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.95 noct and kids

G

gooomz

Member
just wanted to say it is hard to nail focus with this lens when shooting kids at distances of 4-8ft. i guess obviously, but this lens looks so sweet when you actually hit the focus but man, just when you think you got it, looks good in the lcd display, but when you get home and blow it up on your cpu, what a bummer sometimes. i'm thinking when shooting kids or any other non stationary subject gotta go with 1.4f or 2f otherwise you take a big chance in focusing on a kids shirt and not their face.

been shooting with the noct for about 3 months now, just wondering if focus gets easier, or not really with subjects that tend to move ex kids?
 
Steve Fines

Steve Fines

Member
Hi,

I have two fast kids and there's no doubt that the m9/0.95 combo gets fewer action keepers than the d3s/24-70. But boy do I prefer the look when it does work out.

The 1.4x viewfinder has really helped me. Other thing is focus bracketing - takes some practice with action shots, but I've had a few times where it has worked.

That being said most relatives care about the kid the photo and their expression and don't notice focus planes, composition, and the like.
 
Markus Dagnell

Markus Dagnell

New member
Hi,

I shoot the same combo and have kids:) I have a feeling that I´ve gotten better at focusing. I use the 1.25x diopter and thinking about getting the 1.4x. If I se a movement I try to follow with the focusing ring but it´s a guessing game.


Markus
 
G

gooomz

Member
have you guys been shooting with .95 for a long time?

do you try to play it safe sometimes and shoot at 1.4 or f2? but then i was thinking if i am going to shoot at 1.4 or f2 might as well rock the summicron or summilux 50mm instead and no bulk. just having that .95 available always makes me want to shoot at .95 even with neutral density filters. .95 is addicting.

i heard that the .95 lens itself sometimes needs to be sent in to be adjusted for focus. not sure if you guys have run into that issue.
 
Steve Fines

Steve Fines

Member
gooomz said:
have you guys been shooting with .95 for a long time?

i heard that the .95 lens itself sometimes needs to be sent in to be adjusted for focus. not sure if you guys have run into that issue.
Click to expand...
Hi,

I got mine about 9 months ago, so about that long.

Do a focus test to be sure - I had to send in my m9 and the 0.95 when I bought the 0.95 (new) as the combo front focussed by enough to make using it near impossible.
 
P

Paratom

Well-known member
I only have the Summilux and its allready nnot easy to nail focus as soon as kids start to move/run etc.
For that reason I usually take a couple of shots of the same scene and most of the times I get at least one shot which is fine.
Also some slighty focus inaccurancy which might show up at 100% screen might not be visible if you dont print too large.
 
G

gooomz

Member
the only thing i don't like about the 1.25x and 1.4 magnifiers is that you lose the ability to see outside of the 50mm frame lines. just saying.
 
P

Paratom

Well-known member
gooomz said:
the only thing i don't like about the 1.25x and 1.4 magnifiers is that you lose the ability to see outside of the 50mm frame lines. just saying.
Click to expand...
I use the 1.25 and with that you can see the 35mm framelines. (atleast I can, dont have glasses)
 
S

Shac

Active member
goomz - one tip I was given when shooting mobile kids is not to fiddle with focusing the l;ens but move forward and back instead - same effect as refocusing but a lot faster - I found it works
Good luck
 
Chuck Jones

Chuck Jones

Subscriber Member
Lean in, lean out. Step in, step out. Rinse and repeat. Learn to judge your movement distance by the distance the kids are moving toward or away from your position.

You don't have the time to refocus by turning the focusing ring when shooting anything that moves as fast as kids.
 
G

gooomz

Member
i think i will send in my .95 for service along with the M9 to make completely sure that it is not the gear that is off. the only thing is if i send in my .95, m9, (i will also send in my 90 apo and 35 cron just might as well) what happens if i never filled out my warranty cards which are blank and some items i bought used from the forums with blank warranty cards where the orignal owner never bother to fill out.

should i just send in everything together gear and warranty cards?
 
2

250swb

Member
You can check for yourself if you think your equipment needs adjusting, do the brick wall test.

Leica do not require warranty cards to do a service under the warranty, you just need to copy your original sales receipt that will have the date of purchase on it.

Steve
 
Chuck Jones

Chuck Jones

Subscriber Member
Guys, take a wide tape measure, and lay it out on the floor running away from you for about ten feet. Kneel down, and focus on one of the numbers closest to you, then on one of the numbers out about eight feet. Remove card, load on computer and bring up nice and large. Note what numbers are in focus. If the numbers you focused on are NOT the ones in focus, send the camera and lens in.

If the numbers you focused on are the nice and sharp ones, you just need more practice. After shooting probably half a million frames through an M body I can't even remember how long it took me to learn how to get it right, but it did take awhile.... just be patient and keep at it, it will be well worth it down the road.

Brick walls are for growing ivy on, not for testing a Noct mounted to an M9. The DoF at 0.95 is so shallow, it is impossible to ever get it setup correctly, so it will always look like the lens is off!
 
G

gooomz

Member
thanks for your help chuck. i just shot the tape measure and i will view results when i get home. but how come when i laid out the tape measure and squatted down to shoot it at approx a 45 degree angle, the edge of the tape measure was difficult to line up? not sure if it was an optical sort of thing. can't wait to see the results. thanks.
 
overgaarcom

overgaarcom

Member
I would recommend getting the equipment checked and adjusted in any case, and I often (like every four months) do so just to be sure. It's very comforting to know that when (not if) you don't hit focus, you just have to continue trying and not start looking at the equipment.

With kids it's a lot of patience and a lot of shots that doesn't work. With Noctilux and Summilux, even when you get the focus right, and a person (adult og kid) move a little, your focus plane is the nose tip or the ears. So shoot plenty.

But also good light conditions will make even fuzzy images appear sharp, and that is more important than actual sharpness in dull light I think. But the Noctilux easily turns into an equipment test, and it shouldn't. It's just a very nice look you get while working on the edge of what is physical possible ;-)
 
Chuck Jones

Chuck Jones

Subscriber Member
Gooomz, I'm not sure I know how to answer you question quickly. It shouldn't be any more difficult to shoot than any other image, if everything is lined up properly. 45-60 degrees should work just fine. Certainly not as difficult to line up than it is to line up on moving kids :ROTFL:

Let me see if I can't do up something to help you with this. I'll post it later this evening.
 
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