Blurry images. Canon r6 mk ii

[ProfesorJaszczur]

Hi guys new user of Canon r6 mkii (coming from old canon dsrl) here shooting with prime RF 85mm f2 lens. I have feeling that those images aren't sharp enough. I'm doing something wrong or it's too much to ask for this body to handle (or my lens IQ). Screns from ddp4 with focus point and gdrive link to raw files gdrive. Those are random 2 images and i have lots with same "issue". Can't pin point sharp point.
using Animal AF + eye detecion, servo af + af back button. Me and the object (dog) are stationary so i would say perfect conditions.


ANIMAL AF + eye detection, cannot spot sharp point when examine




Not full image, screenshot from preview window to show whole image (raw files on gdrive, link in the post)

exif data

 

[thunder storm]

I'm really considering getting that RF 24-105 f/2.8 next, esp since being able to shoot with it on an R5 for a while (my buddy just got his a couple of weeks ago). I do so many darn events, and it could take the place of my RF 24-105 f/4 very easily. It balances well, even though it's heavy like the 28-70.

It's both longer and wider than the f/2.0. I'm enjoying my Tamron 35-150mm a lot, and although it's not the same, I know it's pretty sweet to have something bright going both wider and longer than 70mm.

I'm shooting the Sigma 105mm Art at f/2.0 most of the time, as I like the rendering better at f/2.0, and it will give enough blur anyway, separating even a bit better as more of the subject will be in focus. 85mm needs f/1.4 harder, but for 105mm there's more freedom for stopping down a bit. Compared to that RF 24-105mm f/2.8 beast it's only one stop difference.

 

[XN_Stein]

Hi guys new user of Canon r6 mkii (coming from old canon dsrl) here shooting with prime RF 85mm f2 lens. I have feeling that those images aren't sharp enough. I'm doing something wrong or it's too much to ask for this body to handle (or my lens IQ). Screns from ddp4 with focus point and gdrive link to raw files gdrive. Those are random 2 images and i have lots with same "issue". Can't pin point sharp point.
using Animal AF + eye detecion, servo af + af back button. Me and the object (dog) are stationary so i would say perfect conditions.

Subject Detection and Focus are two separate operations. You can have one without the other.

The black/white contrasting areas (around the head) grabbed the focus, as the eye doesn't provide enough contrast for the Autofocus to work with (at that distance).

Keep Spot AF on one of your Back Buttons and use it when necessary!

R2

Yes. Where the square appears on the sensor is not necessarily where it focused. It is where it looked for focus based on whatever was near that square at the time of focus. And the smaller your subject, the more distracting elements in or adjacent to your focus square. And under Servo, it can always be making slight tweaks.

I find it interesting when people do focus/recompose then look for the square to see where focus is. Nope. It’s just where the square was at the time they initially grabbed focus.

Bottom line is Mirrorless can still miss. They can’t all be zingers.

Hi, would you be able to share more on this? I always have the misconception that the point with the red square is where the camera is focusing on. But I do realise that at times I get a red square at the side of the area I intended to focus on after clicking the shutter. I always thought that the shift in red square was due to the subject movement or some sort of lag.

Thanks.

 

[riman]

Marco .,great post but I dont understand why you would want to turn off eye detect and then turn it on again.. why not leave it on all the time and when you move the focus point the camera automatically detects the new eye.. thus saving you the trouble of turning Eye Detect on and off?

Thanks!

 

[Tmjc]

I see you're using the RF 85mm f/2 STM lens and that's a fairly bright lens which means the cameras AF ability should be ideal.

True, but brighter is better still.

Especially with an f/2 aperture being used.

As far as I know this is not true, as Canon camera focus with the aperture wide open, even when shooting stopped down, so the camera will get an equal amount of light regardless the shooting aperture. As such, shooting stopped down more with a brighter lens will generally get better result as the DOF is more forgiving, however, it depends on the speed and accuracy of the AF of the lens as well. In my experience the FE 50mm f/1.2 GM is great, and the Sigma 105mm f/1.4 is awesome for AF as well. The Sigma at f/2.0 grabs focus and tracks action easier than f/2.8 lenses. The FE f/1.2 GM is other worldly, however, that's an easier focal length of course.

Dimmer lenses and narrow apertures can affect AF performance but this one is ideal.

There are different opinions on the AF speed an accuracy of the RF 85mm f/2.0 IS stm, like the opinions of Christopher Frost and Dustin Abbott vs others. I agree with you f/2.0 is better than f/2.8 or darker. I don't think you can blame any lens or camera for not grabbing focus in the examples the OP has provided, and I can't tell if this could have been a factor in these cases.

