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Why manual lenses?


ryan_chia

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Hi I was just surfing around the forums and I realised that some people would

opt for manual focusing lenses, price not being a factor. Could anyone tell me

possible reasons why this is so? In the end, you still largely depend on the

cameras meters to tell you whether an object is in focus or not, so why manual?

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Ahhhh - the generation gap!

 

Manual focus can be vastly preferable in some applications eg macro work, where auto-focus can be almost useless; for some of us oldies, using the focus screen just comes naturally - although with failing eyesight AF does have it's advantages now!.

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In my opinion, both AF and MF have their place.

 

I have not once used AF while doing macro, still-life or landscape work.

 

On the other hand, going manual seems stupid while following an F1 car or MotoGP bike through a fast corner.

 

Just my 2 cents.

 

Cheers!

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Hi Ryan, I can only speak for my D80 and I'm not a techie'. I find that if I switch to manual I can click even when not in focus. But more importantly, when doing close-ups I can get a few centimetres closer in manual than auto-focus can deal with. Also, with a wide aperture, you can precisely decide what is in/out of focus.
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Most cameras can be set up to allow the shutter to be released without the lens being in focus (or what the camera system *thinks* is best focus). You don't need an MF lens to achieve this.

 

The reasons why manual lenses or manual focusing is preferred are numerous. For close-up work, AF is practically worthless or not accurate enough. When you do hyperfocal focusing for landscape work, only manual focusing will provide the degree of control you need. Many manual lenses haver a defined infinity stop that is needed for shooting remote subjects, since with an AFS lens without a defined infinity stop you'll never be certain the lens is actually focused on infinity. Some times manual focus is faster than AF, there is no fear of "hunting" or "overshoot", and in some cases all you need is zone focusing anyway (street photography as an example). And when your precious AFS motor wears out, you are left with an expensive MF lens :) - spare parts to repair it may not be available in the future. The longevity of AFS motors of my AFS lenses seems to be much shorter than 10 years, while I have 50 year old MF lenses that still focuses silky smooth.

 

Add to all the above that many MF lenses are smaller and less conspicuous than theor AFS counterparts, and you have another reason for going MF.

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Remember that your focusing screen on a DSLR is optimized for slow zooms and doesn't

really resolve the "shallowness" of DOF past about f2.8, making it hard to focus lenses using

only the ground glass if you are open past that. I've tested this and it's true. Fortunately, my

f1.8 50mm used with the rangefinder (green indicators) works fine on my D50, but not

everyone has that experience. You'll have to test and see. My manual focus f3.5 55mm gives

me no trouble at all. I get amazing results with it.

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In the beginning with Nikon F slr there were no/few zooms; no internal meters, no autofocus. Its like asking why you are still using an ipod in 2027 when you could be using playerr that uses an MP13 file; that senses what you want to hear; that automatically charges you banking account for each song; displays on the web what you are playing; where you are; that charges without wires; is solar powered and made from old garbage; that works as a heater once global cooling kicks in.:)<BR><BR>Some of us bought manual fast lenses in Nikon F mount when there were NO autofocus lens of the same speed available; or better yet no auatofocus lenses at all. Thus my 1960's 5.8cm F1.4, 35mm F2, 105mm F2.5, and later 180mm F2.8ED, 85mm F1.4, and 105mm F1.8 were all bought for manual focus; a faster lens allows faster shutter speeds for sports indoors.
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Build Quality. AI-S lenses are built much better than all but pro-level lenses. Even the bargain-basement Series E lenses are built as well or better than mid-range primes.

 

Optical Quality. Even the lenses that share optical designs often perform better in manual form, due to tighter tolerances and a more solid build. Several lenses (notably the 28/2.8) have significantly superior designs in AI or AI-S forms.

 

Price. They're cheaper.

 

Handling. Wide rubber focus rings, solid aperture rings, no chintzy aperture ring locks, smooth-as-butter focusing. AI-S lenses in particular (with their shorter focus throws) simply handle better than all but the pro AF lenses.

 

Faster options. 28/2, 24/2, 35/1.4, 50/1.2, 105/1.8 are all unavailable in AF form, and only the 28 has a faster option in AF form (for much more money).

