Problem with focusing on artwork

I recently upgraded from a D40 to D1300 and using the same settings photos of my paintings are not completely in focus and there seems to be a hazy film over them. Still using 18 -55 lens of my D40
Any help much appreciated. I have attached an example

Did you use a flash? It looks like glare from a flash. You might be better off with no flash and if there is not enough light, use a tripod. Also keep painting straight and square to the camera, depth of field may be shallow causing top or bottom to be less focused. Good, bright, indirect light will help. Maybe bounce the flash off the ceiling. How was shutter speed? I don't think the 18-55 that came with the D40 had VR.

It may also be an issue of exactly where you're putting the focus point. It works best if you place the focus point across an area of high contrast. Try putting the focus point across a leaf and the background or some other spot with to very different colors. Also, stand directly in front of the painting so that all parts of the painting are an equal distance to the camera so that all portions of the painting are in focus.

Are these paintings hangin on a wall? Why not put the camera on a tripod and focus manually?

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Thanks

I don't know how to fix the photograph, but I love the painting!
Welcome to the forum!

No flash used and yes it does have that glare look. The thing is I photograph them the same way as I always did with the D40 with great results. I did improve the shots a little by selecting a higher f-stop 8+ and landscape from picture control but still not that sharpness.

The D40 may have chosen a different focus point. You could also try varying the distance. If you step back a bit, things may change and depth of field will be greater. You have plenty of pixels to do a little cropping to get the painting back to full size.

artsaus said:

No flash used and yes it does have that glare look. The thing is I photograph them the same way as I always did with the D40 with great results. I did improve the shots a little by selecting a higher f-stop 8+ and landscape from picture control but still not that sharpness.

Click to expand...

First off, take it OUT of "Landscape" scene mode... You're not shooting a landscape here, you're shooting a still, indoors. The fastest way to correct this photo was to do some post processing but I'm sure a few in-camera adjustments will help.

I would try setting the ISO to 100 using "A"perture Priorty with the f/stop set to 8.0 and shoot using a tripod. I don't know what kind of light you're shooting under but the "haze" you're seeing, I think, is a white-balance issue.

I did two, very quick adjustments on your shot using IRFanview (a free application); does this now reflect what you want, more or less?