Should I return/replace my lens? EF-S 55-250mm sharpness/focus

I am facing similar issues with this lens on my 80D, manual settings. Infinity shots such as the moon appear great. Bird shots, cat shots, human headshots, I am always left wanting. Perhaps the lens needs MFA, but I was not particularly happy with 24mm 2.8 STM too. In fact, I am not happy with the results of any of my EF-S lenses except the 10-18 IS STM. Photos taken with that lens have the sharpness and focus precision I like.

I got a 50mm 1.8 STM and I am yet to get a shot that I do not love. Staggering difference from the EF-S lenses. My skill level is where it is at, it does not change between lenses, so what gives! The details captured and the sharpness with the 50mm blew me off the first time I used it. I had not had that feeling ever with any of my other lenses.

There has got to be something I am doing wrong. The only difference between 50mm and other lenses is that I have used the 50mm wide open, what I mean to say is that I have had huge amounts of light in, something that others do not offer. So, the stop difference of aperture/ lack of light might be causing a lack of focus/ sharpness/ details in the other lenses, perhaps.

streetsnyc wrote:

Dave wrote:

A third-party hood will be fine, but get one that fits properly.

Thanks Dave. Would you you recommend a petal over a tube hood?

Petals are generally for wide angle.  The 18-135 is the only lens I have with a petal hood.

If you aren't happy with the sharpness of your images, you should test the focus in good light, using a tripod and 2 second timer. Nearly all of my lenses benefited from MFA.

streetsnyc wrote:

Thanks everyone for the suggestions and help!

By using live view and taking a photo of an analog wrist watch, I think that I've determined that the lens can definitely create sharp images. What do you think? I know it's not ideal as my space is not well-lit and I had to shine a flashlight to even see anything...

Manual focus

Auto focus

So, given that, I believe that it is not my equipment that is defective, and that it's just me that needs improvement

Any general tips for capturing sharp images when it comes to shooting street portraits of people or animals in motion? For instance, I'm never sure if I should use AI Servo or One Shot. It's hard to do a controlled test of this, for obvious reasons

Speaking of which, would the autofocus system of my camera be another issue? Because I believe that I achieved the sharpest image (using the watch as a test) by manually focusing. The difference is barely noticeable except when viewed at 100%, but it made me wonder if there's anything I can do to optimize AF accuracy? For instance, I use an AmazonBasics UV filter.

You're making life difficult with your varied tests.

Go outside on a nice day with some clearly defined object that fills most of the frame, ISO 100, f/8 and with the camera on a tripod or resting on something and the timer set take photos using live view and then with centre focus only, One Shot.  Compare the images.

Ditch the filter, what do you want a UV filter for anyway?  Get a hood, It will protect the lens from damage and it will protect the lens from unwanted light.  I've got a Canon hood on my 55-250 but a Maxsima petal on my 18-55 which fits quite nicely.  They (nearly) never come off.

Once you've got that sorted you can try your hand at AI Servo - you are right about AI Focus, it generally is neither here nor there.  Read up on AI Servo, it takes a second or two for the tracking algorithm to get going, after all it has to see what motion there is before it can predict where the subject is going to be, and that assumes a good contrast area and a consistent motion.

This was One shot, centre focus point only, handheld:

streetsnyc wrote:

Jura S wrote:

streetsnyc wrote:

Speaking of which, would the autofocus system of my camera be another issue? Because I believe that I achieved the sharpest image (using the watch as a test) by manually focusing. The difference is barely noticeable except when viewed at 100%, but it made me wonder if there's anything I can do to optimize AF accuracy? For instance, I use an AmazonBasics UV filter.

What mode of focus acquisition do you use?

I typically use One Shot autofocus, but have also experimented with AI Servo. I've read that AI Focus isn't reliable or is generally rubbish.

AI focus just switches to ai servo once movement is detected, which includes you moving the camera. That's probably why it's judged unreliable, because camera movement can trigger it.

https://www.canon.com.au/explore/glossary/ai-focus

With AI servo, it's important to note that the camera will just shoot, whether anything is in focus or not, it just tries to track movement.    with one shot, the shutter is only released when focus is achieved.

