Pictures with D5300 are not as "Sharp" as I would like...???

[WERNER 1]

Hi all!

Newbie here ---> If this post is not in the correct forum, please delete or move, thanks!

So,.. I've been using my D5300 for a few years now with just the kit lenses plus one Tamron that I bought. ( SP 70-300mmF/4-5.6 )

Lenses:

Nikon - AF-P 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6g
Nikon - AF-S 55-200mm 1:4-5.6g

I mostly use the two Nikon lenses for everything. The majority of what I shoot is hockey games (I try any way) ,.. but there are the special occasions like birthdays, holidays, and other hobbys like Cars and guitars

Recently I brought the 5300 to our team picture night for our hockey team (I coach the local highschool team). They had been bringing in a lady who is one of the local photographers and does a lot of Sr. pictures and what not,.. but honestly I was less than impressed with her pics of our team the past couple of years... so I brought my own just to make sure and get some decent pics haha!

The lady ended up not showing up so they asked me to take all of the pictures which consisted of all individual pics as well as multiple group pics of both JV and Varsity and a few others. I agreed and after a few minutes of tweaking my settings I was dialed in. ( I used the 18-55 lense )

After all was said and done I went home to pull up a few on my pc to see how they turned out, and for the most part they were pretty good, but I just feel like they are not very "Sharp" - I know the kit lenses are not the best, but I feel like them along with the D5300 the pics should be pretty good (?)

Here are the settings I used:

Manual Mode
1/320
ISO 3200
AF-C
Active D lighting - Normal
WB - Auto
BKT off
HDR off
Quality - FINE/L
Picture control - N
Auto Focus area AF 9 Points
Matrix Metering

I will try and post a couple of pics, one of the original pic, and then after I processed it.

Keep in mind, I am a novice at this,.. but I have done some digging and researching on this over the years to try and make my pictures better

Thanks!

 

[cgw]

These are far from disastrous. Rink/gym lighting is your biggest enemy but post processing can overcome it. Try some color temp correction and experiment with contrast which can add a bit of apparent sharpness. Some of the best Mom/Dad-with-a-camera shots I've seen have worked with equipment limitations and gone for shots of the bench, goal end scrums and what amount to action portraits. Pros use hulking constant aperture zooms and hi-MP full-frame cameras. You don't but be willing use your gear when and where it can deliver a different but satisfying look.

 

[JBPhotog]

There are/may be a few issues contributing to the soft images.

- ISO3200 has inherent noise that will make the entire image look soft, if you can use a tripod and drop your shutter(you don't say which f-stop you were using) if you don't want to use flash. Any reason you are not shooting Raw NEF's?
- Did you resharpen after you resized the image for posting to the forum? Files will lose sharpness when downsized if they are not given a final resharpen for the file dimensions you want to output to.
- Your OOC shot looks to be @3/4 a stop under exposed, all the white will fool the meter so dial in at minimum +1/2 EV while shooting and check your histogram.
- I think moving in a bit tighter so the subject is larger in the frame will also help with perceived sharpness since the face is small in your framing.
- If this is going to be a normal gig for you and you do not want to use flash, think about picking up a 50mm 1.8 bearing in mind the subject and not the background are the focus points.

 

[ac12]

Few thoughts.
- You are shooting a STATIONARY subject, so shoot in AF-S, and single shot.
- - Although there are some that would shoot in AF-C and shoot a burst of shots (say five), on the theory that one out of five shots will be good.

- Select what to focus on. Set the AF to single point, then YOU put the active AF point on YOUR subject. Don't let the camera choose where to focus, or it could choose something else to focus on.
- AF needs contrast to work. Put the AF point on something with contrast. Like his face or the B on the jersey. NOT, the solid maroon part of his jersey.

- The lighting is constant. I would use MANUAL exposure, as you did.
Take a test exposure, to determine a "good" exposure, then shoot full manual. The reason for full manual is, to prevent the camera exposure from changing on you. The lighting in the area is stable and does not change, especially if all the pictures are being taken at the same spot on the ice. So you do not need to constantly change your exposure.
- If you are shooting in manual, the meter is not affecting the exposure. The matrix meter, as good as it is, cannot handle many situations. You have to learn when to override the meter. Check the exposure on the rear screen, and adjust as needed.
One method is to set the rear screen to "blinking highlights." Then increase the exposure till you see the ice blinking, then back down a stop. That will get the ice white, but not loose detail on the ice.
Take a test shot, and adjust if needed.

- Lighting
- If you hockey arena is like my high school gym, with minimal lighting, to reduce cost, you will be in a fairly LOW light environment.
- Old saying "in LOW light, FAST glass wins. I shoot basketball with a 35/1.8, rather than a f/2.8 zoom, for that reason. I can shoot at ISO 3200, rather than 6400. The lower you can get the ISO, the better the image quality.
- - In your case, for hockey games, I would get a 70-200/2.8 or Tamron 35-150/2.8-4 or Nikon 50/1.8.
- For the sample picture, I would shoot with as LOW an ISO level as I could get away with. The subject is NOT moving, so you could lower your shutter speed down a stop, to maybe 1/125; and then be able to lower your ISO to 1600. Shoot with the aperture wide open, to be able to shoot at the lowest ISO you can.
- For a game, you will have to crank the shutter speed UP, ideally 1/1000 or faster. Given dim high school facilities, that is not usually possible. I shoot sports at 1/500 or 1/800 in my gym, and accept that I will get some motion blur.

