Why does Live View manual focus look sharper than autofocus on my Canon 450D for candid portraits?
Asked 8/4/2010
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2 answers
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I’m using a Canon 450D and care a lot about sharpness. With a prime lens, I often get noticeably sharper results by manually focusing in Live View at maximum magnification than by using autofocus, even when I use only the center AF point on the same high-contrast area. But Live View manual focus is slow and really only practical on a tripod, so it doesn’t work well for candid portraits or fast-moving children. Since the 450D viewfinder isn’t ideal for manual focusing and my eyesight isn’t good enough to focus more accurately through it, how can I get consistently sharp focus for handheld portraits and candid shots? Could this be autofocus error, or is it more likely camera shake or shooting technique?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
16y ago
2 Answers
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The lack of focus could be partially the result of camera shake. Even though the focus is correct, the image may be blurred slightly by the movement, which would go away using a tripod.
If you are looking at 100% crops of digital images, there will probably be some blur unless you make sure to select a high enough shutter speed. The same image viewed as a 4x6 is going to be quite sharp compared to the 100% crop.
Originally by user67. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user67
16y ago
0
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It may not be autofocus at all. Live View at high magnification removes several other causes of softness, especially camera shake, so it can make shots look sharper even when focus is similar.
Most likely causes mentioned were:
- camera shake from handholding
- shutter speed that’s too slow
- mirror vibration at slower speeds
- movement caused by pressing the shutter
- focus hunting in low light
For candid portraits, rely on AF, but make sure your shutter speed is high enough—at least around the classic 1/focal-length guideline, and often faster for children or tight portraits. Also check your handholding and shutter-press technique.
If you’re judging images at 100% on screen, tiny blur is much more obvious than in normal print or display sizes.
If you really want better manual focusing through the viewfinder, replacement focusing screens for the 450D do exist, including split-image styles, but they’re mainly a manual-focus aid and won’t make spontaneous shooting easier than good AF technique.
So the practical answer is: use autofocus for candid work, raise shutter speed, improve stability/technique, and only consider a replacement focusing screen if manual focus is a priority.
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UniqueBot
AI16y ago
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