Every pic is just slightly blurry. Why?

[sweetpee_1993]

Okay. Lemme preface this with the fact that I know absolutely NOTHING about D-SLR cameras.

Back in the spring a friend of mine had an Olympus Evolt E-420 that had maybe 2 pics total ever taken with it that she was selling at a very good price. ((She had bought it as a gift for her daughter but the daughter went out & bought a different camera before she could give it to her.)) My hubby had been wanting a D-SLR of his own for a while. No, the Olympus was not either of our first choice but $$ has been kinda tight, the price was good, and knowing the camera had fully automatic settings we figured once we could get DH his choice D-SLR this one could become mine.

So we've not used the camera that much. When we have every single picture even if taken in full-automatic mode(s) comes out just a touch blurry. No clue why. Hubby does know a little about photography because his grandfather was into it. All the pics hubby has ever taken with our son's Rebel xL have been fine so I don't think it's operator error.

Hubby was looking at the camera body with the lense off and noticed there's a finger print or smudge of some sort right on this little lense thing. You can see it in this pic I took with my iPhone. Looking inside the body front upwards towards where the view finder is, it's the light hazy spot sorta to the right:

Would this be causing the slight blur?

I'd love to run the camera up to a repair shop to have them look it over. Googling and a check of YP.com for that sort of business in our area turns up a whole lotta nothing. I'd have to take it over to Houston. A road trip over there would run me about $35 each way (gas & food) plus the cost of the repairs. If I only paid $250 shipped for the camera to begin with I don't see puting a whole lot of $$ into having this issue resolved....especially if this isn't the camera DH really wants to have in the end. Ya know?

 

[unkadug]

My feeling is that unless you get this repaired, then you just threw away the 250 that the camera cost.

I wouldn't spend more than half of what it cost to get it repaired, I also would not make a special trip to Houston, save it until you can justify the trip with something else, be it entertainment or otherwise.

 

[wdwmagic]

That looks to be on the mirror. This flips up when you take a picture and will not affect image quality. It will affect your viewfinder image though.

If there are marks in this area there could well be damage or marks on the sensor which would impact images.

Can you post a sample image?

 

[BillyBuff]

Also check if the front of the lens is smudged or if there is a filter in front of the lens that could have smudges on it or not.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

My feeling is that unless you get this repaired, then you just threw away the 250 that the camera cost.

I wouldn't spend more than half of what it cost to get it repaired, I also would not make a special trip to Houston, save it until you can justify the trip with something else, be it entertainment or otherwise.

Seriously, I do NOT go into Houston often. I thought about maybe shipping the camera to a shop somewhere because USPS Priority flat rate + insurance is certainly cheaper (& less stressful) than a trip to Houston. LOL!

That looks to be on the mirror. This flips up when you take a picture and will not affect image quality. It will affect your viewfinder image though.

If there are marks in this area there could well be damage or marks on the sensor which would impact images.

Can you post a sample image?

Sample images on the way. Uploading now.

Also check if the front of the lens is smudged or if there is a filter in front of the lens that could have smudges on it or not.

The front of the lens as in the lens that you attach to the body, right? Making sure I'm on the same page. That thing is very clean. No filters attached.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Sample images. I think I remember what order these were taken, too.

This had to be in the first bunch we took with the camera because this is still in Oklahoma. This really isn't that bad.

Easter. Not looking so hot.

I'll be honest, Chandler took this and he wasn't really interested in taking the pics at the time because he was itching to get back to Modern Warfare. Still, extremely frustrating because it's not everyday I spend that much or receive a doll that costs that much. Not likely to happen again, either.

Still, not the worst in the world but just slightly blurred. I took this using the fully automatic setting thing because I have noooooo clue about all the technical stuff.

After that I think I pretty well gave up on the camera and shelved it. We've used my son's Rebel since. It's frustrating. I'd like to be able to take this camera to WDW next month but it's not looking good at all.

 

[Monty]

Given the smudge inside the camera body, although it wouldn't impact your image, others elsewhere inside might. Putting fingers inside the housing is something that should really be avoided. As was said, that mirror flips up out of the way when you snap the shutter, it is used while you focus through the viewfinder [it's the "reflex" in Single Lens Reflex - SLR].

Other issues that can affect focus on an SLR camera are poor habits, holding the focus ring while snapping the ring can move, thus blurring the image to varying degrees. Lens cleanliness can have an affect as well, You should consider at least getting a UV filter which will protect your lens from dirt and scratches.

I'd say send it for a cleaning and if that doesn't correct te issue, take some photography lessons, they can show you any technique errors you might be making while also showing you some of the amazing things your camera is capable of.

