Canon's "softness"

[XC Pictorial]

I found images on my 20D taken with Sigma12-24, 50mm f1.8, and 70-200 f2.8L all slightly softer than images from my nikon cameras with mid range to pro range lens generally.

Of cos the camera processing algorithm and design do play a part, just like how images straight off a D80 are sharper than off a D200..

Just DI whatever remaining in

 

[adamadam]

hi sorry for OT-ing..just want to comfirm..when lets say i am shooting at 50mm, my shutter speed should be 1/50 or faster right?(a general rule...) in other words.. 50mm can be 1/50,1/60, 1/70...right?

I'd say there no law about this, just a guideline, that to avoid the handshake, to try to use a shutterspeed faster than 1/focal length, so at least 1/50 sec. but if you are very steady, you can go below this with no problem

 

[grimicer]

hihi dude
it's normal for you to feel the softness.

you switched from compact to dSLR right ?
compact cameras have automatic sharpening in-cam.
that means photos come out sharp without processing.
for dSLR, most of the time they leave the sharpening for post-processing by you and leave it as shot with minimal in-cam processing.

and i have tried canon 350D, when paired with a decent lens like the 70-200L, the photos come out looking pretty sharp. the kit lens is pretty disappointing when used wide open, used a smaller aperture for better images.

hope this helps, btw, i'm a nikon user now.

 

[allsmilez]

hi bro,

i've got a 400d too and most of my pics are sharp enough before PP. just feel that the cam is not too good at AF even with all the 9 point stuff at all. been resorting to manual quite often, especially at low light or complicated pics. so maybe you can check that. sometimes if the viewfinder dirty or diopter is out u can get a systematic error when u focus also. mild cam shake can also look "soft". see if u can rule out any of these simple things before u look for any other more major probs with such a nice cam

cheers

 

[fWord]

In addition to what others have mentioned, you can try shooting in RAW, then go to Canon's Digital Photo Professional to process it into a JPEG. Open the image in the Edit window, choose 'Standard' or 'Landscape' picture style and apply a bit of sharpening. Level 2 was good enough for me, and Level 4 sharpness is plenty.

Even with a consumer lens you should be able to get good results this way, assuming your technique is correct. In the past when I used the 350D I found that JPEGs straight out of the camera were great in terms of colour but I was usually tempted to sharpen the image further in Photoshop.

 

[undead]

Canon usuallly produces images with very good detail but the alogorithm does not sharpen it. The post processing (i.e. PS) should solve it and alternatively, you can adjust the sharpness in the camera to be highr...

 

[surge]

w digital, the body does plays a big part. sharpness and contrast can be adjusted to get impression of better sharpness. though i am a nikon user, i don find canon camera/lens to lost out at all. my friends who uses canon also produce wonderful pictures w great colour and sharpness...try try the different settings in-camera first before you conclude.

D200 produce very soft pictures too if you set sharpness to low and reduce contrast. even w 180/2.8 at f5.6.....a lens which hsa never failed to give very very sharp images at that aperture

 

[Caspere]

w digital, the body does plays a big part. sharpness and contrast can be adjusted to get impression of better sharpness. though i am a nikon user, i don find canon camera/lens to lost out at all. my friends who uses canon also produce wonderful pictures w great colour and sharpness...try try the different settings in-camera first before you conclude.

D200 produce very soft pictures too if you set sharpness to low and reduce contrast. even w 180/2.8 at f5.6.....a lens which hsa never failed to give very very sharp images at that aperture

I use Canon DSLRs and a good friend use the Nikon DSLRs, our conclusion is exactly what was revealed above.

 

[CYRN]

I would say that yes, definitely, images from Canon DSLR's are usually soft right out of the camera. This is a feature, not a defect.

Why? Many cameras (including Canon P&S cameras) employ in-camera sharpening, so the images come out very nice and sharp. But they also happen to be a bit more grainy, and there is loss of image detail and jaggy artifacts.

The images from a Canon DSLR definitely require post-processing to get the most out of them, but the detail is preserved, and it is up to you how much sharpening you want to employ. In fact, with judicious use of smart sharpening (ie only sharpening edges) you can actually get much better and sharper looking final images, while at the same time preserving creamy background bokeh.

I actually tried upping my 30D's in cam sharpening to level 6-7 (7 being max) and I noticed the in-cam sharpening sux big time.

