When I used (pre K30) the Focus-Bracketing on my Bridge Canon, I assumed it was an advanced "DSLR thing" unusual to find on a P&S. So thought it'd be a function the KR - then changed to the K30 I actually bought - would have. Which it doesn't.
I keep reading of DSLR lenses having back and front focusing problems. With a testing or borrowed lens, Focus-Bracketing might adjust the focus-error to usable - or by adjusting the spread of the Bracketing - show where the error is - fore or aft, and by how much. Obviously - that's not what pro-level testers / adjusters would do, having advanced abilities and equipment - but not all of us have anything like those abilities or testing gear.
It would also be workable in ordinary use - while the K30 has very nice mag-up abilities in Live-View - and the Focus-Peaking - it can't, unlike my Bridge with EVF - "mag-up" the centre section of the Viewfinder to help with focusing. Often, particularly on tripod, as the K30 LCD doesn't tilt, you can't use it in sunlight - you still need to use the Viewfinder. Certainly - the K30's AF works extremely well - the accuracy and speed is amazing, if you're used to Bridge cameras! However - that doesn't work too well with the manual lenses I really bought the K30 for.....
Sure, the MF is very good indeed - but the "further out you go" - the more awkward to get "right-on" with Viewfinder. Being able to Focus-Bracket - with adjustable distances "fore and aft" - as my P&S Canon does - would result in more 'keepers'. F/B isn't an AF function in that camera - it's MF only. I did wonder if DSLRs could combine F/B with AF, not just MF - but it seems, at least in K30's case, they don't do either.
It would seem that - when you can see the K30's LCD - even with Live-View mag-up and the Peaking - being able to Bracket a shot, maybe with the shortest fore-aft adjustment, it would fine-tune the accuracy. Or for moving targets - widen out the Bracket spread a bit to allow for changing distance.
Focus-Bracketing probably isn't a function the Pros would want to use - as they get long-distance and fast-moving targets in tack-sharp focus, first-time, every-time - but not everyone is that good - and I'm certainly not with cooo-eee of it...!
For DSLRs like the K30, where the makers put in dozens of Scenes, Automatics, and Filters modes, to help the newer users - which certainly aren't 'Pro level' functions - Focus-Bracketing would be a huge boost to usability and results.
It would also increase Pentax popularity, because it assists usage of all the K-mount manual focus lenses from K-series to A-series, even if some wouldn't want to go back to the M42s. And that's based on my own experience - assuming that K-R, then K30, would indeed have Focus-Bracketing.
Could it be done with a firmware update? The camera already does Bracketing - so could it be added alongside AEB?
Regards, Dave.
Last edited by exwintech; 10-30-2012 at 03:25 PM.