 

Smaller lenses. Nothing in AF form matches the 20/3.5, 20/4, 45/2.8 or 85/2 for small size.

 

With a couple exceptions, going MF means sticking with primes. There's only a couple MF zooms worth bothering with (notably the 75-150 Series E). But my 35mm f2 AI-S is as solidly built and handles as well as a 85/1.4 AF-D, for a fraction of the cost. You can't say that for a 35 f2 AF-D and it's loose plastic build.

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Clearly there are a lot of times when autofocus is a must! Perhaps it's just being a stubborn old fart but given a situation where either will do the job nicely, I prefer manual. That preference is mostly due to the tactile pleasure of working with a big, buttery smooth, well dampened focusing ring and the knowledge that I'm in complete control of the process.

 

I recently bought a Lumix DMC-L1 and frequently use my Carl Zeiss C/Y lenses from the 70s. Although manual focusing is clearly not intended to be the primary means of focusing for this camera, I'm having no problem at all shooting my 35- 85mm Zeiss primes, primarily in the f4 - f8 range and I am using only the viewfinder image to focus.

 

I like being able to focus while I compose. I don't need to first center my subject or place it on an autofocus point. Noticing that a subject will walk past some object, I can quickly focus at that distance and shoot when the subject arrives there. I can identify the distance I feel comfortable passing a basketball to someone. I can preset focus for that distance and shoot when the subject gets there.

 

I can manually preset both focus and exposure. With a really fast shutter speed, I can then raise my camera, compose, and shoot - all in about one second. It is less intrusive and I feel less cospicuous when working this way. I can shoot people pics in a public place nad get better results with a manual focus lens.

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Manual lenses are easier to focus precisely using the matte screen as they have no slack in the focusing and a longer movement for a given shift in distance. The MF primes have generally superb construction quality. Some of the Ai-S wide angles have better optical quality than the AF counterparts. Examples: 20mm and 28mm f/2.8 Ai-S.
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MF is less "cheaper"? Hmmm, what's up with those Zeiss ZF lenses?

 

Most of the MF lenses I have handled didn't perform as well as my AF lenses -- which is a shame, as I wouldn't mind foregoing AF for the smaller size for some applications.

 

For utilizing hyperfocal focusing I often will focus with my AF lens on my knee, foot, or a high contrast subject that is the appropriate distance away (I have the AF deactivated on my shutters on my cameras and use the AF-ON button to acquire focus); for me it is faster and more accurate than MF.

 

One of my favorite lenses is my Tokina 90/2.5 macro, and it's an older AIS lens that performs perfectly for what I use it for. Installing a Katz Eye on my D200 has made a huge difference in using MF lenses.

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I actually favor AF. The reason is they can keep up with fast breaking action, and require less attention on my part. I can concentrate on timing the shot perfectly rather than messing with focus. THe other thing I don't like is many MF lenses aren' zooms. I dislike having to change lenses as it can introduce dust, there's the chance I'll drop a lens, and I can also miss shots while changing a lens. I do have some fast single length lenses I use mostly for night shots because of their speed--20mm f2.8, 50mm f1.8, 85mm f1.8 but they are all AF. I sometimes have to focus manually when it's very dark, but that slows me down.

 

 

Kent in SD

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Ryan Chia wrote "In the end, you still largely depend on the cameras meters to tell you whether an object is in focus or not, so why manual?"

 

Eh? What? What meter are you talking about? My FM2n doesn't tell me when it is in focus, and my wife's Nikkormat ELW doesn't tell her when it is in focus.

 

I fear that for most of my life you were in the, um, unborn condition, Ryan. For all I know, so were your parents.

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Manual focus has its place for some applications, including macros, landscapes and portraiture. However, AF is a god-send for events and weddings.

 

I don't agree that AF lenses are built to a lesser standard than corresponding MF lenses. The plastic body is not only light but extremely tough. Bumps that would mar or disable an all-aluminum build are shrugged off by modern lenses. Free-running, short-throw focusing is needed to reduce AF effort, but there is no more slack than in MF lenses (lost motion would cause "hunting"). The optics in most cases are superior to earlier models.

 

Someone once said, "Things ain't like they used to be -- and they never were."

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