could be the dumbest question on the forum but....

on my D40, when i look through the viewfinder i see 3 boxes horizontally with the middle on being this:[ ].

whenever i push down the shutter halfway the box on the far right lights up


why only this one and its only that one when i shoot in anything other than auto, in auto the middle lights up, and ive been shooting in manual mode lately and noticed it

so why that one and not another one?

 

If you press the right and left buttons on your toggle pad in manual mode, it will move the focal point to the sides.

 

Because you have selected dynamic range focussing on the menu. If you look thru the viewfinder in this mode press the shutter half way and u see the RH bracket light up. then use the button to the RH side of the lcd screen (the one for looking thru pics taken) you will see the brackets move across to the middle one and so fourth. You are effectively selecting the focus zone, RH, LH and Centre. Also if you set up the focus mode to closest subject the bracket that lights up will be the one the camera sees as the closest subject. Hope this helps

 

oh haha puyjapin thanks didnt even noticed i hit that

does it make a difference which box lights up if im in full manual mode?

 

As far as i aware it does yes, by full manual i assume you mean manual as opposed to manual focus. The bracket you select will remain as you set it unless you switch to an auto mode as far as I know.

 

Absolutely. The camera auto-focuses on whatever is behind the box that's lit. So let's say there's a person in the middle of the frame, and a tree off in the distance on the right side of the frame. Right now the camera is focusing on the tree, and the person will be badly out of focus.

If you want to be focusing on the distant tree...great -- but assuming you're trying to focus on the person, then you need to change it so that the lit box is in the middle.

 

It can. But remember that whatever you want to be in focus, must have the active AF point (Auto Focus Point) on that area to get that portion in sharp.

Everyone has their preference, But 90 percent of the time I use the center AF only. This is the sweet spot of the lens, and the most accurate AF point in terms of F stop.

 

i use my lens in manual too not auto focus, so does this all still apply?

 

What do you guys normally prefer? I find myself not bothering with the focus point, leaving it in the middle, focusing on the subject and then recomposing...you guys?

 

Ahhh.... No it does not. Though depending on incamera settings, When you have obtained manual focus on the object with the center point active, it will light up to help confirm. You can turn this feature off as well though.

 

Manual focus all the time?with the switch on the lens at position M? on a kit 18-55mm? if you manually focussing then this I would think it will override any settings regarding the zone the camera selects as you are in manual control. Please some one correct me if im wrong...