Good advice re cheap filters and hoods. I'll replace my filter with a better one. As for the hood, I'm not sure which to buy. Is there a specific form/shape I should look for? Or would a generic 58mm lens hood suffice?

buy the right hood for your lens - for each lens or group of lenses canon has an appropriately designated hood. there are also third party hoods that replicate that design that are cheaper.     generic hoods have only use in some special situations (e.g. the foldable rubber hoods, useful to press against glass, when shooting through windows etc. to reduce reflections.

For testing your lens, try without filter to get best performance.

AnthonyL wrote:

streetsnyc wrote:

Thanks everyone for the suggestions and help!

By using live view and taking a photo of an analog wrist watch, I think that I've determined that the lens can definitely create sharp images. What do you think? I know it's not ideal as my space is not well-lit and I had to shine a flashlight to even see anything...

Manual focus

Auto focus

So, given that, I believe that it is not my equipment that is defective, and that it's just me that needs improvement

Any general tips for capturing sharp images when it comes to shooting street portraits of people or animals in motion? For instance, I'm never sure if I should use AI Servo or One Shot. It's hard to do a controlled test of this, for obvious reasons

Speaking of which, would the autofocus system of my camera be another issue? Because I believe that I achieved the sharpest image (using the watch as a test) by manually focusing. The difference is barely noticeable except when viewed at 100%, but it made me wonder if there's anything I can do to optimize AF accuracy? For instance, I use an AmazonBasics UV filter.

You're making life difficult with your varied tests.

Go outside on a nice day with some clearly defined object that fills most of the frame, ISO 100, f/8 and with the camera on a tripod or resting on something and the timer set take photos using live view and then with centre focus only, One Shot. Compare the images.

I test my gear on birds. Beaks, eyes, head feathers and claw detail tells me what is going on.

Ditch the filter, what do you want a UV filter for anyway? Get a hood, It will protect the lens from damage and it will protect the lens from unwanted light. I've got a Canon hood on my 55-250 but a Maxsima petal on my 18-55 which fits quite nicely. They (nearly) never come off.

I don't know everyone's situation but I got that lens as an inexpensive light travel lens when I don't want to take my expensive gear. If I drop it in a river I'll just get another one.

Once you've got that sorted you can try your hand at AI Servo - you are right about AI Focus, it generally is neither here nor there. Read up on AI Servo, it takes a second or two for the tracking algorithm to get going, after all it has to see what motion there is before it can predict where the subject is going to be, and that assumes a good contrast area and a consistent motion.

This was One shot, centre focus point only, handheld:

plantdoc wrote:

This lens can take some very sharp images; however, there can always be a problem that can be tested for. In very bright light, find a target with plenty of sharp, contrasty detail. Some signs work well . With either a tripod or a shutter speed of 1/500+ and iso 100 take some pics with live view and the optical finder. Use a f stop wide open and 1 stop down. Examine the pics (highest quality jpegs are ok) and look for a difference between live view and optical finder. If they are equally sharp, focus is OK. If not, and live view is sharper, you have a front/back focus issue that you can only be corrected if your camera has micro focus adjust. Rebels lack this feature unfortunately. I find this lens works best with center point AF, shutter speed 1/250 minimum. Use servo focus for moving subjects but don't expect consistent results with fast, irregular action. Also, keep in mind, that telephoto has a shallow depth of field on closer subjects. Small sensor, wide angle cameras like most phones can keep almost everything in focus with little difficulty.

Greg

Wow, thanks for that amazing level of technical and troubleshooting information, much appreciated. I'll do that the soonest chance I get and see what the results are.

Zeee wrote:

AnthonyL wrote:

You're making life difficult with your varied tests.

Go outside on a nice day with some clearly defined object that fills most of the frame, ISO 100, f/8 and with the camera on a tripod or resting on something and the timer set take photos using live view and then with centre focus only, One Shot. Compare the images.

I test my gear on birds. Beaks, eyes, head feathers and claw detail tells me what is going on.

Indeed as I hope my photo showed, but as willing a model it was I don't think it would have stood still will I switched from one focus mode to another.

http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1535072/18#14493565

streetsnyc wrote:

Thanks everyone for the suggestions and help!

