not a sharp hawk.

how do i get this picture to be sharp. i focused right on him and its taken with a 55-200mm canon. its a handheld shot but i didnt expect it to be this out of focus.
taken with

thanks
iso 1600
250mm focal length
f/9
1/640s

To my eyes it looks like the trees behind the bird are more in focus. With the bird being such a small target within the whole frame, the AF may have 'locked' onto the the larger target of the BG ??

Some really nice colours in those leaves though.

Matt.

thanks matt

i should start shoooting in manuel focus then?

heres another one

What about setting your focus point to be the very center spot? It's what I do anyway, instead of using the camera to think what it should focus on

ill def try that next time thanks

How much was the first image cropped? It looks like it was heavily cropped.

never cropped it

I have not used the same camera body and lens you have so I may be wrong, but I believe one thing I would suggest is to shoot at a lower ISO when possible. You would need to open the aperture up so your shutter speed would stay fast enough. Try some shots with iso 400 and f/5.6 for example.

The bird was too far away to get great detail, and being closer to your subject or using a longer lens so the bird filled more of the frame would help. Of course that is not always possible, but you need to realize when subjects are that small in the frame detail and apparent sharpness will be lower than when closer.

Better lighting would also help. Also, even though your shutter speed was reasonably high, it is possible to get some blurring when shooting hand held. It is possible to get sharp shots at lower shutter speeds, but the camera must be pretty still in even with 1-640 sec. In this shot the camera may not have been focused well on the bird, so the advise about using center focus is good. Also, make sure the camera has time to focus before actually taking the photo. Getting nice sharp photos requires a combination of things to be right.

Also, good post processing can enhance most photos.

Good advice from M50D. It looks like you missed the focus on the first one and being far away makes it more difficult. Keep trying and it will get better.

It think it's already been said but if you were to take the first shot and allow the camera to select the AF point, chances are very small you will get the camera to focus on that bird. Next time tell the camera what autofocus point to use and point it right on that bird.

If you really want the bird only then you do not need much depth of field so f/4 or something would have been OK. Some of the information you gave is contradictory: shot with a Canon 55-200mm, but later on you give the focal length as 250mm. You did not mention the Camera model

Whatever, with a focal length of 250mm and a distance of (my estimate) 10 meters at f/4 you have a DOF of 41 cm (based on a FF camera). More than enough for a sitting bird shot. At f/9 this is almost double and too much!

(Even at 6 meters distance and 250mm FL you still have a depth of field of 16cm at f/4).

(I have a DOF calculator on my iPhone - great help).

I shoot birds and other wild life always with the center focus point only.

vk2gwk wrote in post #8874402
If you really want the bird only then you do not need much depth of field so f/4 or something would have been OK. Some of the information you gave is contradictory: shot with a Canon 55-200mm, but later on you give the focal length as 250mm. You did not mention the Camera model

Whatever, with a focal length of 250mm and a distance of (my estimate) 10 meters at f/4 you have a DOF of 41 cm (based on a FF camera). More than enough for a sitting bird shot. At f/9 this is almost double and too much!

(Even at 6 meters distance and 250mm FL you still have a depth of field of 16cm at f/4).

(I have a DOF calculator on my iPhone - great help).

I shoot birds and other wild life always with the center focus point only.

The 55-250mm is f/4-5.6, it isn't a fixed aperture sadly. But I agree, shoot with the biggest aperture and a lower ISO speed (1600 is way too high) with the focusing point set to the middle. I've gotten some great shots of birds with that lens. Try to get a little closer, too!

I've had the same problem camera focusing on the object behind what I wanted it to, but now only use the center focus point and try to put it right on the bird/animal. Ive had more success since the change.

Here is another one...
Info: 5d2, 100-400 L 4-5.6 IS USM, @400mm 1/1000 F/5.6 ISO 1600 (late afternoon - overcast).
The DOF is clearly shown in the grass - about 30 cm. Shooting distance was about 12.5M

I often use a single spot to focus... It's usually use the center spot and occasionally, alternate between upper center and lower center... or left side center, or right side center... It depends on the composition and location of the subject...