Focussing XT-2

Lensflare

Lensflare

Suspended / Banned
Messages
3,156
Name
Simon Everett
Edit My Images
Yes
Guysd, I cannot for the life of me find out how to manually focus either lens, the 16-55 and the 50-140. I have turned the little catch on the front to 'M' but with the shutter slightly depressed, the amount you would normally use for autofocus to kick in, they will not focus, but the viewfinder goes into magnifier mode. Any ideas please?
 
When you say "they will not focus", are you saying that turning the focus ring has no effect? You do realise that you do have to actually "manually" focus the lens?
 
Yep, manual focus is just that, manual = you have to turn the ring on the lens
 
Alternatively you can press the afl button.
 
Half pressing the shutter button in manual mode will do diddly squat. You have to turn the focus ring.
RTFM and find out how to set focus peak highlights. Choose red as the colour then you'll see red breadcrumbs around everything that is in focus.
 
Turning the fing focus ring even with the electricity flowing, does not turn the lens elements - I gtrew up with manual focus and film....have a heart, I do know what manually focussing means. i also realised that these fancy, dancy, electronic lenses needed a flow of electrons to activate the electro magnets that couple the lens elements to the focus ring...but it doesn't. I did RTFM, and the camera doesn't respond as the manual says it should. hence me coming on here to ask what other little fiddle i might have to do to get the bloody heap of s*** to work. I am beginig to hate the way it works with a vengeance. I love the build quality, I love the layout with knobs - but I would so like it to JUST WORK.
 
You really don't engender much sympathy. We have all tried to help and you just throw sand in our faces. Back off a bit.
P.S. You are going on my ignore list then I won't be tempted to help you in future.
 
Does it focus correctly in auto focus.
If it does the actual focus mechanism must be working.
There might otherwise be a problem with the Focus ring or the manual focus switch.
 
mickledore said:
You really don't engender much sympathy. We have all tried to help and you just throw sand in our faces. Back off a bit.
P.S. You are going on my ignore list then I won't be tempted to help you in future.
Click to expand...

But the OP asked a question and some of the respondents don't seem to have read what he wrote and just jumped in with ridicule.

Which is hardly helpful.
 
mickledore said:
You really don't engender much sympathy. We have all tried to help and you just throw sand in our faces. Back off a bit.
P.S. You are going on my ignore list then I won't be tempted to help you in future.
Click to expand...

I haven't ignored your list. I read the manual, up to about 02.30 this morning...I turned the selector switch to M, I half pressed the shutter button, I tried to turn the focus ring while the button was pressed - the focus did not change, but the magnified picture and all the info came up in the viewfinder. I got the same result with both lenses. So, naturally enough, I wondered if there was a change of setting hidden somewhere that needed better understanding of the 'menu system' that was preventing the simple changes to not have any effect.

Does that clarify things a bit?

ps - and when I say the focus did not change - the manual focus ring was not engaged at any stage. It won't change to manual focus. The autofocus wouldn't lock on the moon with the clouds scudding across, so I was going to manually focus. When I couldn't get it to, I then gave up and sat down to try to work out how to get the thing into 'manual focus mode'...it won't go.
 
Last edited:
Terrywoodenpic said:
Does it focus correctly in auto focus.
If it does the actual focus mechanism must be working.
There might otherwise be a problem with the Focus ring or the manual focus switch.
Click to expand...

Now we are getting somewhere.
Yes, it does focus, usually, in auto - but not on the moon last night it wouldn't. It was hunting in and out and wouldn't get a lock on ANYTHINg when trying at the moon. The clouds scudding across were throwing it I think. hence why I was going to manually focus on the moon. It works otherwise - but it will not engage the focus riig on either lens. Which points to something not done on the body, rather than the lens.
 
Mirrorless bodies use focus by wire (FBW) which means that you won't feel anything engaging when you turn the focus ring and it doesn't have a stop at each end of the range either. Even without half-pressing the shutter button you should still see the image coming into focus through the viewfinder when you turn the ring. Also, the lenses may be internally focusing (I shoot Sony so don't know for Fuji) so you won't see any external change in the lens itself.
 
Turn the front focus pointer to M. Turn on focus peaking in the Manual focus assist menu. Rotate the lens front focus dial until the area you want in focus is highlighted by the focus peaking lights. Manual focus on my X-T2 is far quicker and easier than on my recently replaced Canon 70D.
 
