Any tips for to help older guys like me get the focus right when using older fast primes wide open?

[dave_weber1]

I've been shooting Nikon equipment for about 30 years. I love their manual focus primes! I now find that more and

more of my photos are not in sharp focus when the lens is wide open. For example, I have a 50mm f/1.2 that I like to

shoot at 1.2, 1.4 and 2.0. If I shoot six or seven shots, usually only one or two in critical focus.

 

I have purchased and installed one of those really bright viewfinders, but unfortunately, that did not result in more

keepers. A couple years ago I had Lasik eye surgery and now have 20/15 uncorrected vision, but that didn't help

either.

 

I mostly shoot landscapes, a few wild animals, and the occasional grandchild. I shoot Fuji S3s (1.5 chip).

 

Other than switching to autofocus I don't know what else to do. Do you think I'd get better results with a full frame

D3?

[JAPster]

Hi Dave.

One solution is to upgrade to a d-300, and use the Focus Indicator light in the VF to tell you when a manual focus lens is in focus. The manual focus lens has to be at least F5.6 or faster. Use the camera in manual focus mode, not automatic focus. Do manual focus just as you do now. But in the VF, pay attention to the little green Focus Indicator. When that lights (and maybe beeps as well), then the camera focus sensor thinks the image is in focus. Then just take the picture. Other Nikon D-SLRs may support this function as well. But I know a d300 can do it. Its in the manual.

best regards,

AP

[bruce_margolis]

Dave, I share your pain and experience. Thirty years gets tough on the eyes.

 

I went the magnified viewfinder approach but if that didn't work for you, consider this option.........

 

http://www.katzeyeoptics.com/

 

The only downside (besides maybe price), it is specfic to each camera so if you are thinking of upgrading, better to do that first.

[Matt Laur]

D200, same behavior.

[robert_hooper1]

20/15 vision? The problem is that after all these years, you can finally see that your images aren't sharp, Dave ;-)

[christoph_hammann]

Isn't that what diopters are for? Assuming you were myopic before your LASIK treatment, with it you now have lost any

advantage your myopia may have given you for near vision. People, even young ones, tend to want to accommodate when

looking through a viewfinder and often need plus lenses in their diopter adjustment to allow them that. The more so, the

older one gets.<br>

HTH!<br><br>

Best regards, Christoph

[pnance]

Use a split image focus screen. I installed one in my F4, not sure if available for newer cameras.

[samoksner]

As someone suggested, look into split screens, they help tremendously! That's how we focussed in the good old days :) http://www.katzeyeoptics.com/item--Fuji-S2-Focusing-Screen--prod_S2.html here is a link for the S2 and S3 focusing screen. Those $105 are the best $105 i ever spent when it comes to using old glass on new cameras.

[neil_parker]

I haven't found that the little green light (in the D200) is accurate or consistent enough to focus fast primes wide open, at

least every time in a timely manner. It's real hit or miss, I think the split-image screen sounds like the best advice.

[john_stockdale2]

Christoph might be onto something. Although your eyes are corrected, at our age our eyes' ability to alter focus has diminished to just about zero. See the wikipedia article on optical prescriptions at:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eyeglass_prescription

 

I'm not familiar with your camera, so I don't know if it has dial-in diopter correction in the viewfinder. My F100 has. If yours has, try altering it while trying to focus dim light. If it hasn't, you might try some diopters at a camera store. As a rough rule of thumb, looking through a viewfinder is like looking at an object at 600mm or 1meter away (depends on the camera). Can you see well at that distance?

 

There are magnifiers available, but they generally reduce the amount of the screen that you can see, so have their serious downside.

[michael_bradtke]

Dave

 

Part of the problem may be the viewfinder on the camera.They are not meant for MF lenses. A brighter screen may have made the problem worse not better. Also I have always found the split image screens to be a real PITA

 

The older screens like in my F are very course. With the extra bite it was easy to see when the image snapped in and out of focus.

 

Also you might want to have the camera checked to make sure the optical path is aligned.

 

I use a D300 with a 50 f/1.2 AIS and get 80% of my shots in focus.I would say its about the same as when I was shooting film.

 

I shot a wedding with my 50mm f/1.2 and my 35mm f/1.4 on my D300. I had no more problems with them on the D300 then I did on my F5.

 

BTW I am 45 have worn glasses all my life and my eyes suck for just about everything but looking in my view finder. Guess I got lucky on that part.

[ronald_moravec1]

Dial in all the plus correction you can. if the screen is still not sharp, go the a drug store that sells cheap reading glasses

and see if you can improve it. You can add a nikon diopter.

 

Use the green light on left side.

 

At 65+ I can still use the D200 and D40 original screens. Guess i am lucky.

