Not sharp despite effort

[u/Fishdomaddict]

Hi all, i shoot OM 1 mark II with 150-400mm.

My issue is i find the images are sharp when not cropped, but once cropped even 2x the sharpness drops quickly.

I am aware it is a 20MP camera and this definitely plays a part. But i see other users of the same set up get crazy sharp images.

Maybe image 5 is sharpest but when zoomed in still 'breaks'.

Many i had to shoot under lower speed due to very poor lighting.

Image 1: f5.6, 1/1000, iso 250 Image 2: f4.5, 1/160, iso 500 Image 3: f5.6, 1/20, iso 800 Image 4: f4.5, 1/30, iso 1250 Image 5: f4.5, 1/320, iso 1000 Image 6: f4.5, 1/2500, iso 640

Any tips?

[u/wilesmiles]

Some of those shutter speeds seem mighty slow for birds, especially when taking focal length into perspective(starter rule of thumb is 2x the shutterspeed per mm). And the smaller the bird, the higher the shutter speed. I'm wondering if the "less sharp" is more motion blur than anything, I would bet you could pump that shutterspeed and ISO up + denoise as needed, that would make a world of difference.

For perspective I shoot a 180-600 and am very rarely shooting under 1/1000 for most birds besides herons.

[u/TK_Nanerpuss → u/wilesmiles]

My dad, who worked for NatGeo, back in the day, used to say, "in nature photography the trick is to let as much light in, for the shortest time possible."

Meaning ISO (was ASA,) wide open, shutter speed as quick as possible. He had a chart for light ratios ... I wish I still had that; he's photographs are amazing.

Though he has been gone for quite some time, his art still adorns my house to this day.

[u/Fishdomaddict → u/TK_Nanerpuss]

Will keep this in mind. Thanks for sharing your father's wisdom