Focussing

[Chris Hammond]

Just wondering what people's preferences are regarding focussing when photographing wildlife? I find myself quite reliant on my camera's autofocus facility, as I'm not usually in a hide and any movement from my hands (To adjust focus.) invariably results in my spooking the subject. I also struggle at times in poor light with my eyesight.

The pitfall seems to be not always being able to focus on the subject's eyes. My camera/lens set-up (D200/Sigma APO 50/500MM) is limited in terms of aperture choice as the lens is'nt the fastest, so D.O.F can often be an issue if the focus is'nt on the eyes.

Anyone got any focussing tips to offer?

Regards Chris

[wildlifesnapper]

Hi

I use manual focus quite a bit because as you say what I want to focus on isn't always where a focus point is.

As regards your hand movement try a pair of advantage leaf camouflage gloves as used by hunters.These are light and thin and have a more gripable material on the inside of the fingers ( you don't want a loaded gun sipping out of your hand )

neil

[Chris Hammond]

Thanks Neil, I do wear gloves, but could probably do with sourcing a better quality pair. I'll keep my eye out for those you mention.

Regards Chris

[pressld2]

I only use manual focus for macro, for everything else I use auto and mostly continuous auto. If the subject is slow moving or stationary then I usually have time to select the focus point I want for the eyes (I'm using a D300 so have 51 to choose from ). There's also time enough to think about composition. With fast moving subjects such as birds in flight I use the centre focus point, try to keep the head centred in the frame and just hope that the composition works out okay. This technique does require extensive use of the delete button when editing!

Dave P.

[glsammy]

Same as Dave. Manual for macro. Far more reliable. Auto for just about everything else.

[Ollie]

Auto for me for all bird photos and other wildlife.

When using macro I often use auto on largish subjects but always go to manual for the smaller subjects as I find it more reliable than auto.
Roger

[Chris Hammond]

Thanks for the advice everyone. It looks as though I'm not alone in opting for autofocus mode.

Regards Chris

[Tormentil]

Autofocus 90% of the time with me, always using the centre focus point.

[nightshade]

Autofocus except where I can see it may focus on a twig etc. manual for macro or close subjects

[NickCantle]

Well, with longer lenses Autofocus seems to be the best choice for me, but with Macro, it's always Manual focus. Same as Ben for me- Centre AF-point