Are you Focusing Correctly?
Focussing correctly is key to getting sharp images - are you focussing in the right place?
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NIKON GEAR (Main STILLS camera)
Current landscape camera - Nikon Z7 - geni.us/nikonz7
Awesome telephoto lens - Nikon 70-200m f/2.8 - geni.us/nikon70200
Great ultra-wide angle lens - Nikon 14-30mm f/4 - geni.us/1430mm
Hiking mid lens - Nikon 24-70mm Z f4 - geni.us/nikon2470
Sharpest mid lens - Nikon 24-70mm Z f2.8 geni.us/2470mm28
Very long lens - Nikon 500mm F5.6 - geni.us/nikon500mm
FILM GEAR
AWESOME DRONE - geni.us/dji_mavic3
Nikon Z6 - geni.us/z6nikon
Nikon 20mm Z F1.8 - geni.us/nikon20mmz
Nikon 24mm Z F1.8 - geni.us/nikon24mm
Nikon 50mm Z F1.8 - geni.us/nikon50mmz
Nikon 85mm Z F1.8 - geni.us/nikon85mmz
OTHER PHOTO GEAR
Clever camera strap (peak design) - geni.us/PDstrap
Microfibre Cloths - geni.us/microfibre
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The great printer I use Canon P1000 - geni.us/cIIc
Great bag for hiking - Tenba 24L - geni.us/orPwh
Great bag for travel (carry on) - Tenba 32L - geni.us/tenba32l
Super light Benro Travel Tripod UK - geni.us/Benrotravel
A must have for tripod (L bracket) - geni.us/myLbracket
Lightweight tripod - Benro Mach3 Carbon Fiber Tripod - geni.us/benromach3
Paper I use for all my prints - Fotospeed - geni.us/fotospeed Use DANSON10 to get 10% off your paper.
Love it when you do these “photo walks” into your photo - makes it so easy to understand 😀👍
Agreed! Nothing like seeing the explanation in practice right away :)
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"I can't feel my hands" sums up outdoor photography at this time of year ;)
I was just realizing that you’re hiking up a mountain with a backpack. That’s great. Your back must be so much better. Way to go. And thanks for this video. Just a few minutes in and I’ve learned a few things. Off to watch the rest and learn some more. Thanks!
Your panic when you turn around and see something amazing behind you, so you pivot the shot but miss it... is the most relatable thing ever 😂
You are using Photopils in the default Classic mode, which WILL give you lots of out of focus areas if you are pixel peeping (I definitely have the PP disease). If you go to Advanced settings, you can set the image size (I use my sensor resolution at 300 dpi (9504/300 = 32” x 6336/300 = 21”) with a viewing distance of about 12” (average vision can resolve 1/300 inch at about 11” which gives a circle of confusion of .004). With these settings at 28mm, f11, the Hyperfocal Distance will be 16.3 meters and the near focal plane would be 9.67 meters. If you use these settings, you’re not going to see out of focus areas at 100% resolution, but you are way more likely to focus stack.
This is the type of content that I tune in for each week. This is definitely helpful
Great video as always! Although I would like to point out that Photoshop has an option called "Auto-Blend Layers" right below the "Auto-Align" option. Inside that window, you should see an option to stack focus and blend the layers that way. It's a one-click option to do the stacking as opposed to the mask method. Neither is wrong, but in my experience one is slightly faster.
Always so well explained. Thank you Nigel. I have not looked into this stuff as much as I should have and think it will really elevate my landscapes.
Great informative video as always Nigel, many thanks for this. I have watched it a couple of times and get different lightbulb moments out of each watch. You explain things in an easy-to-understand way. I can utilise this for my own photography, even though my camera equipment differs, it still translates into info I can use myself. Thank you so much.
Already looking forward to the most incredible photo next week.
Thank you Nigel for taking the time to do this I don't know of any other photographers doing this in simple terms now I know how to do it properly.
