Street Photography & Zone Focus - How to get the most out of manual focus lenses
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- čas přidán 3. 07. 2024
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In this video we explain how to do 'zone focus' especially in the context of street photography. In some ways, manual focus can be faster than even the fastest auto-focus. That's because once the 'zone' is set, there is no need to focus anymore, meaning you spend zero time on focusing. This is a great technique for street photography because speed is very important in many cases. It is also an easier and more reliable way to use manual focus lenses. Try it out!
This topic is also covered in more detail in this blog post: www.lkazphoto.com/blog/2017/2...
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Best Zone Focusing explanation I’ve ever seen. You made it easy to understand
Glad to hear that! It was my goal! :)
For some reason CZcams suggested this video to me. thanks for the clear explanation!
Glad to hear that! Thank you! :)
Great old school reminder. I miss the dof scale on lenses.
Yes, it's too bad that's it's missing on many modern lenses, and when they do have it, it's so small as to be practically useless. It's why I love this little 40mm. It's the only manual lens I own these days but it's joy to use. :)
Your explanation is the only one that made sense to me.
Glad to be of service! :)
Thank you, thank you, thank you. At last someone explained to me the meaning of those mysterious figures on manual focus lenses. I've been waiting for this video for years. God bless ya bro.
Thank you so much for saying so! I'm glad to hear you found this video useful! Please share it with others who might also get something of it! :)
Thnx for explaning and demostrate how it works. Very usefull for me😊
Thanks for watching! :)
Great video! I've seen people talk about zone focusing but this made it so easy to understand
Glad to hear that! :)
Great explanation, Thank you. Wish i could like the video twice 👍👍.
Thank you so much!! :)
This is by far the best video explanation of zone focusing. Thanks 😊
Glad to hear that! Thanks for watching! :)
Best explanation! Thanks 🙏🏾
Glad you found it useful! :)
Thanks so much, I had an "oh, well of course!" moment there.
Gad to hear it clicked for you! :)
Always the best advice from you Lukasz. Legend.
Thank you!! :D
Always informative and easy to understand. Thanks so much Lukasz!!
I'm so glad to hear that! :)
It is now that I fully understand the concept of zone focusing 😀 I always thought the far distance had to be infinity…
So glad to hear that! :)
Great video. Glad I found you. Been trying to find a good tutorial about the practical way of this genre. I feel you may have nailed it
Thank you so much!! Glad to hear that! :)
i FINALLY understand zone focus now. Thanks for this!
No problem!! I'm so glad to hear that!! :)
👍🏼 👍🏼 👍🏼 👍🏼 👍🏼
Thank you for an excellent tutorial! The demos /photos really exemplify the results that can be achieved.
Thank you very much for watching!! :)
WOW! Thank You! You changed my photography workflow for good
Awesome! Glad to hear your found this useful! :)
Hi,
Very good explanation about focusing settings. I just started shooting with a APS-C with only manual, older lenses (like Minolta W.Rokkor 35mm ~52,5mm on cropped) so this is the best guide for me, thanks!
Thank you! Glad you found it useful! :)
Great explanation as always, thank you!
My pleasure! :)
Awesome advice, never though it that way so i'll gonna have to give it a try ! Thanks for the sharing
Our pleasure! :)
Great explanation of zone focusing. Thank you
Thanks for watching!! :)
Very useful video. Thanks
Thank you very much!! :)
Excellent video. Fantastic explanation on a topic I was having difficulty in understanding. Thank u very much.
So glad to be helpful! Thank you! :)
Amazing stuff
Thank you!! :)
Nice and simple explanation man, thank you.
Thanks for watching!! :)
just wow thank you so much.
Thank you for watching!
Wow, thank you so much. I have a bunch of vintage lenses and I had no idea what those numbers meant. So a great simple explanation.
Glad to hear that! Thank you for watching! :)
Great use of hyperfocal focusing. Quick, fast and in a hurry.
Thanks! :)
Awesome!
Thanks! :)
Great video. Doing 'zone focus' is difficult. But just takes time to get the hang of it...
Yeah, it takes practice! Thanks! :)
Thanks, really informative and points to the simplicity of these lenses.... Laurie
Glad you found it useful! Thanks for watching! :)
Nice vidéo Lukasz, very interesting thank you a lot.
A little hello from France.
My pleasure!! Thank you for watching! :)
Love the music u used
Thanks!! :)
You made that look easy.
Thanks! It took years of practice. :)
@@EYExplore NP, I liked and subbed BTW.
@@admiralsquatbar127 Thank you! :)
Very good video
Thank you! :)
Hi from Denmark!! Thanks man nice info !!!! Just tested Pentacon 1,8 50mm on my Fujixt3 and works great !! learn every day something new :))))
Awesome!! I'm glad to hear that! :)
I heard a guy say this as a side comment and I've been trying to understand it. This is possibly one of the best explanations and presentations on the technique. Well done!
Thank you very much! Glad it was helpful! :)
Thank you!
No problem! :)
Dope pictures
Thanks!
On a manual lenses fitted to a digital camera, try the following.
Set appature to f16, set infinity Mark to the f16 zone scale engraved on the lenses barrel, zone of focus is now 5 ft to infinity, set 125 or 250 shutter speed , set iso to auto with a max of your choice , set exposure compensation to plus two thirds of a stop to get of mid tone and shoot , adjust exposure compensation up and down as your only controll as available light changes.
