# Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-70 f2.8L II Sharpness



## ebby (Jan 27, 2015)

Hello Guys!! I am new here!! ;D

I have question to ask you guys, hope you guys can share something with me. So i buy Canon 5D Mark III and Canon 24-70 f2.8L II mid last year, before this im using Canon 400D almost 6 years when Im still study. My first FF and Fast L Lens I feel so happy with the quality. Now Im working, my boss which is my friend too using Nikon D3s. My boss normally will check my image after work. When we zoom 100% my picture in Adobe Bridge my picture not sharp/soft. While he show me his picture zoom 100% in Bridge it is super sharp, (all picture was shoot in Large file and straight from CF card no edit was done) I already done body and lens calibration at Canon Service Center. Im here not to tell Nikon is better then Canon. I wanna learn is there I miss something. I wanna show my boss that Canon picture quality also good. Because he hate Canon. 

Is Canon 5D Mark III picture quality really cant compare with Nikon D3s when zoom 100%?

Appreciate any reply from you guys 

Down here is the screenshot my example picture being zoom 100% using Adobe Bridge.


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## Valvebounce (Jan 27, 2015)

Hi Ebby. 
Welcome to the forum.
Have you done AFMA. I'm not sure that Canon calibration is the answer as I understand they don't match your body and lens rather they match body to a standard lens and the lens to their standard body, this could still leave room for a small discrepancy. Also their adjustment may not be at the shooting range you are at, they set at a pre defined target distance. Try shooting live view, this would be the most accurate focus achievable, if still not sharp, is it possible that your technique is not as good as your boss, stance, bracing etc? I often shoot with a friend, and he has real trouble as he sways slightly even with correct stance and elbows in tight he still has movement, he can't see it but I can when I look at him side on when he shoots, get someone to study you while you shoot. 
All this can be eliminated with a tripod for test shots if you were not already using one. 
Let's get to the bottom of this so you can prove your chosen brand can be as good as that of your boss. 

Cheers, Graham.


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## donn (Jan 27, 2015)

ebby said:


> Hello Guys!! I am new here!! ;D
> 
> I have question to ask you guys, hope you guys can share something with me. So i buy Canon 5D Mark III and Canon 24-70 f2.8L II mid last year, before this im using Canon 400D almost 6 years when Im still study. My first FF and Fast L Lens I feel so happy with the quality. Now Im working, my boss which is my friend too using Nikon D3s. My boss normally will check my image after work. When we zoom 100% my picture in Adobe Bridge my picture not sharp/soft. While he show me his picture zoom 100% in Bridge it is super sharp, (all picture was shoot in Large file and straight from CF card no edit was done) I already done body and lens calibration at Canon Service Center. Im here not to tell Nikon is better then Canon. I wanna learn is there I miss something. I wanna show my boss that Canon picture quality also good. Because he hate Canon.
> 
> ...



Hi Ebby!

What was your shutter speed when you took this picture? do you have any lens calibration tool? try taking a picture of books on a bookshelf, take a picture on 45 degree angle, check the image if there is a sharp area and blur area, reference it as your combo could be back/front focusing. Do an AFMA if it does, best by using a lens calibration tool.


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## ebby (Jan 27, 2015)

Valvebounce said:


> Hi Ebby.
> Welcome to the forum.
> Have you done AFMA. I'm not sure that Canon calibration is the answer as I understand they don't match your body and lens rather they match body to a standard lens and the lens to their standard body, this could still leave room for a small discrepancy. Also their adjustment may not be at the shooting range you are at, they set at a pre defined target distance. Try shooting live view, this would be the most accurate focus achievable, if still not sharp, is it possible that your technique is not as good as your boss, stance, bracing etc? I often shoot with a friend, and he has real trouble as he sways slightly even with correct stance and elbows in tight he still has movement, he can't see it but I can when I look at him side on when he shoots, get someone to study you while you shoot.
> All this can be eliminated with a tripod for test shots if you were not already using one.
> ...



Hey Graham, thank you for the reply, I have not do the AFMA yet cause i thought after we do body & lens calibration we do not need to do AFMA, maybe I am wrong. I will get someone to study my shoot position. Before this I try doing test shoot with the tripod but the picture still blur when zoom 100% in Bridge. I think AFMA is the answer!


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## ebby (Jan 27, 2015)

donn said:


> Hi Ebby!
> 
> What was your shutter speed when you took this picture? do you have any lens calibration tool? try taking a picture of books on a bookshelf, take a picture on 45 degree angle, check the image if there is a sharp area and blur area, reference it as your combo could be back/front focusing. Do an AFMA if it does, best by using a lens calibration tool.



Hi Donn, my shutter speed was 1/1000 when I shoot that picture. No I do not have lens calibration tool. But im going to buy one soon. Okay I will try take a picture on 45 degree angle. Thank you for the tips Donn. Appreciate man!


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## donn (Jan 27, 2015)

ebby said:


> donn said:
> 
> 
> > Hi Ebby!
> ...



Cool! Looking forward for the results.