Thank you for so much detail as to the focal points that work best. I've not known where to focus when wanting to achieve maximum overall focus, and this was very helpful. I've also not seen focus stacking done this way and look forward to giving it a try.
I've got ADHD so I never focus properly
😂 😂 When people talk about hyperfocal length, my brain starts hyperfocusing on focusing
I love that you show where the focus point is. Is it possible to do that for all your videos from now on? I've learned so much and with every video I watch I learn something new
nice one Nigel. helped me alot. When will you do good weather photography
Were in the Lake district on holiday in late summer 2014, loved the slate houses, the boat trip on Windermere and also the landscape.
Thank you for your technical explanations. They are helpful. Always good to see how much I am doing things incorrectly 🤦🏽♂️.
Need more coffee. Will re-visit when brain fog clears, and I can get my own focus. Carry on. 👍🥂
Thanks Nigel, I've followed you for years but you're definitely in your happy place, there on the fells! Great explanation as usual, the 'walk & talk demo' , just brilliant, I even managed to get my wife to watch this as I'm always banging onto her about her focus point in some of her images !
Enjoyed the video as usual Nigel. You explained everything very easy for people to understand as usual. Great images. Look forward to the next one.
This is such a useful update and thank you for doing this. The Composition e-book is superb and well worth the money. 👍👏 Going to use your update in the next few days and see how I get on. Also I hope to capture the Northern Lights and fun times ahead. Great content and knowledge. 👍👏
Great informative video. I learnt so much. Love it when you do these little tutorials they're so useful
Well done! Nice walk tru of focus points. I realise that you can’t get everything in a video, but I would like to add one thing that might help > + Optics Central focus and sharpness, and edge/corner focus and sharpness. In short, the edge/corners are not as sharp as the optics centre. It’s also varying with different f-stops, and lenses.
Fantastic explanation. Really comprehensive video. Thank you for taking so much care in building up an understandable learning experience with well thought and clear sequence of ideas. Thank you.
That was just fab and just simply and superbly explained. Thanks Nigel.
Thanks Nigel, possibly one of your most informative videos to date.
Great video. Great to see the Eurofighter Typhoon. (The Jet) 👍🏻
Awesome video as always Nigel.
Great video and this is something I briefly spoke to you about at your exhibition so great to see you covering it very useful as always! 👍
Great video! I found the insights on focus really enlightening. I've been struggling with maintaining concentration, and your tips are practical and easy to implement. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and helping me understand what true focus looks like. Looking forward to more content like this!
Another very informative video - thank you very much, Nigel. I really like the vivid way in which the theory is conveyed with the photography on location.
Excellent presentation, full of good advice and especially good energy, which has a great influence on good photography.
Your enthusiasm and input are a credit to the photography community 🫠
Very much an excellent and informative Video - Teaches me new / existing techniques and thinking that I have admissed / forgetten about
Super video Nigel, well explained and very informative and so worthwhile to all photographers. Many thanks - take care.
Thanks Nigel for sharing your experience with great comments & results.... love this type of video to learn from as I now understand more about focusing..... cheers from Australia 🦘🦘😊
I appreciative you showing us your focus points on each of the images along with the explanation. I need to make better use of Photo Pills when I am in the field.
Very well explained! I will keep the video in my favs😀
Thank you! This is a massively helpful video! I've long struggled to figure out the best focus point for a given image. I think I'll finally start using the app to help me calculate correct focal ranges. It's one of those things that I heard about early on when first starting out, but I put it aside so as to not make the already-steep learning curve of photography even steeper.
Another great adventure with helpful information. Love the moody Autumn views. Many thanks.
I don’t understand. The app tells you the hyperfocal distance is 1.2m and you focus at a distant mountain. And you still get a sharp photo both the foreground and background. It can’t be true that as long as you focus at a point behind the hyperfocal distance you always get everything in your composition acceptably sharp.. so what am I missing here? I’m at around 7:35 in your video. Thanks!
great video. I like the focus stack tip, much quicker than faffing around with the paint brushes
Thx for sharing this information
Thank You!
