Common photo problems
Why a shot went wrong — in plain language — and the exact settings to change. Or skip ahead: upload the photo and we'll read its EXIF and diagnose it for you.
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Why are my photos blurry?Use a shutter speed of at least 1/(effective focal length) handheld — faster for moving subjects — and put a single AF point on your subject (continuous AF if it's moving).Why are my photos grainy?Use the lowest ISO that still lets you keep a safe shutter speed, and expose correctly in-camera rather than brightening a dark file afterward.Why are my indoor photos blurry?Open the aperture as wide as your lens allows, raise ISO (or use Auto ISO with a cap), and keep the shutter at 1/100–1/200s for people.Why is my background not blurry?Open the aperture (f/1.Why are my bird photos not sharp?Use 1/2000–1/3200s for birds in flight, continuous AF with tracking, a high-speed burst, and an aperture a touch off wide-open (around f/6.Why are my photos too dark?Dial in +1 to +2 stops of exposure compensation for bright or backlit scenes, check the histogram, and meter off your subject rather than the bright background.Why are my portraits out of focus?Use Eye AF (or a single point on the near eye), shoot around f/2–f/2.Why are my photos orange indoors?Set white balance to Tungsten / Incandescent (or dial in around 3000K), or shoot RAW so you can correct it precisely later.