Hi all,
Newbie here. I'm writing in to see if anyone can help me figure out this strange issue I'm having with my D90. I originally only had one long zoom and I noticed that the autofocus wasn't working well unless I was zoomed all the way in. It was a pain, but I could get around the issue by zooming in, locking focus, and then zooming out (or of course, manually focussing). I recently picked up a wide zoom (12-24 Tokina) and I found that the autofocus struggled again.
I printed a focus chart and took some shots to test out what was happening. As I suspected, the autofocus worked well so long as I was zoomed in all the way with my 18 to 200 zoom (I know, not a great lens). When zoomed out it was always soft. I switched to my wide zoom and it was always soft, so I know it's not a lens issue, but beyond that I'm at a loss, and hoping to avoid going the costly and timely route of getting my camera fixed by Nikon.
Any help would be appreciated!
Comments
Where are you located?
I'm located in Montreal, Canada.
Of course we all ask if you had it from new or just bought it so it could be send it back when you have some evidence.
Sorry for the delayed response. It's a busy time of year!
I've owned the camera for a long time and taken it on a number of adventures. With that said, I don't have any recollection of it getting any unreasonable bumps or bruises. I do my best to baby it, probably similarly to most people who partake in this forum.
Pistnbroke, I think you're on to something with Nikon just being pre-set soft. I have no idea why they would do such a thing! Though I really do feel like the sharpness has softened over the years.
Anyhow, I boosted the sharp control to 9 on all the settings and the AF is more accurate now than it was previously. However, I still am noticing that it has trouble focussing with wider angles, and particularly when using the view finder. I have never gotten into using the live-view mode, but the AF is definitely more precise when in that mode. I'm hoping this is some kind of clue that'll help crack the case, since it's better but still frustrating!
Thanks to anyone who has any other ideas.
Has the camera been like this since you got it, or did it just start happening more recently? If this is something that has started to happen later in the cameras life, I suspect that there is an issue with the alignment of the AF sensor/sub-mirror.
Also, good to know about the artifacts.
Thanks!
Upping the sharp will not help the autofocus....you could just buy another D90 secondhand but its old now ,.Go for a 24 MP of any number.
What did you find testing the back focus ??
I found a small shop in town known for affordable and quick repairs (I'll let you know more once I get a quote). The temptation to replace is there, but if I did, I'd be sceptical of the 3000 series, and possibly even the 5000 series just because of the reduced pixel size. I think the added noise would drive me crazy. And considering that the best price I've seen on the (older) 7200 is $1000CAD or nearly 50% more for the 7500, I'd really prefer to put my $ elsewhere at the moment.
Thanks for the opinions on the sharpness. I'll do some tests and form my own.
https://dpreview.com/reviews/image-comparison?attr18=lowlight&attr13_0=nikon_d7000&attr13_1=nikon_d7500&attr13_2=nikon_d7200&attr13_3=nikon_d7100&attr15_0=raw&attr15_1=raw&attr15_2=raw&attr15_3=raw&attr16_0=3200&attr16_1=3200&attr16_2=3200&attr16_3=3200&normalization=full&widget=1&x=-0.03166788232070709&y=0.03109420099336601
If its 24 mp without the AA filter you will be good to go
I'm prob a little late to be getting a black friday deal, but I appreciate the tips. Once I found out if the repairs cost warrant me getting a new camera, I can do the research and keep my eyes open for a boxing day sale. And then bring my new or old toy with me when I head off on vacation mid Jan!
Btw, the camera repair shop doubts it's the alignment of the sensor since some images are coming in clear. I'll be back on here to let you know what the issue turns out to be.
Thanks again all.
However, I'm glad you might be able to fix your camera and keep shooting with it. One less camera in the landfill.
That being said, it's still a consumer camera and there's no guarantee other parts won't start breaking.
I had this issue when my D40 broke in 2013. I had it since 2008 and had about 17,000 shots or so on it and it had just come back from Nikon servicing for a sensor cleaning. I was pretty pissed off, but I was happy to have an excuse to buy a D7000 at the time.
The shutter on our Nikon FE failed (when it was 20 years old mind you), yeah it got used a bit over the years. Nikon replaced the shutter, and it still works, although I haven't used it since going digital. It's sitting on a shelf with my F90 collecting dust.
Thanks for all your input guys. I'll hold off on getting a new toy for a while longer
Glad it cost you so little and we hope to hear more of your Vintage exploits (joke)