D90 images - not sharp... what am I doing wrong?!

[JJ!]

Right, after lookig at some images taken with the 18-105, its clear that the 16-85 is very soft at the long end. The 18-105 being sharper at 85 through to 105. The build is obviously not so good, but I managed to sell the lens and order myself a 18-105 and 50mm f1.8 :-)

[Scott™]

You will not be disappointed with the prime. Epic lens.

[Y7 ADW]

Are all the images soft or is it just that particular lens? Also are you shooting JPEG or RAW? And is it set to normal image quality?

I bought a D90 last week and so far I am so pleased with it. When using it with the 70-200 F2.8 you could cut yourself on the images it produces they are that sharp lol.

[JJ!]

Was the lens TBH, the 18-105 whilst not great, is good for a kit lens. So looking forward to getting the 50!

[JMR]

I have the Nikon 35mm f1.8 prime lens and its a cracker for sharpness, particularly between f2 - f4

This is a cheapish lens at only £180 but there are some red/green chromatic abberations in front and beyond the point of focus which can detract from the image at times.

Very lightweight and the 50mm is based on this design if its the AF-S silent wave autofocus model you have picked.

[amnesia]

The D90 and 50mm f1.8 is a cracking combo... if only I could afford the 35mm f1.4G

[JJ!]

50mm f1.8 AF-S has arrived!

[Tigger]

Nicely - I'm looking at a 30mm f1.4 at the moment

My 24-70mm f2.8 isn't producing images as sharp as I'd like them to be sometimes. Has some dust on the inside but that wouldn't have a massive effect would it?

[Tigger]

Little bump here but it looks like I'm having the same trouble, with "normal" shots - portrait/still life/landscape in Aperture or Program mode

Even tried a few in "Landscape" setting and some looked awesome on the rear screen but very soft when loaded onto the laptop

I'm shooting with the D90 in Standard shooting mode, Active D-Lighting on Normal or Auto. (Sometimes try Vivid mode)
Glass - Nikon 24-70mm f2.8 & Nikon 70-200mm VRII f2.8 - so getting soft results is mind boggling!

[TheEvilGiraffe]

Have you tried a focus test ? Newspaper page on a table will do. Pick a word to focus on take a pic and see if it's in focus ?!

If you want more technical help or test ideas, google it..

[capturedbyjames]

Does it happen in manual focus? As above, try a manual focus on a word through the viewfinder, then see what its like on big screen.

[Brazo]

Ok

Mount camera on tripod
Turn off VR
Set to manual focus and focus
10 second timer or IR remote

Take a picture and if its sharp start adding ion some of the variables above until you have nailed where the issue lies.

[Tigger]

Took a few shots around the apartment - seems ok

Landscape shots (handheld) appear a bit soft on screen sometimes

[Martin!]

Personally I would step the lens down to f/9-11....I wouldn't expect it to be tack sharp at f/6, especially if it's at 85mm as it's almost wide open....

[Tigger]

Program mode & fill in flash set at TTL/BL (-0.7) seemed to keep me happy today in regards to sharpness - some shots were taken at f22!
Better results than I was getting in Aperture priority

That was for "street" shots at a festival today in strong sunlight - rolling with the D90 + 24-70 2.8 combo with the SB900 on top

The other body that the 70-200 glued to it - also in Program mode