Great video. Thanks for sharing
Thank you for this very educational video! Great explanation with real world application.
Another superb video where you tackle an important subject and do so in a way that you won't find a better explanation anywhere else! Not being a Photoshop user, I use Helicon Focus for my focus stacking software. I love the results (I do a lot of macro work) and it just seems so much easier than the way you briefly demonstrated the Photoshop method. But I guess it's what you're used to. Can't wait for next week's video after the big tease!
Thank you Nigel, like always it's a very informative and helpful video. I've managed to follow your instructions about focusing and the result was : pinsharp photos from edge to edge. Thank you for your help again !!!
Very instructive video! It's definitely gonna help me, sometimes avoiding unnecessary photo stacking. Thank you Nigel!
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Thanks Nigel that was really helpful and highlighted some common mistakes Ive been making. I shoot way too much at F11 and its made me think again. Bought the book too!
Great information. You presented the mathematics of focus in a very accessible way using a real world photo walk. Focal distance difference was particularly useful to me.
Thanks for this - could have used this refresher for my recent trip to Iceland... oh well ... next time
my compliments, very educative and nice vid
great topic
Very helpful with Polar Pills next to it. Thank you Nigel.
I still have focusing issues and your video and demonstrations will hopefully improve my photos focus wise. I will try the next time I am out to see if I can focused photos without any blurring. Thanks Nigel
I find so much of the UK landscape beautiful, and between you and some mountain bikers I follow, I've come to really love the Lake District in particular :) Hope to get there in person someday!
There seem to be several definitions of "hyperfocal distance". Looks like Photopills uses the definition "The closest distance at which a lens can be focused while keeping objects at infinity acceptably sharp. When the lens is focused at this distance, all objects at distances from half of the hyperfocal distance out to infinity will be acceptably sharp".
That’s the correct definition; the only one I know.
For a minute I thought I was doing it wrong 😂.
Another great video, this is going to be so helpful in the field! A small tip for your future videos in your studio, dust of your monitor stand 😉😊
Hi Nigel, thanks for summing up all the considerations for selecting the right focus points, very helpful. When chasing sharpness, on the last shot with the gras in the foreground, I realized you chose 1/20s, even though you seemed to have some wind - would expect some loss of sharpness due to object movement. Maybe you can do a video about your considerations to choose minimum shutter speed to get no blur effect and finding the sweet spot for your images and also when you decide to have the blur effect in for artistic reasons.👍
Great vidéo. I m watching you from France. I have learned hyperfocal with photopills. Thank
Hi, Nigel. Very useful video for people. At 11:09 (ish) your portrait stacked shot, you mention having a continuous run of something to focus on because the stacking can be tricky otherwise. There's another point also in that you run the rick of creating a photo of two halves in a visual sense because if you were, say, much closer to the edge of the cliff you end up with something very close and something very distant and no midground which can be visually jarring
As usual another interesting and enjoyable video. Intrigued on the focus points, particularly as I have been following guidance I was given on a landscape course some years ago, which was to focus no more than one third (vertically) into the picture.
There are lots of different ways to do it but I think the 1/3rd way has problems and best to use an app like photopills to be safe
Another fabulously informative video, thank you Nigel. Very interesting to note that you don't use Nikon's Focus Shift............. I certainly enjoy your walks and talks in the countryside, no matter what the weather ☔️
Thanks Nigel for the upload, relaxing and informative as ever. I often like the areas of less attention to be one degree softer than the "main focus of the shot", sorry for the pun, fore and aft. It can act like a more subtle vignette. If one isn't careful, some photo-stacked images can look generated.🤔
Спасибо за ещё одно классное видео 👍
thanks, for this good video.👍
How much extra hiking and hill climbing did you do retrieving the camera ? 🙂 Excellent video, with some spectacular scenery.
Really helpful video, Nigel
Glad to hear it!