By using live view and taking a photo of an analog wrist watch, I think that I've determined that the lens can definitely create sharp images. What do you think? I know it's not ideal as my space is not well-lit and I had to shine a flashlight to even see anything...

Manual focus

Auto focus

So, given that, I believe that it is not my equipment that is defective, and that it's just me that needs improvement

Any general tips for capturing sharp images when it comes to shooting street portraits of people or animals in motion? For instance, I'm never sure if I should use AI Servo or One Shot. It's hard to do a controlled test of this, for obvious reasons

Speaking of which, would the autofocus system of my camera be another issue? Because I believe that I achieved the sharpest image (using the watch as a test) by manually focusing. The difference is barely noticeable except when viewed at 100%, but it made me wonder if there's anything I can do to optimize AF accuracy? For instance, I use an AmazonBasics UV filter.

Finding a solid object to rest against is good, but not always possible.

Whether you have a rest or not, use a solid but not too firm grip with both hands.   Take a deep breath in, then let half of it out and hold it, then squeeze the trigger slowly.  (Technique from shooting lessons)

I use autofocus on the center point, and I do believe that I use settings that are generally supposed to come out with sharp photos, such as an appropriate aperture + 1/FL, etc.

It's the shutter speed, not aperture, that's supposed to be 1/FL. It would be rather difficult to set an aperture of f/100 on a 100mm lens, for example, but it's easy enough to set a shutter speed of 1/100th of a second.

Autofocus doesn't work well on smooth surfaces, because it works on edges. A striped shirt, for example, makes a good focus target. Also, try to fill the AF target box with the thing you want to focus on - it can easily get confused if you are focusing on something small. If your subject isn't wearing stripes, then place the focus box on an edge between your subject and a contrasting brightness background - like a light coloured subject on a dark background, or a dark coloured subject on a light coloured background - that will give your AF the best chance of nailing focus.

The 55-200mm zoom is not a high quality professional lens, so don't expect perfect results. You can get good images from it, but there's a reason people spend a lot more on lenses like the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS (as someone facetiously suggested ). Bear in mind, though, that the L series lenses are most needed when trying to get the shot under difficult conditions. If you stick to relatively easy shooting (lots of light, good contrast), you should be fine.

Ed Rizk wrote:

Finding a solid object to rest against is good, but not always possible.

Whether you have a rest or not, use a solid but not too firm grip with both hands. Take a deep breath in, then let half of it out and hold it, then squeeze the trigger slowly. (Technique from shooting lessons)

Yeah, I was going to say that there's a lot in common between photography and shooting!

AlephNull wrote:

I use autofocus on the center point, and I do believe that I use settings that are generally supposed to come out with sharp photos, such as an appropriate aperture + 1/FL, etc.

It's the shutter speed, not aperture, that's supposed to be 1/FL. It would be rather difficult to set an aperture of f/100 on a 100mm lens, for example, but it's easy enough to set a shutter speed of 1/100th of a second.

Autofocus doesn't work well on smooth surfaces, because it works on edges. A striped shirt, for example, makes a good focus target. Also, try to fill the AF target box with the thing you want to focus on - it can easily get confused if you are focusing on something small. If your subject isn't wearing stripes, then place the focus box on an edge between your subject and a contrasting brightness background - like a light coloured subject on a dark background, or a dark coloured subject on a light coloured background - that will give your AF the best chance of nailing focus.

The 55-200mm zoom is not a high quality professional lens, so don't expect perfect results. You can get good images from it, but there's a reason people spend a lot more on lenses like the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS (as someone facetiously suggested ). Bear in mind, though, that the L series lenses are most needed when trying to get the shot under difficult conditions. If you stick to relatively easy shooting (lots of light, good contrast), you should be fine.

Oh, yeah, I mistyped. I know shutter speed is 1/FL. I meant setting the aperture 1-2 stops from wide open (or whatever review sites say is sharpest like f/7 or f/8, etc.).

