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 Senior Member
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Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Norfolk, UK
Posts: 2,615
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Help! Where am I going wrong with my lens?
I was at a beautiful spot today with the kids taking loads and loads of photos of them.
I snapped away all afternoon taking over 200 shots. The first half I took with my kit lens, second half with my dad's Tamron macro lens.
My first half are all rubbish - really rubbish. Composition fine, kids all smiling looking happy, but everything is a bit wishy washy and almost every picture has the kids out of focus.
I got a sense through playback that they were coming out badly so I swapped to the macro lens. Suddenly every shot was sharp and fabulous - well ok I messed up plenty of them, but the quality was still miles ahead.
I didn't change settings (left in sports mode) or technique or anything but the lens.
So is my kit lens, just rubbish or am I just not using it right?
I snapped away all afternoon taking over 200 shots. The first half I took with my kit lens, second half with my dad's Tamron macro lens.
My first half are all rubbish - really rubbish. Composition fine, kids all smiling looking happy, but everything is a bit wishy washy and almost every picture has the kids out of focus.
I got a sense through playback that they were coming out badly so I swapped to the macro lens. Suddenly every shot was sharp and fabulous - well ok I messed up plenty of them, but the quality was still miles ahead.
I didn't change settings (left in sports mode) or technique or anything but the lens.
So is my kit lens, just rubbish or am I just not using it right?
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Kit 1 Canon 550D Canon 50mm 1.8 Sigma 30mm 1.4 on loan: Tamron 90mm |
Kit 2 Canon 300D (in use by my 10 year old) |
Other Kit View my profile to see my other kit! |
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My Compact/P&S: broken |
 Senior Member
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Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: West Cork, Ireland
Posts: 7,578
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Can you post a few examples? just to give us a better idea... it could be lens error, but that's pretty unlikely... :/ different lenses work differently in auto modes too... it's one reason I never shoot in auto (and I find sports mode one of the worst! 
) but that could just be me of course.
xx
) but that could just be me of course.xx
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Kit 1 Nikon D800 Nikkor 50mm f1.4 Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 Nikkor 105 mm f2.8 macro Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 Sigma 50-500mm F4-6.3 EX DG HSM Sigma 150-500mm F5-6.3 APO DG OS HSM Nikon 70-300mm AF f/4-5.6G Nikon 50mm f1.8 |
Kit 2 Nikon D700 |
Other Kit View my profile to see my other kit! |
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My Compact/P&S: Fuji finepix bridge |
 Fondly Remembered
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Perthshire Scotland
Posts: 8,168
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What were the actual two lenses in question ?
Sports setting may be the same but through different lenses it will 'set' the settings differently.
Sports mode does 3 things (which like it or not takes away control from you)
1 - It uses the fastest speed possible. It knows what the fastest speed is by 'reading' the maximum (largest) aperture the attached lens has & the light that's available.
2 - It chooses 'AI servo' for focusing as it asumes you're shooting a moving subject. With AI servo you need to keep the center focus point on subject for a bit to ensure the camera begins to track the subject. If you just click the shutter. . .the camera will expose before getting focus locked on. This can result in over/under exposure as well as slightly out of focus pics.
3 - I think it chooses ISO 400 which isn't great indoors or on a dull day.
It would be good to know the lenses and resulting shot details but I'd be tempted to shoot in manual. If that's a bit of a fiddle for you just now - try shooting in TV mode. That way you can pre-select an appropiate 'fast' speed, the ISO you want and the focus method you want. The camera will then just pick the aperture it needs to let in the required light for your pre-chosen settings.
Sports setting may be the same but through different lenses it will 'set' the settings differently.
Sports mode does 3 things (which like it or not takes away control from you)
1 - It uses the fastest speed possible. It knows what the fastest speed is by 'reading' the maximum (largest) aperture the attached lens has & the light that's available.
2 - It chooses 'AI servo' for focusing as it asumes you're shooting a moving subject. With AI servo you need to keep the center focus point on subject for a bit to ensure the camera begins to track the subject. If you just click the shutter. . .the camera will expose before getting focus locked on. This can result in over/under exposure as well as slightly out of focus pics.
3 - I think it chooses ISO 400 which isn't great indoors or on a dull day.
It would be good to know the lenses and resulting shot details but I'd be tempted to shoot in manual. If that's a bit of a fiddle for you just now - try shooting in TV mode. That way you can pre-select an appropiate 'fast' speed, the ISO you want and the focus method you want. The camera will then just pick the aperture it needs to let in the required light for your pre-chosen settings.
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Kit 1 Canon 1D Mark 3 Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II |
Kit 2 1D2 & 40D |
 Admin Team
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: South Wales, UK
Posts: 15,385
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The Canon kit lens isn't that sharp tbh - least not from what I've seen :-/
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Kit 1 Nikon D300 Nikon 55-200mm VR |
Kit 2 Nikon D40 Nikon 18-55mm |
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My Compact/P&S: Panasonic Lumix TZ7 |
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Fondly Remembered
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Perthshire Scotland
Posts: 8,168
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Azz
The Canon kit lens isn't that sharp tbh - least not from what I've seen :-/
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Kit 1 Canon 1D Mark 3 Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II |
Kit 2 1D2 & 40D |
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: West Cork, Ireland
Posts: 7,578
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Hmm - I suspect the servo could be at fault! 
I've had that happen to me in the past when I've not been paying attention to it!
xx
I've had that happen to me in the past when I've not been paying attention to it! xx
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Kit 1 Nikon D800 Nikkor 50mm f1.4 Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 Nikkor 105 mm f2.8 macro Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 Sigma 50-500mm F4-6.3 EX DG HSM Sigma 150-500mm F5-6.3 APO DG OS HSM Nikon 70-300mm AF f/4-5.6G Nikon 50mm f1.8 |
Kit 2 Nikon D700 |
Other Kit View my profile to see my other kit! |
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My Compact/P&S: Fuji finepix bridge |
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Admin Team
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: South Wales, UK
Posts: 15,385
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Phil
Depends which kit lens really.
)
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Kit 1 Nikon D300 Nikon 55-200mm VR |
Kit 2 Nikon D40 Nikon 18-55mm |
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My Compact/P&S: Panasonic Lumix TZ7 |
 Senior Member
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Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Newcastle
Posts: 357
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Daft question, but was your lens set to autofocus?
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Admin Team
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: South Wales, UK
Posts: 15,385
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Not daft at all M - it's usually the simplest of things we overlook!
(And yes I have done that before 
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(And yes I have done that before
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Kit 1 Nikon D300 Nikon 55-200mm VR |
Kit 2 Nikon D40 Nikon 18-55mm |
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My Compact/P&S: Panasonic Lumix TZ7 |
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Norfolk, UK
Posts: 2,615
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The kit lens is 18-55mm.
I can seem to take alright pictures with it when I set things up at home but out and about pictures of the kids playing are always disappointing.
I think the reason they were so terrible yesterday was the sport mode - thanks Phil.
I had a fiddle today, and all the pictues I took in Sport mode were a bit fuzzy.
I can seem to take alright pictures with it when I set things up at home but out and about pictures of the kids playing are always disappointing.
I think the reason they were so terrible yesterday was the sport mode - thanks Phil.
I had a fiddle today, and all the pictues I took in Sport mode were a bit fuzzy.
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Kit 1 Canon 550D Canon 50mm 1.8 Sigma 30mm 1.4 on loan: Tamron 90mm |
Kit 2 Canon 300D (in use by my 10 year old) |
Other Kit View my profile to see my other kit! |
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My Compact/P&S: broken |