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## Valvebounce (Jan 27, 2015)

Hi Ebby. 
It makes a nice change to have a new member post a question then be there to read and respond to replies, so often it seems we make the effort to respond and then silence (metaphorically speaking). 
Regarding calibration, I'm sure there are people who have had calibration done and get excellent results, I have never done it through Canon, only AFMA with FoCal Pro, but it appears to me from the way Canon do calibrate that there is still scope for AFMA to be required. 
There are plenty of threads here on the different methods of AFMA, I will say FoCal needs LOTS of light to obtain good results. 

Cheers, Graham. 



ebby said:


> Valvebounce said:
> 
> 
> > Hi Ebby.
> ...


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## K-amps (Jan 27, 2015)

Take the same shot again on a tripod and live view focusing, that bypasses the AF sensor. OR you can try manual focus, but without a screen, it s bit hard. So try Liveview + Manual with liveview magnified. 

If after that it is still not focused, then the lens might be a bad copy which is rare, but possible. However if you do get a sharp shot, then proceed to AFMA the lens and revert to PDAF.


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## Hardwire (Jan 27, 2015)

A quick and cheap (See free) method to AMFA a lens is the "Dot Tune" method. Takes a few minutes to get your head around but basically you focus in live view with zoom and then add or subtract from the AMFA readings until you no longer get a focus lock, then repeat in the other direction to get the range in which the camera will focus.
Then you just work out the mid point of the range and put that in as your AMFA number 

Also on the 5d, you can do this (on zooms like your 24-70, but not primes as they do not have a focal range) put in one AMFA number for the wide end of the zoom and a perhaps different one for the far end of the zoom.
Read/watch this for full details:
http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1187247


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## ebby (Jan 27, 2015)

Valvebounce said:


> Hi Ebby.
> It makes a nice change to have a new member post a question then be there to read and respond to replies, so often it seems we make the effort to respond and then silence (metaphorically speaking).
> Regarding calibration, I'm sure there are people who have had calibration done and get excellent results, I have never done it through Canon, only AFMA with FoCal Pro, but it appears to me from the way Canon do calibrate that there is still scope for AFMA to be required.
> There are plenty of threads here on the different methods of AFMA, I will say FoCal needs LOTS of light to obtain good results.
> ...



Hey Graham, seriously Im quite serious about this, Hahaha. This blur/soft picture make me cant sleep. Everytime I have the job with my boss he will keep tell me that my picture not sharp when zoom 100%. It makes me frust, lol. I keep been thinking a lot about this. Cannot be Canon 5DMkIII picture quality is bad. Yeah I do research FoCal software an probably I am gonna buy this software (not so soon). But for now I will try do AFMA manually. Nice to know you man and I REALLY APPRECIATE A LOT EVERYONE THAT SHARE THEIR KNOWLEDGE TO ME. THANK YOU SO MUCH!


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## ebby (Jan 27, 2015)

K-amps said:


> Take the same shot again on a tripod and live view focusing, that bypasses the AF sensor. OR you can try manual focus, but without a screen, it s bit hard. So try Liveview + Manual with liveview magnified.
> 
> If after that it is still not focused, then the lens might be a bad copy which is rare, but possible. However if you do get a sharp shot, then proceed to AFMA the lens and revert to PDAF.



Hello K-amps, okay I will try it tomorrow with tripod and live view focusing because it is night right now, haha! Thank you man! btw what is PDAF? I know AF is autofocus right? sorry! newbie here!


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## ebby (Jan 27, 2015)

Hardwire said:


> A quick and cheap (See free) method to AMFA a lens is the "Dot Tune" method. Takes a few minutes to get your head around but basically you focus in live view with zoom and then add or subtract from the AMFA readings until you no longer get a focus lock, then repeat in the other direction to get the range in which the camera will focus.
> Then you just work out the mid point of the range and put that in as your AMFA number
> 
> Also on the 5d, you can do this (on zooms like your 24-70, but not primes as they do not have a focal range) put in one AMFA number for the wide end of the zoom and a perhaps different one for the far end of the zoom.
> ...



Hey Hardwire! Thank you for your knowledge sharing, I will try it tomorrow! and thank you for the link, I will read it right know! Appreciate man!


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## neuroanatomist (Jan 27, 2015)

Hardwire said:


> A quick and cheap (See free) method to AMFA a lens is the "Dot Tune" method.



Many of us who've done careful testing of 'dottune' have found that it gives unreliable results. On the plus side, you're getting your money's worth. 

@ ebby – The recommended test of live view AF (contrast detect AF, CDAF) vs. viewfinder AF (phase detect AF, PDAF) is the place to start. Take ~5 shots with each method, go through the 5 separately and pick the sharpest of each set, then compare them. If the live view shot is sharper, AFMA is next. If they're equally sharp (or equally not that sharp), then AFMA won't help, and you may have a problem lens.


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## AcutancePhotography (Jan 27, 2015)

Just to take a different viewpoint on this issue.

Don't worry about which camera system is better. That's not what photography should be about.

Your boss likes Nikon, you like Canon. Awesome. But you both like photography. Concentrate on that. There are sooooo many other things to talk about in the context of photography than pixel peeking. 

