Image quality describes how well a photograph matches a perceived technical ideal.
37
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11answers
3k views
Should I keep Image Stabilization (IS) off when I do not actually need it?
I own a Canon 7D and a EF-S 15-85 IS lens and I keep the image stabilization turned on all the time.
Recently, an experienced photographer told me that this is a huge mistake because it reduces image ...
34
votes
3answers
14k views
What is moiré? How can we avoid it?
What is the image defect called "moiré"? What causes it, and how can we avoid or reduce it? Is it related to "false color"?
23
votes
18answers
1k views
What are some techniques for hand-held image stabilization?
My zoom lens (75-300mm) is fairly slow: 5.6 at its farthest point. (I think it's 3.5-5.6, and it's not image stabilizing. I'm on a budget, sadly!) Unfortunately, my primary use for it is hand-held ...
23
votes
3answers
1k views
How can I test a new lens to make sure it is operating correctly?
How can I test a new lens to make sure it is operating correctly? I found two similar questions with answers specific to things such as sharpness and focus, but I want to cover any and all possible ...
21
votes
3answers
2k views
With all other things equal, in a DSLR, will a larger sensor produce a sharper image?
I asked a question a while ago here about the "sweet spot" of a lens, which led to a really interesting discussion of "sharpness", the physics of light, and general image quality.
1st Question
In ...
20
votes
5answers
2k views
Do megapixels matter with modern sensor technology?
Are more megapixels good?
Are more megapixels bad?
Do more megapixels increase detail? Do they make my images sharper? On the other side, is there a point that is too much? Do megapixels cause ...
20
votes
8answers
2k views
How much “noise” is acceptable in a photograph?
I've been at photography for a little over a year, and I primarily do landscape and wildlife/bird photography. Most of my work has been a learning experience so far, with few shots actually something ...
19
votes
1answer
786 views
What is decentering?
I have heard of a condition in imperfect lenses known as "decentering". What is decentering? When a lens is decentered, what exactly is wrong with the optical elements? What are its symptoms and ...
16
votes
11answers
9k views
How does the lens diameter influence photo quality?
I have tested two different 50mm lenses in my camera. One was a Nikkor 50mm ∅52mm. The other one was a Sigma 50mm ∅72mm. I took some pictures with both lenses using the same setup for aperture and ...
15
votes
4answers
953 views
Does it give higher quality to shoot in low-res mode in-camera, or to downsize high-res photos later?
Suppose you want to store your photos at some lower resolution, let's say about ~1 MB large.
You own a camera able to make photos at 5 MPix and more.
And, you want to have the maximum quality at the ...
15
votes
6answers
3k views
What are jpeg artifacts and what can be done about them?
I know JPEG is a "lossy" compression algorithm that discards information in order to save space. What is the visual impact of this? I've heard of "JPEG artifacts". What do these look like?
Are there ...
15
votes
5answers
694 views
How do I find the aperture that produces the highest-quality images for a given lens?
I'm not talking about large aperture (f/1.8, f/2.8...), rather, about small apertures (f/18, f/20, f/23...). I read somewhere (actually I think it was on this site, but I don't exactly remember which ...
15
votes
1answer
481 views
Will I lose image quality by adjusting white balance in post processing?
I understand that if I shoot in RAW, post processing software like Lightroom is capable of adjusting colour temperature and tint to my desire.
Will I lose any image quality in process? Or is it as ...
13
votes
6answers
387 views
Are there any important considerations for stock photos?
I have quite a few photos, some of which I consider to be particularly good. I've been thinking of putting some up on stock photo sites (that's another discussion), but have been wondering about image ...
12
votes
2answers
1k views
What is the best technology for large, permanent digital printing?
Few questions:
What is the best printer/plotter for printing large format images (best means best visual quality)
What material and inkjet is the most permanent?
I'm thinking of printing images ...
12
votes
1answer
1k views
Different versions of DIGIC processors, is there any difference in image quality?
While comparing the features of Canon 400D and 1000D, I've noticed that Canon 1000D has an improved DIGIC III processor, over the DIGIC II for Canon 400D.
From Wikipedia:
The DIGIC III Image ...
11
votes
8answers
1k views
Can a sharp picture with a kit lens plus post processing rival a “pro” lens?
