Eos 6D mk2 photos not sharp

[Kiddyboy]

Hello

New to Canon as my 6D MK2 is my first Canon and only had since Xmas.

Having real problems with my photo's being less than satisfactory.I just cant get anything crisp

example as below,settings are

ISO-160

F5.6

1/400 - Aperture priority mode

single focus point and on auto.

subject about 4Metres away with Canon 100-400 lens set to max.

any advise would be greatly appreciated.

David

[wq9nsc]

Looks to me like the lens is front focusing because the sharpest point is the dirt in the foreground. Use the micro AF adjust procedure in the manual to dial in the focus.  I use a slightly different process to quickly dial in a new lens and during setup I shoot three frames at several adjustments each side of 0 which lets me quickly zero in on the exact point.

Also use as much shutter speed as you can, IS helps but when light permits I prefer going with shutter over IS.

Rodger

[ebiggs1]

"any advise would be greatly appreciated."

Of course! 

"subject about 4Metres away with Canon 100-400 lens set to max."

What does that mean, set to max?

"ISO-160

F5.6

1/400 - Aperture priority mode

single focus point and on auto."

Your setting are not horrible but not great either. If you were using Av than you need more ISO to get the SS up to 1/1000+.

Av

ISO 400+

f5.6

1/1000 is now possible.

When I do photography like you were trying to do I almost never let the ISO go below 400 and use ISO 800 a lot even more sometimes. This keeps the SS up where it needs to be for long tele lenses.

Another possibility you just missed focus but more likely you let the camera move because the SS was too slow. Two things to keep in mind, 400mm hand held isn't easy and requires practice to get good at it.  Second 100% crop will show every mistake, every little thing.

[ebiggs1]

" Use the micro AF adjust procedure in the manual to dial in the focus."

This is possible but at this point, a new to photography person, don't do this a s a first thought solution.  It can do more harm than good if you don't fully understand it. Adjust your settings as suggested, higher ISO and Av lens set to f5.6 and practice, practice practice.

BTW, use One shot and just the center point. Turn the others off.

[shadowsports]

Hi,

A couple of the guys who post regularly here have this lens.  I don't, but know its well liked.

What I see, it looks like the lens front focused in the image and didn't capture the intended subject. 

Normally, we tell people to capture more than one photo and with different settings.  A hand held shot at full zoom even with IS and 1/400 might not be as sharp as a one shot with Av at f8 or more and with a tripod.

Try taking sets of 3 shots with different settings.  This will make it easier when evaluating your images.  

**Edit, everyone has beat me to it...  what I get for making coffee.... 

[wq9nsc]

Rick wrote:

"**Edit, everyone has beat me to it... what I get for making coffee.... "

I learned long ago not to respond to questions without first making and consuming coffee  Or as an old college prof used to quip, the early bird may get the worm OR that early bird might mistake cat excrement for a worm if not fully awake 🙂

And I agree with KV about focus point(s), any image with a focus question needs to include those.

Rodger

[jrhoffman75]

DPP reports focus point on bird.

EXIF data reports AI Servo. In my experience that can sometimes cause problems if subject isn't really moving. There isn't a true focus lock and camera shake can be confused as subject motion. 

[ebiggs1]

If not used properly and understood properly Ai-servo can cause lots of problems.  Use One shot until you fully understand your gear.  Keep the more advanced stuff for later as you become more familiar how stuff works.

[kvbarkley]

Can you show us the image with the focus points highlighted? I think that will be just as instructive for you as us.

As Shadowsports said, it looks like it focused on the rock in front of the bird.

AF will focus on the closest thing in one of the selected focus points.

[Waddizzle]

”example as below,settings are
ISO-160
F5.6
1/400 - Aperture priority mode
single focus point and on auto.

subject about 4Metres away with Canon 100-400 lens set to max.”

First of all, if you are using a UV or CPL filter, then stop using it. For whatever reason that lens really does not like filters of any kind. It does not seem to mind using Clear protective filters. I use B+W Nano filters.

Your shutter is way too slow for wildlife, particularly small jittery wildlife. You want shutter speeds of 1/1000 or much faster. Often times smaller animals may appear to be still, when in fact they trembling in fear like a tuning fork. Your eye does not see it but the camera does.

If you are using Av mode, then you will want to manually set ISO to 800 - 1600. Set it high enough to yield shutter speeds that are fast enough for the lighting conditions.

Shooting wildlife is challenging. You need to have a good feel for how the camera focuses, and how a given lens responds to the camera. Fortunately, the EF 100-400mm II focuses much faster than your camera.

I concur with using only the center AF point and One Shot mode until you learn the camera’s AF system But those settings are best used for non-action like your example. So for now, stick to static shots like your example.

As far as the bird not being focus, ignore it. Not every shot you take will nail focus. Keeper rates can vary widely from photographer to the next. If you are just starting out, do not expect National Geographic worthy shots every time you take shot. Maybe more like 1 or 3 out of 100 might have the potential.

Be aware of your depth of field at all times. At 400mm, a subject 4 meters away will have a pretty narrow depth of field length. Forwards and backwards body lean could have moved the DOF off of the bird.

I would chalk this shot up as missed focus. Hand held shooting wildlife is really an advanced technique. I would advise using a monopod for these type of static shots. I use one for nearly all wildlife photography, except for birds in flight.