Jamie Roberts Posted June 24, 2007 Share #21 Posted June 24, 2007 Advertisement (gone after registration) Amy, I shoot a lot of sports with my M8 wide open. What ever the subject matter, it takes practice, practice, practice. The great part of it is that its digital. Just keep shooting. Zoran--a little thread hijack here--I love the work on your blog, so I'm intrigued about your statement of using the M8 for sports. Do you use it mostly for editorial work or really for action? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted June 24, 2007 Posted June 24, 2007 Hi Jamie Roberts, Take a look here Questions about Focusing.... I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
lars_bergquist Posted June 25, 2007 Share #22 Posted June 25, 2007 I totally appreciate all the help from everyone... I will say though, I am not one to do math or carry a chart... so being able to use the depth of field scale on the lens itself combined with the known-how is much more useful to me in practice... I'm just not sure how to compensate for the 1.3 magnifier of the M8... Amy The cropping factor? You do not really compensate for that while shooting. Just remember that to get the same image angle as a 35mm lens, you have to use one which is one size shorter, e.g. 28mm replaces 35mm which replaces 50mm (sort of – that works out to 47mm equivalent). A different matter is the fact that finder frames are pretty pessimistic, i.e. what you get is quite a bit more than what you see, except at closest focus. My advice is to shoot some test pictures where you can align the frames with straight edges in the subject (I used bookshelves) and then chimp to see what you do get. That way you get a feeling for it. And after all, you have cropping tools in your post-processing software! BTW I don't find the term 'chimping' pejorative. I recall Thomas Henry Huxley, 'Darwin's bulldog', when during a debate on evolution an Anglican prelate asked him if he was descended from an ape on the paternal or the maternal side. Th.H. retorted that he would much prefer to have an honest ape for an ancestor, than an intelligent man who used his gifts to sabotage a debate on an important matter. Ladies in the audience swooned, but the Dean was flattened. And if chimps are respectable people (I am all for human rights for apes) then chimping is respectable too. The old man from the Age of Aping and Chimping Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlaidlaw Posted June 25, 2007 Share #23 Posted June 25, 2007 Amy, I don't have the ability to do the maths in my head either. I have a Freeware widget on my iBook called DOFC and another one called DOF master on my Palm Treo phone. They both show you how DOF varies with different focal lengths, distances, f numbers, crop factors and COC's. I don't refer to them that often but by just playing around with them, you can get a feel for hyperfocal distances for various lenses. I am sure there will be similar Freeware for other operating systems/smart phones. I agree with Lars, that you have to use quite a low COC on the M8 because you are often cropping in whatever photo program you use and also pixel peeping. Wilson Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lars_bergquist Posted June 25, 2007 Share #24 Posted June 25, 2007 There's no need whatever to do math in your head. Just remember: Read d.o.f. off the scale at half the number set on the aperture ring. That doesn't take much math ... But if it does, here are the numbers: For aperture f:11 read d.o.f. at 5.6 on the scale For aperture f:8 read d.o.f. at 4 on the scale For aperture f:5.6 read d.o.f. at 2.8 on the scale The old man from the Age of Three Rs Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted June 25, 2007 Share #25 Posted June 25, 2007 Amy, it has been said before in this thread, rangefinder photography is about practising, so I would advise you to take the camera out and start shooting. As for focussing on high-speed objects, it is easy, but, again, requires practice. Pre-focus on the area you expect the bird (child, dog,ball, etc.) to be. Then, aided by the fact that the viewfinder gives you the surroundings as well, start following the subject with small movements of the focussing ring. Then release the shuter a fraction before the subject hits the plane of focus. That fraction is determined by your own reaction time, the speed and direction of the subject. Once you get the hang of it, you'll prefer it to autofocus. As for DOF. Lengthy articles have been written on it (even by me ) Again, a matter of experience. As such, DOF is an illusion, especially on a sensor, where the plane of focus is exactly determined. The M8 is even "worse", as you are not even helped by an AA filter. So assume there is no DOF and position your plane of focus exactly. That way experience will teach you which aperture setting gives you the DOF you aim for. There is no table or calculator that can be more than an indication. And field of view for the 1.3 sensor. Well, using the camera that particular "problem" is forgotten within half an hour. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rwfreund Posted June 25, 2007 Share #26 Posted June 25, 2007 Musing... Should Leica ever come up with a line of "digital" lenses optimized for the M8 sensor size, them it might be a benefit to change the DOF markings to something more realistic. I would also put in a plug for an IR focus index marker too. -bob Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlaidlaw Posted June 25, 2007 Share #27 Posted June 25, 2007 Advertisement (gone after registration) Bob, At least with the M8, when you taking IR, you are not eating up expensive rolls of Maco 820. Focus bracketing is just time and not wallet consuming. Wilson Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rwfreund Posted June 25, 2007 Share #28 Posted June 25, 2007 Bob, At least with the M8, when you taking IR, you are not eating up expensive rolls of Maco 820. Focus bracketing is just time and not wallet consuming. Wilson That is true, but I would be happy to shorten the shoot-chimp-shoot cycle. -bob Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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