And yeah, I'm starting to see that you get what you pay for. My obsession with sharpness really only began when I got the ShutterStock rejection for focus, and I suppose that's the reason that pro photographers use pro equipment: they can afford/justify spending big bucks on better gear since it pays for itself. For the amateur who doesn't derive income from photos, however, I suppose I'll have to be happy with whatever such a cheap lens can give me I suppose I was mistakenly expecting National Geographic level of detail from a budget lens.

Here's one of the latest shots I took with said lens, with Lightroom processing:

Sharpening: 121
Radius: 2.1
Detail: 16
Masking: 0

I'll have to settle for these being good enough for social media pics and private use, as opposed to trying to make commercial-level photos.

streetsnyc wrote:

AlephNull wrote:

I use autofocus on the center point, and I do believe that I use settings that are generally supposed to come out with sharp photos, such as an appropriate aperture + 1/FL, etc.

It's the shutter speed, not aperture, that's supposed to be 1/FL. It would be rather difficult to set an aperture of f/100 on a 100mm lens, for example, but it's easy enough to set a shutter speed of 1/100th of a second.

Autofocus doesn't work well on smooth surfaces, because it works on edges. A striped shirt, for example, makes a good focus target. Also, try to fill the AF target box with the thing you want to focus on - it can easily get confused if you are focusing on something small. If your subject isn't wearing stripes, then place the focus box on an edge between your subject and a contrasting brightness background - like a light coloured subject on a dark background, or a dark coloured subject on a light coloured background - that will give your AF the best chance of nailing focus.

The 55-200mm zoom is not a high quality professional lens, so don't expect perfect results. You can get good images from it, but there's a reason people spend a lot more on lenses like the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS (as someone facetiously suggested ). Bear in mind, though, that the L series lenses are most needed when trying to get the shot under difficult conditions. If you stick to relatively easy shooting (lots of light, good contrast), you should be fine.

Oh, yeah, I mistyped. I know shutter speed is 1/FL. I meant setting the aperture 1-2 stops from wide open (or whatever review sites say is sharpest like f/7 or f/8, etc.).

And yeah, I'm starting to see that you get what you pay for. My obsession with sharpness really only began when I got the ShutterStock rejection for focus, and I suppose that's the reason that pro photographers use pro equipment: they can afford/justify spending big bucks on better gear since it pays for itself. For the amateur who doesn't derive income from photos, however, I suppose I'll have to be happy with whatever such a cheap lens can give me I suppose I was mistakenly expecting National Geographic level of detail from a budget lens.

Here's one of the latest shots I took with said lens, with Lightroom processing:

Sharpening: 121
Radius: 2.1
Detail: 16
Masking: 0

I'll have to settle for these being good enough for social media pics and private use, as opposed to trying to make commercial-level photos.

Don't kid yourself. You can do a lot better with what you have. I have a computer problem with my older files, but here's one with the old 55-250

Keep at it.

Yeah, I think I got all caught up with the classic gear anxiety. Time to worry less about how to spend money I shouldn't be spending and instead just go out there and practice more with what I've got

streetsnyc wrote:

AlephNull wrote:

I use autofocus on the center point, and I do believe that I use settings that are generally supposed to come out with sharp photos, such as an appropriate aperture + 1/FL, etc.

It's the shutter speed, not aperture, that's supposed to be 1/FL. It would be rather difficult to set an aperture of f/100 on a 100mm lens, for example, but it's easy enough to set a shutter speed of 1/100th of a second.

Autofocus doesn't work well on smooth surfaces, because it works on edges. A striped shirt, for example, makes a good focus target. Also, try to fill the AF target box with the thing you want to focus on - it can easily get confused if you are focusing on something small. If your subject isn't wearing stripes, then place the focus box on an edge between your subject and a contrasting brightness background - like a light coloured subject on a dark background, or a dark coloured subject on a light coloured background - that will give your AF the best chance of nailing focus.

The 55-200mm zoom is not a high quality professional lens, so don't expect perfect results. You can get good images from it, but there's a reason people spend a lot more on lenses like the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS (as someone facetiously suggested ). Bear in mind, though, that the L series lenses are most needed when trying to get the shot under difficult conditions. If you stick to relatively easy shooting (lots of light, good contrast), you should be fine.