- As for IQ, you are correct about the kit lens.
I use a 18-140 on a D7200, and I was thinking about upgrading to a full frame camera, like the D750.
But I needed a field lens (football, soccer, lacrosse), and got the Nikon 70-200/4.
The images with the 70-200 lens was MUCH better than the 18-140. That told me that my camera could do better, it just needed a better quality lens.

 

[ac12]

There are/may be a few issues contributing to the soft images.

- ISO3200 has inherent noise that will make the entire image look soft, if you can use a tripod and drop your shutter(you don't say which f-stop you were using) if you don't want to use flash. Any reason you are not shooting Raw NEF's?
- Did you resharpen after you resized the image for posting to the forum? Files will lose sharpness when downsized if they are not given a final resharpen for the file dimensions you want to output to.
- Your OOC shot looks to be @3/4 a stop under exposed, all the white will fool the meter so dial in at minimum +1/2 EV while shooting and check your histogram.
- I think moving in a bit tighter so the subject is larger in the frame will also help with perceived sharpness since the face is small in your framing.
- If this is going to be a normal gig for you and you do not want to use flash, think about picking up a 50mm 1.8 bearing in mind the subject and not the background are the focus points.

Yes get in closer to eliminate the wasted empty space.
That puts more pixels on your subject.

 

[WERNER 1]

These are far from disastrous. Rink/gym lighting is your biggest enemy but post processing can overcome it. Try some color temp correction and experiment with contrast which can add a bit of apparent sharpness. Some of the best Mom/Dad-with-a-camera shots I've seen have worked with equipment limitations and gone for shots of the bench, goal end scrums and what amount to action portraits. Pros use hulking constant aperture zooms and hi-MP full-frame cameras. You don't but be willing use your gear when and where it can deliver a different but satisfying look.

Yes, lighting is a killer,.. I will typically only take my camera if I know I'll be at one of the good rinks that has good lighting,.. it is actually quite bright in those better rinks that have all new LED lighting - Then I don't have to have my ISO up so high. Another advantage for me most of the time is that I coach so I can take pics from the bench and don't have to shoot through the glass

 

[WERNER 1]

There are/may be a few issues contributing to the soft images.

- ISO3200 has inherent noise that will make the entire image look soft, if you can use a tripod and drop your shutter(you don't say which f-stop you were using) if you don't want to use flash. Any reason you are not shooting Raw NEF's?
- Did you resharpen after you resized the image for posting to the forum? Files will lose sharpness when downsized if they are not given a final resharpen for the file dimensions you want to output to.
- Your OOC shot looks to be @3/4 a stop under exposed, all the white will fool the meter so dial in at minimum +1/2 EV while shooting and check your histogram.
- I think moving in a bit tighter so the subject is larger in the frame will also help with perceived sharpness since the face is small in your framing.
- If this is going to be a normal gig for you and you do not want to use flash, think about picking up a 50mm 1.8 bearing in mind the subject and not the background are the focus points.

Thanks for the reply!
This is not a normal gig for me at all,.. just a hobby to capture some pics of my boys playing hockey, our cars, and other various stuff. BUT, I wan't to be able to get the best results I can within the giving equipment I have. I'm not opposed to getting a better lens or two in the future, but the cost of those jumps up pretty quickly to get into anything "good" (?)

ISO - when I'm shooting live action at the games my ISO is more like 5000'ish as I typically shoot around 1/800 or 1/1000

RAW - this is something I only did once when I first bought the camera and I wasn't sure what I was doing (I'm still not ) ... but it was just easier to do the FINE/Large setting - But obviously the larger file you use the more detail you have to work with in post - I need to look into that again, especially if I'm doing some still portrate type stuff..

Sharpening - I have not used that feature in PS, but I looked it up last night and worked with it a little bit.... baby steps I guess

 

[WERNER 1]

Few thoughts.
- You are shooting a STATIONARY subject, so shoot in AF-S, and single shot.
- - Although there are some that would shoot in AF-C and shoot a burst of shots (say five), on the theory that one out of five shots will be good.

- Select what to focus on. Set the AF to single point, then YOU put the active AF point on YOUR subject. Don't let the camera choose where to focus, or it could choose something else to focus on.
- AF needs contrast to work. Put the AF point on something with contrast. Like his face or the B on the jersey. NOT, the solid maroon part of his jersey.

