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Fine Tune AF on 645 DF

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
Nope. If it's off, you need to send the body in for calibration. However, I found that if I set the AF to Speed instead of Accuracy priority, then do a triple-tap in single AF mode, it locks on quite well. This provided the added benefit of faster (albeit less accurate) focusing in action situations.
 
Thanks for the confirmation Jack! Actually the focus is bang on on mine, but with the 110 LS, I get eyebrows and eyelashes, when I want eyelashes and pupils. Just wanted to be able to knock it back 2mm and I could then shoot wildly shallow headshots with AF.

I will try the triple tap thing. I never quite got how to do it before, that explanation clears it up!

Time to get a split focusing screen from Mamiya I think.
 

Steve Hendrix

Well-known member
Thanks for the confirmation Jack! Actually the focus is bang on on mine, but with the 110 LS, I get eyebrows and eyelashes, when I want eyelashes and pupils. Just wanted to be able to knock it back 2mm and I could then shoot wildly shallow headshots with AF.

I will try the triple tap thing. I never quite got how to do it before, that explanation clears it up!

Time to get a split focusing screen from Mamiya I think.

It might not be a bad idea to do an easy test - meaning take your collection of lenses, set up a shot that is very well lit so that the lenses have an excellent chance of grabbing hold the first go, and see if they are consistent. If you find they are, with the exception of the 110mm, it could very well be the lens itself that needs to be looked at.


Steve Hendrix
 
Thanks Steve, I shall have a play with the lenses and see if there's any inconsistency. I only have three AF lenses, 80D, LS110 and the 300/4.5 APO. All others are old manual focus ones.
 

FredBGG

Not Available
Thanks for the confirmation Jack! Actually the focus is bang on on mine, but with the 110 LS, I get eyebrows and eyelashes, when I want eyelashes and pupils. Just wanted to be able to knock it back 2mm and I could then shoot wildly shallow headshots with AF.
Chances are it's not a recalibration issue, but a limitation of the AF on the Phase One. The center focusing are is rather large and will focus on the closes object within it. It is also easy to have the feature outside of the focus point. There is also no indication as to which focus point actually made the focus lock.

There is an option to turn off the two outer focus points. This may also help.

Shooting "wildly shallow depth of field" with the type of precision you want is a bit of a hit and miss process with the DF, especially if you do not want the feature that you want in focus to be in the center if the screen.

The Hasselblad H is a little bit better for this kind of thing thatnks to the true focus feature, but that to has it's limits. It attempts to adjust focus when you recompose and dies a good job if you can recompose without moving forwards or backwards. If you are wide open you really need to be able to lock focus and shoot in the composition you want imidiately.

A bit OT regarding focus calibration, but relevant to the photos you want to take:

I saw you were selling your DF system, but might keep the back for a tech camera and that you also shoot film.

One thing you could consider is using your fine back with a Fuji GX680 for your "wildly shallow depth of field" portraits. It would also fit in with your liking for film. You could use either your DB or film. The Fuji while being big and clunky has both a high magnification waist level viewfinder and a higher still movable loup waist level finder. You would also have the option of tilt and shift to play around with the shallow depth of field.

Here is an example shot with the 180mm 3.2 and a phase one P25+ back:



I used some tilt and shift too so as to keep tip of nose and eyelashes in focus on the subjects left eye.

Here is a crop:



You can see the use of tilt by how the top eyelashes are tack sharp while the lower eyelashes are soft.

The subject was quite static and I got a focus hit rate of 9 out of 10.... and my eyes are 50+ years old....;)

As a 4x5 user you may really like the GX680 and it gets great results with a high MP DB. It sort of a cross between a hasselblad/mamiyaRZ and a 4x5 camera.

Here are two shallow depth of field shots done with film in the 680.
Shot on a monopod and using the "IMAX" GX680 prism.





Here is the camera set up the day I shot this:

 

FredBGG

Not Available
It might not be a bad idea to do an easy test - meaning take your collection of lenses, set up a shot that is very well lit so that the lenses have an excellent chance of grabbing hold the first go, and see if they are consistent. If you find they are, with the exception of the 110mm, it could very well be the lens itself that needs to be looked at.


Steve Hendrix
Can the DF be calibrated differently for different lenses? Like the 5D mark II for example.
 

FredBGG

Not Available
Fantastic images..... I'm seeing these same people so often, I might give them names.
I can't use most of my work as examples on the forums because I mainly photograph celebrities and I have to be a bit careful of not getting carried away posting them.
 

jagsiva

Active member
I can't use most of my work as examples on the forums because I mainly photograph celebrities and I have to be a bit careful of not getting carried away posting them.
Fred, I do appreciate the images, they are wonderful. The rest, as you may imagine, was tongue and cheek, not meant to offend.

The forum has gotten very colourful of late, and I for one am loving all the opinions, biases, and emotions.
 
Fred a very good suggestion. I am indeed keeping my back. The tech cam is packed waiting to be picked up. I decided to wait until the dust settles then look seriously at the DF. I know Phase are working on something but it might be 2013 before it comes out. Do I want to wait? Is it worth the wait? etc etc

I have in the past enjoyed a Mamiya C330 and found it natural to use. I really like the slightly lower perspective for portraits too. I am considering to move to the RB/RZ67 (whichever one can take the Mamiya adapter, I can't remember), so yes the Fuji is also an option and quite easy to pick up that kit here.

My new tech cam cannot be handheld and I would like something that I could handhold (or at least carry/monopod) and use the IQ back.

Paul
 
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