Picture going to be blurred eventhough my focus works pretty well

[Stevejks]

Hi guys, This is Steve.
Recently, I've taken pictures for an event hosted by the place where I'm working at. Even though, it has been 4 months since the time i started to develop my photography skill, just i cannot understand the reason why all of the faces appeared in the picture (with auto-focus on) getting blurred, it works pretty well on a single target but when I attempt to take pic of a group (2++ or more), focus loses its clarity, some might not be clear but still can be seen, some will get heavily blurred, or even being wiped out focus on their.

What i'm trying to ask here do i have any other ways to not blurring all of the faces in the picture (and without being fixed by using PTS)?

I'm trying to shoot with a Canon EOS 60D, Lens: 18-135mm
Shoot mode: JPEG // Shutter Speed: 1/80 // F: 3.5~4.5 // Portrait Mode // 3x3 Grid // ISO: 1000~1250 // AWB: Auto // Auto-focus

Shooting environment: No flash, inside a hall's room with ceiling orange light mixed with Florence Light, the color looks warm, the background is the creamy white wall, drop shadow from the light might not be considered.

P/S: Down here is a picture which i've taken for my friends, it looks blurred from start, I've changed its sharpness and enhanced the color by using PTS.

*** From google drive contains no harmful source, no sensitivity ***
Example-001.jpg
Thanks, guys.
Truly thank in advance for reading & helping me

 

[Destin]

The example photo looks sharp enough to me.

Your depth of field is likely too thin for larger group photos. There are multiple ways to solve this but the easiest is to use a small aperture (larger number). This will allow you to get more of the frame in sharp focus.

The problem with this is that it also requires higher iso values which will also degrade your image quality and cause loss of sharpness. This is why most event photographers rely on flash for these situations.

 

[480sparky]

Kit lens, shooting wide-open. Stop the lens down to f/5.6. Yes, this will increase your ISO but that's a trade-off I'd consider acceptable.

You may also need to adjust for front- or back-focusing.

 

[Stevejks]

Thanks! Destin, this is great!~

 

[Stevejks]

@480 Sparky, this might be the reason why I should spend for the flash also, trade-off ISO is not a good thing to do. My camera was the borrowing one, so I cannot invest that much on its ownership. And one thing, will Neutral shoot mode affects the how picture will be coloring?

 

[Light Guru]

Shutter Speed: 1/80

Could be camera shake


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Destin]

Shutter Speed: 1/80

Could be camera shake


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good catch. Didn’t even see the shutter speed.

 

[rosh4u]

There may also be a problem with handshake like when you click a picture your hand might be shaking a bit, isn't it something like this?

 

[Derrel]

Looked at the picture: focus is good, shutter speed was okay, the softness is strictly due to the ISO level of 1,000 or ISO 1,250 or whatever...the image would have been VERY sharp at lower ISO, or with flash.

 

[Dave442]

Event pictures like this are best done with a flash. I took a couple hundred shots this weekend at a birthday party, camera with flash bounced off a white ceiling and most the images were at ISO range 250-500, F-stop range 2.8-7.1, shutter speed range 1/40-1/80th and flash from 1/16 to 1/4 power. Shooting an event without flash I tend to stay away from the posed people shot like you posted just due to poor lighting in most cases.

 

[ac12]

If the example photo the original or the one the you enhanced?
You need to post the original photo.

 

[ac12]

The 18-135 has IS, so that will compensate some for the slower shutter speed. But it will NOT compensate for the subject moving. So they have to stay STILL.

Did you observe and make sure that the selected focus point was on your subject?

If you shot a group with the camera on "auto" and there was anything between you and the subjects, the camera may focus on that. That is the problem with my Nikon. Auto = closest subject. And the closest subject is many times NOT my subject, but something like a chair or plates on table, etc. I shoot on P mode so that I can select where to focus.

Auto Focus will not work if it is aimed at something of a single color/contrast, like a plain solid color shirt. It needs contrast to focus. Example, the AF would have trouble or won't be able to focus on the white dress of the girl on the left.

When you have a group of people, even 2, the AF point MUST be on the subject, to focus on the subject. If you put the AF between them as you compose the shot, the camera will focus on the wall behind them. (been there, done that)

 

[bratkinson]

I've learned from experience that when taking photographs of people, even if they're standing still, I use 1/125th and faster to ensure I freeze any motion...theirs and mine. If possible, I'll use 1/160th for 'insurance'. One might think 1/80th is fast enough to freeze motion but I've learned that people may twitch a little bit, tighten a leg muscle to hold position, etc, and the image will blur as a result. As I get older, I'm also noticing that I move the camera a smidge while pressing the shutter, and have to correct a slight tilt more and more often. The cost of being retired, I guess.

Another lesson learned is to set the AF Drive setting to 'AI Servo' so the camera will track any minor movement and stay in focus. It seems counter-intuitive since your camera has a 'one shot' setting. 'One shot' is for non-moving subjects like buildings, parked cars, and mountains. AI Servo for anything that moves...people, pets, cars, etc. I still forget to switch back to AI Servo after shooting at a car show...

Given the lens you have, even at the widest angle (18mm), f3.5 will be quite limiting in how bright things need to be. As you zoom out, the minimum aperture effectively gets smaller to f4.5, requiring even more light to get a good image.

When I had a 60D, I was comfortable shooting with ISO speed 1600. Yes, there was a bit of noise as a result, mostly in the darker areas, but I easily got it cleaned it up with little trouble during post processing. 2400 was also workable, and 3200 if I was really in a jam and needed to get something, even if I couldn't fix all the noise.

Indoors with available light and your camera and lens, you'll be forced to make some compromises. You'll have to ask yourself what am I willing to sacrifice a bit to get the image?

Slowing down the shutter speed will result in blurred photos. However, if you're willing to trash 25 images of the same subject to get one keeper, then shoot at 1/20th (yes, one twentieth!) or even 1/10th!. In 25 shots or so, there'll be at least one or two that won't be blurred. That's why my smallest memory card these days is 16gb...lots of room to take photos nobody else will ever see.

Shooting a group of people, you will likely need to reduce the aperture to f5 or f6 to get them all in focus (Depth of Field). Doing that lets in less light, so you'll have to compensate with slower shutter speed and/or faster ISO speed and deal with the results.

Lastly, if you have a filter of any kind on the lens, take it off. The only filters most photographers ever use is a circular polarizer and various neutral density filters...both inappropriate for most indoor shooting. "Protection" filters will almost always cause some image blurring and often end up causing more damage if the front of the lens is hit than if it wasn't on in the first place.

 

[Stevejks]

Everyone, this is such a blessing for me, received quite lots of advice from you guys.
It is my honor to have your hands joined.
I guess, this is so far, enough for me to realize what I've been missed in my skill, even though my time has been all used up while working.
Sorry, for the late respond, I'm too busy to know when should I have a break, to keep going with my interest: Photography !!

 

[Stevejks]

If the example photo the original or the one the you enhanced?
You need to post the original photo.

This is not the really after-photoshop'ed image, I just fix a lil on focus by de-blur the picture, so I guess this is the original one!! Colors are all preserved.