How do I focus on a person in the background when there are subjects in the foreground?
Asked 5/28/2013
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2 answers
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I’m photographing two people at different distances, with one person closer to the camera and another farther back. I want the person in the background to be sharp and the foreground person slightly blurred, but my camera tends to focus on the nearer subject or other foreground elements. I’m using a Nikon D7000 with the kit lens. What’s the best way to select focus on the background subject and then compose the shot the way I want?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
2 Answers
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Set your Nikon D7000 to auto focus using AF-S and select one of the 9 cross-type focus points as the only active point. Set your aperture to the widest (lowest number) your lens will allow.
- Place the point you have selected over the part of the scene you want to selectively focus.
- Half-press the shutter button to lock focus on your subject and continue to hold the half-press.
- Reposition your camera to recompose the scene if necessary.
- Fully press the shutter button to take the picture.
- If the rest of the scene is defocused more than you desire, close down the aperture by increasing the f/number and shoot the scene again until you get the result you want.
- If your camera won't focus on the point you want, try using the center focus point.
- If that still doesn't work, then you will probably need to manually focus. If you find it difficult to use the viewfinder to focus manually, try using Live View with your camera mounted on a tripod.
Be aware when reviewing photos on your camera's LCD screen that it will lie like a politician! On the smaller, lower resolution screen depth of field will appear much deeper than it will when viewed at full size and resolution.
Originally by user15871. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user15871
13y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Use single-point autofocus rather than letting the camera choose what to focus on. On the Nikon D7000, set AF-S and select just one focus point, ideally a cross-type point or the center point if the others struggle.
Place that point directly over the background person, half-press the shutter to lock focus, then recompose and take the shot. You can also assign focus to the AE-L/AF-L button (back-button focus), which makes it easier to lock focus on the background subject and then reframe.
A few tips:
- Don’t change your distance to the focused subject after locking focus.
- Use a wide aperture (low f-number) if you want the foreground person more blurred.
- If too much of the scene is blurred, stop down to a higher f-number.
- If autofocus still won’t lock on the background subject, try the center focus point first.
In short: manually choose a single AF point, focus on the person in back, lock focus, then recompose.
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