Now, I only shoot wif 0-1 sharpening... leave it to smart sharpening to get the best out. Even Canon's own utility software also cannot produce such results.

 

[XiaoMiaoWang]

PS lah.

Do you all know what is Sharpen>Unsharp Mask?

And no, not only L lenses are sharp.

Nikon/Canon's sharpness cannot be compared to the 4/3 system olympus uses. Their sensors are smaller, so they receive the image from the better parts of the lens.

As for Nikon, hmmm, from my experience, they very much pale (alot in my opinion) in comparison to Canon.

I'm a Nikon to canon guy.

This sharpness thing is not the DSLR's problem, most of the problem comes from the lens.

Also, to note, RAW formats are less sharp than JPEG formats.

Go figure the rest.

 

[Zenten]

Canon lembek? :think:

Never take Tongkat Ali................... :bsmilie:

 

[GeckoZ]

does canon wedding photographer PS all their photos b4 presenting during the wedding dinner since the photos turn out to be soft?

 

[CYRN]

does canon wedding photographer PS all their photos b4 presenting during the wedding dinner since the photos turn out to be soft?

If your are referring to the video montage during the dinner... no need. Not necessary unless you want to print bigger than A4.

 

[Splutter]

Canon is able to achieve better noise control due to less aggressive sharpening. I think it's a important step to post process your pics. It's possible to get very sharp images if you know how to.

BTW, if you guys shoot raw. C1Pro produces sharper images than all the other converters. I still prefer Adobe for ease of usage though.

 

[nottipiglet]

It is quite futile to argue over which camera is better. It is even more futile to argue over which is sharper because the difference between the 2 is minimal with the correct usage and workflow.

One may choose a camera over the other because it fits his workflow. For example, if you don't like to do post processing, and you like the look of Nikon in the auto processed mode, then Nikon is the camera for you.

Just sell the Canon at the 2nd hand market and someone who appreciates the fine camera will pick it up.

 

[tUx]

Compared some shots with my good friend. Noticed that Nikon tends to produce slightly sharper images than Canon.

 

[phiflo]

Is it me or the camera? :dunno:
I'm getting pretty sick of the "softness" in all my pics... taken with the 400D.

I miss those really sharp and crisp pictures. :bheart:

Anyone facing the same "problem" as me?

Hi There!Got my 400D three weeks ago! Are you using the kit len supplied. I took nearly 1000 shots, some sharp but most of them soft (some jpeg/Raw). The "S" is the abbreviation for "Soft" I guessed. Contemplating on getting the "L" series len (Luxury). The image reviews said it is "Sharp", so is the price.
I like details, any advice?:bigeyes:

 

[DeSwitch]

Image Quality Optimization Tips


Consider the use ofin-camera sharpening:
If you shoot JPEGs and you wish to reduce or eliminate the need for post-processing in
order to speed up your workflow, you mayfind that increasing the level of in-camera
sharpening is effective.

Apply post-process sharpening effectively:

Canon EOS digital cameras have an anti-aliasing filter installed on the image sensor.
This filter improves color rendition and practically eliminates moiré. The liability is a
slight reduction of sharpness. To reduce the softening effect of the anti-aliasing filter we
recommend applying an unsharp mask to the image in Adobe®Photoshop®. Although
there is no such thing as a “best” setting for all applications, we suggest the following
as a starting point:

Amount: 300%
Radius: 0.3 pixels
Threshold: 0 pixels


This para was extracted from the website below.

http://photoworkshop.com/canon/EOS_Digital_Ref.pdf

Hope it shed some lights into diff between canon and nikon.

 

[GeckoZ]

If your are referring to the video montage during the dinner... no need. Not necessary unless you want to print bigger than A4.

how about the photo album whereby the photos are printed out? are they larger then A4? couldn't remember how big they normally are..

It's possible to get very sharp images if you know how to.

got any tips to share? :bsmilie:

 

[GeckoZ]

eh pros, this picture here doesn't look sharp, it's taken with 350D attached to 100mm - 300mm long lens, shot at focal length 290mm, F5.6 and 1/60sec.

is it canon's softness, motion blur, oof or what?

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/127/334085045_4bbd25e42a_o.jpg

i often get results like this so i really need to know what is the problem and how i can make it sharper in-camera.