What are your secret tips for getting sharper photos

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Lologrande

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OK maybe not secret. It just sounds morel exciting. What I am really wondering is what are the little things that make a big difference in getting tack sharp shots. I have realized that I was not totally relaxing when I was taking my shots. It is similar to when you think you are relaxed but then take a deep breath and exhale fully there is a second level relax. I hope that makes sense. By focusing on getting that next level of softness in my shoulders and my support hand I have been getting much more consistent sharpness in my images.

There is a lot of information out there on technique but most of it seems to be on the bigger ideas. What are the little things that really make a difference for you.

I would also like to add a big thanks to Steve and everyone that contributes to this forum. It is a fantastic, supportive and very informative space.
 
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No real secrets but a few important items:

- Good handholding technique including tucking in elbows, cradling lens and seeking support off available objects (e.g. lean against a tree or kneel) when handholding
- Good long lens technique when using a tripod or monopod mounted long lens including left hand with gentle pressure on lens and face against back of camera
- Sufficient shutter speed for the situation
- Roll your finger rather than jab at the shutter release and shoot in short bursts when shutter speeds are low hoping for at least one keeper

And yeah, as you say breathe and stay relaxed.
 
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The one with the most impact for me was shutter speed. I primarily hand hold and I always thought my shutter speed was fast enough, and yet a good percentage of my images were soft. Based on input from this forum, I recognized that my shutter speed wasn’t where it needed to be. After going to a quicker shutter, I‘ve noticed my images are generally much sharper.
 
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Another thing to consider is checking the fine tuning of your lens to each body
Lately I have had issues getting sharp pics from my 600G. It has produced in the past, but issues lately. I had sent my D850 in for service and did not recheck af fine tune with the 600. Thought it was me, or the VR, or thermals, etc. Tried it on the Z6 and Z6II. and troubles went away. But I was using efcs. Thought that was the cure. Then tried on the D850 with efcs and images were still soft. Then the proverbial lights went on and re fine tuned the lens. Bingo! Obviously Nikon did something during service that changed the mount or sensor or ???
Just something else to check
 
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Demodave said:
Another thing to consider is checking the fine tuning of your lens to each body
Lately I have had issues getting sharp pics from my 600G. It has produced in the past, but issues lately. I had sent my D850 in for service and did not recheck af fine tune with the 600. Thought it was me, or the VR, or thermals, etc. Tried it on the Z6 and Z6II. and troubles went away. But I was using efcs. Thought that was the cure. Then tried on the D850 with efcs and images were still soft. Then the proverbial lights went on and re fine tuned the lens. Bingo! Obviously Nikon did something during service that changed the mount or sensor or ???
Just something else to check
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Yes, Nikon did adjust the focus. Their service rigs induce a bias that is off compared to the factory adjustments. I went thru the same thing with my D5 a few years ago, my "repaired" D5 came back and all my af fine tune values were off by about 7-8 units with all my calibrated lenses. I sent it back and they said it was fine. I was told about the error in the service equipment by a noted Nikon guy. Nikon now knows that this error was made when they designed the service calibration gear but won't be corrected until they replace all the gear. It's world-wide. I asked the question, if they know it's off 7-8 units, why not just dial in a bias? After all, they are globally changing by that amount, should be easy enough to just dial in that amount of comp? Guess not, sounds like too much trouble. This applies to lenses as well. When you get gear back from service (and this includes any independant shop that has Nikon's calibration station) you'll want to adjust your af fine tune. This only applies if Nikon has checked and adjusted AF as in mount replacements.
 
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The ones that brought me most sharpness were :
- Auto ISO to keep speed high and maintain desired aperture
- Monopod for heavy lenses (e.g. 200-500) / I use the Gitzo
- Remove all filters (unless operating in a desert or at the beach / seawater)
- Finetune all lenses
- Control breathing / lean against something when handholding
 
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Warren D said:
Yes, Nikon did adjust the focus. Their service rigs induce a bias that is off compared to the factory adjustments. I went thru the same thing with my D5 a few years ago, my "repaired" D5 came back and all my af fine tune values were off by about 7-8 units with all my calibrated lenses. I sent it back and they said it was fine. I was told about the error in the service equipment by a noted Nikon guy. Nikon now knows that this error was made when they designed the service calibration gear but won't be corrected until they replace all the gear. It's world-wide. I asked the question, if they know it's off 7-8 units, why not just dial in a bias? After all, they are globally changing by that amount, should be easy enough to just dial in that amount of comp? Guess not, sounds like too much trouble. This applies to lenses as well. When you get gear back from service (and this includes any independant shop that has Nikon's calibration station) you'll want to adjust your af fine tune. This only applies if Nikon has checked and adjusted AF as in mount replacements.
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Had the same thing happen with a D850 and the same excuse from Nikon...
 
