Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2003/03/10
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Hi Mike, u're going to get me in trouble answering that qn on the LUG....:p What I meant was by taking the burden of accurate focus off the photographer, one is more relaxed and free to think about the right composition. Just as Chris mentioned that he is more free to think about focusing the camera when the job of exposure is taken care of by the AE feature of his M7, with a camera with fast AF, focusing becomes more of a none issue and the photographer can think more about the shot in terms of arragement of elements in the frame, balancing content and asthetics, instead of worrying whether that rangefinder image is really perfectly lined up....... Of course this is a very personal issue. Some positively hate anything that's electronic or battery dependent :) I can wield an M with ease and work just as fast as my AF SLRs for focal lengths 50mm and below, and still compose things the way i want to. I'm not a fan of zone focusing, preferring to focus exactly whenever possible. There is a second part to my answer, though, and that is the use of fast telephoto lenses (75 f1.4, 90 f2 etc) or extremely fast lenses like the Noctilux. Ever wondered why most Noctilux shots have their subjects perfectly centred in the frame? Often with DOF so narrow with these lenses, focus then recompose is a big no-no, especially for moving subjects. Modern AF systems shine in this aspect, with the ability to selectively place AF points over desired spots (for me, almost always the eyes of any human subject). With that capability, you can choose an off center AF point, frame up the subject with the composition you want, and shoot with confidence that the focus is dead on where you want it to be. It's much faster too. And if i wish, i can configure the camera to behave exactly like my M - one button press to focus, the main shutter release for well, shutter release, which means the camera will not attempt to AF everytime i half press the shutter release - that way i can hold focus. the best thing is i can even do this with off center moving subjects - and i can still shoot wide open with confidence. I've always thought that lenses like the M 50 f1.0, 75 f1.4, 90 f2 etc are wasted on rangefinders, and are probably more suitable for use on SLRs, where it's much easier to wield them, even with manual SLRs. The whole premise of the M rangefinders, is to me, shooting fast and candid fleeting moments, often in horrible light. It's harder to achieve that with say, a Leica M and 75 f1.4 @f1.4, than a Canon 1v with a 85 f1.2 lens, and still get a satisfactory composition that does not have the main subject perfectly centred in the frame.... the 75mm at f1.4 may have phenomenal bokeh, contrast and sharpness - but it only works if the picture is 1) in focus 2) has a pleasing composition agree? :) ok this is now OT and i shall stop my ramblings.... Boon Hwee - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mike Quinn" <mlquinn.mail@earthlink.net> To: <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us> Sent: Tuesday, March 11, 2003 11:21 AM Subject: Re: [Leica] Leica focusing...HELP! > How does AF help with off-center subjects? > > With the M it's easy: focus on the subject and then move the frame wherever > you want. How does AF help with that? - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html