C lens going out of focus?

[Dashmellow]

what res do you get in webcam mode?

1080 or at least it looks that way.

 

[jokiin]

1080 or at least it looks that way.

I haven't ever had the opportunity to try this and for sure the Mobius does some things much better than others are doing on the same platform with the enhancements they've done but I'm not aware of the webcam mode being capable of 1080p, if it's not and it's either cropped or compressed the adjustments you make in webcam mode won't match what it outputs in video mode so would be very hard to get the focus right using this method if this is the case, maybe confirm what res you get in this mode, if it is 1080p capable in webcam mode then it may just be a lens issue and something you'll never get right

 

[Dashmellow]

The web cam mode is probably not really 1080 on my 24 inch monitor but it looks sharp and clear full screen and very sharp half screen so it has more than enough resolution to focus a Mobius lens accurately. I've done it many times and that is unlikely to be the problem here. I know of no better way to focus a Mobius.

If it were daytime here I would do a test shot to demonstrate but it's late at night here. Also, I need to be up really early in the morning and shouldn't even still be on the computer right now, so it's time for me to sign off.

 

[Dashmellow]

I haven't ever had the opportunity to try this and for sure the Mobius does some things much better than others are doing on the same platform with the enhancements they've done but I'm not aware of the webcam mode being capable of 1080p, if it's not and it's either cropped or compressed the adjustments you make in webcam mode won't match what it outputs in video mode so would be very hard to get the focus right using this method if this is the case, maybe confirm what res you get in this mode, if it is 1080p capable in webcam mode then it may just be a lens issue and something you'll never get right

Apparently, I can achieve Apple ProRes 4444, 1280 x 720 Linear PCMH.264 using the Mobius in web cam mode in the "maximum" setting if recording, (which is Apple's special sauce compression scheme codec).

 

[jokiin]

720p, that's decent, most don't go that high in webcam mode

compare your results recording in 720p mode maybe and see how the focus looks, I personally believe best focus is possible when set to the native res the camera will be used in, cropped not compressed if less than full res of the sensor

 

[Dashmellow]

It appears that I was shipped a Mobius C camera with the latest version of the lens. All in all, after trying different things with it and refocusing several times I am not completely pleased with the image quality when compared to my other Mobius lenses.

So I did basically the opposite of the above question. As an experiment, I installed a "B" lens in the "C" housing because I want to clarify whether the issues I am seeing are in the lens or the sensor. Aside from that I'm just curious to see what happens. About a year ago, I ordered a B module from Banggood that was defective. They were very good about promptly sending me a replacement after I sent screen shots demonstrating the bad sensor mine came with and this is why I just happen to have a spare B lens to do this experiment with. I will report back in a few days with the results.

BTW, it was not especially easy to screw the B lens into the C housing. It took a bit of coaxing to get it in far enough to focus properly. The threads in the FRP sensor housing have been very difficult to work with no matter which lens is used in it.

Edit: I just swapped lenses this morning so as of now I have no idea what results I will get. One of the things I plan to try is to see if there is any difference in the image if I use the "C" setting or the "B" setting in mSetup.

Here is my follow-up to the above post from Tuesday about swapping a "B" lens into a "C" module base.

The first thing I noticed with a B lens in the C module was that if I chose the "C" lens selection in mSetup the color balance in the videos was all messed up. There was a distinct cool blue bias to the images and to a lesser extent there was less red in the image than required. Switching to the "B" setting returned the color balance to normal.

The second thing I noticed was a big improvement in overall image sharpness and clarity. Things are much more to my satisfaction than with the original C lens. However, if you examine the following screen shot you will notice that the left side of the image, especially the upper left corner is out of focus. This is evident as well on the right side of the image but to a lesser degree. Previously, with the C lens, objects on the right side of the image were in focus but objects in the left half of the frame were out of focus as seen in the screen shot I included in post #99 above.

The fact that there is some degree of left side focus issue with both lenses seems to indicate an issue with the sensor or lens alignment within the threaded module base. On the other hand the sharper focus from the B lens raises some questions about the C lens itself but it may simply be that the B lens has greater depth of focus and is therefore able to compensate for a misalignment with or distortion of the sensor.

 

[Bungus]

Will setting it to narrow FOV eliminate the slight out of focus sides?

 

[Dashmellow]

Will setting it to narrow FOV eliminate the slight out of focus sides?

Good question! I haven't had time to try that yet. Stay tuned!

 

[mr_milo]

Good question! I haven't had time to try that yet. Stay tuned!