I would say the ideal 85mm for AF of any brand is a Canon lens, but it's the EF 85mm f/1.4 IS USM adapted on either the R8 or R6II, not the RF 85mm f/2.0 IS stm. The 105mm f/2.0 HSM Art has better IQ though. Generally 135mm lenses do have fast AF, like the GM or the RF L, however, the focal length is less flexible, and you're giving up 2 thirds of a stop, which is not a problem for creating a thin DOF, however, it is also less light for the AF system, while the focal length is naturally more challenging as it's longer.

Dang it 'Storm. You keep bringing up that EF 85mm f/1.4L IS!! And I'm STILL debating whether or not to sell my RF 85/2 to pick that one up.

Egad you make life difficult at times!

R2

 

[R2D2]

I see you're using the RF 85mm f/2 STM lens and that's a fairly bright lens which means the cameras AF ability should be ideal.

True, but brighter is better still.

Especially with an f/2 aperture being used.

As far as I know this is not true, as Canon camera focus with the aperture wide open, even when shooting stopped down, so the camera will get an equal amount of light regardless the shooting aperture. As such, shooting stopped down more with a brighter lens will generally get better result as the DOF is more forgiving, however, it depends on the speed and accuracy of the AF of the lens as well. In my experience the FE 50mm f/1.2 GM is great, and the Sigma 105mm f/1.4 is awesome for AF as well. The Sigma at f/2.0 grabs focus and tracks action easier than f/2.8 lenses. The FE f/1.2 GM is other worldly, however, that's an easier focal length of course.

Dimmer lenses and narrow apertures can affect AF performance but this one is ideal.

There are different opinions on the AF speed an accuracy of the RF 85mm f/2.0 IS stm, like the opinions of Christopher Frost and Dustin Abbott vs others. I agree with you f/2.0 is better than f/2.8 or darker. I don't think you can blame any lens or camera for not grabbing focus in the examples the OP has provided, and I can't tell if this could have been a factor in these cases.

I would say the ideal 85mm for AF of any brand is a Canon lens, but it's the EF 85mm f/1.4 IS USM adapted on either the R8 or R6II, not the RF 85mm f/2.0 IS stm. The 105mm f/2.0 HSM Art has better IQ though. Generally 135mm lenses do have fast AF, like the GM or the RF L, however, the focal length is less flexible, and you're giving up 2 thirds of a stop, which is not a problem for creating a thin DOF, however, it is also less light for the AF system, while the focal length is naturally more challenging as it's longer.

Dang it 'Storm. You keep bringing up that EF 85mm f/1.4L IS!! And I'm STILL debating whether or not to sell my RF 85/2 to pick that one up.

Egad you make life difficult at times!

R2

Patience my friend! I'm sure that we'll get a native RF 85mm 1.4 in a couple of years (be that from canon or maybe finally from sigma/Tamron) and then you'd be kicking yourself if you've to deal with the adapter.

I don't really mind using an adapter if it means attaining the performance I need from an EF lens. I do however like what native RF lenses bring to the table, but it could be a looong wait for this one!

R2

 

[thunder storm]

I see you're using the RF 85mm f/2 STM lens and that's a fairly bright lens which means the cameras AF ability should be ideal.

True, but brighter is better still.

Especially with an f/2 aperture being used.

As far as I know this is not true, as Canon camera focus with the aperture wide open, even when shooting stopped down, so the camera will get an equal amount of light regardless the shooting aperture. As such, shooting stopped down more with a brighter lens will generally get better result as the DOF is more forgiving, however, it depends on the speed and accuracy of the AF of the lens as well. In my experience the FE 50mm f/1.2 GM is great, and the Sigma 105mm f/1.4 is awesome for AF as well. The Sigma at f/2.0 grabs focus and tracks action easier than f/2.8 lenses. The FE f/1.2 GM is other worldly, however, that's an easier focal length of course.

Dimmer lenses and narrow apertures can affect AF performance but this one is ideal.

There are different opinions on the AF speed an accuracy of the RF 85mm f/2.0 IS stm, like the opinions of Christopher Frost and Dustin Abbott vs others. I agree with you f/2.0 is better than f/2.8 or darker. I don't think you can blame any lens or camera for not grabbing focus in the examples the OP has provided, and I can't tell if this could have been a factor in these cases.

I would say the ideal 85mm for AF of any brand is a Canon lens, but it's the EF 85mm f/1.4 IS USM adapted on either the R8 or R6II, not the RF 85mm f/2.0 IS stm. The 105mm f/2.0 HSM Art has better IQ though. Generally 135mm lenses do have fast AF, like the GM or the RF L, however, the focal length is less flexible, and you're giving up 2 thirds of a stop, which is not a problem for creating a thin DOF, however, it is also less light for the AF system, while the focal length is naturally more challenging as it's longer.

Dang it 'Storm. You keep bringing up that EF 85mm f/1.4L IS!! And I'm STILL debating whether or not to sell my RF 85/2 to pick that one up.

Egad you make life difficult at times!

