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I tried to grab a quick shot of a model engine for a thread on the aircraft forum this morning. I don't think the picture is too horrible, but it is certainly out of focus. I used autofocus and I should have known better- the autofocus algorithms in most cameras just cannot handle macro stuff- I should have used manual focus and focused on a plane further back. The rule of thumb I and many others use in macro is 1/3 of way between front and rear extent of detail. I just wanted to use flash for a quick pic, so used automatic and let it pick aperture. If this were an important shot I would have brought down model off wall so I could use tripod and extreme f/# with long exposure. So this is why I like DSLR. If I do manual focus I need enough resolution in viewfinder to get a good view of focus. Few electronic viewfinders I have seen can do this- they are made primarily for framing and autofocus.
Don Stauffer in Minnesota
Does Canon Live View not do this - I've been hankering after a Live View model for a while now so that I can tether it to a laptop for accurate pre-shot previews.
I think Nikon has a similar feature.
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Don, maybe my eyes are going, but I don't see anything out of focus.
Doesn't look like the subject was shot head on, but from an oblique angle. Seems more like a depth of field issue don't you think?... with the near cylinders in focus and the far ones a bit out.
Don
Don,
Nice build!! DOF aside, I think your pic shows what you, likely, wanted to show. I think you could up tthe ISO and the f stop to get greater depth with auto flash if you wanted. Your Nikon does well at high ISO IIRC.These old eyes of mine have difficulty with manual focus so I use autofocus almost exclusively - macro or not
Raualduke Don, maybe my eyes are going, but I don't see anything out of focus.
Same here. The photo looks sharp to me.
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pordoi Doesn't look like the subject was shot head on, but from an oblique angle. Seems more like a depth of field issue don't you think?... with the near cylinders in focus and the far ones a bit out. Don
Yep, it was shot oblique- it is mounted on the wall above my head, and I was't going to bring a ladder up to my den. Yes, the obliqueness does increase the depth of field, but helps exaggerate the problem.
BTW, on the live view issue, I know of no live view cameras that have a pixel count on their electronic display anywhere near as high as the camera chip itself- that is the problem.
Okay, here is a shot using manual focus. I also used aperture priority, and flash. I think you can readily see the differences comparing it to the original photo.
Click on the photo in the post to see an enlarged view.
That does look far improved.
It look like auto was focusing on the front of the prop & loosing much of the detail, whereas manual focus is more central over the depth & giving a better overall result.
Regardless of resolution (1024 x 680 on some Canon's) I'm still pretty sure that live view would have highlighted this?
That is it exactly!
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