what happened to my pics?

manaheim · Jan 8, 2009

This is funny.

Brad...

1. Pictures look fine to everyone on the forum.
2. There is nothing "wrong" with your camera, based upon what we see and hear.
3. Couple people suggested showing us some 100% crops (that is a piece of an image that is at full resolution, cut down to be managable on the forums). That would help us maybe see what you are talking about, or further tell you we see nothing wrong.

I think you'll be wasting your money bringing the camera into a shop.

Overread · Jan 8, 2009

Well if your having sharpening problems try having a read here:
Sharpening -- Part I
contains good sharpening advice (note that is article 1 of 6 on that site link to the next is at the very bottom).

After that the only other thing I can think of is ambient lighting when taking your shots. Sometimes the right lighting can make a lot of difference in a shot and it would explain why your seeing differing results rather than constant problems (which I would expect from hardware or software changes).
I think one idea might be to go through some recent shots (Both the good and the bad) and list down what the shooting conditions roughly were - you might notice a pattern or similarity with lower grade shots in differing lighting or environments

I also agree with the 100% crops - its the only way we can see the same quality of image at 100% that you are seeing and basing your assessment off

rdzmzda · Jan 8, 2009

u say grainy though....perhaps could this be due to a higher iso setting?

manaheim · Jan 8, 2009

rdzmzda said:
u say grainy though....perhaps could this be due to a higher iso setting?

The ones he has here are only at ISO400. I don't really see any noise in them, though.

pixeldawg · Jan 8, 2009

If it's "Grain" you see, this is noise, as the others here have said. Noise can be caused by a host of different factors, and one that many people overlook is color. If you can look at the images with a histogram, check to see if any are clipping (meaning, going to the edge of the measured area and beyond) when you're viewing your images. If you can, go into each color channel and check them individually. I'd recommend Noise Ninja for noise reduction. Great tool and fairly easy to use.

bradsperry · Jan 8, 2009

Overread said:
Well if your having sharpening problems try having a read here:
Sharpening -- Part I
contains good sharpening advice (note that is article 1 of 6 on that site link to the next is at the very bottom).

After that the only other thing I can think of is ambient lighting when taking your shots. Sometimes the right lighting can make a lot of difference in a shot and it would explain why your seeing differing results rather than constant problems (which I would expect from hardware or software changes).
I think one idea might be to go through some recent shots (Both the good and the bad) and list down what the shooting conditions roughly were - you might notice a pattern or similarity with lower grade shots in differing lighting or environments

I also agree with the 100% crops - its the only way we can see the same quality of image at 100% that you are seeing and basing your assessment off

ok, this is wierd. i went through and looked at the properties on all my photos (well, not all ... but alot of them). alot of my photos are taken at 3frms/s, none of the properties are the same. the iso's jump from 200 - 600, the wb jumps from custom - indoor - flourescent ........ all the settings seem to be choosing what they want ( and my photos are always in manual ...... not automatic).
all the photo properties from a few years back are constant. the iso's stay the same for a paticular group, whatever wb was selected for that group was also constant.
i'm going to do test. take 20 or 30 photos @ given settings, download and check their properties to see if the settings change with each photo. if you say lighting can affect what i'm seeing .... could these settings that are changing (based off of what i'm seeing in the properties) have a less than desirable affect on my photos ... such as what (i guess) only i can see.

bradsperry · Jan 8, 2009

alright, i took 30 photos @ 3frms/sec, iso100, customwb, manual mode. and 30 photos @ single shot, iso100, custom wb, manual mode. the properties are all different..... iso200-800 w/ one photo at iso1600. now, correct me if i'm wrong. the only thing that i'm changing in manual mode is exposure and apeture, correct? why is my iso changing with every photo that i'm taking?

Overread · Jan 8, 2009

I don't think the XT even has auto ISO - I know my XTi does not. In full manual mode the ISO, shutter speed and aperture should all remain fixed at what ever setting you set - if its changing around randomly like that it really sounds like you have a fault on the camera.
I think you can reinstall firmwire yourself = if you can it will be detailed on the canon website. I would first suggest looking into this. If you can't replace the software yourself or it does not solve the problem then I think its time for the repair or replace choice (though take it in for a quick service at your shop)

Mgw189 · Jan 8, 2009

bradsperry said:
alright, i took 30 photos @ 3frms/sec, iso100, customwb, manual mode. and 30 photos @ single shot, iso100, custom wb, manual mode. the properties are all different..... iso200-800 w/ one photo at iso1600. now, correct me if i'm wrong. the only thing that i'm changing in manual mode is exposure and apeture, correct? why is my iso changing with every photo that i'm taking?

How are you checking the EXIF data? Some programs dont accurately report the on camera settings. I have noticed this with Picasa quite a bit.

bradsperry · Jan 9, 2009

ps elements lets me see what the data was at the time the photo was taken.

i talked to a rep from canon and he told me there is an issue with the processor. and for whatever reason it's changing the settings. he said it might be why my pics look different, he couldn't say for sure. but the settings should stay the same regardless. they are sending me a service center location, but there was something about the fee being a little bit more because the camera is a european model or something ... had to do with the serial number.

so anywhoooo, i guess i'll start there and see what happens.