Newbie feeling very deflated focussing issues

Katie it sounds as though it's user error. If you're holding the back button whilst moving the camera the focus will constantly shift (assuming you are using AF-C).
 
snerkler said:
I still need to focus recompose sometimes as AF points don't go to the edges. Also the centre point is more accurate than the edges and I can sometimes get sharper shots focus and recompsing than using the outer points (low light, low contrast etc)
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odd jim said:
Because there might not be an AF point where you want it, and most of the time it's just quicker rather than manually switching between AF points.
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Agreed
Agreed

was trying to simplify things till Katie gets more familiar with her focus problems
 
If she's using a wide aperture, focus recomposing may not be the best option. A small movement fowards or backwards and you could quite easily miss your intended focus area, because of the shallow dof.
 
Nostromo said:
If she's using a wide aperture, focus recomposing may not be the best option. A small movement fowards or backwards and you could quite easily miss your intended focus area, because of the shallow dof.
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''...This was taken at 2.0...''

when i first used my 35/1.8 I went overboard using 1.8 (just because).......:(
 
Yardbent said:
''...This was taken at 2.0...''

when i first used my 35/1.8 I went overboard using 1.8 (just because).......:(
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That's why you buy fast glass though. OK so you don't need to shoot wide open all the time, but you buy f1.8 to use it at f1.8 ;)
 
I'm recomposing because often the af points aren't exactly where I want them to be and having a toddler and baby it just takes me too long to swap between af points on the back of the camera! I was told to back button focus as it is more accurate but have only started doing this recently however still had the same problem when using the 'normal' way of focussing using the shutter. Today I have done what was suggested and gone outside and taken three photos with the same lens at 2, 2.5 and 4. There is a marked difference (I think) between the clarity on 2 and on 4 although 4 still isn't focussed correctly (I was focussing on the red petal for ease for myself! No recompossing ;) )
https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/gallery/photos/1.14627/
https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/gallery/photos/2.14628/
https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/gallery/photos/3.14629/
When you zoom in there seems to be a greenish double edge around the supposed focus point if that makes sense? I really don't know what I'm talking about / doing / doing wrong!
I also took this picture using 2 and a tripod focussing on the red button.
https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/gallery/photos/4.14630/
( @dinorock many thanks for offering to tag :D )
 
Sorry to be clearer, I'm not holding the back button whilst recomposing - I sued to half hold the shutter button down when I was using that to focus but I think that's what I'm supposed to do????! Now using back button I just press it once to focus and if need to recompose. However the pics I've taken today I didn't need to recompose as it wasn't a moving subject and it still seems to have happened
 
Have you tried to focus manually using the lens focus ring, as opposed to using a half depressed shutter?

also what focus area are you using, sometimes using a centre spot works well as you can accurately focus on a specific point rather than an area ( if that makes sense?)

Les
 
Lez325 said:
Have you tried to focus manually using the lens focus ring, as opposed to using a half depressed shutter?

also what focus area are you using, sometimes using a centre spot works well as you can accurately focus on a specific point rather than an area ( if that makes sense?)

Les
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Thank you for a quick response! I have tried to focus using the ring yesterday - didn't know this was possible ;) I will try and post another pic of the same area outside with the ring focussing. I'm currently using the middle af
 
Katie Skelton said:
Thank you for a quick response! I have tried to focus using the ring yesterday - didn't know this was possible ;) I will try and post another pic of the same area outside with the ring focussing. I'm currently using the middle af
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No worries Katie, we are here to help- use a tripod and find a well lit subject to test the manual focus on the lens- does your camera have changeable focus area's? I'm not familiar with your make of DSLR

Les
 
middle as in single point AF ?
 
I shot this a f2.8 ( 105mm lens) using manual focus on her eyes- gives a lovely BG too using a wide aperture

to to give you some idea- I used centre spot for the focus so I could nail the eyes sort of


Victoria by Les Moxon, on Flickr


Les
 
Morning Katie, can you try a photo of anything at F8 preferably not back lit? that is make sure you use the light available on the subject not from behind the subject. hope that makes sense it looks like a very shallow depth of field is making the rest of the photo look out of focus(which of course it will be) ? do you understand depth of field?
 
i guess you're shooting at f1.8 - not sure what distance you're shooting at but at 1m away, the depth of field is 2cm ( as you can see the out of focus area is very close to the in focus area ) - its easy to miss focus just by you slightly moving
 
I'm not really sure what I'm doing when I'm manually focussing using the ring - there are not 'focus points' I'm just turning until the item I want to be in focus looks in focus (but then I have bad eyesight so that's not easy ;) )
 
damianmkv said:
i guess you're shooting at f1.8 - not sure what distance you're shooting at but at 1m away, the depth of field is 2cm ( as you can see the out of focus area is very close to the in focus area ) - its easy to miss focus just by you slightly moving
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she shot that at 1/4000th sec lol not much room for error due to movement :p
 
Katie Skelton said:
I'm not really sure what I'm doing when I'm manually focussing using the ring - there are not 'focus points' I'm just turning until the item I want to be in focus looks in focus (but then I have bad eyesight so that's not easy ;) )
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How far away from the subject were you?
 
Yes shooting using single point af, I will pop outside and get an f8 - I'm upping the shutter speed to cancel out any movement of my hands (I'm nervous and a little stressed ;) ) plus it's very bright out there!"
 
