[awscreo]

He tries to mix that up with personal preference/taste.

Have you read discussion above? Can you backup your statement about not being able to get that image with af? Or you just going to talk passed me?)

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Last edited by awscreo; 09-17-2017 at 05:17 AM.

[danielchtong]

Have you read discussion above? Can you backup your statement about not being able to get that image with af? Or you just going to talk passed me?)

With AF.S or any type of AF, the computer (or the camera) still has to carry out the work. The hesitation in such a fast pace shots is the problem.
MF has no such issue at all. The camera just fires with no question asked

[Kerrowdown]

buildings survive the mangling

Not a rectilinear lens then...

Otherwise it's certainly not an architectural technical term I'm familiar with...

[danielchtong]

Have you read discussion above? Can you backup your statement about not being able to get that image with af? Or you just going to talk passed me?)

It is good that we have such lively discussion this weekend.
Try this set up which we have from time to time.
Use a UWA lens with AF and then with MF setting to shoot running kids or dogs in good light. For doing the MF (part) just set the distance gauge to the minimum focus distance of the lens and fire in burst.
I am sure you will get more images in focus doing MF (compared with those set with AF).

[awscreo]

It is good that we have such lively discussion this weekend.
Try this set up which we have from time to time.
Use a UWA lens with AF and then with MF setting to shoot running kids or dogs in good light. For doing the MF (part) just set the distance gauge to the minimum focus distance of the lens and fire in burst.
I am sure you will get more images in focus doing MF (compared with those set with AF).

Jesus christ. I feel like you're not reading what I'm saying. I am using hyper focal with my Uwa, and I have no issues with it. What I had issue with is saying this technique is the best for all situations, and the later statement that the image you have taken is impossible to do with af. Period. Can we just agree that af/manual is a preference, and you clearly prefer mf? I have no issues with that.

[angerdan]

With MF , one can fire at will.

With AF, you can fire at will and get sharp pictures of at least one depth layer.

With AF.S or any type of AF, the computer (or the camera) still has to carry out the work. The hesitation in such a fast pace shots is the problem.
MF has no such issue at all. The camera just fires with no question asked

In case you prefer images with correct focus and sharp objects, fast shots are possible with AF and without the need for luck or pre-focussing around the expected distance.

Use a UWA lens with AF and then with MF setting to shoot running kids or dogs in good light. For doing the MF (part) just set the distance gauge to the minimum focus distance of the lens and fire in burst.
I am sure you will get more images in focus doing MF (compared with those set with AF).

I'd try (indoors with FA 20mm) and have been badly dissapointed.
Compared to the AF test shots, no MF image is anywhere close to sharpness.

[danielchtong]

and the later statement that the image you have taken is impossible to do with af. Period. Can we just agree that af/manual is a preference, and you clearly prefer mf? I have no issues with that.

Yes. It was impossible for me to get behind the viewfinder to focus (if on AF) on the woodpecker on my left hand.
The circumstance cannot be replicated as I was shooting with the long lens until I saw the woodpecker was circling for food. I yanked out the other camera (luckily with a fisheye) and I took the series. If I waited for AF, I missed the series entirely. It was as I said, once in a lifetime thing

repost: 16mm birdie shot in series - Steve's Digicams Forums

[normhead]

With AF available (in body and lens) and set AF.S to release-priority, picture will be taken even without AF confirmation.

But when you press the shutter release button, the camera may change your focal point to something other than your subject.You just can't get that button down fast enough. I have had shots taken with AF.S and release priority where I had the camera set up, I press the shutter release button, the AF moves the focal point slightly before the shutter is released, and absolutely nothing is in focus. What we are talking about here is what happens to us out in the field. Not some theoretical concept of how the camera should work derived from some manual or how people imagine the camera is supposed to work.

You can learn a lot about how to use you camera, trying to capture hummingbirds. They condense the need to understand a lot of different photographic approaches into one photoshoot. You go through a lot of "Well that didn't work, how about this." And MF using a preset hyperlocal distance is one of the tools you'll find useful from time to time.

---------- Post added 09-17-17 at 11:08 AM ----------

I'd try (indoors with FA 20mm) and have been badly dissapointed.
Compared to the AF test shots, no MF image is anywhere close to sharpness.

In doors, in indoor light your DOF is going to be so narrow your subject may move out of your DOF before you get the shutter release all the way down. I shot portraits for yeas in MF using a depth scale instead of the split screen focus. If people are sitting still, there's absolutely no excuse for missing focus if your MF lens has a distance scale and DoF guide. Use a tape measure to determine the distance if you have to, but like most things, after a few shoots, you don't need it anymore. You have the distance, (and usually your exposure) just from eyeballing the scene.

