R7 has "soft" images

[rockjock]

Hello,

I recently purchased a refurbished R7 body from Canon's site and after shooting a few images, I'm noticing that the images are very soft.  I've seen a few other posts about blurry images and while I wouldn't call mine blurry (they seem to be in focus), they're definitely not as crisp as I would expect.

I shot a couple of images each on both the R7 and my 70D (both APS-C cameras) to compare image quality and, in each case, the 70D's images are far clearer than the R7.  My set-up is as follows:

On each camera, I shot an image of a tree ~200yds away, on a sunny day, using two lenses, each with IS on (EF 24-105L at 70mm and F7.1 with no filter and a EF 70-200 (f2.8) L at 100mm and set to F7.1 with no filter).  I tried to match the setups as much as possible, Servo AF, ISO 200, "Standard" camera profile, center "zone" AF, evaluative metering and RAW.

On the R7, I am using a Canon RF adapter with a ring.  Just prior to this test I did a reset the R7 to factory defaults and made a couple of minor changes, notably changing the file format to RAW, and using the mechanical shutter.

I've been an amateur photographer, using Canon gear, most of my life and have a pretty solid understanding of digital camera functions. That said, this is my first mirror less camera so it's possible I'm just missing something.

On many posts I've seen the (very reasonable) suggestion of renting an RF lens to see if the problem persists.  In my case, this probably wouldn't make sense as I'm very happy with my current EF lenses and if the R7 can't perform with them, it would make more sense to find a different camera than to buy all new glass.

Thanks, in advance, for any help.

 -Kevin

[deebatman316]

Can you please post some pictures in the forum. Also focus points on mirrorless cameras are an illusion. In a DSLR camera they're dedicated AF sensors for each focus point. Also please list the full name of the lenses that you used. Canon has released 2 L versions of the 24-105mm F/4L lens. They also have released 3 L IS versions of the 70-200mm F/2.8L IS USM lenses. With stationary subjects use One Shot AF. Servo AF is unnecessary for stationary subjects. Older lenses have restrictions when it comes to AF, FPS & DPAF (Dual Pixel Autofocus). There is no way around this. This is due to the lens lacking the necessary hardware for those features to work.

[stevet1]

Demetrius,

You wrote, "Also focus points on mirrorless cameras are an illusion. 

Could you expound on that a little?

I've never used a mirrorless.

Thanks,

Steve Thomas

[deebatman316]

A DSLR uses separate AF sensors for each AF point. That doesn't exist on a mirrorless camera. All AF is taken place on the image sensor. The camera is tracking all the time. Unlike a DSLR camera. 

[Tronhard]

Hi and welcome to the forum:

I am curious why you are using servo autofocus for still objects.   Also, can I suggest switching to spot focus, and using BBFocus and see how that works out.  Are you shooting using the viewfinder in each case or using the rear LCD display?

[Waddizzle]

“. On each camera, I shot an image of a tree ~200yds away, on a sunny day, using two lenses, each with IS on (EF 24-105L at 70mm and F7.1 with no filter and a EF 70-200 (f2.8) L at 100mm and set to F7.1 with no filter).  I tried to match the setups as much as possible, Servo AF, ISO 200, "Standard" camera profile, center "zone" AF, evaluative metering and RAW.  “

Could you post samples of these test shots?  What were your shutter speeds?

200 yards?  Why are you shooting test shots with a subject so far away?   You should be shooting test shots with a subject that fills more than half the frame.

[rockjock]

First, thanks for all the quick replies. I really appreciate you all taking the time.  I'll try to summarize to everyone, in this reply, as best I can.

First, the 70-200 is an IS II USM. The 24-105 is an IS USM.  The 70D also uses DPAF and I've never had an issue with it and either of these lenses.

I shot these in AV so I could control the f-stop (I wanted to keep in in the middle).  The 70-200 shots were at 1/200 for both cameras. The 24-105 were 1/320 (R7) and 1/250 (70D).  One note, I originally shot a range of images and apparently selected the wrong image for the R7 as it was at 35mm but given that all the other images I've shot seemed soft as well, I don't think the focal length is making a huge difference in this case.

I shot these on servo as that's just my default. I've been caught, too many times, trying to get a spontaneous shot of something in motion by the time I got around to switching to servo, the shot was gone. So now I leave it there most of the time.  I will say that in all the cameras I've owned, I've never had one that wasn't able to nail the focus on a stationary object with AF servo.

I shot these at the distance I did as I wanted to shoot all four images of the same subject and with the crop factor on the APS-c sensor, I didn't want to shoot something that was too close in deference to the 70-200.  Also, I originally noticed this issue when shooting landscapes this past weekend and wanted to recreate those images to make sure it the issue wasn't as a result of me just doing something dumb.

I almost always use the viewfinder.  I'm just very comfortable using it, especially in bright daylight.

Lastly, I didn't see an add a photo as an attachment so they're inline.  Other than scaling these images down a little, I converted them to JPEG with no other processing.

R7 24-105R7 70-20070D 24-10570D 70-200

[ColinBROWN]

You could consider a UV filter. I may be wrong but there appears to be a little haze dominating the bottom photo which would result in a loss of contrast. Canon do a UV Protector Filter.

[deebatman316]

A UV filter is useless on a digital camera. The image sensor has one built in already. 

[rockjock]

Taking your suggestions, I shot a new image of a poster with text.  This was shot from a tripod at about 2 feet, AF One shot and center focus point at ISO 400 1/80 using the 24-105 L lens.  I'm inserting the original, un-cropped, image and one cropped at about 70%.  For good measure, I re-seated the adapter.