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<blockquote data-quote="Clovishound" data-source="post: 845389" data-attributes="member: 50197">First of all, the 200-500 is highly regarded as a very sharp lens, especially considering it's price point. Having said that, it is always possible to have one with either manufacturing issues, or damage/wear that could affect sharpness. I have a 200-500 and have always regarded it as very sharp.I would recommend checking the sharpness of the lens under controlled conditions. Put the lens on a tripod. Take the camera out of continuous autofocus mode and put it in single autofocus mode. I would do it with direct sunlight, which will give you F 5.6 @ 1/800 sec and ISO 100, give or take. You want a fairly low ISO for max resolution, and a relatively fast shutter speed to minimize any shutter technique issues. Carefully focus on something with some good detail, and check it for sharpness. If you cannot get sharp images using this procedure, you may have an issue with your lens. If these are sharp, you likely have some issue with how you are shooting in the field. There is a method for fine tuning the autofocus of an individual lens, and the camera will automatically use this calibration every time you mount that particular lens.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Clovishound, post: 845389, member: 50197"] First of all, the 200-500 is highly regarded as a very sharp lens, especially considering it's price point. Having said that, it is always possible to have one with either manufacturing issues, or damage/wear that could affect sharpness. I have a 200-500 and have always regarded it as very sharp. I would recommend checking the sharpness of the lens under controlled conditions. Put the lens on a tripod. Take the camera out of continuous autofocus mode and put it in single autofocus mode. I would do it with direct sunlight, which will give you F 5.6 @ 1/800 sec and ISO 100, give or take. You want a fairly low ISO for max resolution, and a relatively fast shutter speed to minimize any shutter technique issues. Carefully focus on something with some good detail, and check it for sharpness. If you cannot get sharp images using this procedure, you may have an issue with your lens. If these are sharp, you likely have some issue with how you are shooting in the field. There is a method for fine tuning the autofocus of an individual lens, and the camera will automatically use this calibration every time you mount that particular lens. [/QUOTE]

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