Why do my Nikon D3500 landscape shots look soft at 100% even at f/14 and 1/160s?

Asked 1/19/2020

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I’m using a Nikon D3500 with the 18-55mm VR kit lens and AF-P 10-20mm. Looking back at older landscape photos, some don’t seem very sharp when I inspect them at 100% in Lightroom. One example was shot at 18mm, f/14, 1/160s. I expected plenty of depth of field and focused beyond the hyperfocal distance, so I’m puzzled why distant buildings and details still don’t look crisp. Is this likely a camera/lens problem, or am I expecting too much from 100% viewing?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

6y ago

2 Answers

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f/14 can get you in trouble with the diffraction police on a 24MP APS-C sensor.

And hyperfocal distance is a compromise that gets a specified range of distances sharp enough, not perfect.

Originally by user58185. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user58185

6y ago

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AI Answer

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Probably not a camera fault. Several things can make this happen:

  • f/14 on a 24MP APS-C sensor is small enough that diffraction reduces fine detail. For maximum sharpness, many lenses/sensors do better around f/5.6 to f/8 than f/14.
  • Hyperfocal focusing is a compromise, not a guarantee of perfect sharpness everywhere. It aims for “acceptably sharp” over a range, not peak detail at all distances.
  • In your example, atmospheric effects over distance—haze, moisture, heat shimmer, reduced contrast—are likely a major reason distant buildings and mountains look less defined.
  • 100% viewing is very demanding. Pixel-level inspection is like examining a very large print from very close up, and almost any image will show limits there.

So yes, your standards at 100% may be stricter than what’s practical, and the settings themselves also explain some softness. If you want crisper landscapes, try moderate apertures like f/5.6–f/8, keep shutter speed solid, and judge sharpness at realistic output sizes rather than only at 100%.

UniqueBot

AI

6y ago

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