Canon EOS 50D producing soft, blurry & hazy photos- help!

[brandy_bullman1]

<p>Okay, I know 90% of the time it's something the user is doing wrong. This time, it is not. Im afraid I need to send my camera off to Canon or maybe give up on the 50D.<br>

Here is the issue- I take photos, the larger my aperture, the crappier the quality. Its not a focus issue. I've done many tests. I've tried various lenses and they all produce the same thing- horrible photos that look as if I put some sort of soft focus affect on the through post processing. All of the light areas or TOO light, I cannot get a sharp image no matter what I do. This has been going on for a year now and it is now worse than ever. If I shoot with my strobes, the quality is just fine. You can see that in my portfolio- decent quality. If I shoot natural light with 1.4, forget it.<br>

And even portraits at 2.8 are blurry! I dont know what the heck this could be -? I just had my sensor cleaned and was told the camera is in great shape. I've sent off lens thinking they needed to be collaborated and bought new ones only to realize its the camera.<br>

I have read other thread on here about blur issues as well but none of their photos looked like mine. I found a guy on another site that had the SAME issues and his photos were JUST like mine- foggy looking! But nobody could address his problem.<br>

My images have a HAZE over them where it should be sharp! I compare my photos now to photos taken 2 yrs ago with this same camera and the difference is astounding. Poor poor quality. Has anyone had this problem before? HELP!</p><div></div>

[phule]

<p>Without posting an example, it would be impossible to diagnose.</p>

<p> </p>

[zml]

<p>Post an unprocessed example (resized of curse) here with the EXIF data intact.</p>

[brandy_bullman1]

<p>Thanks guys, Im working on it :)</p><div></div>

[brandy_bullman1]

<p>Okay, I posted 2 photos. the first one posted is decent. The 2nd one, horrible...THAT is the "haze" I am speaking of. If My aperture is below 3.0, the photo is worthless. Im working on showing more photos.<br>

I'd also like to say up front, I am self taught and only learned through mistakes so take it easy on me, please. I have seen some really rude remarks on here from users. Im just looking for advice or anyone who has shared this experience. </p><div></div>

[phule]

<p>Dpreview.com's test of the 50mm f/1.4 was done on the 50:<br /> http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/canon_50_1p4_c16/page4.asp</p>

<p>As with most fast lenses, wide-open can be problematic. Low-contrast shots will likely exacerbate the problem (as can be seen in the third one, applying a contrast adjustment can help).</p>

[phule]

<p>Er, that should have been "was done on the 50D"</p>

[brandy_bullman1]

<p>Thank you, Rob. I checked out the link. So does that explain the glow my photos have? I cannot get ONE decent shot at 1.4 and rarely can at 2.8 -there's something wrong with that. No matter the situation. 2 yrs ago, my images were crisp at 2.8. Now, they are soft and have a slight glow. I've googled my concern and have seen a lot of other stories similar to mine but no conclusions. Im a little worried. I should be able to get at least a few good shots at 1.4 to 2.8</p>

[phule]

<p>I think it goes a long way towards explaining it. However, I don't know if your results are typical or a-typical with the 50mm f/1.4. Shooting at f/1.4 is not easy and a shallow depth of field leading to a missed focus can easily make an existing condition appear much worse. </p>

[brandy_bullman1]

<p>I am attaching another photo. This one was taken with my Tamron 2.8 that has always produced great images with my 50d. Now, that rarely happens. The photo sometimes looks okay until I zoom in on the face. It looks blurry & grainy. This is how a lot of my images appear. I have went back to using my old 30d because it produces better images. (until I can get something better). <br>

Exif data- f/2.8 1/500 sec. ISO 160</p><div></div>

[PuppyDigs]

<p>It not a 50D issue. It's your EF 50 1.4 USM. A few lucky suckas get one that's decent wide open and tack sharp by F 2.8. You're not one of them. Mine was actually worse than yours at F 1.4: points of light were smeared like a comet. Got decent by F 2.8 and very sharp at F 5.6. </p>

<p>I haven't owned a 30D but my 50D yielded much better images than my 20D (same CMOS) as long as I shot at ISO 800 or lower.</p>

[philip_wilson]

If you cannot get good results at F2 or F2.8 with the 50 F1.4 you have a problem. The 50 is soft wide open and at

F1.8 but is great by F2

[phule]

<p>If you're trying to compare 100% views from a 50D and a 30D, you're not seeing what you think you're seeing. I would invite you to read the following:<br>

http://www.gdanmitchell.com/2011/05/01/why-your-21mp-file-looks-softer-than-your-12mp-image-at-100</p>

<p>In addition, I think you may be underestimating how much shallow depth of field can affect your images. When you have a DoF of only a few inches, any movement of photographer or subject can easily add up to a soft looking face. </p>

 

[mark_pierlot]

<p>Brandy, the shots with your 50/1.4 do indeed look horrible, much worse than any I've taken with my 50/1.4 at or near wide open on any of my EOS bodies (including the 50D).</p>

<p>The image taken with the Tamron, however, looks pretty good. It doesn't exhibit the hazy, "glowing" quality of the 50/1.4 images, or the extreme purple fringing. It appears that you've just missed the focus, which is in front of the face. (Compare the hem of the dress with the face, for example.) I've done this myself several times when working at shallow depths-of-field.</p>