So I assume you're running in Wide mode.(?) I think narrow mode works better for me but my A lens camera still seems a bit better at reading plates, etc. I have a sense that my lens is out of focus but it doesn't seem that way when I look at images, just a bit soft.

Here is a picture from my C lens (sorry I had to flip it using paint.net):

And here is a frame grab from the C lens (wide mode):

And here is a frame grab from the C lens in narrow mode:

 

[Dashmellow]

So I assume you're running in Wide mode.(?) I think narrow mode works better for me but my A lens camera still seems a bit better at reading plates, etc. I have a sense that my lens is out of focus but it doesn't seem that way when I look at images, just a bit soft.

Right off the bat, your images look far better than anything I saw with my C lens, wide or narrow even after I thought I'd fixed things with refocusing.
At this point I've kept the setting for the B lens in the C module base wide so as to more closely match the FOV of both lenses but the next thing to try is the narrow setting. I agree that narrow mode may be better.

So far in my experience with all three Mobius lenses, the A lens wins hands down but I'm pleased with my B lens Mobius set on wide facing out the rear window of my pick-up where I want coverage on either size of the truck bed.

 

[Dashmellow]

So, as promised last Thursday, here are a couple of screen shots of the "B" lens installed in the "C" module base with the FOV set to narrow.
It took some time going through my footage to find something with more than sky in the upper corners to demonstrate the focus in that part of the frame. Certainly the narrow setting eliminates much of the out of focus areas from before but somehow there seems to often be a lack of critical sharpness in many scenes while at other times it looks better. I still need to do some careful tests to see how the temperature is really effecting the lens but at this point I'm of the opinion that something isn't quite right with the sensor. My theory is that it came warped from manufacture and/or it is shifting from temperature changes even when those changes are not so extreme.

I sent some screenshots to Banggood showing the left side out of focus issue with the original C lens installed and they are shipping me a replacement C module.

 

[mr_milo]

Certainly the narrow setting eliminates much of the out of focus areas from before but somehow there seems to often be a lack of critical sharpness in many scenes while at other times it looks better.

This is exactly how I feel about my C lens. I really can't complain because it looks good but somehow I feel it's just not as sharp as it should be. I still have to move my A lens camera to the front so I can get some clear camera to camera comparison shots.

Good to hear they are sending you a new lens.

 

[Dashmellow]

This is exactly how I feel about my C lens. I really can't complain because it looks good but somehow I feel it's just not as sharp as it should be. I still have to move my A lens camera to the front so I can get some clear camera to camera comparison shots.

Good to hear they are sending you a new lens.

So far, the whole transition to the FRP modules just seems like a giant step backwards for Mobius and I hope something gets done to rectify it. At this point I treasure the two A lens modules I own as they are beginning to feel like irreplaceable gems. The B lens camera I'm running is fine and I have no real complaints but it doesn't hold a candle to the sharpness and precision of the original A lens modules. Time will tell when I finally receive the new Mobius C module but I am not holding my breath.

 

[russ331]

So far, the whole transition to the FRP modules just seems like a giant step backwards for Mobius and I hope something gets done to rectify it.

Comment by Tom Frank at RCGroups within the last 24 hours...

"...new modules have been designed, and I will be posting about them shortly (in a day or two)".

 

[jokiin]

well that's good news, I know there are some other changes coming so may well be related to that

 

[Dashmellow]

Comment by Tom Frank at RCGroups within the last 24 hours...

"...new modules have been designed, and I will be posting about them shortly (in a day or two)".

Thanks for the encouraging news! What does that mean for all of us who will be stuck with deficient C lens modules, even the latest versions which according to Isoprop have already been updated over the first generation? It would be nice to think there might be some sort of trade-in or discount replacement program for early C lens adopters but my guess is that we will have to invest in new modules.

 

[Padwanjoe]

@jokiin : can you tell us more about these other changes?

 

[Dashmellow]

@jokiin : can you tell us more about these other changes?

See THIS post from @Isoprop from earlier today. Perhaps there are other changes afoot but I believe the optional 90 degree module may be what @jokiin was referring to. @Isoprop also posted THIS link to the RCgroups forum along with his remarks where you can find further details regarding the newly revised modules.

 

[Padwanjoe]

Thank you, @Dashmellow !

 

[manijak]

I sent some screenshots to Banggood showing the left side out of focus issue with the original C lens installed and they are shipping me a replacement C module.

if only they had lens that is better than this one
i got a replacement and its got even more problems