Oh, yeah, I mistyped. I know shutter speed is 1/FL. I meant setting the aperture 1-2 stops from wide open (or whatever review sites say is sharpest like f/7 or f/8, etc.).

And yeah, I'm starting to see that you get what you pay for. My obsession with sharpness really only began when I got the ShutterStock rejection for focus, and I suppose that's the reason that pro photographers use pro equipment: they can afford/justify spending big bucks on better gear since it pays for itself. For the amateur who doesn't derive income from photos, however, I suppose I'll have to be happy with whatever such a cheap lens can give me I suppose I was mistakenly expecting National Geographic level of detail from a budget lens.

Here's one of the latest shots I took with said lens, with Lightroom processing:

Sharpening: 121
Radius: 2.1
Detail: 16
Masking: 0

I'll have to settle for these being good enough for social media pics and private use, as opposed to trying to make commercial-level photos.

I agree with Ed, you can do better. the high ISO is costing you some sharpness due to noise. You're better off opening the aperture and lowering the ISO. This is an old one taken with the original 55-250. Forgive the blown highlights.

jvc1 wrote:

streetsnyc wrote:

AlephNull wrote:

I use autofocus on the center point, and I do believe that I use settings that are generally supposed to come out with sharp photos, such as an appropriate aperture + 1/FL, etc.

It's the shutter speed, not aperture, that's supposed to be 1/FL. It would be rather difficult to set an aperture of f/100 on a 100mm lens, for example, but it's easy enough to set a shutter speed of 1/100th of a second.

Autofocus doesn't work well on smooth surfaces, because it works on edges. A striped shirt, for example, makes a good focus target. Also, try to fill the AF target box with the thing you want to focus on - it can easily get confused if you are focusing on something small. If your subject isn't wearing stripes, then place the focus box on an edge between your subject and a contrasting brightness background - like a light coloured subject on a dark background, or a dark coloured subject on a light coloured background - that will give your AF the best chance of nailing focus.

The 55-200mm zoom is not a high quality professional lens, so don't expect perfect results. You can get good images from it, but there's a reason people spend a lot more on lenses like the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS (as someone facetiously suggested ). Bear in mind, though, that the L series lenses are most needed when trying to get the shot under difficult conditions. If you stick to relatively easy shooting (lots of light, good contrast), you should be fine.

Oh, yeah, I mistyped. I know shutter speed is 1/FL. I meant setting the aperture 1-2 stops from wide open (or whatever review sites say is sharpest like f/7 or f/8, etc.).

And yeah, I'm starting to see that you get what you pay for. My obsession with sharpness really only began when I got the ShutterStock rejection for focus, and I suppose that's the reason that pro photographers use pro equipment: they can afford/justify spending big bucks on better gear since it pays for itself. For the amateur who doesn't derive income from photos, however, I suppose I'll have to be happy with whatever such a cheap lens can give me I suppose I was mistakenly expecting National Geographic level of detail from a budget lens.

Here's one of the latest shots I took with said lens, with Lightroom processing:

Sharpening: 121
Radius: 2.1
Detail: 16
Masking: 0

I'll have to settle for these being good enough for social media pics and private use, as opposed to trying to make commercial-level photos.

I agree with Ed, you can do better. the high ISO is costing you some sharpness due to noise. You're better off opening the aperture and lowering the ISO. This is an old one taken with the original 55-250. Forgive the blown highlights.

That's a very nice shot but the OP hasn't yet shown that he can take a satisfactory image of a stationary object withi good contrast in good light to satisfy himself and others that hs PDAF is working properly.  The example of birds in trees is about the most difficult to get right and any hope of seeing sharpness is destroyed by the necessary high noise due to the settings (well they could be better chosen but still difficult).

jvc1 wrote:

I agree with Ed, you can do better. the high ISO is costing you some sharpness due to noise. You're better off opening the aperture and lowering the ISO. This is an old one taken with the original 55-250. Forgive the blown highlights.

Ah, I didn't know that even ISO 800 was considered high, nor did I know that it would cost me sharpness. Will definitely keep that in mind in the future, thanks for the advice!

Your 1st shoot is at ISO 1000 and has a good bit more noise than the 1 at 800.