manual focus tips?

[camerateur]

I prefer shooting with manual focus, (nothing worse than the pain of the camera focusing on the background or what not and missing a great shot)
but I notice (esp when the subject isn't in the majority of the shot)
that what I am manual focusing on is sometimes out of focus even when I THOUGHT it looked sharp in viewfinder /:
when something is that small in the viewfinder, how do you know if its perfectly sharp?

is it just me? my eyesight? I thought I had perfect vision.. but this makes me want to get an eye exam.
are higher quality slr view finders better designed for something like this??

any tips?
my camera doesn't have live view btw. in case that's one of your tips

 

[imagemaker46]

Start off getting your eyes checked, check your camera and make sure there are no issues with it. If it all looks ok, you can practice by sitting on the side of the road and focus on moving car licence plates, coming towards you and going away, once you start to nail that, you'll never have focus problems again.

 

[Patriot]

You can adjust the diopter on the view finder to better suit your eyes.

 

[fokker]

It is difficult on most DSLR's but it will come with practice. In my case I have a 5Dmk2 which has a nice big bright viewfinder and makes manual focusing easier than small-sensor cameras.

 

[MTVision]

You didn't say what kind of camera you have, but I'll presume it's a modern DSLR. Modern cameras are not meant to be manually focused. If you want to manually focus your camera, you need to install a focus screen. We'd need to know the camera model to know if there's a focus screen available.

A focus screen is a screen for the viewfinder that contains an out-of-focus indicator. A common type is the split-circle screen, where there's a circle in the center of the viewfinder and the image in the circle is split and misaligned. When the image is aligned, the camera is in perfect focus.

Without a focus screen you'll never be able to manually focus (as you've found out.) Most DSLRs allow manual focus operation, and include indicators in the electronic display to signal when you're in focus. Those signals, however, come from the autofocus system. Basically, if you can use the signals then you can autofocus. If you can't autofocus, then you won't be able to use the signals to focus the camera.

I would say that a better solution is to figure out why your camera is focusing on the background. Does your camera have multiple focus points? moving the focus point might be a solution. Your camera may have an AF-ON function, where the autofocus is operated by a separate button (usually the AE-L button) instead of the shutter button. I'm not a fan of AF-ON myself...I'd rather move the focus point...but some people like using it.

But if you really want to focus manually then KatzEye is the place to get a focusing screen.

KatzEye™ Optics - Custom Focusing Screens

Everything said above is right on. I have a couple manual focus lens and they were hard to get use to. Sometimes (especially if the subject is far away) its hard to tell if I nailed the focus. On my camera (Nikon d5100) there is a little green light focus indicator but like gray star mentioned above it runs on the autofocus system. If your camera can't AF (due to low light or whatever) then the green light won't come on either.

Autofocus works great 90% of the time. The camera shouldn't focus on anything besides what you are telling it to focus on. Have you read your manual? There are many different AF modes/area modes. My camera came out of the box wIth the camera controlling the autofocus completely. I would point the camera at something and a bunch of the focus points would light up - the camera was choosing what and where to focus. Not sure what camera you have but if it's a DSLR you can change it.

I use a single focal point to autofocus. It's very accurate - the only time the camera has issues is in low light and/or low contrast. I use back button focusing (AF on that was mentioned above) but I do move the focus point to where I want it. I would highly suggest looking through the manual to find out about the different AF modes.

 

[bs0604]

does installing a focus screen still allow the option of using the camera's autofocus?

 

[Patriot]

does installing a focus screen still allow the option of using the camera's autofocus?

According to the katzeye website the screens doesnt affect anything else.

 

[MTVision]

does installing a focus screen still allow the option of using the camera's autofocus?

Yeah.

 

[TCampbell]

For most DSLRs, the phase-detection AF sensors are on the FLOOR of the sensor body chamber, and the focus screen is on the ROOF of the same chamber. In theory, you should be able to do anything to the screen on the top and it should have no impact on the sensors down in the floor.

It's easier to manually focus full-frame and 35mm film cameras because the viewfinder is huge and has more light. Also... 35mm cameras had the split-prism focusing aid in the center. You can buy different focus screens for many DSLRs -- some recommend that you only use f/2.8 or faster lenses with these (yes, you can technically use slower lenses, but they work best with fast lenses.)

