I have a D5100 I purchased a year ago. It was a refurbished unit when I bought it. I also bought a Nikon 24-70mm f2.8 lens (spent WAAAYYY too much on it).
What I have found is that a lot of times when I am taking photos, the images arent really as sharp as I think they should be. This doesnt happen evertime, just some times. Other times the pictures look awesome.
I will usually use shutter-priority mode and set the shutter to something between 1/160-1/300 depending on whether it is a still or moving object. I always make sure the light meter is close to the middle. ISO is usually set to the lowest setting to keep the light meter in the middle, generally between 200-400 for decent lighting, or higher for lower light.
What I have found is that even with the camera settings (shutter, aperture, iso) set so that the light meter is around 0, using the 24-70mm 2.8 lens and the focus dot on my subject, the pictures are often hit and miss for clarity.
Many times I will look at the picture and think it doesnt look in focus, so I will open it in my software (Aperture) to have it show where the focus dot was, and it was right on my subject, yet it just isnt crisp.
I am trying to figure out which of the factors below may be my biggest culprit.
A: Using too low of aperture (2.8 vs something higher) and maybe some depth-of-field issues coming in to play.
B: My camera may have focus issues. I did purchase it as a refurb.
C: The pro lens is not a good fit for the cheaper camera.
D: The lens is not a VR lens and I shoot almost everything by hand and no tripod.
I have been debating on whether to trade up the D5100 for a D7000 to try to rule out issue B above, and get a camera with a few extra features I would like (more focus points and higher FPS)
Just some background on me. I barely consider myself an amateur photographer. I read a lot of books and have taken a photography class trying to understand how to work all the settings on the camera, but still have a ton to learn, so dont assume I am not making basic rookie mistakes.
If I need to upload a few sample photos I can do that.
Thanks for your help.
What I have found is that a lot of times when I am taking photos, the images arent really as sharp as I think they should be. This doesnt happen evertime, just some times. Other times the pictures look awesome.
I will usually use shutter-priority mode and set the shutter to something between 1/160-1/300 depending on whether it is a still or moving object. I always make sure the light meter is close to the middle. ISO is usually set to the lowest setting to keep the light meter in the middle, generally between 200-400 for decent lighting, or higher for lower light.
What I have found is that even with the camera settings (shutter, aperture, iso) set so that the light meter is around 0, using the 24-70mm 2.8 lens and the focus dot on my subject, the pictures are often hit and miss for clarity.
Many times I will look at the picture and think it doesnt look in focus, so I will open it in my software (Aperture) to have it show where the focus dot was, and it was right on my subject, yet it just isnt crisp.
I am trying to figure out which of the factors below may be my biggest culprit.
A: Using too low of aperture (2.8 vs something higher) and maybe some depth-of-field issues coming in to play.
B: My camera may have focus issues. I did purchase it as a refurb.
C: The pro lens is not a good fit for the cheaper camera.
D: The lens is not a VR lens and I shoot almost everything by hand and no tripod.
I have been debating on whether to trade up the D5100 for a D7000 to try to rule out issue B above, and get a camera with a few extra features I would like (more focus points and higher FPS)
Just some background on me. I barely consider myself an amateur photographer. I read a lot of books and have taken a photography class trying to understand how to work all the settings on the camera, but still have a ton to learn, so dont assume I am not making basic rookie mistakes.
If I need to upload a few sample photos I can do that.
Thanks for your help.
