Tips For Obtaining the Best Focus

Today’s Photo Tip – Shoot In A Manual Mode: If you are like most people, you shoot most of your pictures using your camera's [iA] (Intelligent Auto) mode. The first thing to remember is that this mode, as well as some SCN modes, override whatever focusing selections you may have made using the camera’s Auto Focus Mode Dial, by making their "best guess" selection. Therefore, because the camera cannot really know exactly what area in the picture you desire to be in SHARPEST focus, it may not capture it in sharp focus. Note: Though your camera should have similar settings, the specific settings noted below in [bold-faced brackets] are for a LUMIX DMC-G2.

Step 1.  Using the Mode Dial, switch to one of your camera’s "manual" shooting modes [P][S][A][M].  Each of these modes will allow you the ability to set a specific focus mode and specific regions to focus on. Step 2.  Next, using the Focus Mode Lever, select either [AFS] (Auto Focus Single) or [AFC] (Auto Focus Continuous). If the subject is stationary, select [AFS]. This mode will 'lock' focus on the subject when you press the shutter halfway, allowing you to then move the camera to frame the subject for the best composition. For taking shots of rapidly moving subjects or firing in Burst Mode, select [AFC]. This mode will keep the focusing motor operating during the interval between shots in an attempt to retain focus. If you are taking nature close-ups where intervening branches or reeds are between the subject and the camers, you may want to select the [MF] (Manual Focus) mode. This mode turn off the auto focusing motor, requiring you to determine the focus on the display screen as you turn the lens' Focusing Ring.

Step 3.  If using either the [AFS] or [AFC] modes, use the Auto Focus Mode Dial, to tell the camera how to focus the subject area; [1-area], [23-area], [AF Tracking], or [Face Detection]. Most users typically use the [23-area] focusing mode as their default setting. However, when doing so, this mode forces you to place your subject where the pre-defined focus points are. Herein lies a typical problem. Either the focus point is too small to cover the areas of interest or it might not be exactly where you want it, meaning that you cannot "frame" or "compose" the picture the way you want it. In order to insure that your intended subject is in sharp focus when using this mode, you need to focus first on the exact spot you want in sharp focus and then recompose the shot in order to obtain the desired framing. To obtain the sharpest focus where you want it, re-set the focus mode to [1-area] focusing, then point the camera at the subject, placing the area that you want to have in sharpest focus directly in the center, press the shutter button half-way to confirm it (either by a beep or the green dot indicator inside the viewfinder). Then, continuing to hold the shutter button half-way down, move the camera and recompose the picture, fully depressing the shutter when you are satisfied with the composure.

Step 4.  Finally, you can secure the focus point by pressing the AF/AE Lock Button to lock the focus [AF/AE Lock] (Auto Focus/Auto Exposure Lock) on the back of the camera. Depending upon this button's menu settings, you can lock either focus, exposure, or both. While continuing to depress the shutter button half-way, press and hold the [AF/AE] Lock button, then, continuing to hold the shutter button half-way down, move the camera and recompose the picture, fully depressing the shutter when you are satisfied with the composure. Using the menu settings you can also set this button to HOLD. This setting lets you release the button and still retain the locked focus, exposure, or both until you press the button again or take the picture.

Things to remember when recomposing: First, is that you might end up with a poorly focused image if you recompose too aggressively. This is especially true when shooting at very large apertures and close distances. Your focus plane shifts when you recompose, so if you have a very shallow depth of field and you are standing too close to your subject, recomposing too much could result in a soft-looking/unfocused subject. The upside of this is that the resulting effect may help to focus attention on your desired subject. If you cannot get a sharp image, try to keep the focus point as close to the subject as possible and then recompose a little. Less shift means less change in focus plane. If you shoot with long-lenses over long distances, you do not have to worry about this as much.