I own a Nikon D80 and a 1.8 50mm lens – unhappy with it should I trade for a Canon 5d?

Posted by admin in July 14th 2008    under: Nikon D80 Accessories    
  
7 Comments

I am shooting at the highest resolution and the “fine” setting, so as far as I know, nothing else can be changed. When I open the pics on my computer they are not at clear as i would like them to be. Up to an 8×10 is pretty good but anything over that is not so hot. I used to have a cheapo digital camera that would give me great detail such as the pores on someones face even when zooming in 4-5 times on the computer. I know a lady that owns a Canon EOS 5d and her photos are AMAZING. She also shoots with 50mm lens. I am thinking of trading my Nikon for the Canon 5d but I am wondering if i am making a mistake? I realize that her camera and my camera are not the same in megapixels or price but is it really worth the money to upgrade? I also own a sb-600 flash and my lens is a NIkkor lens…. Does this mean that if i trade for a Canon that my accesories will not work or fit? I need help deciding… If my accessories will be useless on a canon camera, should i trade for a Nikon camera that is similar to the Canon 5d? What Nikon camera is the equivelent? I really love the clarity, brightness, no noise, and brilliance of the photos that my friend gets with her 5d. I am an amateur photographer but hoping to someday move up in the world – you can see some of my work here. Http://www.flutterbynight84.deviantart.com ———– any help?

Wow, a 1.8/50? It can't be the glass since I've heard a lot of good things about Nikon's "nifty fifty" (unless the glass does not appear clear). Is this an older model?

Have you tried running it on manual just to test if the sharpness is off? If it isn't, then maybe your autofocus is screwy and needs to go back to the manufacturer.

If it's because you're running manual, then you could look for a magnifier for the viewfinder that might make it easier for you to tell details.

It sounds like you're shooting JPEG as well. Have you tried RAW? Is the ISO low? Are you shooting really wide aperture and have you tried stepping down to F/2 or smaller just to see if it's the fineness of your field of depth that's contributing to your results?

As you can see, there's a lot that could be going wrong here. Even the way you hold the camera could contribute to fuzzy shots.

If all of this was tried and failed, then maybe the camera just doesn't feel right. I wouldn't suggest immediately going to Canon, but I WOULD suggest going to the camera shop and asking if you can test-feel the other models.

Also, not to nudge (okay, maybe I am nudging), but Pentax has a good variety of portraiture-length lenses that might be worth looking into if you really want to switch.

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7 Comments

linty Said,
October 26th, 2008 @2:05 am  

Are you using a good quality lens? If I’m thinking of the right lens, I am guessing the one you are using is a lens that’s very good quality for it’s price, but it’s also a very cheap lens.
You should check with your friend about what lens they are using. If she’s using the 50mm 1.2 L series (~1500$) then that might be part of it too.

To answer your other question,Your flash will work, but your lens will not fit on a 5d.
References :

David M Said,
October 26th, 2008 @2:23 am  

Your camera should deliver perfectly fine images. The 5D is a full frame camera and will deliver more detail but I doubt you could tell unless you blew the images up really large. I suspect the biggest problem is your own ability to use the camera properly. There is probably to much camera shake going on. This will cause your pictures to be not as sharp as you would like or slightly blurry. The solution to this is a faster shutter speed or a tripod.

If you truly want to upgrade I suggest you look at the D300 or the full frame D700 by Nikon. There is no need of switching brands. It can be very expensive.
References :

Donald L Said,
October 26th, 2008 @2:31 am  

Wow, a 1.8/50? It can't be the glass since I've heard a lot of good things about Nikon's "nifty fifty" (unless the glass does not appear clear). Is this an older model?

Have you tried running it on manual just to test if the sharpness is off? If it isn't, then maybe your autofocus is screwy and needs to go back to the manufacturer.

If it's because you're running manual, then you could look for a magnifier for the viewfinder that might make it easier for you to tell details.