- The lighting is constant. I would use MANUAL exposure, as you did.
Take a test exposure, to determine a "good" exposure, then shoot full manual. The reason for full manual is, to prevent the camera exposure from changing on you. The lighting in the area is stable and does not change, especially if all the pictures are being taken at the same spot on the ice. So you do not need to constantly change your exposure.
- If you are shooting in manual, the meter is not affecting the exposure. The matrix meter, as good as it is, cannot handle many situations. You have to learn when to override the meter. Check the exposure on the rear screen, and adjust as needed.
One method is to set the rear screen to "blinking highlights." Then increase the exposure till you see the ice blinking, then back down a stop. That will get the ice white, but not loose detail on the ice.
Take a test shot, and adjust if needed.

- Lighting
- If you hockey arena is like my high school gym, with minimal lighting, to reduce cost, you will be in a fairly LOW light environment.
- Old saying "in LOW light, FAST glass wins. I shoot basketball with a 35/1.8, rather than a f/2.8 zoom, for that reason. I can shoot at ISO 3200, rather than 6400. The lower you can get the ISO, the better the image quality.
- - In your case, for hockey games, I would get a 70-200/2.8 or Tamron 35-150/2.8-4 or Nikon 50/1.8.
- For the sample picture, I would shoot with as LOW an ISO level as I could get away with. The subject is NOT moving, so you could lower your shutter speed down a stop, to maybe 1/125; and then be able to lower your ISO to 1600. Shoot with the aperture wide open, to be able to shoot at the lowest ISO you can.
- For a game, you will have to crank the shutter speed UP, ideally 1/1000 or faster. Given dim high school facilities, that is not usually possible. I shoot sports at 1/500 or 1/800 in my gym, and accept that I will get some motion blur.

- As for IQ, you are correct about the kit lens.
I use a 18-140 on a D7200, and I was thinking about upgrading to a full frame camera, like the D750.
But I needed a field lens (football, soccer, lacrosse), and got the Nikon 70-200/4.
The images with the 70-200 lens was MUCH better than the 18-140. That told me that my camera could do better, it just needed a better quality lens.

Thanks for the reply,.. lots to digest here Good info for sure. When I'm shooting the ice hockey games I'm typically at 1/800 or 1/1000 and it works out pretty well. In the rinks where the lighting is good, I'm still running my ISO about 5000 and I think I usually have to use the Exposure Compensation at like +3 to help out - Lots of which could be solved with a better lense ( $$$ ) ... I don't even take my camera to the rinks where the lighting is very dim,.. just too frustrating to try and get a good pic

 

[WERNER 1]

Here is an action shot from the other night using my 55-200mm lens - 1/800, F4.8 or so, ISO 5000,.. 1st one is resized and resharpened after the resizing. The 2nd has been sharpened a bit prior to the resizing.. Thanks!

 

[WERNER 1]

One last pic,.. another "Action" shot from the game the other night,.. along with the typcial processing I do in PS, I did some sharpening on this as well,.. then resized to post here.

 

[ac12]

Yes, lighting is a killer,.. I will typically only take my camera if I know I'll be at one of the good rinks that has good lighting,.. it is actually quite bright in those better rinks that have all new LED lighting - Then I don't have to have my ISO up so high. Another advantage for me most of the time is that I coach so I can take pics from the bench and don't have to shoot through the glass

Sounds like the sports facilities at the high schools in my area.
Lighting OK for the eye, but poor for the camera.
FAST lens is your only option.

You might look into the D5600 or D7500, as possible camera upgrades, for better low light shooting.
But note that the D5xxx series has been discontinued by Nikon. I got two of the D5600 for my school, from KEH.

You position would be BAD for me, I would keep the camera up and forget about coaching.

 

[SquarePeg]

These are not bad but yes could be sharper.

I’m not a portrait shooter but have taken many team and individual photos when my daughter played HS sports. Lessons learned over time and from great advice here on Tpf: Shooting stationary subject always use AF-S and focus on the near eye. For groups try to vary the heads so they’re not all lined up across but keep them at the same distance for dof purposes. For people I rarely shoot below 1/500 as they tend to sway. Use burst mode and shoot 2-3 frames per shot then pick the best one. Use a flash and get that ISO down. Even a handheld speed light held up and away from the camera is easy and does the trick. Use a tripod and remote release to avoid camera shake. Turn off VR when on the tripod. Shoot in raw and sharpen in post. What software are you using? You might be able to get the free trial of Topaz AI Sharpen and use it on these to improve them.

 

[ac12]

I just remembered a "problem" that my student had.
When shooting with the Tamron 17-50/2.8, many of the pics were blurry.
After investigation, it turned out that the camera was firing BEFORE the lens had focused. IOW, the focus mechanism was not fast enough.
AF-C was default configured to "fire on release" (press the shutter button).
I reconfigured AF-C to "fire ON FOCUS." So the shutter waited till the lens had focused, before firing. Problem solved.
AF-S is "fire on focus."

The other problem is cleaning the lens.
For some reason, the students could not keep their fingers OFF the filter. And the filter had finger prints and finger smudges.
What does that do? When I don't clean my glasses; contrast is reduced, and image is not sharp. Same would be with a lens.
I had to regularly (each week) clean the filter of finger prints and smudges.