Katie Skelton said:
Yes shooting using single point af, I will pop outside and get an f8 - I'm upping the shutter speed to cancel out any movement of my hands (I'm nervous and a little stressed ;) ) plus it's very bright out there!"
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No need to be stressed - we'll get there :D
 
Katie Skelton said:
Yes shooting using single point af, I will pop outside and get an f8 - I'm upping the shutter speed to cancel out any movement of my hands (I'm nervous and a little stressed ;) ) plus it's very bright out there!"
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wow where are you today? dull as ditch water in reading :(:(:(
 
Looks like user error to me ( on your original images) - the new ones look to be sharp on the wall edge - maybe try a newspaper pinned up in a less bright area- and Practice - the text on the newspaper will help
you judge how sharp or soft the image is at different apertures

It's all about practise and we all had to start at the beginning

Les
 
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they look better ? at f8, 1.5m away you have a depth of field ( ie the in focus bit ) of 26cm. At f1.8, 2.5m away, you have 16cm, 10cm at 2m

Lenses aren't usually at their sharpest wide open ie f1.8
 
snerkler said:
Katie it sounds as though it's user error. If you're holding the back button whilst moving the camera the focus will constantly shift (assuming you are using AF-C).
Click to expand...

Lez325 said:
Have you tried to focus manually using the lens focus ring, as opposed to using a half depressed shutter?

also what focus area are you using, sometimes using a centre spot works well as you can accurately focus on a specific point rather than an area ( if that makes sense?)

Les
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dinorock said:
nothing wrong with that sharp and clear.
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damianmkv said:
they look better ? at f8, 1.5m away you have a depth of field ( ie the in focus bit ) of 26cm. At f1.8, 2.5m away, you have 16cm, 10cm at 2m

Lenses aren't usually at their sharpest wide open ie f1.8
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So is it my error when using it wide open? I only bought the lens on recommendation for good portrait shots of the kids and I can 'see' how it 'could' be good!
 
It's not your error at all - we buy f1.8 lenses for this reason ie the out of focus areas behind the subject

It just takes practice to nail focus, especially if you are close to the subject
 
Katie Skelton said:
So is it my error when using it wide open? I only bought the lens on recommendation for good portrait shots of the kids and I can 'see' how it 'could' be good!
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I have a very expensive 85mm f1.4 portrait lens and often fail to hit the focus at f1.4 as said most lenses are weak at the widest aperture

Try f2 or f2.8- even f4 will give a nice soft BG - practice makes perfect and I'm still practising lol

Les
 
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damianmkv said:
It's not your error at all - we buy f1.8 lenses for this reason ie the out of focus areas behind the subject

It just takes practice to nail focus, especially if you are close to the subject
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Lez325 said:
I have a very expensive 85mm f1.4 and often fail to hit the focus at f1.4 as said most lenses are weak at the widest aperture

Try f2 or f2.8- even f4 will give a nice soft BG - practice makes perfect and I'm still practising lol

Les
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Thank you - the original ones were at 2 but I have had ones at even 4 out of focus. is it just that I'm focussing in the wrong area / I'm moving slightly / subject is moving slightly?!
 
Katie Skelton said:
Thank you - the original ones were at 2 but I have had ones at even 4 out of focus. is it just that I'm focussing in the wrong area / I'm moving slightly / subject is moving slightly?!
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maybe all of the above - for portrait always and I do mean always make sure the eyes are pin sharp


like this f2.8 shot - you'll see the focus drop off on her shoulder and hair furthest from the lens
DSC07973 by Les Moxon, on Flickr

Les
 
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learn about depth of field... it changes if you change lenses it changes if you change the distance to the subject. so you have to, 1. understand it. 2. use it to your advantage. hth mike as shown by les above
 
Looks like the focal point is on his hands to me! - but get the lens checked- that would remove the doubt from your mind
 
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Working out focusing issues can be frustrating there's various factors contribute to making an image sharp and isolating where the issue your having is occuring is the first step. I'm not familiar with your camera or canons in genral but the steps should be the same regardless.

The first step is to rule out any issues with the camera/lens combo...

Set your camera to af-s, place your camera on a flat surface, ideally on a solid a tripod and set up a static object to focus on, something with text is ideal so you can see clear edge definition. Set your lens to the widest apperture and your camera to live mode, it is slow but usually very accurate for focusing. Select the centre focus point line up your object and then let the camera focus on the object. You can try zooming in on your lcd and adjust the focus manually to confirm it is a focused as possible but af should be correct here. Take a photo and look at it, this is as sharp as your lens is capable of being wide open, if it is not sharp in the centre here the issue is your lens and your options are closing down the apperture until the image is sharp enough or replacing the lens.

Defocus the lens by rotating the manual ring fully to either side and repeat the first step but this time use the viewfinder to focus and take the same picture, if the photo is less sharp with the viewfinder then there is a problem between the lens and the af system, this is where af fine tuning would come in to play. If your body does not support af fine tuning your options are again stop down the lens until it acceptably sharp or replace the lens.

If the first two steps are sharp enough the next step is to trouble shoot your technique, take the camera off the tripod and hand hold the lens keep the camera in af-s and focus on the same object and take a photo. Compare the images to the stabalised photo if it is less sharp your technique is preventing sharp images, either practice staying more stable, heres some ideas, or close down the apperture to give you more play in focus distance.

If the above was ok test the different focus modes and make sure there is no issues with them.

If the above tests are ok test the diferent focus points and make sure they are ok.

If the above are all ok with a flat 2d subject then we know your camera, lens and basic shooting technique are all fine and the issue then becomes applying it in real practice. Focus recompose is fine technique but depending on subject matter and technique it does not always work for very shallow dof, remember that focus dof is on a flat plane parallel with the sensor, when you move to recompose you need to move with the focal plane to stop any shift in focus. Practice with static objects first.

If you're shooting at very wide appertures with moving subjects and you moving to some extent as well using single servo there are always going to be a large risk of not nailing focus, using the right apperture and knowing what focus modes suit what circumstances will allow you to massively improve your keeper rate. Ultimately the best results will come through practicing and understanding the limits of you gear.
 
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