With the camera in manual mode (M), point camera/lens at a target, press AF-L on the back of the body. Does it autofocus? (this will mean that the lens is electrically connected ok with the body in Manual mode)

If yes, can you then rotate the lens focus ring to take it out of focus and bring it back again?
 
ashtennisguru said:
^^^ Have you tried the focus ring whilst not pressing the shutter button half way?
Click to expand...


Yes, I did that first. Then wondered if I had to press the shutter slightly.

looking in the AF / MF menu, half the options don't illuminate now either, so I can't change them, regardless of where the front switch is. The menu is going down, about half of the menu options are not available now and cannot be changed.Instead of being white, they are staying grey....I think it is going to have to go to the doctor.
 
Mr Perceptive said:
With the camera in manual mode (M), point camera/lens at a target, press AF-L on the back of the body. Does it autofocus? (this will mean that the lens is electrically connected ok with the body in Manual mode)

If yes, can you then rotate the lens focus ring to take it out of focus and bring it back again?
Click to expand...

No, it won't. The front focus lens ring isn't engaging at all. Even in M on the front switch.
 
benhben said:
Turn the front focus pointer to M. Turn on focus peaking in the Manual focus assist menu. Rotate the lens front focus dial until the area you want in focus is highlighted by the focus peaking lights. Manual focus on my X-T2 is far quicker and easier than on my recently replaced Canon 70D.
Click to expand...


Done all that (as following the instructions above from someone) - it still would not manually focus at all. The range finder display comes up in the screen, but nothing changes when the ring is turned. What is meant to turn red when you focus? because nothing is.
 
Some menu options once selected cause others to become unavailable so I wonder if something somewhere has got turned to ON (or OFF for that matter...) and this is affecting other things.

Maybe it's time to see if you can revert to factory settings and see if that improves things?

Maybe there's something in the manual that tells you how to do this?

Might be worth a try before heading off to a dealer.
 
I think I understand the description Simon but I think the fact you're half pressing the shutter button is a red herring. When you switched the selector switch on the front of the camera body to M, you enable manual focus on the lens. The reason the view zooms right in when you then turn the lens focus wheel is because that is the camera's default behavior to help you achieve accurate focus. It is nothing to do with the shutter button being depressed, you just happened to be doing that at the same time as adjusting the lens by the sound of it. The only thing holding the shutter button down would have been doing, is to lock in the metered exposure. Again this is assuming that everything in the menu is still set to default.

So, when you say, that adjusting the focus ring gives you the zoomed in view, but the focus itself isn't actually changing, I assume you mean there seems to be no effect at all on whether your image is in focus or not, no matter how much turn the focus in either direction? Does the focus scale at the bottom of your screen move at all?

Edited to say, I see you answered much of that as I was typing.
 
Last edited:
This might be worth a try Sir,

Switch the camera off, Remove the lens, Remove the battery (sounds strange but it can work), Switch the camera on without a battery for a couple of minutes, While that is happening clean the contacts in the camera body (it's unlikely to be the lens contacts as its happening to both lenses), Switch the camera off again, Replace the battery, Refit a lens, Make sure the body & lens are set to MF, Switch the camera on and see what happens.(y)

George.
 
I have mine in front of me with a 56 1.2 on it (I only have prime lenses) All I have to do is switch the MCS lever to "M" and focus via the lens barrel as normal I have focus peaking set to High Red.
In the menus you can set focus peaking to red, blue or white, you can change the focus distance to feet or meters and you can change the direction you rotate the barrel.
Does your lens also have an "M" setting?
 
Lensflare said:
Done all that (as following the instructions above from someone) - it still would not manually focus at all. The range finder display comes up in the screen, but nothing changes when the ring is turned. What is meant to turn red when you focus? because nothing is.
Click to expand...


Hmm it sounds like someone said above something in the settings is wrong. When I got mine even when I set it to manual focus or back button focus the camera would slowly refocus by itself even without me pressing anything. Turned out after a while of turning things on and off in the autofocus menus that some focus preview thing was turned on.

Id suggest meticulously going through the auto and manual focus settings menus and seeing what is turned on. it might also be something in the display menu.

Or do a factory reset and make sure you install the latest camera and lens firmware. Manual focus on an X-T2 should be really simple and nice to use.
 
@Lensflare Looking at the Manual Page 84 Focus Zoom...how is your camera set up?

sorry if you've already discounted this..
 
trevorbray said:
@Lensflare Looking at the Manual Page 84 Focus Zoom...how is your camera set up?

sorry if you've already discounted this..
Click to expand...

