lens sharpness

[quackal]

....at what point can you determine that a lens is bad and any fuzziness is due to the lens build and not human error?

Is there a way to quantitatively test the clarity and sharpness of a lens?

thanks!

 

[Trever1t]

yes, sturdy tripod and a card with printed pattern specifically designed to find flaws, I forget the name!

 

[smeat]

also if all your lenses increasingly suffer this blurry flaw you might be able to rule out the lens. ;-)

 

[KmH]

Is there a way to quantitatively test the clarity and sharpness of a lens?

thanks!

Did you try using an Internet search engine? Use the search term, "how to test the sharpness of a lens".

 

[Derrel]

Is there a way to quantitatively test the clarity and sharpness of a lens?

thanks!

Did you try using an Internet search engine? Use the search term, "how to test the sharpness of a lens".

Oh, come on KmH...same tired old 'did you try using a search engine' response from you. I mean, c'mon, I plugged in your suggested search string and all I got back was 894,000 responses....cripes dude, that's not even a million responses! What kind of help is that!?

 

[Overread]

Is there a way to quantitatively test the clarity and sharpness of a lens?

thanks!

Did you try using an Internet search engine? Use the search term, "how to test the sharpness of a lens".

Did you try it as well?
Guess who's website comes up First on the list - not second not third, but the very very first!


(yes its ken!)


Google is only any good if you know the question and also have enough of an understanding to filter the results it gives to you find the correct info. When you don't know the exact question and when you don't have enough understanding to filter the results its very risky and can easily have you running down the wrong route or getting lost in a mass of too much info and too many conflicting answers.

Besides I used google once - it led me here - :lmao:


As for the question at hand the best way to test lens sharpness is to mount the camera on a tripod - enable mirror lock up (check manual for this) - then use either a remote or the timer function to take a shot.
Ensure that your diopter is correctly set (check manual) and make sure each shot is well focused on a detailed surface. Try to shoot at an angle to the surface (when testing sharpness) since that way even if you make a mistake with the focus you'll get one part of the shot in focus to see.

Also note that sharpness will change as you adjust your aperture value - so make sure to test a range of apertures not just one single aperture. Keep your ISO at its base ISO (typically ISO 100 for canon and ISO 200 for nikon)so that noise is not a problem and try to ensure that you have good lighting on the scene

 

[Derrel]

Oh, fer chris effin sakes man...the fifth hit is Bob Atkins' page....Testing Camera Lenses - Sharpness, Chromatic Aberration and Distortion - Bob Atkins Photography

Give me a break over-revved...this is not rocket science. Enough whining.

Shoot some images. How sharp is the lens? Is it a piece of crap? or do the images look good?

Rocket science? Advanced genetic predictive modeling? Advanced economic supply and demand prediction as it relates to production variables caused by seasonally adjusted fuel prices in the American mid-west hard white winter wheat crop?

Uh......nooooo.

 

[KmH]

Did you try it as well?

Yes, I did, which is how I determined the search term I recommended was valid.

Guess who's website comes up First on the list - not second not third, but the very very first!


(yes its ken!)

I used Bing and Bob Adkins site was the #1 hit (Yes, not Ken!).

Google is only any good if you know the question

Is there a way to quantitatively test the clarity and sharpness of a lens?

and also have enough of an understanding to filter the results it gives to you find the correct info. When you don't know the exact question and when you don't have enough understanding to filter the results its very risky and can easily have you running down the wrong route or getting lost in a mass of too much info and too many conflicting answers.

And the only way to learn how to effectively use an Internet search engine and gain

enough of an understanding to filter the results it gives to you find the correct info

, is to use an Internet search engine.

Another interesting point is that by

running down the wrong route or getting lost in a mass of too much info and too many conflicting answers

you may well discover related but tangental, if not directly relevant, information you didn't know you would want/need to know.

 

[djacobox372]

I find far more convenient to test lenses with a flash then a tripod

 

[dxqcanada]

Some sites like dpreview provide detailed information on lenses.
ie Sony Distagon T* 24mm F2 SSM Lens review: 4. Test results (Full Frame): Digital Photography Review