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Incredible sharpness

Started Jun 21, 2018 | User reviews thread
Ben Herrmann
Ben Herrmann Forum Pro • Posts: 21,163
The best way to discern...
2

...if you have a good, or just so-so, or horrible lens copy is to blow up the photo to 100% on your screen.  Now move to the left of the screen (preferably in an area that is supposed to have detail like trees, foliage, grass, etc - in the case of scenics).  Now cursor from left to right in the frame and look for the detail.

All lenses just about have excellent center portions of the screen and reality dictates that most lenses will have a little sharpness drop off at the edges (not all though).  You know you have a good copy if the sharpness pretty much holds up across the frame.

Unfortunately, many folks tend to evaluate a lens by initially just looking at a photo as a whole.  If it looks nice - well, then they assume it's a good lens - and who am I to argue with that.  But as time goes on and your sense of critical evaluation advances, you then notice sharpness (or lack thereof) in different parts of the frame.

But there are other variables involved that could fool someone into thinking that their lens may not be a good copy.  For example if you are shooting on a windy day and the branches, bushes, and grass are moving somewhat - the end result may appear as if things are soft, which they obviously are not.

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Sincerely,
Bernd ("Ben") Herrmann
Fuquay Varina, North Carolina USA

 Ben Herrmann's gear list:Ben Herrmann's gear list
Canon EOS M Fujifilm X-E2S Fujifilm X-T2 Fujifilm X-T20 Canon EOS M6 +4 more
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