It sounds like you're shooting JPEG as well. Have you tried RAW? Is the ISO low? Are you shooting really wide aperture and have you tried stepping down to F/2 or smaller just to see if it's the fineness of your field of depth that's contributing to your results?

As you can see, there's a lot that could be going wrong here. Even the way you hold the camera could contribute to fuzzy shots.

If all of this was tried and failed, then maybe the camera just doesn't feel right. I wouldn't suggest immediately going to Canon, but I WOULD suggest going to the camera shop and asking if you can test-feel the other models.

Also, not to nudge (okay, maybe I am nudging), but Pentax has a good variety of portraiture-length lenses that might be worth looking into if you really want to switch.
References :

fhotoace Said,
October 26th, 2008 @2:51 am  

You could well be making a mistake.

* There seems to be something you missed when setting your camera to its highest resolution. Choosing the quality to the "Fine" setting is good, you also have to set the Image size to "Large".
* None of your Nikon accessories will work with Canon cameras
* To match the 5D, you will be looking at the Nikon D700
* No noise is relevant to the ISO you set the camera to and at present the Nikon system has the upper hand in this arena (D3 and D700 can produce images at 6400 ISO that have less noise than other DSLR's at 400 ISO), so changing camera systems to avoid future image noise is NOT what you want to do.

Much of the term you call "clear" could have to to with two important features. 1) camera movement and 2) critical focus. Unless you can say no to number 1 and yes to number 2, NO DSLR will satisfy your need for sharp, well exposed and composed images.

Things you may find interesting.

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/notcamera.htm

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/mpmyth.htm

NOTE: After viewing your images, there IS a problem with critical focus. I suggest you call the Nikon help line 800.NIKON-UX 24/7/365 and talk to them.

To test your camera to see if there is a problem with its auto-focus system, take your body into a camera store and ask to test a couple of Nikon lenses on your camera. If the focus is perfect with those lenses, then you know the lens you purchases is the problem and you can have Nikon repair it if 1)You registered it when you bought it and 2) it is less than 5 years old.

Of course if the results are the same, the problem lies with the camera itself … It may help to have this known before you call Nikon, because they will be asking you those questions too.
References :
Editorial, sports, fashion and glamour photographer

hipp5 Said,
October 26th, 2008 @3:29 am  

Looking at other people’s pictures really tells you nothing about the camera. The quality of the picture is much more determined by skill than it is by the camera.

What aperture are you shooting at? If it’s at 1.8 your depth of field will be very low and all but a narrow depth will be out of focus. Try increasing your aperture number.

Also, you may have a dud lens. Sometimes it happens. Before you consider switching bodies you should go into a camera store and ask to test out some of their lenses. See if you still get fuzzy images.
References :

Elbert Said,
October 26th, 2008 @4:06 am  

The lens may be front or back focusing or there is some camera shake when you shoot. It would be great if you posted links to images that are not up to your expectations along with the EXIF data intact, you’d get better answers than just guesses.
Try this focus test with the 50.
http://focustestchart.com/chart.html
Getting a better specced camera won’t improve the images if it’s your technique that is at fault.
References :

EE dude Said,
October 26th, 2008 @4:18 am  

I would expect a D80 with the Nikkor 50/1.8 to be able to deliver very good images. I looked at your images on deviantart and do have a couple of questions. First off, did you modify the images to make them more “web friendly” in terms of image size? This would be a common thing to do when posting, but the originals shot at high res should be able to maintain sharpness at enlargement. The main reason I ask is your resolution on your images is somewhere around 800×600, a high res image from a D80 should be well over 3000×2000. This could be as photoace mentioned an error with the image size setting on your camera. To get the best images, especially if you’re enlarging to 8×10 or larger, you need to have the largest image size possible. The other thing that I found odd is I noticed on the EXIF data on a shot listed the shutter speed as 10/2500. Normally shutter speeds are indicated in 1/ not 10/ and while I can do the math 10/2500=1/250 it just seems off to me.
References :

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