On a Nikon D7000, should autofocus/manual focus be switched on the camera, the lens, or both?
Asked 4/9/2013
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I’m using a Nikon D7000 with the 18-105mm lens, and both the camera body and lens have AF/M switches. I’m confused about which switch controls autofocus vs manual focus in practice.
If I want to focus manually, should I set both the camera and the lens to M, or only one of them? If I want autofocus, should both be set to A/AF?
The lens manual says manual fine-tuning is possible even when the lens switch is set to A: half-press the shutter to autofocus, then keep holding it halfway and rotate the focus ring to fine-tune focus. Is that safe to do, and is it the same as true manual focus?
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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If you want to manually focus, best to set them both to M
it tells the body not to try to AF, and also will allow you to take an image even if focus isn't perfect
it tells the lens that you are manually focusing, so will allow the focus ring to turn freely
pressing the shutter release will not attempt to focus the lens in any way
If you want to use AF, set both the lens and body to A
- however you can override the focus as described in the manual. Half-press to have AF lock in focus, then while still holding the shutter release halfway, you can turn the focus ring and adjust focus. So it's not pure manual focusing, it's just an override that might come in handy on occasion, but if you want to manually focus, set both switches to M
Having the body on M and lens on A doesn't make sense. Neither does body on A, lens on M really (but see comments), so I'd recommend you just set them both the same.
Originally by user4191. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4191
13y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
For normal use, match both switches:
- Autofocus: set both camera and lens to AF/A.
- Manual focus: set both camera and lens to M.
That gives the clearest behavior: in AF, the camera will drive the lens to focus; in M, the camera won’t try to autofocus and the lens focus ring is intended for manual use.
Your lens manual indicates this lens allows a manual override/fine-tune while still in autofocus. That means after autofocus locks (typically with a half-press in single-servo AF), you can rotate the focus ring to make a small adjustment. That is not the same as full manual focus; it’s an override after AF has done most of the work.
A mismatched setting is generally not useful. In particular, one community answer notes the D7000 manual warns that having the lens on M while the body is on AF can cause damage, so avoid that combination. If you’re changing both switches, doing so with the camera powered off is the safest habit.
So: use both on AF for autofocus, both on M for manual focus, and use the lens’s override feature only as described in the manual.
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AI13y ago
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