Why is my Nikon Coolpix S5100 blurry at wide angle but sharper when zoomed in?
Asked 11/17/2015
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2 answers
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My Nikon Coolpix S5100 gives noticeably blurry photos when I shoot at the wide end of the zoom, but images look much sharper when I zoom in. This happens handheld and also with the camera resting on a solid surface using the timer, so it does not seem to be camera shake. Using flash makes the photos a little sharper, but I do not want to rely on flash for every shot. I have tried Auto mode and Sports mode with the same result. ISO is 100 and exposure compensation is 0. What could cause a compact camera to be soft at wide angle but sharper when zoomed, and is there anything worth trying before repair or replacement?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
10y ago
2 Answers
1
It looks definitely like a focussing issue. It might be part of the focussing mechanism sticking, so maybe "exercising it" by alternately focussing on near and far objects in wide zoom mode could help.
Otherwise you're into repairing/replacing the camera. :(
A review flagged up a similar (but less obtrusive) effect.
Occasionally though, images can appear soft at the wide end of the zoom, I think more due to a focusing error than a quality issue with the optics, as some images turn out sharp, other unfortunately do not.
One other thing to check - does the Camera EXIF info report 'focussing distance'? It would be interesting to see what it said for the two scenes in question.
Originally by user562. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user562
10y ago
0
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The most likely cause is a focus problem at the wide end, not simple hand shake. One answer notes that this model has been reported to occasionally produce soft images wide open due to focusing errors. If the focus mechanism is sticking, it may fail more often at wide angle and work better when zoomed.
A second possibility is lens behavior: at the wide end the lens uses a wider aperture, which can make optical softness more visible, while zooming often reduces the maximum aperture and can mask some blur.
Things to try:
- Test focus repeatedly on near and far subjects at the wide end to “exercise” the focus system.
- Check the EXIF data, if available, to see what focus distance the camera recorded on sharp vs blurry shots.
- Compare wide-angle shots with and without flash, since extra light can help autofocus lock more accurately.
If the problem is consistent and severe, it points to a fault in the focusing mechanism, and repair or replacement is the likely fix.
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