Yeah, the zoom on mine is really touchy when it comes to focus. But since it is digital, I can take a lot of pics and not worry about having to delete some. I have the same issue if I zoom in too much, it won't focus. I am pretty neurotic about keeping my lens clean. Plus, I start taking pictures from further out and then gently zoom in, snapping pics along the way. I have to zoom very slowly and make sure that my subject is my focal point, and not something to the side, or the background. I have had this camera since they first came out. I am slowly learning over time. There are a lot of functions I rarely use. Overall, I enjoy it and for me it's a great camera. I really like Canon. This is the first Canon I have ever owned. I don't use the macro function to take macros oddly enough. Maybe I should try it. I normally use auto or hybrid auto. I haven't been able to use this camera for video because it cuts off at 8 minutes. I haven't figured out why, or how to stop it from doing that. The quality of video is incredible though.