If I am able to take a relatively sharp picture with a kit lens, and boost the vibrance and or saturation during post processing, will that picture be comparable to ones taken from an expensive ...
11
votes
6answers
1k views
Does stacking more lens filters decrease overall image quality?
As stated by @t3mujin in another thread's comments:
Stacking filters will decrease image quality, as it's another piece of glass light has to go through before reaching the sensor.
I was ...
11
votes
4answers
3k views
Do digital cameras lose picture quality over time?
For some reasons when I look at my first pictures from my camera (DSLR), they look stunning. I know it could be just psychological. Another friend told me that her camera was really good when she ...
11
votes
1answer
2k views
Does image quality of a lens depend on the camera used?
I recently bought a Canon 50mm f1.8 for my Canon 1000d. But, I find that the images are not as sharp as those I saw in the reviews or any other images taken using other cameras like the 550d and ...
10
votes
4answers
1k views
What is the major factor that makes colors in photos very vivid?
Once you have a good enough camera, what are the other major factors that makes some of the photo very vivid?
For example, looking at the following picture, the colors are vivid. If I take the same ...
10
votes
4answers
2k views
When shooting in mRAW or sRAW, how does the camera generate smaller files?
Most mid- and high-end DLSRs offer two or three sizes for RAW capture. When the camera is generating the medium or small sized RAW files, how does it make them smaller? Does it capture less ...
10
votes
3answers
347 views
How can one determine the ideal resampling algorithm for a given type of image?
Was reading this question and got to thinking. How exactly can you determine what the best resampling solution is? I have a concept, albeit somewhat vague, of what the basic methods do.
Are there ...
9
votes
6answers
534 views
What can I do to improve my composition on rejected food photos?
I have been working on improving my food photography skills to raise the overall look of my blog. I am shooting with a Sony A100 often a 50mm in natural light. I think I am doing pretty well so far ...
9
votes
7answers
3k views
Why does using flash sometimes create these white spots in the photo?
I have an Olympus FE-190. When I take a picture, with flash on Digital Image Stabilizer (DIS) mode, I get white spots in pictures. This doesn't happen always.
There is only an option called Pixel ...
9
votes
2answers
624 views
What characteristics make a good lens good?
When reading lens reviews on the Internet, I often find subjective statements about the image quality that a lens produces, such as "good contrast" or "sharp". The problem is that I don't think I am ...
8
votes
4answers
546 views
What is the meaning of these Photodune reasons for rejection?
I wanted some advice, I am new to photography, I posted an image on Photodune for sale and it was rejected because of:
Element or framing composition
Noise, exposure, lighting or saturation
...
8
votes
5answers
2k views
Can anyone recommend *freeware* to reduce motion blur by deconvolution?
Can anyone please recommend free (preferably also portable i.e. no need to install) software for Windows XP or later to improve image quality of large (12 megapixel) terrestrial (not astronomical) ...
8
votes
2answers
1k views
Does rotating a photo count as a destructive editing?
I usually rotate all my jpg photos (using Windows Photo Viewer) after removing them from my camera's card. Is this correct? Am I losing quality for rotating them? Should I just leave them as they are ...
7
votes
3answers
1k views
How can these photos have so high quality?
Today, I ended up in a site showing famous people faces in a very first plane. I just got impressed by the quality those photos had.
What do you think are the factors you have to tweak to reach that ...
7
votes
7answers
1k views
Photographic techniques to avoid chromatic aberration?
I've read several informations here on Photo SE, as well as the wikipedia article on CA.
I understand that it is inevitable that some amount of chromatic aberration shows up for a particular lens, ...
7
votes
4answers
380 views
What does IQ mean?
I see a lot of questions which mention IQ. The only meaning I know outside photography is "intelligence quotient" but obviously IQ has some other meaning here.
IQ is used for example in
"Lens with ...
7
votes
4answers
950 views
How to take sharp photos while using maximum optical zoom?
When I shoot with high zoom (above 3X on my point-and-shoot camera), the sharpness of the picture seems to come down. Is it a feature of all cameras or is it due to higher sensitivity to camera shakes ...
7
votes
3answers
546 views
Why are macros from my new DSLR no better than those from my P&S?