It is my understanding that the hyperfocal distance is the distance that the camera is supposed to be focused on. 2.34 meters. I think the lake is farther than that.
Nigel, that 'not for cars' sign would have made an interesting photo with the pathway in the background to the upper right.
A couple i know called at mi house and i was sat outside with a couple of cameras i have, ended up showing them what i have as the husband had just taken up photography, i showed them a couple of photo books id made and the mrs said you dont have a style as there is landscape, woodland, macro, churches, buildings and night shots in there, only comment i had was yes i do, i go out with a camera and take photographs of what i see, a camera makes you look and see, wether its a good photo or not it doesn't matter to me
Excellent video once again, however can I ask why you don't use the Focus Shift facility that's available in the Z series bodies?
11:35 man that camera looks to be living a charmed life. Looks like its gonna tip forward!
It is fine - honestly! ha
Great video Nigel! Thank you so much! Could you please share the name of the app that you are using? Thanks
Always clear and concise Nigel I only wish I had terrains like you to practice landscapes instead it’s flat and tropical. Where’s the link on more info on focus stack that you pointed to in the upper part of your video?
The frustration at 10:27 😂
good video... but you have forgotten about the format, for medium format/ large format..... there is far less DOF as you increase film/sensor size, so you have to stop down. Also pointing cameras down like you have seriously decreases dof. Lenses are sharper at the centre at the most open aperture, and become sharper corner to corner as you stop down, so pointing the camera down like that you have to stop down.
The only complaint abot your phantastic photo walks is that we don`t see Pebbles very often
Thanks for the info. BTW - I feel that the "Not For Cars" sign would have made the perfect shot for James Popsys. :-)
Don't you wish you had your long lens on the Z8 with you for that jet flying by? 😉 I thought that the vantage points from where those jets can be seen flying by low are usually packed with photographers so good job finding a quiet spot there.
Very informative video on focusing, hyperfocal distance, etc. If you do all of your edits in LR prior to PS, do you edit one and use Sync Settings to get the same slider positions throughout or do them individually, which would multiply the time requirement?
Another fantastic video Nigel, well done and thank you. But at about 5:16 you use an app that seemed to be very useful but I did not get the name; what is the name of that application?
Loved the video. Just came back from shooting in the field and wish I saw this first. Ah, well, I'll keep learning! Anyway, just a couple of questions: first, when you walk, you carry your tripod rather than tether it to your backpack - why? Second, when you were focusing closely on the foreground I notice that you kept the ball and camera centered upon the center post, but extended one leg to tip the camera down. Why do this instead of having all three legs equal and tipping the ball head with the camera? Better stability? Thanks! Paul
Hi Nigel, thanks for creating a bit faster videos 🎉🎉🎉😂 Now seriously want to ask you - how many batteries do you carry with you for Nikon Z7 on a proper long day shoot?! Kind regards Viktor
Thanks Nigel for you presentation! Even though I have been involved in photograpy for more years than you have lived, I still have focus issues? I notice that yiu tap to focus, Is that your preferred method? I never do with my Nikon Z6ii and 14-30F4. I usually back button focus because I did not have confidence in touch screen for fear I would introduce movement even on my tripod? Please advise on the screen method.
Thankyou for your usual informative video .May I ask a question. When you touch your screen are you on auto focus? and touching the screen is this auto focusing and taking the picture?.Just trying to learn if sill question.
Nicely done. Do you ever use Auto-Blend in PS or Helicon Focus. Sorry if you have been asked that before.
Intersting as I normally focus 1/3rd in for my landscape shots?
What about your in-camera focus stacking (Nikon's Focus Shift Shooting)? This would have the advantage of being able to use your lens' sharpest aperture.
The in-camera focus bracketing is very good, but for landscapes, you usually only need two, possibly 3 images. In that case, it's probably quicker just to select your focus points on the rear screen. Macro, on the other hand..........