 

never read a complaint here about Katzeye screens

[yuri_sopko]

It's always hard to get fine focus when wide open on a fast lens. Even with AF or a KatzEye. Also, I believe that the viewfinder is/was optimized for a specific focal length. Maybe this was for FOV or macro? I am sure an old-hand ere can chime in.

 

If you do get a D300 or D3 you can use LiveView mode. Then you can zoom in on what you want to focus on with the rear LCD screen then you'd know for sure you were in focus.

 

Other than an eyepiece magnifier that Nikon offers I can not think of much else.

 

Yuri

[andrew_gale]

Even with my nearly perfect eyesight, I can often not focus well at wide open.

I often use the help of the focus indicator light when working with manual lenses.

[dave_weber1]

Wow, you guys are the greatest! Your responses are wonderful. My digital cameras do have live preview. I had only used it in the past for IR photos. Your suggestion to try live preview on my color photos makes allot of sense to me. I think I'll give it a try. Sure it will slow me down a bit, but if I get more keepers, it will sure be worth it. Nothing disappoints more than capturing a wonderful image only to find it's not in focus. If that doesn't work, I'm going to try a D300 with the focusing light.

Thanks again,

DAve

[lex_jenkins]

Ditto the split-image focusing aid, if it's available for your camera. Best thing going for fast lenses with less than perfect vision.

 

Not the best solution for slower lenses since half of the split-image aid will black out. But they work great with fast lenses, even in very dim lighting. That's one reason I've kept the standard screen in my FM2N, tho' prefer the grid E screen in my F3HP.

[philippartridge]

The katzeye focusing screen is great; just get one, I say..I have little trouble using a D200 stock screen but the optibrite and fresnel and s/screen plain work..Also your 50m is now a 75mm, and a damn fast one at that.

 

The green focus confirmation light is useless.

 

For landscapes shoot at the best aperture, with high s/speeds or tripod. A lot of things affect apparent sharpness.

 

I zoom to 100% using high sharpen, as I shoot RAW and can change it all anyway; but the silly LCD thing does not hack it in bright light..best regards.

[bob_cook]

I find the green focus confirmation light is the best route for me.

[aether]

Don't know the Fuji S3s but, as already advised, go for D200/300 or similar which allows full metering with MF lenses and by all means use the green focus confirm light. This green light is not always accurate or dependable so don't rely on it completely, by trial and error (and diopter adjustment) you'll learn when a shot is in the focus you want.

But don't expect every shot to be in "perfect" focus. I was disappointed when I started using MF lenses by how few were in the focus I wanted but when I compare to shots taken with AF lenses, I get as many "keepers" with MF as with AF. Even AF lenses can "get it wrong", AF can be a nuisance with predictive focus etc!

[Phil_Light]

I noticed the one thing you haven't mentioned is your shutter speeds? I'm getting to the point in life where what used to be a safe shutter speed requires a little faster increase to make up for my declining steadiness with the camera. Now if you're just missing your proper zone of focus and something either behind or in front of you main subject is sharp than we can eliminate the shutter factor. I recently had eye surgery too (cataract), but now I can actually see what I wasn't able to focus on previously. But I still notice a distinct inability to hold the camera as steady as I used to be able to and feel the need to ratchet up the shutter speed now more than ever. Be thankful you still have those old fast lenses that let you gain an f/stop or two.

[andrew_guttry_guttmeyer]

Absolutely use a split image/microprism focus screen. Screens on DSLR's are hopeless for manual work and,aren't designed with manual focus in mind.

[Peter_in_PA]

Another issue... No matter what you get to aid focusing... When you shoot with a 50mm at f1.2 almost nothing is in focus.

This may be another issue with your images. I'd love to see some samples.

[ilkka_nissila]

The split image screens made by third parties do help a lot. The larger image of the D3 makes a big difference, and the sharpness of fast primes in the final print is much better using the larger sensor than the DX format. If you can afford the D3, then go for it! You won't be disappointed, it is an eye opener. You can get a brightscreen.com split image screen for that (KatzEye doesn't make one).

[tri-x1]

I use the focus light on the D300 which in some situations is more accurate than my tired old eyes. I avoid shooting wide open whenever possible.

[p_b_]

I sometimes have the same problem with my 85mm f/1.4 lens and my eyes are pretty good. There is an explanation for the problem, which might surprise you. I quote from the article:

 

<p>" Modern focus screens only see through a section of lens up to about f/2.8. They simply don't see any of the light from the outer sections of the lens from faster apertures, so they don't show you the defocus you'll get at f/1.2.

 

Use the depth of field preview. You won't see any darkening until you get to about f/2.8. In other words, the finder looks as bright at f/2.8 as it does at f/1.2. You're not seeing what you'll get at f/1.2 or f/2! "

 

<p>The complete article is here:

 

<a href="http://kenrockwell.com/nikon/50mm-f12.htm">http://kenrockwell.com/nikon/50mm-f12.htm</a>