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Message: <blockquote data-quote="tdodd" data-source="post: 1412042" data-attributes="member: 55450">Now that I can see the extent of your cropping I think perhaps that is where your expectations are too high. In general, a zoom will not be as sharp as a prime and a non-L will not be as sharp as an L. Considering the amount of cropping that second woodpecker image actually looks pretty good. The eye area in particular looks sharp to me. Perhaps the feather detail is such that it just looks soft because there are no hard edged markings. As I said earlier, when you crop as much as this your focus has to be impeccable, because you are effectively having to magnify that tiny crop of the image far more than with a larger image to begin with. There is another issue with AF to consider. The focusing sensors are larger than the focus marks within the viewfinder. Typically the sensors are at least twice as high and wide as the marks, if not three times larger. That means that, in this example, the sensor might pick up on high contrast in the bark of the tree rather than choose the bird as the focus target. It is for this reason that it can be so hard to AF on a bird hidden between branches of a tree. The AF sensor sees the branch and chooses to focus on that rather than the bird behind it. I would still recommend you carry out some sort of focus test, and check that your kit is working to the optimum, but your cheapest solution to better results is to practice your fieldcraft and get closer to your subjects. A more expensive solution would be a 500/4 and a 1.4X teleconverter together with a solid tripod and gimbal head <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /> Here's an extreme woodpecker crop (100% crop) from my 50D and 100-400 @ 400mm, handheld at 1/640, f/7.1, 400 ISO. Not too good, but not unexpected. I only took the photo for identification purposes as I could not tell what it was with eyesight alone. I had to focus manually through the viewfinder because there was no way the AF could work effectively with all those branches in the way. If I had had a tripod with me I could have set the camera down and used Live View for pin point focus accuracy, but I was out walking the dog rather than on a photography trip, so no tripod.</blockquote>

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