Photography Focus Tips

There are times that you just can't get your camera to focus correctly. Using pre-focus can save your pictures. On the picture to the left you can see that the skateboarder is not in focus. The camera in use simply did not have the ability to focus fast enough to capture the skateboarder.

 

The answer was to pre-focus the camera to a point where the subject would be. For this shot there was a shaft of light ahead of the skateboarder which made a good reference.

 

How you pre-focus is determined by your camera. For most cameras you can pre-focus by holding the shutter button half way down and looking at the display or through the viewfinder to make sure that pre-focus point is where you want to take the photograph.

 

This assumes that your camera is set to single focus mode. This mode is the one that most cameras default to.

 

Side note: Before trying pre-focus for this type of shot you would want to probably use AI or Servo mode.

 

Here is the technique:

1. Make sure that the camera focus mode is in singe shot.

2. Make sure you know the path your subject will follow,

3. Pick a spot on that path and hold the shutter release half way down.

4. Make sure that the camera has locked the focus point where you expect the subject to be.

5. The is VERY important. Do not release the shutter button or it will refocus when you press it again.

 

6. On the Using Panning page there is an explanation of "Camera Shutter Lag". Camera Shutter Lag is the delay from the time you press the shutter button until the image is taken. It varies on each camera so you simply need to get a feel for it for your camera. For the above image it is very important because you may need to adjust when you press the shutter so that the subject is where you want them to be when the shutter opens. It will take some practice.

 

 

When all the steps are done correctly you will be able to capture images that your camera would not otherwise allow you to capture. Like the techniques discussed in Panning pre-focus can take a little practice.

 

This technique can be useful for: shooting events like track, racing of all kinds, gymnastics, and any subject with a predictable direction. It does not work well for football, basketball, or similar sports.

 

 

 

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