Focusing issues going from a 50D to 5D Mark III

[JClishe]

My 5D3 arrived on Friday (guess I need to change my signature) and I shot about 400 shots with it in the studio over the weekend. I noticed that I have a higher percentage of missed focus shots than I'm used to with my 50D, particularly at wider apertures (4.0 - 5.6 or so). This is my first time using a full frame camera, is this likely a situation of the DoF being thinner on FF versus my 50D's sensor, and I just need to pay more attention to my focus point? I'm wondering if I was simply able to get away with being a little "sloppy" with focusing on the 50D and I need to untrain bad habits? I have some boudior shots where the model was laying on her back looking up at me and at F/4 her forehead is sharp and her eyes are soft. Based on my distance to the model, F/4 wasn't typically that shallow on my 50D so I suspect this is user error but I'm still curious what others think about moving from crop to FF and how that affects focusing.

 

[o hey tyler]

I do recall going from a T1i to a 5D. The best way I could equate it is like it's riding a bigger bike. You just need to get used to how it handles differently than your smaller bike. There's going to be a narrower plane of focus at the same aperture. Frankly, f/4 sounds a bit wide for shooting studio portraits unless you're very comfortable with your gear. Care to post any of the shots? Perhaps the whole image, and then some 100% crops? EXIF would help too.

 

[Derrel]

f/4 is a wide enough aperture that at close, indoor distances, there very well might not be enough depth of field to bridge the distance between the forehead and the eyes at close camera-to-subject distances...keep in mind that when shooting downward, the depth of field is much shallower than if the camera is level and shooting directly out "into space"...if the angle of the lens is pretty steep, the depth of field plane is much less able to be "applied" to anything that rises "up" and off of say a table (or bed or couch, or whatever). You mention the model looking up, so I am inferring that there's a bit of an angle to the lens-to-subject line.

Focus point is also a critical issue...it has to be placed carefully and properly...

 

[gsgary]

Why are you shooting F4 in the studio ? continuos lighting ?

 

[JClishe]

Why are you shooting F4 in the studio ? continuos lighting ?

In the F4 example I was specifically going for a shallow DoF, it just turned out a little shallower than I expected. I'll post a few examples shortly.

 

[Village Idiot]

That camera also has micro focusing, so print out a focusing chart and see if the focus needs a quick calibration.

 

[Big Mike]

Yes, I'd guess that working with a shallower DOF than you're used to, might be a cause for more missed shots.

Also, do you change your focus points or do you tend to focus and recompose? The focus and recompose method may introduce a slight distance change, which may show up as missed focus when working with a shallower DOF.
I now use my focus points more often, since going to a full frame camera. Unfortunately for me, the 5DmkII has a tightly packed AF point array.

 

[JClishe]

Also, do you change your focus points or do you tend to focus and recompose?

I change my focus points. Which is actually more of a pain now since the 5D3 has so many more focus points than the 50D, it takes longer to move to the focus point I want. But I'll get used it, it's a good problem to have


And I'm using spot AF on the 5D3, is that generally what I should be using in the studio? I literally unboxed this thing Friday night and used it in the studio Saturday morning; the AF is way more complex than my 50D and I haven't fully digested the manual yet.

 

[JClishe]

OK here are some full size samples. Now that I've thought about this a bit longer and have spent more time looking at the EXIF data, I think I was simply using too wide of an aperture. I'm generally not doing anything differently than I did with my 50D, but I think the 50D simply let me "get away with" using a wider aperture in the studio, and the 5D won't be as forgiving to my stupidity.

Soft / missed focus
http://sdrv.ms/GObrA3
http://sdrv.ms/HbTdZ7
http://sdrv.ms/H5W3AY

Boderline
http://sdrv.ms/GObJ9Z
http://sdrv.ms/GObJXw

Shaper / better
http://sdrv.ms/HbSVRV
http://sdrv.ms/HbT0F9
http://sdrv.ms/GObonV


Also please keep in mind I've done no editing at all to these, these are RAW's converted to JPG in DPP and nothing else done to them. I'm posting them for focusing-related feedback only.

 

[gsgary]

Have you tried back button focus it works great in the studio ?

 

[punch]

is it heavier? i found going from a T1i to the 50D that I was missing focus just because it was so much heavier at first... but maybe you have man wrists and not sticks like i do.

 

[JClishe]

Have you tried back button focus it works great in the studio ?

Yes, I use back button focus.

 

[JClishe]

is it heavier? i found going from a T1i to the 50D that I was missing focus just because it was so much heavier at first... but maybe you have man wrists and not sticks like i do.

The 5D3 body is heavier than the 50D, but my 50D is gripped and the 5D3 is not so weight is pretty much a wash at this point.

 

[Robin Usagani]

Damn you.. i want one . Jealous.

 

[JClishe]

Damn you.. i want one . Jealous.

Jealous about the camera or the model? In all seriousness she was one of the most experienced models I've worked with and she was great, I hope to have the chance to work with her again.