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04-23-2013, 06:16 AM   #76
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QuoteOriginally posted by Zafar Iqbal Quote
I never found much use for the focused peak feature and don't see it as anything else than a more or less useless gimmick. It eagerly indicates focus which means it can't be too accurate using longer focals and/or larger apertures.
After playing around with the camera for a few days, I'm finding the same thing. Focus peaking is quick and approximate, but for fine focusing there's no substitute for the magnified view.

The autofocus has let me down a couple of times as well.

04-23-2013, 08:25 AM   #77
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QuoteOriginally posted by Tony Belding Quote
After playing around with the camera for a few days, I'm finding the same thing. Focus peaking is quick and approximate, but for fine focusing there's no substitute for the magnified view.

The autofocus has let me down a couple of times as well.
That's what I've decided. For accurate focussing, magnified view beats all. Auto-focus is the fastest, therefore best suited to some applications. I like focus peaking with AF, so I can see where the camera has focussed. FP is on my red button, I will cycle it on and off as needed. I wouldn't trade it for either of the other two.

Last edited by audiobomber; 04-23-2013 at 10:47 AM.
04-23-2013, 09:16 AM   #78
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QuoteOriginally posted by audiobomber Quote
That's what I've decided. For accurate focussing, magnified view beats all. Auto-focus is the fastest, therefore best suited to some applications. I like focus peaking with AF, so I can see where the camera has focussed. FP is no my red button, I will cycle it on and off as needed. I wouldn't trade it for either of the other two.
Focus peaking had its start for video applications, and I can see how it would shine there. I like it for stills photography, but I understand it's not for everyone. I have been much more disappointed by auto-focus, in general. High contrast things are, of course, much easier to shoot with focus peaking. Sounds like you've found what works for you.
04-23-2013, 09:35 AM   #79
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Focus peaking is very useful when there is narrow DOF and you're looking at something receding away from you (fence, treebranch, text on paper, etc) and you can then easily see the focal plane move back and forth as band of whiteness and you can narrow in on the spot you want easily.

04-23-2013, 12:57 PM   #80
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Regarding focus peaking - I've had some issues with it being difficult to nail the right focus. I took several tries at isolating a children's swing with focus peaking and found that not only was the swing often out of focus in the shot, I couldn't find some consistent zone where the swing was in focus e.g. when the white outline first appeared around the swing or disappeared around the swing or in the middle of the focus zone where the white outline was around the swing.

I think a narrow depth of field (lens wide open) would definitely help narrow the in-focus zone to the smallest possible but haven't done experimenting with it to say definitively. If this is the case, then the automatic aperture adjustments the camera makes with 'A' and newer lenses creates a problem with focus peaking as well as the liveview histogram.

I agree with mrnewt that there's no good reason for the camera to do this. The screen looks just fine when I use an M lens and the screen adjusts to changing light conditions on it's own without any closing of the aperture. Where did the suggestion that the camera was protecting the sensor come from? This behavior suggests that perhaps manual focus peaking is best done without using an automatic aperture so we can keep the lens as wide open as possible. Removing this 'feature' might also help CDAF as well. Perhaps some experimenting with one of my AF lenses that still has an aperture ring is in order.
04-27-2013, 09:01 PM   #81
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QuoteOriginally posted by audiobomber Quote
That's what I've decided. For accurate focussing, magnified view beats all. Auto-focus is the fastest, therefore best suited to some applications. I like focus peaking with AF, so I can see where the camera has focussed. FP is on my red button, I will cycle it on and off as needed. I wouldn't trade it for either of the other two.
I find focus peaking to be close to accurate, enough to get good shots with manual focus lens setups. Mine is slightly front-focusing and I have mentally adjusted to always focus slightly behind the subject. At distance and long lenses, the focus is quite narrow. If I have time, I do like the view with 2x or 4x magnification to confirm focus, so I will take a few quick shots, then if the critters are still there, magnify and adjust focus, and fire away. Works most of the time, maybe 5% of the time is out of focus.

Keep using what works for you.

04-28-2013, 12:49 AM   #82
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I've always found focusing hit and miss when using my manual glass (Asahi 50mm f2 and Rokinon 85mm f1.4)
I always shoot handheld though and some of my results I do blame on me shifting the camera... But regardless still found focus peaking hit and miss.

I had never used magnification.. Until now. When I first came across magnification, it was annoying. I had trouble composing.

But just now tried a few shots in doors - with what else, but my cats as the subject. The combination if focus peaking and magnification works well.

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