 

[NowInc]

Are they blurry even in manual focus mode?

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Given the smudge inside the camera body, although it wouldn't impact your image, others elsewhere inside might. Putting fingers inside the housing is something that should really be avoided. As was said, that mirror flips up out of the way when you snap the shutter, it is used while you focus through the viewfinder [it's the "reflex" in Single Lens Reflex - SLR].

Other issues that can affect focus on an SLR camera are poor habits, holding the focus ring while snapping the ring can move, thus blurring the image to varying degrees. Lens cleanliness can have an affect as well, You should consider at least getting a UV filter which will protect your lens from dirt and scratches.

I'd say send it for a cleaning and if that doesn't correct te issue, take some photography lessons, they can show you any technique errors you might be making while also showing you some of the amazing things your camera is capable of.

I'm perplexed as to how that spot even got inside the housing. The friend I got the camera from only took a handful of pics with the camera once, owns other D-SLRs, and wouldn't have done such. I wouldn't have stuck my finger in there. Chandler (who has his own Cannon Rebel) would never in a bazillion years do such. Brian has zero interest in these cameras and so has never touched this one. The hubby also has experience with fancy-schmancy cameras and wouldn't have done it. So odd. :shrug:

I think it definitely needs cleaning so that's a must. I'm not going thru a bunch beyond that. Honestly, I have no intention of learning photography and the camera isn't the one DH wants in the end. If for no other reason I'd like to get this one working so I can sell it with a clear conscience.

Are they blurry even in manual focus mode?

I believe the 1st 3 pics above were taken in manual. The 3rd one I'm absolutely certain was in manual because it was taken by my 15 yro son who has his own D-SLR and wouldn't dream of insulting himself by taking photos using auto settings. ((teenagers are such fun :lol)

 

[BillyBuff]

The 3rd image seems like camera shake...movement of the camera while the shutter opens & closes. The 4th image seems fine. The hair and face looks sharp to me.

I think it's probably due to the automatic mode since in this mode, the camera picks its own aperture & shutter speed in order to obtain the correct expose and image. So, the 3rd image may have confused the camera's sensor because you're "backlit"...meaning light was coming from behind you. The camera probably picked a lower shutter speed to compensate it.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

The 3rd image seems like camera shake...movement of the camera while the shutter opens & closes. The 4th image seems fine. The hair and face looks sharp to me.

I think it's probably due to the automatic mode since in this mode, the camera picks its own aperture & shutter speed in order to obtain the correct expose and image. So, the 3rd image may have confused the camera's sensor because you're "backlit"...meaning light was coming from behind you. The camera probably picked a lower shutter speed to compensate it.

The 3rd one is the one my son took and not happily. It's entirely possible he wasn't paying attention to being still so no surprise on that one. That pic wasn't taken on automatic settings, tho. Does the camera still choose it's own shutter speeds when not in the automatic settings?





Thanks to all for your input. I appreciate it. :wave:

 

[SRisonS]

With everything in Auto, how do your bright daylight pictures look??? Pretty much any camera should do good in nice daylight, with full Auto. So if those pictures look good, it might not totally be the camera; unless it just doesn't like being used with anything Manual.

 

[wdwmagic]

All of your sample photos there are in difficult lighting conditions. Your best bet is to take the camera outside in daylight, and take a photo of your house on full auto. Ensure the lens is set to autofocus.

The problems that you see in your samples could very much be from operator, rather than the camera itself.

 

[brightlillstar]

All of your sample photos there are in difficult lighting conditions. Your best bet is to take the camera outside in daylight, and take a photo of your house on full auto. Ensure the lens is set to autofocus.

The problems that you see in your samples could very much be from operator, rather than the camera itself.

THIS

To me it looks like it could be slight camera shake due to longer shutter speed in these indoor photos or improper focusing. Are you holding the shutter button halfway down to focus?

The outdoor photo looks well focused to me, so I would think it's going to be a camera shake issue.

Also, I could be wrong, but in looking at the photos it produces, auto mode seems to always use a high aperture, therefore a slower shutter speed.

 

[ddbowdoin]

THIS

To me it looks like it could be slight camera shake due to longer shutter speed in these indoor photos or improper focusing. Are you holding the shutter button halfway down to focus?

The outdoor photo looks well focused to me, so I would think it's going to be a camera shake issue.

Also, I could be wrong, but in looking at the photos it produces, auto mode seems to always use a high aperture, therefore a slower shutter speed.

yes and no... if in auto you would expect the on camera cash to flash. It's to hard for a forum to answer this, would be beneficial to visit a professional camera shop if you have one available.