<p>I would say it's an element alignment issue with your 50/1.4. One way of ascertaining this (and thereby ruling out your 50D as the culprit) is to shoot some images with the 50/1.4 at comparable apertures on your 30D, but don't compare them to the 50D images at 100% (as Rob has warned). It would, of course, be best to take images side-by-side of the same scene under the same lighting conditions. I'd be interested to see the results.</p>

[zml]

<p>OK, the pics from lens wide open look rather bad:not sharp, low contrast, terrible chromatic aberration, etc. Most likely a trip to Canon Repair (call them first and set up a repair ticket with explanation) is in order, but do first run some tests to gain some further understanding of the issue: Av mode, f/1.4, camera on a tripod, good light, focus both with AF and manually. You should have exposure in the 1/4000-1/8000s range at f/1.4. Compare manually/LV focused pics with AF and see where the fault is. Repeat this test every 1/3 f/stop until you get a satistfactory result.</p>

<p>FWIW, this is a handheld shot with Canon EF 50/1.4 wide open; 1/25s; ISO 3200; Canon 40D.<br /> <img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/7452272-md.jpg" alt="" width="679" height="480" /></p>

[brandy_bullman1]

<p>WOW, thanks so much guys. Im understanding some things a little better! This is actually my 2nd 1.4 lens. I thought there was something wrong with the first one after having it a year and I just ordered this 2nd one. <br>

Puppy Face, :) I think you are right. I have friends who use the 1.4 who have flawless images with shallow DOF and I cant do it no matter how hard I try.</p>

<p>Phillip, thats what Im worried about. Not even at 2.0 and I am rarely sharp at 2.8.</p>

<p>Mark, I use manual focus point and always focus on the face but the face is NEVER in focus! I never thought about it being a focus problem until you mentioned it. I pulled up some images and low and behold, there IS sharpness to the photo....just NOT where I focused on.<br>

Here is an example- I took numerous shots just like this and they all focused on the horses eye. I have also felt as if my camera can focus on the edges better than the middle.<br>

Maybe Im paranoid after all of the issues I've had in the last 5 years with equipment :(<br>

I have went through literally 7 lenses thinking I was getting bad ones so Im still leaning towards the camera having the problem because of the issues with my Tamron 2.8 and my 70-200L as well -?<br>

Thanks again guys for the help. I will definitely be doing these test shots asap.</p>

<div></div>

[brandy_bullman1]

<p>Rob, thanks for the link. That does make more sense but just confused me more. Am I seriously just a paranoid photographer expecting everything to be perfect? I may be :/</p>

[zml]

<blockquote>

<p>I have friends who use the 1.4 who have flawless images with shallow DOF and I cant do it no matter how hard I try.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Well, try your lens on their camera(s) and your camera with their lenses. Draw conclusions...</p>

[phule]

<p>Did you employ a focus and recompose technique with the woman on the horse shot? </p>

 

[zml]

<blockquote>

<p> A few lucky suckas get one that's decent wide open and tack sharp by F 2.8. You're not one of them. Mine was actually worse than yours at F 1.4: points of light were smeared like a comet. Got decent by F 2.8 and very sharp at F 5.6.</p>

</blockquote>

<p> Have you considered sending it to Canon for repair..? I have used countless copies (I'd say at least 20) of that lens and have never seen aything even close to what you are describing. Yeah, shit happens and you may have indeed gotten a dud but the EF 50/1.4 is great optically by design so cart it off to Canon Repair and enjoy it: whining will not fix it...</p>

[phule]

<p>[[Well, try your lens on their camera(s) and your camera with their lenses. Draw conclusions...]]</p>

<p>Indeed. I have a feeling this exercise will be very telling.</p>

<p>[[whining will not fix it...]]</p>

<p>Not to drag the thread off-topic, but if I had to characterize PF's posting history here at photo.net, "whining" would not be high on my list. I think you've applied a tone to his response that is not actually there.</p>

[philip_wilson]

<p>The other thing you should consider is checking front / back focus (to Mark's point) I found my 50D needed some micro adjustemnt on both my 7D and 5DII. It won't solve your problem but it is worth doing (I assume the 50D has micro adjustment but I do not have this body).</p>

[brandy_bullman1]

<p>No, I didn't focus and recompose on that image. Actually, half of that session turned out with the face out of focus. Made me cry!<br>

My photos just dont focus well in the center :/ <br>

I really REALLY appreciate the feedback! I'd love to figure this out and this to not be an issue with my camera.<br>

This being my second 1.4 lens, I figured it'd do just fine..but my second bad one? Puppy Face, I too get those comet-like light streaks but I get them with my Tamron 2.8. I sent the Tamron off last week and bought a Sigma 2.8 IS. You see, I just keep replacing lenses thinking they are the problem. <br>

Everyone has been really helpful, thanks so much. </p>

[alan_olander1664878205]

<p>I'd say it was more of a lens and/or focus issue, not the body. Plus, shooting against those bright backgrounds doesn't help anything.</p>

[arie_vandervelden1]

<p>Any chance there might have been some condensation on the lens? Smears, smudges or dust on the front element? Salt spray from a recent trip to the beach?</p>