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Pistnbroke said:
+9 will also sharpen the rear LCD, I never shoot RAW ..waste of time
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Its maybe a waste of time for you as that would depend upon what you shoot however for others RAW is definitely the way to go, I cant think of any Landscape photographers that do not shoot Raw they would be doing themselves an injustice as it gives them total control over the image ..

A Jpeg as I understand it is a compressed Raw image that the Camera has basically discarded a lot of the information which in now lost it cannot be recovered you are also very limited in the amount of editing you can do to the image ...

I guess there are advantages and disadvantages with both..

JPEG : you would have little or any intention of post processing the image and if you did you would be limited in what you can recover/edit in the photo - a lot of people simply cant be bothered with post processing because it can be time consuming and/or they lack the knowledge to get it right

RAW : you would most likely intend to do some sort of post processing of the image and you have total control over most if not all of the photo - it can and sometimes is time consuming but the rewards can and often do result in outstanding images that simply cannot be achieved with Jpeg ..

As I said it depends on what you shoot but it certainly is not a "waste of time"


Harry.G
 
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Harry.G said:
Its maybe a waste of time for you as that would depend upon what you shoot however for others RAW is definitely the way to go, I cant think of any Landscape photographers that do not shoot Raw they would be doing themselves an injustice as it gives them total control over the image ..

A Jpeg as I understand it is a compressed Raw image that the Camera has basically discarded a lot of the information which in now lost it cannot be recovered you are also very limited in the amount of editing you can do to the image ...

I guess there are advantages and disadvantages with both..

JPEG : you would have little or any intention of post processing the image and if you did you would be limited in what you can recover/edit in the photo - a lot of people simply cant be bothered with post processing because it can be time consuming and/or they lack the knowledge to get it right

RAW : you would most likely intend to do some sort of post processing of the image and you have total control over most if not all of the photo - it can and sometimes is time consuming but the rewards can and often do result in outstanding images that simply cannot be achieved with Jpeg ..

As I said it depends on what you shoot but it certainly is not a "waste of time"


Harry.G
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It's probably a discussion for another post but it always makes me smile when people say a Jpeg has discarded a lot of information. These days it's not that much, and it's not just some novice editor that's discarding this information it Mr Nikon or Canon. The manufacturer wants that jpeg has good as it can be. I have said a few times on here, when I consider my self a better editor than these guys then I will take the RAW info and do my best. Another point I must make is, I have on many occasions edited the RAW and then the jpeg and I with my editor and skills can't see a great deal of difference. Some times the Jpeg will suffer from banding but if that happens I can go dig out the raw and sort. I would also add that if you need to edit beyond the scope of your jpeg then do a better job in camera surely?
 
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Am I the only one who saw Steve's video on Sharper Photos? Here are my notes: 1) Use highest shutter speed possible; 2) Shoot from good support; 3) Use best AF area (smallest area in which you can keep the subject); 4) Keep AF engaged an on target; 5) shoot longer bursts; 6) avoid heat distortion and haze; 7) use VR when needed; 8) Last resort, AF fine tuning.
 
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I totally agree with all the tips shared. Steve's video is excellent. A must watch. I guess what I am really getting at is the little things. The things that don't get talked about very much. The moment I realized I was not fully relaxing was a light bulb moment. The difference was not huge but added to the cumulative effect and is one more tool in the technique tool box. I also find that when I am out shooting I often forget to think about technique. It is usually when I am editing after the fact that I realize I could have done better. I am trying to be more mindful in the field. Thanks again to everyone that is part of the forum.
 