HOWEVER... it seems like your original post says you're frustrated with the camera picking the wrong focus point and missing the shot and THAT is the motive for wanting to do manual focus. This is where I wonder what make/model camera you have. I'm wondering if, rather than going the route of manual focus, you might benefit from learning how to control the AF system. For example, Canon has a 3-part video (takes about 1.5 hours to watch the whole thing) that explains how the system works in some detail. Once you understand the details of how the system was designed to work, what it's "thinking" and how to control it, you can naturally just look at the shot you're about to take and you'll know instantly how the camera will attempt to focus and what it'll try to lock onto. At this point you know when you can rely it (when it'll lock onto your subject) or when you should take control.

When manually focusing, my camera has an option as to whether it'll light up the AF points which it believes I've got in focus and also it'll optionally chirp. But this setting could be on or off so depending on which camera you own and what options you have, it may be something you need to check.

Many (probably most) DSLRs have a dial next to the eyepiece that adjusts for eyesight. Due to the way eyes & optics work, it's possible to for a person with non-perfect vision to achieve (what this believe is) perfect focus. They snap the photo. When they inspect the photos they realize they were not in focus. Basically if your eyesight isn't perfect then you have to use the adjustment to compensate so that when it appears to be in focus "to you" it'll also appear to be in focus for the camera.

I let the camera auto-focus most of the time (I do have one specialty lens (tilt-shift) which is manual focus only). I usually manually focus macro shots because I want to control the over-all location of the DoF. So I have an angle-finder with magnifies either 1.25x or 2.5x. This allows me to get VERY good focus -- but it's the kind of accessory that you only use when you can take your time -- the sorts of shots you can carefully set up while using a tripod. For most walking around photography, candids, etc. an angle finder would hinder more than it would help.

 

[KmH]

Start with the focus in front of your intended point of focus.

Turn the focus ring past the point of focus to just slightly behind your intended point of focus.

Your eye has now seen what sharp focus looks like.

Reverse the direction you turn the focus ring on the lens, and return to the sharp focus your eye just saw.

A split prism focus screen, like those from KatzEye™ Optics - Custom Focusing Screens is vey handy. Todays DSLR cameras are not configured for doing manual focus.

 

[Buckster]

Many (probably most) DSLRs have a dial next to the eyepiece that adjusts for eyesight. Due to the way eyes & optics work, it's possible to for a person with non-perfect vision to achieve (what this believe is) perfect focus. They snap the photo. When they inspect the photos they realize they were not in focus. Basically if your eyesight isn't perfect then you have to use the adjustment to compensate so that when it appears to be in focus "to you" it'll also appear to be in focus for the camera.

Just to chime in a bit on this diopter adjustment, be sure that the little black AF points markers that you see in the viewfinder all the time are in perfect focus when you adjust the diopter wheel. When they are, then you know your diopter is set correctly for your eye. From there, anything else in focus in your viewfinder should also be in focus in the final image.

For most of my shooting years, all I ever had was manual focus cameras and lenses. After that, I LOVE AF, but I must say, it's spoiled me a bit. After some 10 years shooting mostly digital bodies with AF lenses, I now have a Canon 500mm f/4.5 L FD-Mount lens wearing an adapter for my EF bodies. That means no AF on it for me - manual only. It's been a chore getting back into the swing of quickly getting a good focus on a subject, but it's coming along with practice, and the results of this lens are worth it. Still, I now have a reason to change my focusing screen yet again, this time to one with a split prism, and maybe also a surrounding prism pattern, plus grid (for the 5DMKII). I think on the 7D, I only need the addition of the prism, and the 7D will still project the grid for me - I'll have to look into that a bit more.

 

[DanPower]

Thanks for the great answers posted so far. I have also been having some difficulties manually focusing my 550d and these gave me a lot to think about.

TCampbell - do you have a link to the Canon videos you mentioned? I would love to see them but google can't seem to find them. Thanks.

EDIT: I think I've found them, here are the links in case others are looking:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAx86nblZ2g
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_F7lCvp5DI
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WTWiN9kLts

 

[belial]

does installing a focus screen still allow the option of using the camera's autofocus?

Yes although an aftermarket focus screen quite often kills the focus point confirmation in the view finder (usually a little red dot over the active focus point. The autofocus feature doesn't rely on the focus screen so nothing else is affected

 

[belial]

..... Canon has a 3-part video (takes about 1.5 hours to watch the whole thing) that explains how the system works in some detail.

You don't by chance have a link to that video or could point me in the right direction could you? I lobe stuff like that

 

[Buckster]

does installing a focus screen still allow the option of using the camera's autofocus?

Yes although an aftermarket focus screen quite often kills the focus point confirmation in the view finder (usually a little red dot over the active focus point. The autofocus feature doesn't rely on the focus screen so nothing else is affected

It didn't kill anything on my 5DMKII, nor have I heard of it killing that feature on any other bodies. Do you have a link or something to further information on that?