[awscreo]

Yes. It was impossible for me to get behind the viewfinder to focus (if on AF) on the woodpecker on my left hand.
The circumstance cannot be replicated as I was shooting with the long lens until I saw the woodpecker was circling for food. I yanked out the other camera (luckily with a fisheye) and I took the series. If I waited for AF, I missed the series entirely. It was as I said, once in a lifetime thing

repost: 16mm birdie shot in series - Steve's Digicams Forums

So you happened to have lens pre focused to close distance shooting? Because if you didn't, then you'd have to use your second hand to focus in the zone you needed to correct?

You can easily point the camera towards your hand and focus that way. My camera easily picks up focus at such short distances.

Its actually quite easy to replicate - use the af lens with same or similar focal length, and try to repeat the events but without the bird, instead focusing on the palm of your hand. If you got focus on the hand, you got focus on the bird since dof would be large enough (judging from your original image).

[angerdan]

But when you press the shutter release button, the camera may change your focal point to something other than your subject.You just can't get that button down fast enough. I have had shots taken with AF.S and release priority where I had the camera set up, I press the shutter release button, the AF moves the focal point slightly before the shutter is released, and absolutely nothing is in focus. What we are talking about here is what happens to us out in the field. Not some theoretical concept of how the camera should work derived from some manual or two things imagine the camera is supposed to work.

What i wrote comes from trying out in practise.
If you know the therory or the manual too, it expands the possibilities to use all the options available.
I often do prefocusing using AF before switching to MF. In case something unexpected will happen, with active AF it will be sharp unless its very dark at the area the AF Point is set (i prefer center AF during AF.S).

[danielchtong]

So you happened to have lens pre focused to close distance shooting? Because if you didn't, then you'd have to use your second hand to focus in the zone you needed to correct?).

That wasn't so. I was holding my long lens 300mm and figuring it out that I might get the woodpecker with some birdfood. I recall I put the lens back to my bag and yanked out the fisheye/camera. I set it to around 3 ft all in one hand.
It happened very fast.

The lens has very short minimum focus distance (0.3m) indeed

[awscreo]

That wasn't so. I was holding my long lens 300mm and figuring it out that I might get the woodpecker with some birdfood. I recall I put the lens back to my bag and yanked out the fisheye/camera. I set it to around 3 ft all in one hand.
It happened very fast.

The lens has very short minimum focus distance (0.3m) indeed

Again possible to do with af, probably easier too since you'd just point it at your palm to get focus and shoot away. 3ft is a pretty comfortable distance for af

[danielchtong]

Again possible to do with af, probably easier too since you'd just point it at your palm to get focus and shoot away. 3ft is a pretty comfortable distance for af

That is provided that the camera did not hesitate. I doubt if it worked at all.
Maybe you did not look at the exif of the series of images. I was using DL in late 2006

[normhead]

What i wrote comes from trying out in practise.
If you know the therory or the manual too, it expands the possibilities to use all the options available.
I often do prefocusing using AF before switching to MF. In case something unexpected will happen, with active AF it will be sharp unless its very dark at the area the AF Point is set (i prefer center AF during AF.S).

I did the on yesterday's shoot, and once established focus with AF the switched to live view to align my depth of field in MF. ON difficult subjects, every possible advantage that come from technique comes into play.

---------- Post added 09-18-17 at 08:45 AM ----------

What i wrote comes from trying out in practise.
If you know the therory or the manual too, it expands the possibilities to use all the options available.
I often do prefocusing using AF before switching to MF. In case something unexpected will happen, with active AF it will be sharp unless its very dark at the area the AF Point is set (i prefer center AF during AF.S).

I did the on yesterday's shoot, and once established focus with AF then switched to live view to align my depth of field in MF. On difficult subjects, every possible advantage that comes from technique comes into play.

[danielchtong]

I did the on yesterday's shoot, and once established focus with AF the switched to live view to align my depth of field in MF. ON difficult subjects, every possible advantage that come from technique comes into play.

---------- Post added 09-18-17 at 08:45 AM ----------



I did the on yesterday's shoot, and once established focus with AF then switched to live view to align my depth of field in MF. On difficult subjects, every possible advantage that comes from technique comes into play.

I think that works for lens 30mm or longer. For UWA there is not much need.
Will try it out later