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Lologrande said:
I totally agree with all the tips shared. Steve's video is excellent. A must watch. I guess what I am really getting at is the little things. The things that don't get talked about very much. The moment I realized I was not fully relaxing was a light bulb moment. The difference was not huge but added to the cumulative effect and is one more tool in the technique tool box. I also find that when I am out shooting I often forget to think about technique. It is usually when I am editing after the fact that I realize I could have done better. I am trying to be more mindful in the field. Thanks again to everyone that is part of the forum.
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I had a CEO once who use to say, there are plenty of people who know what to do, but just don't get it done. Seems like you know what to do, you just have to figure out how to train yourself to get it done. For me, it's checklists, a DOF table, and practice, practice, practice. I review my checklists before I start shooting, refer to them occasionally while shooting (inside flap of my backpack) and I think of aperture in terms of inches of DOF for a given focal length. My DOF table shows that with my D500 at 600mm f/4 at 20yds my DOF is 6". At f/8 it's 12". f/11, 15". At that focal length 1/2 the DOF is in front of the AF point and 1/2 behind.
 
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Two things that contribute to a majority of unsharp photos...Pressing the shutter release like you were killing a particularly ugly spider.
Shutter speed too slow. The need for faster shutter speeds increases the older you get!o_O
Actually, three...Use of a tripod whenever needed.
 
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I'm working on a lot of my older photos for my web site. Invariably, when I run into some and see that they're less than ideally sharp, I realize "oh crap, I got lazy and shot these hand-held, didn't I?".

Of course, you can't always use a tripod, but when you can, you should if you really want the most stable pixels. Hrrooom, don't be lazy.
 
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Steve said:
Had the same thing happen with a D850 and the same excuse from Nikon...
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This will probably stir up some controversy but seriously try this yourself and see what results you see. I too thought my lenses needed a bit of tweaking to get the best sharpness and spent a lot of time getting them just right by using the adjustments. Then in the field I noticed no real improvement. So I decided to do some more testing. Only this time I defocused the lens in both directions before acquiring focus. And to my total amazement the lens corrections needed were approximately the same to get perfect focus but in OPPOSITE directions. So I decided what I was really tuning was hurting me instead of helping me when in the field depending on the situation. So I do believe now that you should adjust the lens calibrations to be in the center of the range needed. For example if you get -4 and +6 depending on the direction the lens was coming from to achieve focus the average value you should enter in the camera would be +1. And if you get equal values depending on direction then do nothing the lens is fine.
 
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JerryF said:
This will probably stir up some controversy but seriously try this yourself and see what results you see. I too thought my lenses needed a bit of tweaking to get the best sharpness and spent a lot of time getting them just right by using the adjustments. Then in the field I noticed no real improvement. So I decided to do some more testing. Only this time I defocused the lens in both directions before acquiring focus. And to my total amazement the lens corrections needed were approximately the same to get perfect focus but in OPPOSITE directions. So I decided what I was really tuning was hurting me instead of helping me when in the field depending on the situation. So I do believe now that you should adjust the lens calibrations to be in the center of the range needed. For example if you get -4 and +6 depending on the direction the lens was coming from to achieve focus the average value you should enter in the camera would be +1. And if you get equal values depending on direction then do nothing the lens is fine.
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I have had similar experience and tuning can be very frustrating. There is a lot of variation in phase detect AF, so you have to go to statistical averages with larger sample sizes under varying conditions to get good results. I constantly check my tuning against AF in Live View mode, which uses more accurate contrast detection. At the end of the day, DOF is my most important tool to combat phase detect AF errors.
 
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All the technique-related tips are extremely important and they do all add up to sharper images or subtract to make soft ones. However, I'll add, that as much as breathing is mentioned frequently, trying to depress the shutter during a gentle exhale cycle has made a difference for me. In the heat of action it can be difficult to do but you can actually create test circumstances where you can practice and check its effectiveness. Your body inherently relaxes on the exhale cycle. Simply use a telephoto lens of your choosing, pick a target and keep reducing shutter speed on your shots as you are exhaling and squeezing the shutter. Check results to see where cutoff points for sharpness might be.
 
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Mr F Stop. said:
The manufacturer wants that jpeg has good as it can be. I have said a few times on here, when I consider my self a better editor than these guys then I will take the RAW info and do my best.
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I disagree with this.
Mr Nikon or Mr Canon don't know what you want.
They do this for a middle way, acceptable by most. "Good" pictures but not yours.
But if you know what YOU want, no Nikon or Canon will reproduce it.
If you want YOUR photos, not Nikon's or Canon's, then RAW is the way to go.
Just MHO
 
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