I have been using a 14mp point and shoot for a couple of years. I like to take macros of flowers, frost and bugs. I want to keep zooming in on my PC to see deeper into the flower, so I bought a 18mp ...
7
votes
1answer
273 views
What causes this bluish tint and other anomalies in this image?
I bought a Tamron CF Macro 28-70mm 3.5-4.5 lens on eBay for $35 AUD plus postage - cheap enough to give it a go and see what it's like.
I took a range of photos with my Sony NEX-C3 to get a feel for ...
7
votes
2answers
263 views
What are good test shots for finding out the capabilities of a camera?
I have a range of cameras from a (frankly awful) kiddie camera to a hybrid (Olympus Pen) and I want to take some pictures to test their (comparative) limitations.
So I want to take the same photos ...
7
votes
2answers
158 views
What does it mean to excite aliases?
I recently came across the phrase 'excited aliases.' The phrase seems to be related to lens sharpness in some way. While a web search turns up the phrase a few times, I am unable to locate a decent ...
7
votes
2answers
1k views
Canon 50mm f/1.8 vs Canon 28mm f/1.8 (vs Sigma 30mm f/1.4)
I have the nifty-fifty and I am in love with the kinds of images it can produce, particularly when it comes to portraits. I really enjoy the lens, but I have one problem; it is a little bit too tight ...
7
votes
5answers
869 views
How does taking lower-resolution pictures with a higher-resolution sensor affect image quality?
Does taking a picture with 8 megapixel resolution with my Canon IXUS with a 1/2.3" sensor and 12M max resolution provides the same or worse image quality (particular, noise) as if the picture was ...
6
votes
5answers
411 views
What parameters can I use to evaluate a “Perceptual Image Quality”?
Might be a naive question, but I want to fix few subjective metrics / parameters which would let me decide image quality.
I mean, I can use some objective metrics like Mean Squared Error or Mean ...
6
votes
5answers
517 views
Is there any reason to take 3 RAW/JPG images to get most from HDR?
I'm new to photography and what I've seen so far:
ViewNX allow me to change exposure +2/-2 stops in RAW
HDR is about larger dynamic range and merging shadow details from overexposed image with ...
6
votes
2answers
2k views
Pentax K-5: Is it worth using the Premium JPEG quality setting?
Similar: How do I choose which resolution (megapixel) and compression (normal, fine, superfine) to shoot in?
The Pentax K-5 has a JPEG quality setting called "Premium", denoted by four stars, which ...
6
votes
4answers
564 views
What should be considered for employee photos to put on company's website?
I work in the entertainment industry and am looking to produce friendly looking images of our employees (sales managers, customer support people, and so on) to put on our company's website.
What ...
6
votes
4answers
357 views
Are there any comparison photos of different lenses (with the same camera and scene)?
I've heard claims ranging from "higher-quality lenses only make a noticeable difference for scientific applications and super-huge prints," to "even the difference between high-quality and ...
6
votes
4answers
803 views
Does noise in images depend upon “Megapixels” or “ISO”?
I have a question about image quality. Does noise in an image is depends upon "Megapixels" or on "ISO"?
6
votes
2answers
155 views
Fisheye Image Quality: Improves with Price?
Using a little Opteka fish attachment, I've gotten some very cool shots. The problem is that all shots get, of course, progressively less sharp as you move out from the center. I know that this is to ...
6
votes
3answers
188 views
What is the influence of the camera on the performance of a lens?
Shouldn't a lens be good or bad independently of the camera it is used with?
After seeing these reviews at DxOMark I got confused. By changing the camera where the lenses are tested I get different ...
6
votes
2answers
1k views
Can a video camera produce a high quality still photo shoot?
I have a high-end digital video camera able to output a higher number of megapixels than my digital photo camera. This is true only when using the camera to take stills. Is there anything that's going ...
6
votes
4answers
509 views
Is it possible for a lens to produce too much contrast?
I came across a complaint that a certain lens produces too much contrast. The lens was described as rendering "cartoonish" contrast when shooting a portrait with diffused light from a window, where ...
5
votes
7answers
2k views
Are there websites which compare digital cameras based on technical image quality?
There are lot of sites, which compare digital cameras by parameters, user experience and etc.
I looking for a website which has some kind of procedure to test image quality and compares digital ...
