7D Mark II - Soft Images?

[scarletti]

I've just upgraded my trusty 50D to a 7D Mk II, and so far, I'm not impressed with the sharpness of the images.

I immediately attached my 400 f5.6 L lens (which has always been the sharpest lens I've used) to the 7D, and was expecting the images to be at least as good as the 50D, but they weren't.

I'm quite happy to believe it's down to user incompetence in some way, but I can't work out why most images seem so soft.

As an example, this image was taken with the Sigma 150-600 Sport at 600mm, f8, 1/800s, ISO 500. I had the lens leaning on the frame of a bird hide, so there shouldn't be much in the way of problems holding the lens still.
Avocet - Soft? by Ian Scarlett, on Flickr

I've taken a few hundred images, many using a tripod, and the majority look soft to me. I've also taken shots of a number of butterflies with my Tamrom 180mm macro using manual focus, and some of those have been extremely sharp. That leads me to believe I haven't mastered the autofocus capabilities.

Any ideas? Any tips from those with a 7D Mk II that have nice sharp images? Or am I just expecting too much from the camera?

[AndyMulhearn]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

I use the same combination as you with the difference that I have the C not S model Sigma. I've found it to be a pretty sharp pairing as these may show:

Herring Gull by andymulhearn, on Flickr

Great Crested Grebe chick by andymulhearn, on Flickr

I shoot using BBF, AI Servo mode and single point expansion - I find the latter gives me the best focus control and precision. I've not done any focus adjustment with either the camera or lens, it's all out of the box, and I decided to use the camera a month before tweaking but so far I've had no need.

One thing you may want to consider is turning of OS if you use a tripod - there are loads of comments on the interweb about issues with OS when tripods are being used. This may also apply to resting on solid surfaces. The other thing i do for shots like these is let the AF settle for a while, then take the shot.

This one is taken at quite a long range. Reasonably sharp and with a 1.4 tc in the mix. The preceding two shots in the burst were so poor it was hard to tell it's a bird never mind a juvenile blackbird...

Juvenile Blackbird by andymulhearn, on Flickr

[jimsphotography]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

If I was you I would first check if your auto focus image is different from one produced manually in live view ( using the magnifying of live view). If manual focus is sharper than auto you may need to correct the in camera focus via micro adjustment.
Read the thread pasted below
Hope this helps you
James

http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/article_pages/cameras/1ds3_af_micoadjustment.html

[@imagesBV]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

Lots of people had problems setting up the original 7D....there was lots of discussion at the time, but once mastered it was an excellent camera that stood the test of time....might be worth revisiting some historical threads for 7D set up tips......I hope that's relevant...

[Stan]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

Not sure what advice to offer but can say that combined both my wife and I have shot around 50,000 images with our 7D II's using, 300 f4, 70-200 f2.8, 70-200 f4, all with or without converters, Sigma 150-600 sport, canon 100 and 60 macros, EFS 10-22 and 17-85 and any softness issues have always been down to user error and not the cameras

Stan

[scarletti]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Andy... I hadn't given the IS suggestion a thought, so I'll try that tomorrow, along with the AF point expansion. I've been using the single centre point in the expectation that it would give me the most accurate focussing on a relatively static subject. BBF... hmmm, maybe I'll have to give that another try.

James... I have already done micro adjustment, and that yielded a minimal improvement.

Brian... I assumed the setup of the MK II would be completely different, so I'd ignored any Mk I threads. I will have a search and see if anything helps.

Thanks again for the suggestions. I've seen the results other people (e.g. Stan) are getting with the same combination I have, so I know what it's capable of in the right hands!!

[the black fox]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

have you done any adjustments for the sigma using the usb hub ??

[scarletti]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

have you done any adjustments for the sigma using the usb hub ??

I haven't bought the USB hub... is that likely to make much difference?

Been helping my daughter move all weekend, so had no time to have a real play, but turning the IS off whilst on the tripod has made a noticeable difference.

[Woolley]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

Shooting RAW or jpg? If RAW, the old 7D needs significant sharpening, but the results are excellent if done properly. I guess the mkII is produced in a similar manner. The odd occasion I've done jpg I found the picture style needed +1 on sharpening

[scarletti]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

Shooting RAW or jpg?

Shooting Raw and post processing in Lightroom 6. I've left sharpening at the default, and boosted the Clarity and Vibrance instead.
Thanks Wooley... I'll try re-processing some of the earlier Raw files with increased sharpening.

Having started out with a 300D, I picked up the 50D and got decent results instantly. Obviously, there's quite a learning curve with the 7D MK II.

[the black fox]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

I haven't bought the USB hub... is that likely to make much difference?

Been helping my daughter move all weekend, so had no time to have a real play, but turning the IS off whilst on the tripod has made a noticeable difference.

oh yes it most definitely does ,if you look up my original posts from when i got mine in march you will realise its not just a bolt on and go lens ,some people will be lucky and not need any adjustments others will ,
you can adjust whether it gives priority to the focus point and which type of o.s you like ,if you look at my photos in the birding section i use a 10mp 1Dmk3 and the sigma S HAND HELD 98% of the time and i'm nearly 70 .in fact i very nearly sold my lens due to soft images till i bit the bullet and did the adjustments ,it changed it instantly .
below is a photo of a tern flying by at a considerable speed hand held at 600mm .theres more than a few more on my flickr stream .if you feel you need any advice just ask .
one good tern ! by jeff cohen, on Flickr

[scarletti]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

oh yes it most definitely does

Looks like I'd better get one then! And thanks for the offer of advice. I may well take you up on the offer if all the suggestions fail.

[David Morison]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

Well it's not a point and shoot and needs some work on settings, especially AF which has a huge menu all of it's own. Like anything new and more advanced than we are used to it does take some time to achieve the results we are looking for, keep at it and I'm sure all will be OK.

David

[hectorpaljr]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

have you done any adjustments for the sigma using the usb hub ??

Can you explain the usb hub to an ignorant digital novice? thanks

[taxboy]

Re: 7D Mark II - Soft Images?

At the moment I think there are a few too many variables to nail down a possible issue. If you still have your old camera I would take some images on a tripod in the garden of static subject with your 400mm. This gives a baseline to work from. I would then change camera and take the same shots. The comparison will provide a starting point of where to go next.