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Trouble with D50

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epb3972

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I'm hoping someone can help me diagnose what I perceive is a lack of sharpness in my photos with my new D50. I've tried a variety of apetures, tripod, etc but have not been completely satisified with any of the images.

I'm not entirely sure if I'm imaging the problem or not because the "lack of sharpness" I'm talking about is pretty minor. I've attached a photo I took this afternoon at lunch (D50, Nikon 300mm f4 at f11/1/400, apeture priority). File size was large/fine, WB at auto. All of the other settings are set to default.

Comments and suggestions are solicited.

Thanks

http://img171.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gatoronshoreps1.jpg
 
Are you going to sharpen (using USM or other) in PP? If not, consider doing it in cam. I don't have the patience or time to PP in computer so I "sin" by using +2 sharpening in cam unless I'm doing portraits, where I use normal.
You do undrstand the need for sharpening- or should someone explain it?

Guy Moscoso
 
Mike,
I'll try to explain. I'm sure other people will jump in, too.

When people come from point and shoots and "upgrade" to DSLR, they often get dissapointed by the first results of the DSLR. One main reason is that the default setting for a point and shoot has sharpening boosted. The DSLR is usually turned "off". The expectation by the DSLR makers is that you will use your computer to sharpen as much as you need to. The pictures that come out of a DSLR can handle being sharpened whereas sharpening pics from a P&S starts reaching limits very quickly (they are already as sharp as they can go.)

Personally I take lots of pictures and my PP is basically only the delete button on my computer keyboard. I am not going to use the effort to look at a picture and decide "Hmmm how about a little more sharpening.... hmmm I don't know,... how about a little less, ....hmm I sort of liked it being sharpened a little bit, but on the other hand...."

I've decided that I am pretty much going to like having them as sharp as possible so I use in cam +2 sharpening on my D50. If I'm going to take pictures of people's faces then I think they would appreciate not seeing all of the pores and pimiples on their faces so I turn the in cam sharpening to normal. I just shoot JPEG and I just enjoy taking pictures. I don't have the time or expertise to PP. (Of course there are some serious picture taking situations where I switch to RAW+Jpeg so I have the RAW to play with someday, but until now there hasn't been any reason to play more with those pictures anyway.)

Guy Moscoso
 
Most color cameras use sensors with a patterned color filter array over the CCD (or CMOS) sensor. This color filter array consists of either a red, a green, or a blue filter over each pixel (some may use other colors, but the concept is the same). Each pixel can only sense light that is of the same color as the filter above it.

So a pixel with a red filter over it can only record how much red light hit it, but has no idea how much blue or green light got filtered out. Your camera (or RAW converter program) goes through a color interpolation process to assign blue and green values to the red pixel. These values are averages of the light collected by nearby pixels that are covered by blue or green filters.

The color interpolation (averaging) tends to sightly smear the overall image. Sharpening is a mathematical filter to undo this color smearing.
I hope this explanation is helpful.
--
ToeKnee44 (aka Tony)

'If we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity.' John F. Kennedy
 
Mike,

If you haven't ever heard it, it is true, you are supposed to sharpen your pictures from a DSLR. I'm sorry I can't explain it. Start a new thread and people will be able to explain it. Pictures from a DSLR are not finished on purpose.

I'm actually surprised, come to think of it, about how often this question was asked about 9 months ago, but this question isn't asked anymore on this forum. It's almost like either A) people know about this and it is understood, or B) there are a lot of newbies who don't know to ask about PP.

Start a thread "Why do I have to PP my pics" and in th body ask specifically about sharpening. It will become a long thread and surely you will get the reasons.

Good luck Mike,
Guy Moscoso
 
Thanks. I used PS Elements to tweak the shot a bit, and certainly made some improvements. I guess my issue is in comparing my shots with some of the shots I've seen on this forum and elsewhere which to my eye have a level of sharpness that my shots lack.

From the reading I'm doing, this has more to do with the lens and apeture selection than with camera. And even more importantly it has alot to do with the photographer.

Lots left for me to learn...
 
Other than valid comments and suggestions re: sharpening, levels etc. I see a lot of flare in the shot. Few things to check: are you using a filter on your lens (especially a cheap one)? [take it off now!]. Are you using a lens hood? [put it on!] Some lenses (especially wide-angles) are very prone to flare. Flare kills contrast!
--
Cheers,

Alex
http://rundadar.smugmug.com
 
rundadar said:
Other than valid comments and suggestions re: sharpening, levels
etc. I see a lot of flare in the shot. Few things to check: are you
using a filter on your lens (especially a cheap one)? [take it off
now!]. Are you using a lens hood? [put it on!] Some lenses
(especially wide-angles) are very prone to flare. Flare kills
contrast!
--
Cheers,

Alex
http://rundadar.smugmug.com
Click to expand...
Help a fellow out.

Could you tell me what you are looking at that shows "flare".

I'm not suire what on the photo shouts flare? I would like to know what to look for.
 
A circular polarizer would reduce the reflections from the water surface.
--
ToeKnee44 (aka Tony)

'If we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity.' John F. Kennedy
 
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