Hi Everyone.

I have a Canon 30D which I use for weddings & some portrait work. I have read all the manual has to say and I have listened to the "experts" tell me to turn off the (in camera) sharpening.
My problem is I don't feel I'm getting the sharpest photos from my 30D. I see photos from other photographers that have the same camera and their photos are razor sharp. I don't think it's my camera because I have a fellow photographer that is having the same issue with her camera. We both use Canon 2.8L lenses, so it's not the lenses.
Would anyone out there be able to tell me what are the best settings to set my camera on so that my images will have very sharp focus?
I'm a fairly new Canon user (1 year) and I'm frustrated with this. I know that it's only a 30D, but I should be able to get very good image quality out of this pro-sumer model.
Please Help...and thanks in advance!:confused:

Eddie,
Are you shooting RAW or JPG?

What Presets are you using?

I guess i'm confused because you say you are turning off the in camera sharpening and then not happy because the images aren't sharp.

What aperature are yøu shooting those 2.8 lenses at?

I shoot 5ds but moved up from a 20d most always shoot RAW so i have to sharpen after the fact anyways. I shoot all L lenses and have never had a noticeable issue with sharpness.

Give us a little more detail on your camera configuration, lens choice etc...

Cris...

Sorry for the confusion. I guess I have more than just one question.
I was told during several photo seminars that I should turn off the in camera sharpening because the default setting overdoes it. I did so. I currently sharpen post capture using Nik. But I'm not happy with the results.
I am shooting at 2.8 and even when using my 85mm f/1.8 wide open (on autofocus) I don't like the results. They are good, but not great. I want Great.
I always shoot RAW. and I shoot L lenses also.

My settings are the Standard (with Sharpening at 0) 85mm/1.8 @ f/1.8, evaluative metering, 1/250 sec ISO 400
Not sure what else you need to know about the settings.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23500832@N06/2242886253/
I have posted an example for your review.

So, should I turn it back on? Does it really matter if I'm shooting RAW? Could it be the UV Haze Filter I have on the lenses? What else should I look into? The sensor is clean.

How do you sharpen your photos? What setting do you use?
Thanks.

Hey Eddie,
If you are shooting RAW it shouldn't really matter.

Are you using the back button focus / lock focus and recompose technique?
I found that when i started doing that especially shooting at 2.8 i was getting alot of images that were not sharp.

One thing i found in myself is that i was bouncing my thumb on the back button, kind of a nervous habit and by the time was was recomposed the camera had locked focus on something else in the picture and at 2.8 your margin of error is very slim.

Try shooting at aperture's smaller than 2.8 and see if that makes a difference?

There are many great debates on the internet about using UV Filters on your lenses. I stopped using them years ago for two reasons. 1. I'm pretty gentle with my gear and always have a lens hood on my lenses. 2. It just never made sense to me to put a 20 filter on a 2,000 dollar lens. I am sure there are others out there that can argue the other side of this fence but for me i'll take the risk.

I typically sharpen in either Lightroom or using Nik in Photoshop. I've found Nik to be a little aggresive so I always tend to back it off after applying it.

Don't know if this helps maybe others have ideas?

Cris...

Chris I was reading in the new Smart Shooter that you have written a great article on the how to tether your camera to a laptop, which brought me to this site. Do you know where I could find that article?
I shoot with a 5d and a 30d backup. Just picked up an Apple Book Pro and want to use that in my new studio which is being built as I type this. I installed the Canon DPP newest version from the Canon site and I can't get the software to see the camera, and by the way I read where the DPP doesn't support the 30d? Ok I can live with that, since the 5d is primary.

It took some working through camera on, plug in, software on scenarios but I have the 5d working on my Apple desktop with excellent results. Then I try the same scenarios on the laptop and I cant get the Canon Remote Capture to come up.
Today Im going to replace that CRC with another download of it. However, any help would be grateful.
Thanks

Don Cornelius
Highdesert Photography
www.highdesert-photography.com

Hey Don,
I think the video you are referring to is my video on how to tether your camera to Lightroom, which can be viewed here:
http://www.prophotoresource.com/Cris_Mitchell/p2_articleid/98

Make sure you have the current version of the Canon EOS Utility installed
Once you plug your camera in launch DPP and then select Start EOS Utility from the Tools menu. This will allow you to capture directly into DPP. You can also capture directly to Capture One Professional.

Lightroom is a little trickier it involves creating a watched folder and is covered in the video.

I hope this helps let us know how it goes.
Cris...