Kit supplied 17-55mm lens: always out of focus?

I just purchased a EOS 400 kit with the 18-55mm lens. I know this lens is not that great, but I wanted somthing to play around with untill I decided what I wanted.

Nearly every photo it takes is a bit soft when the picture is viewed at actual resolution for image editing. While outdoor shots are OK, night shots and close up work have a distinct blur to them no matter how I focus:

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f/29 is going to be soft, no matter what you shoot. When all your light is forced through a tiny, tiny opening, it diffracts, which causes softness. Shooting for 3-5 seconds, unless you're on a nice tripod, can create problems too.

Re-shoot the scene with a faster shutter speed (1/100th or so) and a decent aperture (f/4-f/8 ). That will give you a better idea of the lens's sharpness.

Can you clarify which lens you have got. I assume it is the 18-55mm not the 17-55mm f/2.8 IS. Try what Chris has suggested above.

I just tried that and i'm still getting the same soft image.

How close are you shooting from?
It is possible thta you are closer than the minimum focusing distance.

Also check that the lens is not on MF...

The 18-55mm Canon kit lens isn't THAT soft normally. Something else is going on here.

I'd suggest shooting at about f5.6 to f8.0 it looks like you're working in some lowlight conditions the kit isn't known for doing well in lowlight..

Try something else. A thing that is white like that is one of the hardest things a AF can focus on. Try taking a picture of a tape measure and give us a 100% crop of what you focused on. I honestly can't tell whats wrong with that shot as if I took it with a L lens it might also look very similar under that light and subject. Also shoot the picture in the daytime and not under just a lamp.

Best advice is to try something else to test the lens - that subject is obviously white, and provides low contrast. It is also very small, and the AF sensors are bigger than the LED lights in your view finder.

Go shoot something real, at f/8 - that is the sweet spot for the kit lens. Chose something colourful with high contrast - signs etc


The other thing to ask is whether you know about sharpening images in post-processing? DSLR images often require some sharpening due to the nature of the sensor and the filters that overly it. You can apply some tweaks in-camera - go into parameters in the menu - that apply sharpeniong and boost contrast and saturation - if you wish.

Put your camera on a tripod. Stand a book up on its edge, with the cover facing the camera. Put a yardstick or tape measure running from camera position to the book and beyond by some distance, so that it can be seen by the lens for its length and the location of the book can be seen relative to the scale. Focus on the book cover. Take a picture and post it for us.

Ok, back. Today was nice and bright so I did some shots like you requested. I took a shot of a DVD case from 3.5 feet in direct sunlight. These images were cropped, but not reduced in size. Here is shot 1

F8, apiture priority, I think it was 1/60th shutter time. I took the shot without tripod:

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daniel_leavitt2000 wrote in post #2389544
For the next two shots, I focused on the top of a hydrant from about 6 feet:

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This was taken with an apature priority set to F8, the shutter speed on this was about 1/100. My hands were not shaking enough to cause that bad a shot.

That IS definately handshake.

Jonn wrote in post #2390026
That IS definately handshake.

Indeed.

I'd agree the top hydrant shows shake - the one below at 1/200th is much sharper and about what you would expect of the kit lens.

The DVD box you show is not really a good subject either - inherently low contrast and you are asking your camera to reproduce low def artwork on the DVD cover. Maybe a breakfast cereal box? you want something bright and contrasty with good colours and defined edges.

daniel, the reason to mount the camera on a tripod in the test is to eliminate the USER from the causes of the problem. the reason for tape measure in front and behind a book is to see if 1) your camera/lens combination is suffering from front or back focus, both of which are adjustable shortcoming or if 2) your lens is truly faulty.
Continuing to post handheld shots, and with nothing in front or behind the object of focus to use as evaluation of front/back focus, is not helping us figure out the problem.'

If you don't own a tripod, set the camera down on a firm surface for the shot!