105 micro autofocus issue

[barleymalt]

i just bought the afs nikkor 105 micro 2.8 and though its a fantastic lens it won't autofocus closer than about 0.5m, though it can focus as close as 0.314m. it hunts and fails every single time. never heard of anyone having this issue. should i take it back or is it supposed to be like that. never used a macro lens before..

 

[Overread15 3]

First up the lens should be able to AF between its min focusing distance and around 0.5m. First check that you've not engaged the lenses focus limiter switch.

Secondly lighting is key for auto focus and as most modern macro lenses enter the close focusing distances the effective aperture of the lens reduces (you can see this yourself as a nikon shooter - your max aperture at 1:1 magnificaiton will be something like f5.6 not f2.8). This means there is less light for the AF system to work with. This is a key reason why the vast majority of macro shooting is done with manual focusing - often setting the focus and then shifting the camera+lens gently back and forth to get the focus where you want it. In the macro distances AF is just too prone to hunting and missing the focus point - plus AF in macro lenses is typically slower so any hunting takes longer as well.

 

[Aye-non Oh-non Imus]

When I'm in close for macro work, I turn AF off. Otherwise, my copy of the Nikkor 105mm f/2.8 works flawlessly with AF.

 

[Chlosse]

I definitely agree on MF with macro shooting, AF just isn't precise enough to leave it to its focus points
less depth of field the more control I want too.