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Problems focussing fast optics on DSLRs
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Hi, am probably just venting some frustration a bit here, so please excuse: Anyway, other than 35mm SLR bodies (and all other types of camera you could think of), I’ve had a few DSLRs now, both Canon and Nikon. All of the latter were crap to properly focus with.
Anyone changed their screens on their DSLR for something decent? My faster lenses: 35mm f2, 50mm f1.8, 55mm f1.2, 85mm f1.4, 105mm f2.5, (even my f2.8 AF-S) are all hard to instantly manually focus (my exotic stuff such as a 145mm f1.2 and 195mm f1.25 almost to the point of uselessness). Put them on any 30+ year old film body though and the focus snaps in wonderfully.
The issue is of course the DSLRs fresnel viewfinder screen, designed to give a bright image with largely dim AF consumer zooms; the situation is exacerbated in relatively small DX finders. Ground glass screens are around, but has anyone had good experiences with them retrofitted and if so, who offers a conversion screen (….anyone in Ireland??) and how much is it here? (edit: The KatzEye™ mail order version is about €80 plus shipping plus extra for e.g. custom gridlines; any users???)
I could just keep shooting film for critical shallow DOF work of course, or live with the “I think I got the focus right this time” on my DSLRs/let the camera decide for me, but it is a bit of a drag having a nice DSLR that doesn’t do what I want. I wonder if the (FX) D800 will have a screen available that I actually like. :)Fair enough question, Jenny,
Even with AF though: focussing on what part of the picture? I need to see what’s truly in focus and what’s out of focus when I take the image and can not always zoom some LCD later. I’d also rather not part with some fast manual focus glass, which I simply wouldn’t want to have to finance in AF and some of which wouldn’t actually be available in AF. For me a lot of photography starts where unaided AF stops.What type of photography are you doing that everything needs to be in focus? There
is usually a focal point in all photographs, something that the photographer want the
viewer to look at and would need to be in focus, but there is plenty that doenst need
to be pin sharp and if you think about it, your eyes would only focus on certain things
not everything at once.When I use manual focus I would pick a focus point, and the camera will let me know if
and when it is focused by a solid dot between the two arrows, so I tend to trust that.I didn’t say anything about wanting everything in focus, quite the opposite:
I need quick assertion of the particular point I want in focus. Pointing the camera, say, on a subject’s eyelid, then moving the camera to be able to use the marked field for the arrows to focus because I can’t TRUST MY EYES, then reframe/recompose the image simply ain’t cuttin’ it. There is a reason you can buy GG screens, just as there is a reason to have fresnels as original issue. Pro bodies have interchangeable screens for that very reason.
All I was basically asking was whether anyone knew of a good local option. We indirectly seem to have answered that question just then anyway. Thanks all.No real issues in the past with using faster primes on my Nikon dslr’s (D50/ D80/ D200/ D300), perhaps I wasn’t being super-picky what with using wider apertures usually just for portraits, so did not do too much pixel-peeping. All primes were autofocus ones, (20mm f2.8D, 35mm f2D, 50mm f1.4D, 85mmf1.4D, Tokina 100mm f2.8 macro), but can imagine how manual focussing would be a nightmare, and not a fan of focussing by the green dot as many are, as like you, I have found the focus does not snap into focus on the screen. If manually focussing with lenses, I would consider an appropriate screen, but have no experience beyond considering one in the past.
I imagine you know about the focussing fine-tuning abilities of more recent dslrs with Nikon. In any case, keen to hear your experiences if you go with a specialist screen, especially if you get it done locally..
I changed the focusing screen on my Canon 1V and 5D to the manual focus style screen. For the 1V you can get an old fashioned split image diopter which sadly is not available for the 5D. It did certainly seem to help, not a huge amount, but a noticeable improvement in low light. I now keep them in my camera’s at all times, though they cause lenses with maximum apertures slower than 2.8 to appear dimmer in the viewfinder. This again is only noticeable in low light. I’d recommend trying the focusing screens offered by Nikon before you shell out for the KatzEye, they might just do the trick. As a side note, though the 5D MkII and 1V both have 100% viewfinders to the best of my knowledge, the 1V just “seems” nicer, can’t explain it.
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