manual focus for distant objects

[denada]

thrilled to hear it. was just doubting myself a bit because i recently had PRK surgery and sometimes my sight falls in and out of focus. thanks again for all the replies!

 

[table1349]

Just curious, what focus screen came in year in your n2000? Nikon didn't make various focus screams including what prism scream for the n2000 you might be able to pick one up on a eBay. That might help with your focusing as well.

 

[denada]

i returned the 2000 the following day. the focus screen was a circle split in half surrounded by either one or two rings.

when i returned it, i picked up nikon fg with a nikon series e 50mm f/1.8 lens. that camera/lens also has the same deal where far away objects do not necessarily appear most in focus by twisting the focus ring quite all the way to the stop, but i hear that's normal.

 

[Derrel]

A series E 50mm has a hard infinity stop. On such lenses Infinity is very,very far away. I'd estimate that Infinity on a lens of that era is somewhere in the range of a couple of miles, and subjects that are say, 1/2 mile distant should not be focused all the way to Infinity. As you can see, the 50mm Series E has marks for Infinity, then 20 feet/5 meters; next is 10 feet 3 meters; then 7,6,and 4 feet and 2, 1.5, and 1.2 meters...over the range of 4 to 20 feet, the focusing action is pretty much optimized for the distances this lens would be used at most often by most people. Beyond 20 feet, focusing is more coarse than it is in the closer ranges--but much more finely adjustable than on say the 50mm f/1./8 AF Nikkor models that followed a few years later.

One tip to assist in focusing a camera with a split-image rangefinder is to "jiggle" the camera up and down, repeatedly, while aiming the central split image rangefinder patch at the specific target: if the image in the split-image rangefinder "shimmies" or wiggles, the focusing is not adjusted properly for the subject under the rangefinder. This is easily, easily seen by practicing on something that has a strong, clear edge, such as the edge of a door jam, or a telephone pole, or other strong, clear line. At times,depending on the subject you are trying to focus on, it can be helpful to cant the camera, and then do the up-and-down wiggle of the camera. When trying to focus a split-image rangefinder SLR in really poor, poor light, this up-and-down wiggle method is extremely effective once you understand how to do it.

 

[Derrel]

A manual focusing Nikkor 300mm f/4.5 ED~IF lens from the 1980's has a fairly long, precise focusing ring movement. At the longer distance end of the focusing range, the focusing range extends PAST the Infinity symbol, focusing "beyond infinity", and then has Infinity, 100 feet/30 meters; 50 feet/15 meters, 10 meters, 30 feet, 7 meters, then 20 feet. This lens is easily focused by eye, or by rangefinder, at the longer distances a 300mm lens would often be used at.

Older Nikkor manual focuing lenses were optimized with focusing ring travel designed for their normal, expected use distances. For example...

The closer range focusing scale for the 135mm f/2 Ai-S Nikkor lens: notice the Infinity mark, and then the 70 foot, 30 foot, 20 foot, and 15 foot marks, and then much longer spacing for the closer, portrait-range uses? The portrait range from the MFD or Minimum Focusing Distance and then the commonly-used distances of 5,6,7,8, 10, and 12 feet --that distance range covers almost a full 90 degree turn of the focusing ring...enabling SPOT-ON focusing at portrait ranges, which is important especially on a wide-aperture f/2 telephoto lens.

 

[denada]

One tip to assist in focusing a camera with a split-image rangefinder is to "jiggle" the camera up and down, repeatedly, while aiming the central split image rangefinder patch at the specific target: if the image in the split-image rangefinder "shimmies" or wiggles, the focusing is not adjusted properly for the subject under the rangefinder. This is easily, easily seen by practicing on something that has a strong, clear edge, such as the edge of a door jam, or a telephone pole, or other strong, clear line. At times,depending on the subject you are trying to focus on, it can be helpful to cant the camera, and then do the up-and-down wiggle of the camera. When trying to focus a split-image rangefinder SLR in really poor, poor light, this up-and-down wiggle method is extremely effective once you understand how to do it.

thanks. i've been attempting to find and align lines to perfectly focus with that circle, but had not been incorporating the "wiggle." i'll give that a try.

my desired subject is people, and, while there's not problem with distance there, finding a clean line when photographing them is much more difficult. getting a bit of topic, but still on the topic of equipment in discussion, in addition to not having and clear lines when shooting portraits, it's really frustrating when i say "play with you hair" and then only get one shot as it falls -- despite the nice feel to to the fg's manual windup. or even worse, miss an opportunity to capitalize on an awesome candid facial expression because i'm between shots when she sticks her tongue out at me. i'm not sure if opportunities to photograph absurdly picturesque girls will continue to fall into my lap, but i plan as going as far as seeking them out and expect success.

my father found and gave me his nikon n6006. i haven't had a chance to use it because i need to put some epoxy on the smashed open battery compartment, but i believe it is rapid fire like the n2000. that camera any good? i see that the n2000 tends be listed for more online. i have an nikon af micro nikkor lens for it, which he said probably isn't what i want.

 

[Derrel]

Shooting at an f/stop that gives you at least six inches of good, clear focus is a good idea if you're trying to capture fleeting expressions; shooting at f/5.6 or f/6.3 or even f/7.1 with flash is helpful indoors, or outdoors at f/8, so you can get the expression without the need for precision, pin-point focusing. I grew up with manual focus Nikons, and the more practice you have, the better. Shooting from a bit farther away with an 85mm lens is helpful, to get that bit of depth of field. Shooting with a 50mm lens, try to stay at least 10 feet away, and then crop a bit to get the right framing. The n6006 was a camera I never liked much when it was new, I sold a few of them, but it was not an easy sell due to the higher-end n8008 model that was such a nice camera.

Once you get the hang of the "wiggle rangefinder trick" you'll get better focusing. One trick with a silver-ringed Nikon lens is to grip the ring AND the focusing ring of the lens simultaneously, and to use the silver ring (found on the later Series E 50mm models) as a sort of friction brake, so that you can pinch hard, and be able to move the focusing ring just the tiniest bit, to get that just-right focus distance. make sure the camera's rear eyepiece is very,very clean as well, no smudges, no airborne oil from cooking, etc..