Anyone Still Manual Focus?

J

Jeff Fillmore

Member
After reading a really nice and informative article about the virtues of Manual Focus I found myself thinking more and more that it was something I wanted to try- or retry to be more accurate- since my old film cameras never auto focused either. What I found interesting from the article and also found to be very true was the fact a true manual focus lens has quite a different feel to it than just manually focusing an auto focus lens. The gearing in the manual lens is very different- feeling very smooth and precise and allowing for more fine tuning.

Anyway- I picked up an old Nikkor 105mm f2.8 AIS Micro for pretty cheap the other day and have been enjoying it quite a bit. Just thought I would share the love and a few pictures I have grabbed over the last few days.

Anyone else- Please share your Manual-Focus story and/or pictures.

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awesome series... impressive.
 
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nice series Jeff!

I manually focus from time to time... Usually its when I'm doing a night shot where the autofocus gets confused, but that dosen't happen often. I think its harder to focus manually on a DSLR because they only have a matte focus screen. My manual focus film cameras all had the split prism focus screens. I bought a Katz Eye focus screen for my D2Xs, but found that it wasn't as accurate as the autofocus, so I put the matte screen back in.
 
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Jeff, during my last trip to the World, I didn't bring my 50D, but rather I rented the Zeiss 50/1.4. You're right about the gears feeling different.
 
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Those are fabulous Jeff!

The D80 was my first auto-focus camera. But since then I haven't really MF at all.
My film camera (n2000) has a great prism screen that shows when you are in perfect focus. I just don't like or cant get used to the green dot.
And, I cannot tell how sharp the focus is without help from focus screen.
 
Mye eyes just aren't that good. I only manual focus when the camera can't lock in, such as shooting a blue sky or in low-light situations.

On my first trip to WDW in 1990, I was using an SLR for the first time - a borrowed Canon A-1, which was manual-only. I didi okay with that camera, though I only shot 4 rolls of 24 over 8 days, so I took a bit more care with each shot than I do now.
 
"mSummers" said:
I think its harder to focus manually on a DSLR because they only have a matte focus screen. My manual focus film cameras all had the split prism focus screens.
Click to expand...

That's my main complaint. I use manual focus for low-light photos, and the matte screen combined with my bifocals makes it almost impossible to tell when a shot is in focus.

Are there any DSLRs with split prisms?
 
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Not out of the box.

http://www.katzeyeoptics.com/

They're a pain for crop sensors, and as a result I think the majors designed their new systems to be less compatible with changing out focusing screens. Esp. Nikon, who is using a new laser etched screen for making sensor markings invisible. With that in mind, I love the new MF system that the 700 has (not just a dot, but arrows to show you if you are in front of or behind). Will it ever be the same? I doubt it.

Canon has them for the 1 series only. It looks like they aren't even compatible with the 5 line.
 
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"Roger" said:
http://www.katzeyeoptics.com/
Click to expand...

It might be worth a try. Maybe I'll get one in time for next Mousefest.

Great photos, Jeff. The best advice someone gave me regarding these fancy DSLRs is to ignore the automation and try full manual mode; that's the way we did things in the Good Old Days. I'll admit that I'm not all manual all the time, but in good light it's my preferred mode.
 
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"ddindy" said:
It might be worth a try. Maybe I'll get one in time for next Mousefest.
Click to expand...

I had one in my D2Xs and didn't like it. The Katz Eye screen was always slightly out of focus according to the AF, and the AF was always correct. I ended up taking it out of the camera after about a month because it was useless.
 
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Just curious: Was there any adjustment available for your camera? For mine, the manual says to try using the supplied shim under the focus screen, and if that doesn't focus correctly to try the original shim. There were other suggestions among all of the disclaimers, but they were beyond my techical skills.

If it's as bad as you describe, then I'll save my money.
 
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I don't think mine came with any shims, and the D2Xs didn't have any in the focus screen tray. Maybe the shims are a new thing.
 
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