pena2597 Loc: TEXAS

I have been noticing sometimes when I take a macro shot or close up of an object, parts of the image are in focus and others blurred...and it isnt like dead center is focused and the rest is blurred either. Im talking maybe half of the subject is in focus and the rest isnt or something in the foreground is in focus, then other parts of the subject are not...Its soo frustrating that I cant seem to figure it out. I have a Canon T3 and using the 18-55mm macro lens kit. I will post a photo as an example...if you have any info on what Im doing wrong, pls enlighten me. Your comments are greatly appreciated.

(Notice how some of the berries are in focus and some parts of the leaves as well...but other parts are not.)

LittleRedFish Loc: Naw'lens (New Orleans)

It sounds like you may have the nifty- fifty lens. One that came with the camera. That's not a macro lens. It's the starting point of lenses. If that is the lens you have it's the reason why you cannot get it to work as a macro.

If you do have a Marco, then most likely you would be only able to use it for Macro, and not any regular shots.

Can you use your lens for just a regular shot? Not a zoom or a real close up? Do you have several lens or is this your only lens? Is this the lens that came with your camera?

au2panner Loc: Grand Jct, CO

Sounds to me like you need to set your focus points on your camera. Look in your manual on how to pick one of the nine focus points in your view finder. I have a T3 and on tv, av, or m mode you push the button with the square and cross on it, then turn your dial to which focal point you want it to focus on. Hope this helps, if not pm me and maybe i can explain it better

Also, I use manual focus for macro shots.

Frank T Loc: New York, NY

When shooting close up your depth of field is incredibly small.; That simply means that where normally everything may be in focus from 9 feet to infinity on a normal shot when you go close you'll find that the objects in focus encompass only 1/4 of an inch.
This is normal and there's nothing wrong with your lenses or your technique, it is just something you need to remember when shooting. The only way to increase your depth of focus in-camera is to stop down your lens. You'll get a deeper depth of foucs at F/22 than you will at 2.8.
There are software programs that will allow you to combine shots to increase your focus field by taking multiple shots but they're expensive and unless you're doing this all the time; probably not worth it.
Hope that was helpful. No need to spend more money now.

frank bruce Loc: Albuquerque,N.M

depth of field

JimH Loc: Western South Jersey, USA

To summarize what was said by the previous posters, I'm almost positive your problem was caused by 1) autofocus, coupled with b) too wide an aperture.

The AF system looks for bright and high-contrast parts of a scene in order to calculate focus. Your camera probably used the berries as a focus point. That in itself would not have been a problem, had you also not had your lens 'wide open'. A wide aperture ( less than say, 3 or 4) gives a very narrow depth of focus. It's hard to explain with a flower, but look at it this way - a wide open lens, used for a portrait of a person, full face and close, would have the nose in focus and the ears out of focus. That's what "narrow depth of focus" means. Not much depth. Narrowing down the aperture, or 'stopping down', as it called, from f/3.5 to f/8 or f/11 or so, will give you more depth of focus.

The drawback there of course,is that the narrower aperture needs a longer shutter speed to get correct exposure, thereby increasing the risk of blur and camera shake. It's a never ending circle of compromise to get it right.

lizardworks Loc: Western Slope of Colorado

I just want to add that the photo actually looks very good for a beginner :thumbup: . The berries are clearly your focal point and they look pretty sharp! When shooting very close-up your depth of field is very shallow-it is even worse when using a true macro lens. Like has already been mentioned, you will get a greater depth of field if you stop your lens down (sometimes you might have to go as small as F/22!). Often, when shooting macro, the blurred background of the photo is desirable (it's called "bokeh") to make the main subject stand-out. Also, it is usually better to use manual focus when shooting macro, because the AF can easily get confused at very close distances.

If you think you're going to want to shoot macro, but don't want to spend the money for a true macro lens, look into a set of extension tubes. They fit between your lens and the camera body and allow your lens to focus much more closely, almost a true macro. They are really cheap ( usually less than $100 for a set of three different focal lengths) and can be used with all of your lenses.

Nikonian72 Loc: Chico CA

I doubt if your zoom lens is a true macro. Macro lenses have a FLAT field of focus (FOF); zooms and standard lenses have a curved FOF (shaped much like the curve of the front lens).

When shooting wide open (large aperture) the DOF is quite narrow, and the curved FOF will be very noticeable with zoom or standard lenses.

Increasing your ISO to 400 will increase your DOF, making your curved FOF less noticeable, without dramatically changing your CCD resolution.

If you are serious about macro, then a serious macro lens is recommended. See my website below for examples of macro at f/22.

nice-diver Loc: oregon

use a tripod and a small apature(big number to let lots of info into the camera), watch for little breezes

silver Loc: Santa Monica Ca.

The lens you are using is not a macro lens, it just allows you to focus a little closer. Close focus filters just compound the problem. What you need is a true macro lens, a fixed focus, flat field lens. A good choice is in the 90-105mm range. There are also off brand macro lenses made by Tamron and Sigma that are quite good lenses and they are cheaper then the brand lenses. There is no such thing as a macro zoom. The lens manufactures call these lenses macro but it is a false moniker. For a complete explanation of macro lenses see Bob Atkins macro lenses.com. A true macro lens will improve your close up images greatly. One other thing. Never use a macro with auto focusing and hand held. You will get the best results with a tripod mounted camera.

Nikonian72 Loc: Chico CA

ALL of my macros are hand-held and auto-focus. See examples on my website below my name.

silver Loc: Santa Monica Ca.

Hello, I have been thinking over your comment and I want to respond properly to it. I am sure that you are quite capable of doing hand held photography in the macro style. For quite a while I also did hand held macro photography. There is a wonderful book written by John Shaw called Closeups In Nature that explains a wonderful technique for doing hand held macro photography. One thing to consider is that there is more then on e way to do the same thing. When I do macro photography by natural lighting I find that over all I can get more consistent results by using a tripod mounted camera. There are many people that dont have your talent for hand holding a camera. Also I personally feel that using my camera on manual puts the control to choose my focusing point in my hands rather then relying on the auto focusing mechanism of the camera. When people are learning how to do photography they are learning the basics and they should be exposed to many different styles. I teach photography and I always tell my students to try every technique for themselves and use the things that work for them. I always try to be objective and not let my personal style get in the way of the learning experience. One other thing to consider. Lenses have a sweet spot where they are performing at the optimum capability. Usually the sweet spot of a lens is at F8. When you stop a lens down to F22 diffraction kicks in and the lens actually performs below its capability. There are many things that influence making photographic images. The best thing is to try all techniques and decide for yourself what works for you personally. I hope that you dont take my comments personally but your response was so abrupt and definite.

nikondaddy Loc: Mayfield,Kentucky

What you noticing is that there is shallow depth of focus or f ield in macro shots take magnifying glas and look at an object under it withyour eye and see how the focus is narrow. The macro lense is like a maginfyin glass.

pena2597 Loc: TEXAS

Thanks all for your feedback..

Nikonian72 Loc: Chico CA

You contradict yourself. Your second statement agrees with me, yet you say that my "response was so abrupt and definite." "Never use a macro with auto focusing and hand held" sounds one way, abrupt, and definite.

If you can provide constructive criticism on how to improve any of my macro-photography, I am willing to learn.