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Hi I’m very new in photography, But I did lots of experiments to learn more. But most of the time my photographs are not so sharp as i expect. I own Canon Eos 40D and the lens 17-85 mm with UV filter.
Hello Arafath! Welcome to the wonderful world of digital photography. The 40D was my first foray into digital SLR imagery and I think it is a great camera. When I fist started out with the system, I was puzzled for a bit as I expected sharper images as well. Coming from a film background, I had to realize that there are some controls in the digital that help a lot. Think through the way the camera takes the picture –
First, light through the lens, lens to sensor, in camera computer processing, post processing on PC/Mac or whatever. Not trying to make small any previous experience you have covering something so basic, so bear with me. It pans out in the end.
You need to find the stop that your lens works best with. I am not familiar with the 17-85, but I would suspect that between 6.4 and 11 you will find that the lens produces sharper images than when wide open or stopped down all the way. My “kit” lens was the 28-135 and at f/8 it produced wonderfully sharp images, but open it was kind of soft. Experimenting is the only way to find it, but that is the joy of the format!
Lens to sensor is moot if you are shooting off hand. From a tripod, you can lock the mirror up and take out the slight vibration that snapping the shot causes to the camera. I never had that shake cause any problems for me until I started shooting lunar images. It is another thing to consider though, depending on your subject.
In camera processing is a key that I did not consider for a long time. I found that the camera’s processor does a wonderful job sharpening images as they are written to the card. It is quick, taking less than a few milliseconds. Bump it up to 4 or 5 and I think you will start to see the camera come into its own. Resist the urge to take it too far (6 or 7) as it will start to “over sharpen” and you will get “hard” images. Again, experiment as it is cheap and part of the allure of these great cameras.
Post processing is a world unto itself, but the Canon software does a pretty good job I find. Play around with it and I think you will start to see images that will really like. It is all about finding the right settings and then developing a system where all of it is taken into account before each shutter click. The main thing, enjoy! Sorry so long guys and gals –