[Alefone]

I got my K-7 few days a go and after 4 DSLR camera from PentaxISTDL,K100D,K10D,K20D I am very happy with it till.......I've noticed that my pictures,using the view finder,are out of focus,when I magnify them during playback till 6.7 times but if I use live view they seem to be right on.I've tryed few deferent lenses,from DA21,DA35 and Sigma 70-200 and keep getting same result.

It's not a big deal exchanging the camera,I always buy from a local dealer but I would like to know if somebody had a same experience?

Cheers...

[Pål Jensen]

I got my K-7 few days a go and after 4 DSLR camera from PentaxISTDL,K100D,K10D,K20D I am very happy with it till.......I've noticed that my pictures,using the view finder,are out of focus,when I magnify them during playback till 6.7 times but if I use live view they seem to be right on.I've tryed few deferent lenses,from DA21,DA35 and Sigma 70-200 and keep getting same result.

It's not a big deal exchanging the camera,I always buy from a local dealer but I would like to know if somebody had a same experience?

Cheers...

Have you adjusted the dioptre of the viewfinder?

[Alefone]

I've tryed that to,also lens adjustment,everything OK but still miss focuses???

[rawr]

For better clarity:

Some images taken by the K7, when viewed internally on the K7 display, seem out of focus;
- (a) images taken where focus was set using the viewfinder (and AF?) seem out of focus;
- (b) images taken where focus was set using live view (and AF?) seem to be better focussed;
This occurs using several different lenses, so the issue is not likely to be lense related.

I would generally expect (a) to work better than (b).

So what is likely to be happening differently between (a) and (b)?

The first thing to test: is there any difference when you look at the images on a computer screen, rather than the rear display of the K7? Something may be happening to the display of the images according to some of your in-camera settings. Eliminate that possibility by looking at the images out of camera.

The second thing to test: is there is any difference between the results for the viewfinder and live view when you manually focus on the same target?

If yes, you may indeed need to better adjust your viewfinder dioptre.

If no, then the difference between (a) and (b) must be due to how the autofocus is working.

Autofocus on the K7 using live-view functions differently than AF via the viewfinder.

AF via the viewfinder uses phase difference via the 11 cross focus points, and you can make various selections about how to use the focus points (Center, Select, Auto).

AF via live view by default works differently from using AF the viewfinder. By default (Live View > Autofocus Mode) it uses Face Detection + Contrast AF, but gives you the option of using just Contrast AF or cancelling live view and using the 11 point phase difference system via the viewfinder.

If (b) produces better results than (a) when focussing on the same target, I would generally be surprised, since the 11 point system should be both faster and more precise and reliable.

If (b) works better than (a), I would normally say you may have a front-focus/ backfocus issue, but since FF/BF seems to often be lens dependent, and you say the problem occurs no matter what lens you are using, FF/BF may not be the issue. FF/BF can be adjusted out via the camera though, so maybe you should check that out again.

If it's not your dioptre settings, or BF/FF, then it may be something else - eg a physically misaligned sensor or something - in which case send it back.

[Marc Sabatella]

Posting sample images with a description of what you wanted to see happen and what happened instead would help.

[Peterm]

Rawr, I have a K7 and the images seems very soft or blurred. When I magnify a taken shot it blurs at 8x. I have also tried the Contrast detect in LV and that seems better. Overall the K7 images are disappointing in that landscape shots (F10) are not sharp and thus lack detail.

[Pentaxor]

Rawr, I have a K7 and the images seems very soft or blurred. When I magnify a taken shot it blurs at 8x. I have also tried the Contrast detect in LV and that seems better. Overall the K7 images are disappointing in that landscape shots (F10) are not sharp and thus lack detail.

I suggest that you visit the shop where you got your K-7 and make some photo comparison. anyway, what lens were you using?

[rawr]

Peterm, there should be no reason why landscape shots in particular should be soft with the K7 (or any camera) unless you have:

(a) camera movement,
(b) a soft lens,
(c) a crappy filter on the lens,
(d) a dirty lens or sensor,
(e) are shooting through haze or other atmospheric pollution,
(f) not focussed properly.

Eliminate all the above and you should be right

As a 14MP camera the K7 is capable of capturing a lot of detail, at lower ISO's in particular, and I've seen plenty of pictures that confirm that, so it should be great for landscapes.

[kittykat46]

I've been toying around with the K-7 for 2 weeks now.
The K-7 with a sharp lens like the DA 70 or FA 50 captures a marvellous level of detail.
Even the Kit Lens DA 18-55mm gives good resolution.

The first thing to check for if your photos look soft is whether you have a Front or Back Focus issue. My kit lens has always had a minor Front Focus issue, adjusted earlier on the K100D, and its the same on the K-7.

Just a -2 setting on the Focus adjustment, and its sharp indeed.

[Pentaxor]

I've been toying around with the K-7 for 2 weeks now.
The K-7 with a sharp lens like the DA 70 or FA 50 captures a marvellous level of detail.
Even the Kit Lens DA 18-55mm gives good resolution.

The first thing to check for if your photos look soft is whether you have a Front or Back Focus issue. My kit lens has always had a minor Front Focus issue, adjusted earlier on the K100D, and its the same on the K-7.

Just a -2 setting on the Focus adjustment, and its sharp indeed.

I have the WR 18-55 and I tried shooting with it under tungsten lighting. it seems to be doing pretty well, IQ wise. though I need to stop down at f8 to f11 to get the details at 55mm and minimize noise. ISO was set at 3200 and noise was acceptable by my standards. I competed it against the FA 50 1.7 which was a beast at f4.

I think people will be alright with the WR 18-55, if they don't mind a slow lens. the IQ is very good actually and I would rate it at 8/10. not bad for a kit lens.

[Peterm]

Pentaxor, Kittyykat46 and Rawr. Thanks for your feedback. I am using the Sigma 17-70 which has been really sharp on the K10D. I think it is the focus system. I will return it and hope the next one is okay.
In the case of BF or FF will that matter with a small aperture like F10 or only on large aperture.

Love the rest of the camera.

[rawr]

Peterm, you'll notice any BF/FF the most the more wide open the lens aperture is (eg f1.7, f2, f4 etc) since the wider you open up the aperture, the narrower the depth of field you generally will get. If you use narrow apertures like f10 etc, BF/FF is less likely to concern you.

Eg using a 1.4 lens and focusing on an item 1 metre away, you might have a depth of field of about 1cm, so only things within that 1cm band will appear to be in focus, whereas using the same lens and stopping down to f8 you might have a depth of field that extends 1 metre to the front and 1 metre to the back of the focus target, meaning anything within that 2 metre zone will be in focus. So any BF or FF won't be field relevant.