Focus zoom appears to be ON from what has been said. i.e. when the lens is focused, view is being zoomed in. It shouldn't effect whether the lens actually focuses or not, just whether the views zooms automatically while you're doing so. I can't see any setting that should would disable manual focus ring when in manual focus mode.
 
gad-westy said:
Focus zoom appears to be ON from what has been said. i.e. when the lens is focused, view is being zoomed in. It shouldn't effect whether the lens actually focuses or not, just whether the views zooms automatically while you're doing so. I can't see any setting that should would disable manual focus ring when in manual focus mode.
Click to expand...

Of course. But if it’s on it’s not what most of us old film users would expect to see. Easy to get the feeling it’s not actually focusing.
 
trevorbray said:
Of course. But if it’s on it’s not what most of us old film users would expect to see. Easy to get the feeling it’s not actually focusing.
Click to expand...

Yes. It's partly why I asked whether the marker on the focusing scale was moving when the focus wheel is turned but it seems that it is not moving. Which does sort of point to a fault but I only say that in the absence of any other bright ideas. The idea of resetting everything is a good one though just to make sure of starting from scratch.
 
Interesting observation that may or may not help. I've just had a play with my X-T2 and I see that if you half hold the shutter button down, it locks focus, manual focus doesn't do anything until you release the shutter. Might explain your issue?
 
gad-westy said:
Interesting observation that may or may not help. I've just had a play with my X-T2 and I see that if you half hold the shutter button down, it locks focus, manual focus doesn't do anything until you release the shutter. Might explain your issue?
Click to expand...

Good thought, but my lenses are stuck in limbo (both of them) in either situation, shutter pressed or no. It has got to be a menu setting of some sort that isn't obvious.
 
Lensflare said:
Good thought, but my lenses are stuck in limbo (both of them) in either situation, shutter pressed or no. It has got to be a menu setting of some sort that isn't obvious.
Click to expand...

Oh well. Tried a full reset?
 
You haven't got the dial underneath the ISO dial set to ADV have you? Just noticed manual focussing doesn't work in that mode.
 
gad-westy said:
You haven't got the dial underneath the ISO dial set to ADV have you? Just noticed manual focussing doesn't work in that mode.
Click to expand...

No, it is on S at the moment but generally it is on CL - I'll have a read what ADV does! Thanks for the idea though.

As you can imagine, it is pretty disheartening when you set the thing up, going through the paper manual, page by page and dialling in on that particular menu what you think will be the most suitable for the type of stuff you do....and then it doesn't work.

I haven't done or got anything radical set anywhere - think pretty standard organisation. I have never done a custom setting on any camera, because I don't get that involved with all that fancy trickery, I don't need to. get it to focus, set the motordrive for something sensible that won't clog up, and work in Aperture priority for 95% of the time, using + and - exposure compensation to tweak it on the fly. Shutter priority for the slow shutter action shots, that's it for my shooting. Nothing fancy, just a 'get the shot and get home' type of approach. You are all way more into your fiddling about with changing things about that I am. I don't fiddle because I don't understand it enough to get back to where I was before I fiddled, so I leave well alone!
 
Lensflare said:
No, it is on S at the moment but generally it is on CL - I'll have a read what ADV does! Thanks for the idea though.

As you can imagine, it is pretty disheartening when you set the thing up, going through the paper manual, page by page and dialling in on that particular menu what you think will be the most suitable for the type of stuff you do....and then it doesn't work.

I haven't done or got anything radical set anywhere - think pretty standard organisation. I have never done a custom setting on any camera, because I don't get that involved with all that fancy trickery, I don't need to. get it to focus, set the motordrive for something sensible that won't clog up, and work in Aperture priority for 95% of the time, using + and - exposure compensation to tweak it on the fly. Shutter priority for the slow shutter action shots, that's it for my shooting. Nothing fancy, just a 'get the shot and get home' type of approach. You are all way more into your fiddling about with changing things about that I am. I don't fiddle because I don't understand it enough to get back to where I was before I fiddled, so I leave well alone!
Click to expand...

b****r. I think this is why doing a proper reset of the camera to restore everything back to default is a better approach than trying to pin point a setting on the menu. As supplied by the factory, the lens should work as you're expecting it to. Did you try a reset yet?
 
Have a look at the distance scale in the viewfinder, as you turn the focus ring the little square (blue I think) should move along the scale corresponding to the distance the focus is at. This will confirm or not whether the lens is communicating with the camera in manual.
See image below.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top