MtnMan Loc: ID

Not to be mean back but clearly your advice didn't work then. It also wouldn't work for me as I have done those things and nonetheless find it difficult to take tack sharp pictures with the D7000 I obtained a few months back.

I had previously done those things with my D5100 and was and am able to take tack sharp pictures with it.

I also note there are far more threads on UHH with people having trouble getting sharp photos with the D7000 than with the D5100 (very few) or D3100 (none).

I know that many are able to obtain tack sharp photos with the D7000 so I am not suggesting that there is something fundamentally wrong the camera.

I am suggesting that something about the D7000 makes it more challenging to get tack sharp photos with it than at least with the D5100, which has the same sensor, or the D3100, which has an inferior sensor.

One possiblity is how the focus system works. It does differ from the D3100/5100 system.

Another might have to do with the metal frame.

I don't know but keep looking for good ideas. "Read the manual" doesn't hack it.

robert-photos Loc: Chicago

It is still my opinion that 99.9% of focus problems are operator error but that is not to say your problem is the 0.1% exception. It is easy enough to check to see if it is your camera's fault.

Try reading and studying this tutorial on getting sharp photos:
http://photographylife.com/how-to-take-sharp-photos

It is fairly complete along with being concise.

If you are convinced that it is your camera (not the photographer operating it) then you can either get another camera which will give you better results or use a utility such as FoCal to calibrate the focus on your D7000. The pro-version of FoCal is ~$100.

FoCal is a utility which can fully automatically calibrate the Autofocus adjustment value of your camera and lens combination quickly at the touch of a button. See:
http://www.reikan.co.uk/focalweb/

There are also free methods to check and adjust the focusing of your camera. Google "adjust the focus of a nikon d7000" and you'll hit a number of YouTube videos and DIY tutorials.

Good luck
:thumbup:

MtnMan Loc: ID

Thanks for you input.

I'm convinced a skilled operator can take sharp photos with a D7000 and think it very unlikley that mine or all those others who complain about blurry photos with the D7000 have defective machinery.

I admit that some of those who post here were at the beginning of the DSLR learning curve. Even though I'm new to DSLRs I had an SLR I used for 30 years and a host of other cameras: I am able to take sharp photos.

I'm just saying it is harder with the D7000 than with the other Nikon cameras I have used. I have read much and attended classes and learned and practiced the skills to take tack sharp photos with them and am not having the same degree of success with the D7000. I even have gone through the procedures to fine tune the focus to my lenses. It wasn't necessary on my D5100 (which does not have the ability in software anyway) and with the same lenses and I found that it wasn't really necessary with the D7000 either.

Last year there was guy in Utah that won a Lamborghini. It took him six hours to wreck it. Previously he never had an accident or ticket.

robert-photos Loc: Chicago

Bummer :-(

Normanicus Loc: Glasgow : Scotland

Maybe your lens in switched to manual focus mode.

saxkiwi Loc: New Zealand

Your lens might be out of focus sync with the camera. Check your menu to see if you can sharpen the lens to the camera

BboH Loc: s of 2/21, Ellicott City, MD

As MTShooter said, with the apreture you used (f3.2) your area in focus is going to be there but VERY, VERY small. Everything NOT in that small circle will be blurry. Test it - put a patterned vase on the table - put your camera at one place - a tripod if possible - take 3 images - one a f3.2, one at f8 and one at f22. Then look at how the area of focus expands with each higher numbered stop,

Southmag Loc: West Yorkshire, UK

Do you have a diopter on the viewfinder? You may need to adjust this to your eyesight. I had to do this on my Canon 5D. Not sure if this helps!

GrahamS Loc: Hertfordshire, U.K

We really need to see some images before we jump to conclusions. The perceived problem may be operator technique, or it may be camera calibration. The D7k has a known AF calibration problem and some examples have to be returned to Nikon for re-calibration, especially of early manufacture.

mickeys Loc: Fort Wayne, IN

or it can be your eyes, like mine. :oops: :-P

MtnMan Loc: ID

I checked that for the lens and camera stated. Unless using f 1.8 it isn't that small assuming that the subject was at about eight feet. It is over a foot.

So I had to change my post which voiced the same concern.

naturepics43 Loc: Hocking Co. Ohio - USA

I think you may be REALLY CONFUSING the out of focus issue! Setting the shutter to "release" mode alloys the camera to take a picture even when NO IN FOCUS. Set AF-S & AF-C to "focus priority". The camera will only take a picture when in focus.

MtnMan Loc: ID

Yes. As I noted above if you want to do focus right you need to use single point focus. With the D7000 that requies setting focus mode to AF-S, focus area to single point, and custom setting a2 to "Focus".

naturepics43 Loc: Hocking Co. Ohio - USA

AF-S "locks" focus but AF-C continues to adjust focus until shutter button is fully depressed. I would think using AF-C would be better because a baby is a "moving" subject, not a "stationary" one. JMHO

MtnMan Loc: ID

Yes, I agree with your point and was making it more specific to the D7000 and emphasizing using spot focus.