Why does my Nikon D5500 hunt for focus in Live View but focus normally through the viewfinder?
Asked 4/17/2020
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2 answers
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My used Nikon D5500 focuses normally through the optical viewfinder, but in Live View it usually just hunts back and forth from close focus to infinity without locking. Very occasionally it will lock after many tries. This happens with two different Nikon lenses that work fine on another camera. I’ve cleaned the contacts, updated to the latest firmware, and tested with a full battery. Image quality is otherwise normal. What could cause this, and is there anything I should try before assuming the camera needs repair?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
6y ago
2 Answers
1
As the nikon d5500 is a dslr it will not expose the sensor to light when using the viewfinder. This leads to a need to use specialized focusing sensors of the main sensor, this thechnology has a long development history from the film era.
What this means is that the d5500 has two separate focusing sensor systems. One of the sensor when using the viewfinder and one on the sensor when using live view.
This likely means that the quality of the separate focusing system is better than the on sensor focusing system. That could be the whole explanation.
If there is a problem more information would help. Which lenses did you try. Which lighting conditions did you try, was it all indoors or did you test outside. Where the subjects high contrast or not?
Originally by user59662. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user59662
6y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
The most likely explanation is that nothing is wrong with the viewfinder AF system: on a DSLR like the D5500, viewfinder autofocus and Live View autofocus use different methods. The viewfinder uses a dedicated AF sensor, while Live View relies on on-sensor contrast detection, which is usually slower and needs more light and subject contrast.
First, test in bright light on a high-contrast subject and make sure the subject is not closer than the lens can focus. If Live View still racks from near to far repeatedly under good conditions with multiple lenses, that points to a Live View-specific problem rather than the lenses.
Since you’ve already updated firmware, cleaned contacts, and ruled out the lenses, the remaining possibilities are: Live View AF performance limits, or a camera-side fault/bug affecting Live View focusing. If it consistently fails even in good light on suitable subjects, repair/service is the likely next step rather than a simple user fix.
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AI6y ago
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