PHRubin Loc: Nashville TN USA

When I read the "Metadata" in Gimp, it gave both the actual (70) and 35mm equiv setting (105). It didn't give the focus mode.

via the lens Loc: Northern California, near Yosemite NP

Too close to focus would be the correct answer. A lesson I had to learn about lenses.

flyboy61 Loc: The Great American Desert

I think you have it!
Either it was inside the lens' focus capability, a problem I have had to recognize and solve recently, or in my case I can farble the focus/move my camera at 1/1000 sec. if I don't watch my technique and press the shutter release like I am killing a particularly hideous spider!!

SuperflyTNT Loc: Manassas VA

You can see the hairs but they’re not really in focus.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

I don't like to guess without specific metadata from the camera. Why'd you strip it off?

KimberlyF Loc: Corpus Christi, TX

Just a thought, as I'm assuming all the normal reasons an image would be soft have already entered your mind, did you come from a cool house to shooting outside in a warm and possibly humid environment? I did a beach shoot recently and forgot to not keep the car too cold on the trip out there. My first images looked like this as the lens &/or camera fogged up. Just a thought for you. :)

reverand

In general, a shutter speed of 1/800 should prevent camera movement, but not necessarily when you're getting up close. From the double edge of the flower pedals on the upper left, I'm guessing this is camera shake.

cactuspic Loc: Dallas, TX

There are two problems that led to the softness. First, at f/4, depth field is very thin. Complicating this depth of field limitation is movement. I think the moment was front to back. Although some parts of the image are more close to being in focus, nothing is in sharp focus. My guess is that this was a down shot where you were bent at the waist. It is difficult to get a good brace when bent at the waist.

By your concentration on this image, I am assuming that it is an outlier and that you have taken sharp close-up images at f/4.

Irwin

frankraney Loc: Clovis, Ca.

I agree with greyfox. Movement and to close for focus.

SalvageDiver Loc: Huntington Beach CA

It looks like there are two problems.

1) Focus there is nothing in focus, but it looks like the stem in the lower left is the best focus in your image and gets worse farther into the image. The focus point was either a) closer to the camera or b) between the stem and the flower. In either case it appears the focus was incorrect but not less that the 22cm minimum focus for this lens. However, doing the math assuming the flower diameter was ~3", your lens setting of 70mm @f/4 and PP crop, you were at or very close to the minimum focusing distance of this lens.

2) f-stop at an aperture of f/4 and a focus distance of 22cm, your depth of field was only 0.13cm (0.05"). Even if you were correctly focused on part of the flower, most of the flower was still going to be out of focus.

Even if you reduced the aperture to f/22 and at that distance, your DOF would still only have been 0.66cm (0.25"), not enough the get the whole flower into focus.

At 1/800s, I don't expect movement to be a problem with focus, especially since the subject was stationary.

You would likely have done better if your focus mode was AF/C rather than AF/S. Being in AF/S, if there was any delay between partially pressing the shutter button to focus and fully depressing the button to capture the image, then the focus between what you intended and what you got could easily have changed by just the slightest camera movement if holding the camera by hand. I would expect that back button focus in the AF/S mode would make this problem even worse.

SuperflyTNT Loc: Manassas VA

I use BBF and it’s always in AF-C. There’s no need for AF-S if you use BBF.

pv3977 Loc: San Diego

Perhaps you shot too close to the flower. Minimum focus for Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4 is 8.6 inch.

RichinSeattle

Clearly, your depth of field with those settings is much too shallow. Increase ISO, reduce shutter speed and close down the aperture to f/11. And, as I've mentioned before, a camera-mounted LED light bank will increase available light without adding unwanted shadows. Very useful for all macro photog.

joecichjr Loc: Chicago S. Suburbs, Illinois, USA

🆒🆒🆒

DeanS Loc: Capital City area of North Carolina

My guess, simply a bad focus, since everything is oof.