Talk about technique, composition, location, post processing... any of a multitude of photography topics that actually matter to photography.

Don't start down the road about agonizing about which brand is "better". It will not make you happy and it may distract you from actual photography. 

Focus on what is important -- getting out an takin them pictures!! ;D


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## dcm (Jan 27, 2015)

Since you didn't mention it, did you compare exposure settings (aperture/shutter/iso) between the Nikon and Canon images? That may account for some differences. If you go back you might vary these to compare f/2.8 vs f/5.6 vs f/8 with your own camera - you might notice image differences with that same camera/lens setup.


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## horshack (Jan 27, 2015)

neuroanatomist said:


> Many of us who've done careful testing of 'dottune' have found that it gives unreliable results. On the plus side, you're getting your money's worth.



Can you share a list of the many users who have had problems with it? I'm always interested in feedback and troubleshooting any problems people have had with it.


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## AE-1Burnham (Jan 27, 2015)

Hey Ebby,


This may be a silly question:* have you open the raw file in adobe raw and viewed it there and compared?*
I ask because when I first went through the Adobe CC upgrades my raw files (a preview!) looked like crap: fuzzy but not compressed, just not sharp and I was annoyed for about two weeks of editing. Then I realized it was a preview setting in Bridge preferences and once your turn on full res preview and dump your thumbnail cache TADA all my lovely L glass and FFness was back!! 
This is just a thought/consideration -- all other suggestions have been good too.


Best wishes




EDIT
Here is the actual setting in preferences from adobe forums:
Start Bridge, and open the Preferences.
Go to the “Advanced” section and turn on “Generate Monitor-Size Previews”
Click “OK’ to save
Dump thumnail cache.
Quit and re-open Bridge


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## adventureous (Jan 27, 2015)

Do you have this problem with other lens?


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## ebby (Jan 28, 2015)

neuroanatomist said:


> Hardwire said:
> 
> 
> > A quick and cheap (See free) method to AMFA a lens is the "Dot Tune" method.
> ...



Hello Neuroanatomist! I try 3 shots CDAF and 3 shots PDAF then I remove the lens filter and repeat again (all with tripod). The result better then yesterday. Here I share a link from dropbox, if you feel free to check my sharpness in full resolution that would be great. Question is the sharpness from my picture normal? Appreciate man! thank you!

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/h27doksiw3r84ap/AAAw4jeGN50TAKl7iTS20IM0a?dl=0


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## ebby (Jan 28, 2015)

AcutancePhotography said:


> Just to take a different viewpoint on this issue.
> 
> Don't worry about which camera system is better. That's not what photography should be about.
> 
> ...



Hello AcutancePhotography! Im not worry about the which brand better, Im just curious about the perfomance of my camera and the result of image. Cannot be Canon make 22mp camera but when zoom 100% it is not sharp. So Im here just wanna learn from everyone here did I miss something. Thanks for reply!


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## ebby (Jan 28, 2015)

dcm said:


> Since you didn't mention it, did you compare exposure settings (aperture/shutter/iso) between the Nikon and Canon images? That may account for some differences. If you go back you might vary these to compare f/2.8 vs f/5.6 vs f/8 with your own camera - you might notice image differences with that same camera/lens setup.



Hey DCM! Yeah but what I know my boss normally shoot at f2.8 and depends on the situation if we shoot sports the shutter higher and iso low. Sometime I do follow the aperture/shutter/iso from my boss camera but he picture still sharp. Probably my body not stable enough. Thank you for the reply man!


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## ebby (Jan 28, 2015)

AE-1Burnham said:


> Hey Ebby,
> 
> 
> This may be a silly question:* have you open the raw file in adobe raw and viewed it there and compared?*
> ...



Hello AE-1Burnham!

Thank you for the reply, I have not try open Adobe Raw and view it there, but I will try after this. Thank you for the tips man! I do follow your instruction about turn on “Generate Monitor-Size Previews” yeah image look much more better after I turn it on, but still blur, haha. But thanks for the tips I appreciate a lot.


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## ebby (Jan 28, 2015)

adventureous said:


> Do you have this problem with other lens?



Hey adventureous! for now I only have 24-70mm, but before this I borrow my friend 70-200 f2.8 IS and Sigma 50mm f1.4, the picture still soft/blur. Thank you for the reply man! ;D


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## ebby (Jan 28, 2015)

Hello Everyone! ;D

So after reply from you guys I do learn something new here! Thank you so much I do appreciate a lot! What I probably do now AFMA, or probably my body position is wrong/shaking ;D Here I share link from dropbox, everyone feel free to download and check the sharpness for me, I would be appreciate. This shoot was done using Manfrotto tripod and size of the image is Large. Photo is done by using technique CDAF and PDAF.

Question here is it normal the 5DmarkIII picture quality (from dropbox) is like that? or it should be sharper?

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/h27doksiw3r84ap/AAAw4jeGN50TAKl7iTS20IM0a?dl=0

Appreciate a lot guys! Thank you so much!


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