If you really like the 7D, maybe it's worth getting another and trying it in the shop. Otherwise, you'll be more than happy with a Canon or Nikon.

Message edited by author 2005-06-14 05:15:32.

xcharrier

Canon EOS-1D Mark III

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM

06/14/2005 05:09:25 AM · #13

Originally posted by awpollard:

Per Canon it is

If you dont mind me asking... where did you find that... it looks like ther might be some more useful information on that page. Thanks.

BobsterLobster

Fujifilm FinePix S3 Pro

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II

06/14/2005 05:17:42 AM · #14

The DPReview Minolta DSLR forum is a good place for very comprehensive advice: //forums.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1035
Checking for backfocusing is the first step, which is a common quality control issue with this camera.

Message edited by author 2005-06-14 05:17:56.

Lee31

Canon EOS-20D

Sigma 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 Compact Hyperzoom Aspherical for Canon

06/14/2005 09:06:13 AM · #15

What about filters? Do you have a filter on it? I had an issue with a sunlight filter causing problems with softness.

However, it was a very expensive lense with a normal priced filter.

06/14/2005 09:13:24 AM · #16

Originally posted by xcharrier:

Originally posted by awpollard:

Per Canon it is

If you dont mind me asking... where did you find that... it looks like ther might be some more useful information on that page. Thanks.

If came from Canon Photoworkshop

Warning None dial up friendly PDF is here: Getting the most of your EOS-1 Class dSLR

06/14/2005 11:57:19 AM · #17

For that image, I used plain lens, no filter at 1/125 with an Aperature of 5.6 and ISO of 160.

I'm thinking about trying a similar shot with a different lens. We'll see.. back to work, I'll talk to you all later. Thanks again for the input ;)

~Derek

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM

06/14/2005 01:10:29 PM · #18

Originally posted by durkovic:

ISO 160 ??? We are still talking about the 7D right? is this a typo and if 1600 was meant than shutter would (should) have been way faster...

I think I would have shot this at ISO-400 1/640sec - 1/800 ish with an arp around 9-11...but...I'm still new to this game...

PaulMdx

Canon EOS-1D

06/14/2005 01:13:41 PM · #19

Originally posted by durkovic:

For that image, I used plain lens, no filter at 1/125 with an Aperature of 5.6 and ISO of 160.

Sounds like the shutter is too slow. That would explain why more telephoto shots are softer.

06/14/2005 03:50:04 PM · #20

I would agree with the shutter issue as well. That picture was actually taken in automatic mode, with auto exposure. Which lies my other delima. If I leave everything in auto, use AE (pattern), AF, and keep the the lens short with the widest aperature, I still get the images as so mentioned. If I go into manual or use shutter priority, I get terrible results. Sure, I may have a semi clearer image, but in the end, the image is dark and unsaturated. This also happens on macros as well, with non-defined edges and softer focus, EVEN with a tripod. I can't help to wonder if my mirror, or the CCD is out of alignment.

I understand, it's new and I need to get use to it. But I honestly can't see how I could been having such difficulty when I've been shooting w/ Minolta cameras for years and now to have this.. If it is the case, refer to the aforementioned.. It's going back and I will never touch Minolta again.. -> 20D for sure, or go for the D2x when I get the funds.

I'm getting ready to call K-M now and see if they have any advice.

update to come, ~Derek

06/14/2005 04:59:12 PM · #21

In my adventure in trying to contact someone in re: to my 7D, I've realized two things.

I either need to work for Minolta,
or
I need to become a camera dealer.

Minolta's "7D" tech support is only available for 4 hours a day. Go figure. Fricken out-sourcing most likely. So the 7D staff lines shut down at 4:30, I called at 4:34 and they said there was no way to get in touch with the staff b/c they were in a different building and the lines are electronically controlled... Time to hack the PBX ;-) j/k

So then I thought, I'll just get the RMA, send it back and exchange it for a new one. So I called butterflyphoto, guess what.. They have off until Wednesday.. What a life, 4 hrs a day at one place, and 4 day weekends at the other.

Enough with my ranting, I'm going to go out and waste more time figuring out this so called semi-professional 7D that I have in my hands.

~Peace~
Derek

06/15/2005 11:03:10 PM · #22

So I called Minolta today, they said they wanted me to send the camera in so that they can recal. it or replace it. Phew.. What a pain, not sure if I want to send it in yet. I have a big celebration next week that I need to use it. So It will be two weeks before it's fixed.

I did try resetting it today through the hardware reset and that seemed to help a little bit. We'll see..

Thanks again for all of your inputs

~D

06/16/2005 12:28:16 AM · #23

Originally posted by durkovic:

Don't know what gives but it sounds like a different Minolta than my buddy sent his cam to. I watched his 7D packed and Fedexed to be calibrated and seen it back in 5 working days. He has sent it in twice now and they have always been quick.

Maybe he isn't telling me something... At the time he ran out and bought (when it first came out) his 7D they gave him the lenses and the body ended up on B/O for three weeks... I ran out and got the 20D and was taking pictures... I think there is a tad bit of competition at work so he may be holding back...