I don't think that is a good idea... As Nick says below - most of the time there is no need and if you do then just doing two shots is usually good enough. The in camera is more for macro shots. And you still have to actually stack the images afterwards
I use it extensively for both macro and landscape. In addition to allowing the use of the best aperture, it eliminates the guesswork. Less reliance on small apertures, "just to be sure". And no need to consult DOF tables on your smart phone. For landscapes at f/8, the camera usually only takes 4 images. Assigned to a button, you're done in a few seconds. @@NigelDanson
@@robertstonephoto That is really good, just for 4 images. I assumed it would take a lot more.
In my experience, Hyper focal distance (HFD) has never really worked for me and I ended up focus stacking in most cases. Takes slightly longer, but I found that I got WAY better results after processing than I ever would have with hyper focal distance (in fact, when in doubt or if I need to ensure sharpness fron to back, and if I have time then I just focus stack, usually 3-stops: foreground, mid-ground and background and I've found this pays off quite well although maybe not always necessary in the end). The other thing about "acceptably sharp" is that this is subjective, and may even depend on the output media, whether its on a screen or on print. My feeling is that on-screen, it might have a bit more wiggle room as it may not show up as much on a screen, even a 4k screen, but on print, it may be more obvious if something isn't tack sharp that should be sharp). So for me, my general rule is that if I have something in the foreground that I want sharp, that is close to the camera, then I Focus stack. If the nearest object is say 50 ft away or 100ft away and I'm shooting wide and at a higher f-stop (like f/11) then I can usually get away with a single shot. I did some tests when I was out at Horseshoe Bend in Arizona a few weeks ago and I found that from the look-out since the nearest object of importance was at least 50 ft away, I could just focus half way into the scene (at f/11) and get everything in focus for example, but I also ried focus stacking and to be honest, I couldn't tell much of a difference because the nearest object was a reasonable distance away that focus stacking was not necessary, although I would say that maybe (if you zoomed in) the very back mountains/land formations might be slightly sharper but you'd have to zoom in to see the difference which in that scenario I would say is not critical because you'd have to zoom in quite far to see the difference).
Really informative video Nigel . What’s the difference between focus stacking in Photoshop and merge as HD in Lightroom ( assuming you have taken your two/three focussed images in camera) Thanks again
HDR? Thats just blending different exposures
@@stigfloberghagenphotography yes but if you have focussed in multiple areas , as Nigel did, will you not get the same result when you merge?
I honestly see the f16 photo on the right sharper than the f10 on the left (at 8:26), may have they been swapped? Thanks for another very interesting video!
Hi Nigel! Thanks so much for such valuable information. Question: I've learned that while using hyperfocal distance focusing, you should focus in the closest point given by the mathematical formula. In your video, should be where you mentioned about the HD, but you focus mostly in the foreground, which drives me crazy... may you explain what may be wrong with my concept? Cheers
Any opinion on the auto focus-shifting options in the Nikon - you set one point, tell it how many you want and it steps through changing focus and leaves you with all the images to combine selectively later ? (I see you responded on another comment) Any way in LR Classic to show the focus points for each image to speed up identifying which of the many shot may be chosen ? (I tend to do 5 and honestly just let PS stack them after aligning on layers.)
Just another excellent video. As a beginner photographer, I learn so much from you. I saw you using an app on your smart phone to do a calculation of distances and focal lengths. What is the app you are using?
BobI think you will find he was using Photopills
Thanks, Nigel What’s the DoF app you’re using on your phone? Cheers Tom
Hi Nigel interesting video indeed but I am not sure to understand the difference between sharp and acceptable sharp with the hyperfocale, so I will probably do my own test but anyway thank you for raising this topic. About focus stacking you use photoshop which is rather for professional. Do you have an alternative soft with reasonable price (photoshop is not reasonable for me) with a limit of 50€/$ for unlimited licence with can do the stacking ? Thx in advance.
Any comments/ answers from the followers are of course welcome.
NIGEL! Your book - if I’m from the states can I still purchase this?
yes
Having seen many benchmarks; generally, lenses are sharpest between f4 and f8.