Need help with possible focus loss for subjects further away...

[analog.universe]

The manual focus technique I was taught was to start with focus in front of your intended focus point. Focus just past the sharp focus point to a point behind your intended focus point, then reverse until you have sharp focus.

By going past sharp focus, you get to see what sharp focus looks like.

I've always found it easier to start at infinity, since it's generally a shorter throw of the focusing ring than starting from the foreground. But yes, focus slightly past and then back up so that you can see what sharp looks like. Feeling the distance in the ring between unsharp in one direction and unsharp in the other gives you a good idea of where perfectly focused will be in the middle.