calibration

[Evertking]

Is it necessary to calibrate all lenses?
I was shooting today and wanted to practice shooting wide open (1.2-2) but man, I got maybe one photo out of 10 in focus.
Should I try and calibrate or do I just suck and need more practice?

 

[zombiesniper]

I always calibrate all of my lenses......I should actually say I always check my lenses and calibrate if needed.
There is no point spending money on something that isn't performing at it's best. Plus, it's free added image quality.

Edit: You will still need more practice though. We all do.

 

[Evertking]

I always calibrate all of my lenses......I should actually say I always check my lenses and calibrate if needed.
There is no point spending money on something that isn't performing at it's best. Plus, it's free added image quality.

Edit: You will still need more practice though. We all do.

Last night I set up a few bottles in a line and had my camera on a tripod and at 1.2 it nailed focus every time so I'm guessing it is a combination of the subject moving and myself.
I done some searching on calibration but from your experience what do you think works best.
thanks for the help

 

[RVT1K]

I always calibrate all of my lenses......I should actually say I always check my lenses and calibrate if needed.
There is no point spending money on something that isn't performing at it's best. Plus, it's free added image quality.

Edit: You will still need more practice though. We all do.

Can you elaborate a little, please?
I don't think I understand what is meant by calibrating the lens. Is this something actually done to the lens itself or a focus fine-tuning in the body when the particular lens is used?

Thanks in advance.

 

[smoke665]

B&H has a good article on testing and a full resolution test target you can download How to Test Your Lens

 

[zombiesniper]

I always calibrate all of my lenses......I should actually say I always check my lenses and calibrate if needed.
There is no point spending money on something that isn't performing at it's best. Plus, it's free added image quality.

Edit: You will still need more practice though. We all do.

Can you elaborate a little, please?
I don't think I understand what is meant by calibrating the lens. Is this something actually done to the lens itself or a focus fine-tuning in the body when the particular lens is used?

Thanks in advance.

I mean micro focus adjust my camera body for each lens.

 

[Derrel]

My calibration routine is simple. I take a long strip of silver duct tape and put it on the outside of the building and every 1/2 inch I draw a line with the black sharpie pen. I use a yardstick to measure and mark the distances in inches and feet. I shoot from roughly 10 feet away at a 45° angle,from a tripod. This makes a really good and yet easy to acquire focus target. I do these tests in JPEG mode.

 

[RVT1K]

Thanks for the input, guys. Time to break out the manual and study up on how to do this.

 

[Evertking]

My calibration routine is simple. I take a long strip of silver duct tape and put it on the outside of the building and every 1/2 inch I draw a line with the black sharpie pen. I use a yardstick to measure and mark the distances in inches and feet. I shoot from roughly 10 feet away at a 45° angle,from a tripod. This makes a really good and yet easy to acquire focus target. I do these tests in JPEG mode.

Could you explain a little more about how you place the tape? The side of a building??
Thanks for the tip, when I grasp what your talking about I'm going to calibrate.

 

[smoke665]

@Evertking there are numerous free downloads of focus charts you can make your own, here's one. FREE Lens Calibration Chart - Piston Photography I suspect Derrel's method works similar to the ruler on the right in the download. He's establishing a center mark on his tape and then shooting at an angle.

I use a wide aperture to limit my DOF and use the view finder to auto focus on the cross mark at the center of the ruler, then take a photo. This is the center focus point. If focusing is accurate, the center point on the calibration ruler should be the sharpest point on the image and get blurrier as you move away from the center point. If any number above the 0 is clearer, then your lens is doing something called back focus. Otherwise, if any number below the 0 is clearer, it’s front focus.

 

[Designer]

Is it necessary to calibrate all lenses?
I was shooting today and wanted to practice shooting wide open (1.2-2) but man, I got maybe one photo out of 10 in focus.
Should I try and calibrate or do I just suck and need more practice?

I think you should at least test all of your lenses and your camera's auto focusing ability. If you find some combinations don't work well, don't use those.

It wouldn't hurt to fine-tune the focus of each AF lens you have, and if you find one will not meet your expectations, then trade it off for something better.

Yes, it could be your lens, your camera, or yourself, but do find out where the weak parts are so you can adjust.

BTW: are you hand-holding portraits? I think you should use a tripod.

 

[Derrel]

Smoke nailed my method! I put. "0" on the tape and create a roughly 72"
"Ruler" and shoot from 10 feet.I have 1-inch marks behind and in front of the "0"Distance. Tape to building
Or fence.

 

[Derrel]

For about 15 years I had a Nikon 105 mm F2 AF-D Defocus Control that was constantly misfocusing. After a long time I decided to part ways with it since it's so often let me down. My old nearly worn-out,secondhand 135 mm f/2 AF Defocus Control never gave me any problems, and was an extremely good lens, but I sold it since I so seldom used it. I mention this because if the lens does not focus reliably,it becomes something you are afraid to use, and which you should get rid of. While I was really enamored of the 105 Defocus Control for the first year that I had it,it was a major disappointment on several big shoots and finally I resolved to get rid of it.

 

[beagle100]

Is it necessary to calibrate all lenses?
I was shooting today and wanted to practice shooting wide open (1.2-2) but man, I got maybe one photo out of 10 in focus.
Should I try and calibrate or do I just suck and need more practice?

I think you should at least test all of your lenses and your camera's auto focusing ability. If you find some combinations don't work well, don't use those.

It wouldn't hurt to fine-tune the focus of each AF lens you have, and if you find one will not meet your expectations, then trade it off for something better.

Yes, it could be your lens, your camera, or yourself, but do find out where the weak parts are so you can adjust.

BTW: are you hand-holding portraits? I think you should use a tripod.

right, large aperture lens, short distance = very small 'depth of field'
www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless