Nikon D100 How to control focus properly

[dorothy_mccuskey]

If I am photographing a couple most the time I am only getting one of

the subjects in focus.. unless I have their heads really close

together.

I try the easy way with the Autofocus on continuous.

Or when I do a large group my focus is not good..

Help<div></div>

[arnabdas]

What aperture did you use? Might want to stop down a bit.

 

If you can never focus on a whole flat surface area there might be some alignment problem. unlikely though.

[dorothy_mccuskey]

I had it on Auto focus, at f/4.1

This may sound goofy, but I thought with it P and autofocus mode it would put everthing in focus..

Does it have anything to do with the Single-area AF or the Dynamic-area AF?

I am very new at this stuff.. please bare with me

[michael_bradtke]

Well Dorothy

The problem is not enough Depth of Field

 

The short course is that if you close your lens down more a greater area appears to be in focus.

If you use the Depth of Field preview button on your camera it will actually show you what will be in focus.

 

The P setting gives you the least amount of control over your camera. It will not give you the most Depth of Field.

 

Michael

[dorothy_mccuskey]

Would I put it in A aperture priorty mode then stop the lense down?

[johnw63]

Yes. That way it will leave the apperature alone and alter the other settings to work with it. The more open the lens is,( the smaller the f-stop number ) , the less of an area will be in focus. Closing the lens down, ( making the f-stop number bigger ) will give a deeper area to focus. The problem comes in low light situations. You need to open the lens to let in more light, but then your area of focus becomes smaller.

[klix]

Like others said, there's not enough depth of field... also, a few other tips:

 

- You might also be too close to the subjects, so backing up AND dialing the aperture down would give you even greater DOF.

 

- Also, for static objects, make sure your camera is on focus priority, not release priority.

 

- For group shots, this may be very basic, but make sure your focus is locked on the group of people, and NOT on whatever's behind them.

 

KL

[dorothy_mccuskey]

THANK YOU EVERYONE.. All this will help through this phase.. lots to learn. Thanks again

[david_h._hartman]

The problem is beyond depth of field. Note that neither of the

subjects eyes are in focus. If DOF were the problem at least one

pair of eye should be in focus or close. There isnt that

much difference in distance from the lens to each subject. This

is a job for manual focus excepting that the D100 has a

viewfinder not particularly suited to manual focus. It looks like

the focus is behind the subjects eyes. Note the focus on

the left arm and wrist of the lady. I'd have focused on the near

subjects eyes then moved forward about 1/3 of the difference towards

your subjects. Your depth of field should have been about 11 to

17 in. (27 to 43cm) if the subject was 4 to 5 feet (1.2 to 1.5m)

from the camera. This according to DOFMaster <a

href="http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html" target="_new"><u>(http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html)</u></a>,

the first DOF calculator I found on the net. That's enough to get

both pair of eyes in focus.<br>

<br>

The EXIF information says that you used a 40mm lens at f/5.0 with

an exposure duration of 125th second and that you used flash. <br>

<br>

I would recommend taking more control in this situation by using

aperture preferred and balanced flash at -1.5 to -2.0. Im

guessing you used flash for catch lights only. If you wanted the

flash as the main light then Id have used manual exposure

mode and non-balanced flash. I dont know the flash modes of

the D100. With an F5 or FE2 Id have used standard TTL flash

and made sure that the flash overpowered the ambient light by

about 1 to 1.5 stops. I would avoid a 1:1 ratio.<br>

<br>

I dont know, I think Id have used f/5.6 and then

maybe f/4.0 for the aperture. I might have used a 50, 55, 60 or

85mm lens and probably a tripod as Im not impressed with my

hand holding abilities. I like the framing and 40mm doesnt

seem too short. I guess Im just giving my bias towards

longer focal lengths here. With the longer lenses I'd move back

to keep the framing constant.<br>

<br>

If a small print is desired you can fake the focus somewhat by

sharpening the image moderately then reduce it to something like

5.6 x 7 in. and sharpening it again but somewhat less the second

time. Heck Id try sharpening and printing at 8x10 and see

how it goes. <br>

<br>

Hope this helps,<br>

<br>

Dave Hartman.

[dorothy_mccuskey]

Thank you so much.. I think I may begin to understand,, this is all so confusing.

[mfeetham]

One other thing. You mention that you set your autofocus to continuous. This is probably not the best mode for taking this picture. It looks like you are actually focused on her left shoulder, which would happen in continuous mode.

 

Set the autofocus to single(S). Aim the focus area at his or her eye and press the shutter release halfway to focus. Now hold the shutter halfway and recompose your view so they fill the frame the way you want. Push the shutter release the rest of the way and you're done.

 

Now repeat because it's pretty likely somebody blinked ;)

[dale_keith]

I had the same problem. I have learned, before I ever knew this

site existed, to use a longer lens, F5.6 to 8.0, single focus, a tri-

or monopod, and most important, the focus technique described

by "Freethan" (I think that was his name). My two cents is to

practice lots until you get the feel of all those camera settings.

On the positive side, we have given you the reasons why YOU

NEED ANOTHER LENS!

Good Luck

Dale Keith

[wind.dk]

Yup, none of the two are in focus, her arm behind them is. Focus is always at a specific distance only (with advanced cameras/lenses the plane of focus can be tilted, but you can't do that). Depth of field can give sufficient sharpness over a range of distances, for this stopping down is required.

 

In this picture the DOF is probably sufficient if focus is right. Make sure you know which focus area is in use and use it as described above. If the D100 focus sensors behave like the ones in the F80, you may need to use the central one, the four others are not quite as good in some circumstances (they'll do a bit of hunting and give up).

[dorothy_mccuskey]

Geesh I am still having problems.. I put in A mode bummped my F stop up.. now My subject is not in focus but my DOF is great!

The only way to get and this is just one object in focus is to zoom right into it. but other objects are out of focus?

[dorothy_mccuskey]

Things are getting worse... I took this AM..

in P mode,, just a simple point and shoot that seems as if I could do with ease.. almost all my photos are coming out like this one.. Could I Have reset something without releazing it.. this is the same lens I have always used.. AF28-200mm 3.5-6.3 Tameron. Although I did change lens to see maybe something was wrong with this one..and I get the same results..

If I I zoom in on the one subject I can most of the time get a good sharp shot..but if there is another subject it will be blurry..

What am I doing wrong..

I have ordered another lens, Called BH and they suggested the Nikon 24-120VR do you think this will be OK? HElllp<div></div>

[david_h._hartman]

I hope these are not paying customers. You need to work out

this problem first. Even if these are friends and neighbors work

it out first. Protect your reputation.<br>

<br>

Can I assume that you own this camera? Do you have access to a

computer such that you can review test results immediate. Im

thinking 30 seconds to a couple of minutes at most. Im

thinking at a desk not on the seat of a car. You need to cure

this problem and hone your skills with this or any camera before

taking photos of anyone with any level of expectation. That is

your responsibility as a photographer. Yes, Im scolding and

no Im not sorry. Im quite certain that you have too

much faith in automation. All cameras have limitations. You have

to work with, through, around them to get what you want or you

have to chose another camera.<br>

<br>

Auto focus is not working for you. It could be the camera or it

could be your technique. You said, "If I I zoom in on the

one subject I can most of the time get a good sharp shot..but if

there is another subject it will be blurry." and Im

locking on to this.<br>

<br>

The AF system in my F5 and F100 will lock on a good target in

back of foreground clutter. That is it will lock on to the snake

in the grass not the grass. You mention the focus being fine if

you zoom in on one person. In this case your sensor may well

covering the whole face. Zoomed out for two people the sensor may

cover part of a face but fall off the side of the face and lock

on the background.<br>

<br>

Ive cropped a piece of your photo showing only the childs

face and some surrounding area. The red arrows point to where the

camera focused. This appears to me as photographer error. I cant

be sure but Ill bet the sensor covered only part of the

face and lock on the background.<br>

<br>

Lose program mode, it blocks learning. Learn to use the aperture

by using aperture preferred. The Multi-CAM900 module has only one

useful focus point, the central one. Lock it and forget the rest.

There is a point where second guessing automation is more work

than its worth. Learn when and where this happens and take

more control.<br>

<br>

I know the finders on the N80, D100 and such are quite poor but

perhaps you could benefit from an external diopter correction

lens. Get the finder as good as it can be. Ill get flamed

for this but next time buy a camera with a better finder. You

should be able to see when your subject is in or out of focus. A

camera should demand blind faith.<br>

<br>

I hope something here helps. If I were your next door neighbor Id

have a look at your camera. If you cant work this out by

yourself do you know someone who lives near you who can help?<br>

<br>

Regards,<br>

<br>

Dave Hartman.<div></div>

[dorothy_mccuskey]

Hey Dave,

Thanks for your imput. I am just getting so frustrated with the results. I have read the manual back and forth..not getting a whole lot out of it.

I have learned more from this site than that manual.

It appears when I am looking through the view finder that the subjects are in focus, but when I sit down at my PC to view them,, YIKES I get these crazy results.. yep it more than likely is all photographer error.. just need to try and learn more about this camer and the focusing.

Also the preview button, I have used it.. But I can see anything that helps me see the DOF. So am I missing something there?

I really appreciate you info.. and no these arent paying customers.. just friends.. I dont think anyone would payme for these photos, but its shamefull to tell them that the photos didnt come out.. even though they know I am just practicing.

Thanks again ...

[david_h._hartman]

Im very glad these are not paying customers. To redeem

yourself you need to work through the problem and when ready take

photos of this quality (but with the subjects in focus). I did

some experimenting with my slowest zoom lens on an N80 and the

results were mixed at best. The problem may be less photographer

error and more a mismatch of camera and lens.<br>

<br>

--<br>

<br>

The DOF preview button is explained on page 76 of your manual. Its

fairly easy to find this sort of thing using the Acrobat PDF

version of the manual that you can down load from Nikon, UK.

Adobe Acrobat Reader has a search feature that is much easier for

me than working with a paper manual. I prefer reading a paper

manual for a quick check the PDF is great and finding key words

is so easy with PDF.<br>

<br>

---<br>

<br>

Make sure you have correctly adjusted the diopter eyepiece

correction slider just to the right of the finder eyepiece. This

adjustment is discussed on page 30 of the manual. You might need

a correction lens also. Even corrected the finder is not quite

what it should be but get the most out of it that you can.<br>

<br>

---<br>

<br>

Ive been thinking about your lens. The lens may not work

correctly with your camera. The maximum aperture is too slow at

the long end of the zoom. Your photos were at 40 and 70mm but the

maximum aperture still isnt good there. I think the EXIF

data said your MaxApertureValue was F 4.76 on the last photo. <br>

<br>

I dont own a D100 but I bought my 89 year old mom an N80 so

put my AF 35~70/2.8D on it. No problems, well its kind of

slow but the N80 gets the job done. Then I put my AF 70~180/4.5~5.6D

ED Micro-Nikkor on the N80 and focused on random things around

the room. I could see random errors and wouldnt trust that

the focus was accurate more than 40 to 50 percent of the time.

This lens focuses slow even on my F5 and F100 but these camera

get the job done. I chose this lens as I knew it gave the

greatest chance of duplicating your focus problem. The problem is

the AF module used in the D100 and N80.<br>

<br>

Id try a faster lens like an AF 35~70/2.8D Nikkor not

another slow zoom. The 35~70/2.8 lens gives an angle of view on

the D100 like that of a 50~105/2.8 zoom on an F5 or F100. I think

that's a pretty good range for the shots you've uploaded. Id

like to recommend a AF-S 28~70/2.8D ED-IF as thats similar

to a 42~105mm and it has the silent wave motor but the price is

pretty step. The AF 35~70/2.8D can be had in clean used condition

for about $400.00 (I think). I paid $450.00 for mine, used, mint,

several years ago.<br>

<br>

Regards,<br>

<br>

Dave Hartman.