R2

Patience my friend! I'm sure that we'll get a native RF 85mm 1.4 in a couple of years (be that from canon or maybe finally from sigma/Tamron)

Definitely not a third party until patents are ending. Most likely also not a Canon one, as Canon has a long history of protecting the premium options by withholding middle ground options.

and then you'd be kicking yourself if you've to deal with the adapter.

I'm almost always dealing with the adapter, and I'm not kicking myself. I have the RF 28mm f/2.8 stm and the RF 85mm f/2.0 IS stm, and that's it. The Sigma FE 85mm DN kind of replaced the RF 85mm stm as it gives you a stop more in the same kind of package, so the pancake is the lens only I'm "ungluing" my adapter for.

 

[R2D2]

Hi guys new user of Canon r6 mkii (coming from old canon dsrl) here shooting with prime RF 85mm f2 lens. I have feeling that those images aren't sharp enough. I'm doing something wrong or it's too much to ask for this body to handle (or my lens IQ). Screns from ddp4 with focus point and gdrive link to raw files gdrive. Those are random 2 images and i have lots with same "issue". Can't pin point sharp point.
using Animal AF + eye detecion, servo af + af back button. Me and the object (dog) are stationary so i would say perfect conditions.

Subject Detection and Focus are two separate operations. You can have one without the other.

The black/white contrasting areas (around the head) grabbed the focus, as the eye doesn't provide enough contrast for the Autofocus to work with (at that distance).

Keep Spot AF on one of your Back Buttons and use it when necessary!

R2

Yes. Where the square appears on the sensor is not necessarily where it focused. It is where it looked for focus based on whatever was near that square at the time of focus. And the smaller your subject, the more distracting elements in or adjacent to your focus square. And under Servo, it can always be making slight tweaks.

I find it interesting when people do focus/recompose then look for the square to see where focus is. Nope. It’s just where the square was at the time they initially grabbed focus.

Bottom line is Mirrorless can still miss. They can’t all be zingers.

Hi, would you be able to share more on this? I always have the misconception that the point with the red square is where the camera is focusing on. But I do realise that at times I get a red square at the side of the area I intended to focus on after clicking the shutter. I always thought that the shift in red square was due to the subject movement or some sort of lag.

Thanks.

Subject Detect AF is a complex operation, and those squares can indicate where the camera should be focusing (ie the subject), but the actual focal point can end up being elsewhere. This has been borne out through actual results by many people, so don't trust those squares 100%.

In addition, the actual AF operation is still subject to all of the rules (and vagaries) of good old Contrast Detect/ DPAF focusing. Keep this in mind.

But what can really trip people up is what transpires at the very END of the AF cycle. The focus can JUMP from the indicated Subject Detect square(s) and land at the central AF point (more common), or even someplace else in the frame (less common). This phenomenon can be observed while testing or shooting. Try it.

One way to get around this is to use an AF Method other than Subject Detect (I like to use Spot when needed), but that takes a lot of the capabilities (and fun) away from using mirrorless!

Also, keeping the AF button "mashed" while the shutter is firing can help with this, as can keeping AF tied to the shutter button. I have to test this last bit more, as I use BBAF exclusively. Losing the utility of BBAF would be painful though.

Lots for everyone to consider (and test!). Best of luck!

R2

 

[ProfesorJaszczur]

Thank you for all the tips!

Using videos and information shared by everyone here, I tweaked my settings (single point AF, eye detection / subject detection toggling on custom buttons). I'm now more aware of how the subject detection or the AF system as a whole works, thanks to you and others.

I must admit, this forum and the people here are truly the best on the web. I've asked in a few places and didn't get even a fraction of the knowledge you guys provided. I'm very thankful.

I managed to get a few nice photoshoots in the meantime.

Also i'm debating between sigma 105mm 1.4f or 135mm 1.8f for better bokeh and better overall photos (already have adapter EF->RF)

heres some photos i managed to take










here miss focused using manual 135mm lens on m42 adapter

 

[R2D2]

Thank you for all the tips!

Using videos and information shared by everyone here, I tweaked my settings (single point AF, eye detection / subject detection toggling on custom buttons). I'm now more aware of how the subject detection or the AF system as a whole works, thanks to you and others.

I must admit, this forum and the people here are truly the best on the web. I've asked in a few places and didn't get even a fraction of the knowledge you guys provided. I'm very thankful.

I managed to get a few nice photoshoots in the meantime.

Also i'm debating between sigma 105mm 1.4f or 135mm 1.8f for better bokeh and better overall photos (already have adapter EF->RF)

heres some photos i managed to take

Well done!

That's the R6ii we know and love!! :-D

For a longer lens (than the RF 85 f/2) I much prefer the RF 70-200 f/2.8 because it offers so much flexibility. However if you're outside, both the 105 and 135 can be useful (with better bokeh than the 85 too).

R2