Yeah that will work on a sunny day but I would never recommend f/16 in most conditions. The added DOF is not worth the cost of having to crank ISO when there is not enough light. In my experience f/8 gives plenty of DOF and 2 stops more light than f/16.
Also, increasing exposure compensation only exacerbates the problem. Most cameras will expose correctly got mid-tones anyway when set to evaluative metering mode.
Good explanation Lukasz, maybe you can combine it further with shooting speed and iso handling.
We have another video for that on our channel: czcams.com/video/20HtSDYsfXo/video.html
NIce job..
Thanks! :)
To be honest I'm not a smart guy. :D But this video is gold! Thank you so much! I finally understand the whole thing.
Haha, I'm glad you enjoyed it! :)
This is amazing! Great tips Lukasz! I am glad I subscribed. On a side note, why is everyone walking on the road at that time?
Been wondering as well, hmm.
I should have probably mentioned this haha. They close the main street in Ginza on weekends from 12pm to 5pm. They also do it in Akihabara and Shinjuku.
@@EYExplore Ahh now I get it. Thanks for replying. It is really nice to walk around like that and sure is a wonderful opportunity to take some great photos.
As always, your videos, content, and passion continues to inspire. I am revisiting this video on Zone Focusing, as you mentioned this technique in more recent videos (patience and speed run videos). If I'm not mistaken, Zone Focusing is a technique used for manual focus. Correct? Is there a particular method/technique similar to this, but used on an auto-focus lens/system, especially for street photography? Would this be similar to utilizing hyper-focal distance? If there is a similar technique to zone focusing on an auto-focus system, do I simply place the spot focus lower toward the ground, or...? I hope this question made sense. LOL! Thanks always for your patience and help.
Thank you! Yes, it's used for manual focusing. There is one camera that applies 'automate' zone focusing. The Ricoh GR series have something called 'snap focus' which is like an 'auto zone focus.' If you mean, how do you use zone focus with an AF camera/lens then the answer is to simply put the focus mode on manual and do it like I describe in the video. The only problem is that many AF lenses don't have the focusing gauge and DOF gauge like manual lenses do.
Great as usual, Lukasz!! ISO Auto e minimum shutter speed or full manual?
I use my usual aperture priority + Auto ISO + min shutter in this video.
I thank you so much for your so well explained video. Can you tell me what manual photo lens with scale depth I could buy to adapt on a Canon R6 hybrid?
Thanks! Glad you like it! As for a lens for a Canon R6: I have no idea! :)
Great tutorial. I've seen zone focus videos where the photographer talks way too fast and I have to keep pausing.
I must be doing something wrong though. I have an electronic 10mm Laowa m4/3 lens. As a practice test I set my Aperture to F8 and within the range I was supposed to have it just wasn't sharp. I have to keep practicing.
Yeah, some lenses are a bit less precise with those measurements. I have a TTArtisan 21mm and it also gets a bit off at big apertures like f/2.8.
Excellent explanation, with real-time application.Very helpful. Is this a technique that's only used for manual focus lenses? How would this look if using an auto-focus system? And is this another reason why you back-button focus, so that you simply just have to use the shutter button to capture the image? Thanks.
This is definitely meant for manual lenses. When using AF it really doesn't benefit you on any way. The other thing is that most modern AF lenses lack all the markings on the lens that make this possible. Some digital cameras, I think certain Fujis as well as the Ricoh GR have ways to implement this into their cameras on the screen. But generally I never found focusing useful when using my AF lenses. When I have an AF lens on my Nikon, I just use AF.
The reason for back button focus is because sometimes I have to wait a long time for a subject in particular scene. So I use the AF to focus where I expect the subject. Then I just wait. While waiting I don't have to keep the shutter button half-pressed. That's the beauty of BBF. When shooting manual and using some focus, BBF becomes irrelevant.
@@EYExplore Makes perfect sense. In a sense, I guess one can somewhat mimic zone focusing with AF by using a particular aperture and focusing on a specific area, and wait to capture when subjects "enter that space". Correct? Though, as you said, AF can handle identifying the subject and locking on, being ready for the capture.
I have greatly enjoyed your advice in using BBF for street photography; very quick, convenient, and allows a lot of flexibility. It does take a bit of getting used to not misfocus. LOL!
@@ofthewayministries yes that's right! Using AF to pre-focus is a very similar technique. The only difference is that with zone focus you can be very consistent and it takes 0 time because you set up the zone in advance and then just leave it there while you walk around and shoot.
Nice my friend place 🔔🔔👈🙏🤗🤗
:)
Sounds easy BUT you must calibrate your lens first. These DoF markings are not always right so I suggest you set it as you want and do a test photo first
This is true! But the markings are consistent on each particular lens and that's what matters. So, I don't know if my lens actually focuses at exactly 4 meters away if I measured it with a ruler. But I always use the same zone, so I just learned implicitly where the 4m zone is on my lens. It takes a lot of practice and experience (somehting I should have mentioned in the video).
...perhaps the ISO is not right... or the focal length... perhaps it's not even a camera (perhaps a coffee machine...) better check first...!
Noice vid aganeeeeeeeee
Thanks!! :)
Sir, thanks.
I like to shoot landscape. Which lens is the best to shoot landscape photography? And sir which lens you use now to street photography?
There is no best lens. It depends what you are trying to achieve. What do you want to show us? What is your vision? These days I use anything from a 14mm to a 200mm. I have some zoom lenses and two primes, 28mm and 40mm (the one in this video). I probably use my 24-70 the most these days. I also use a Ricoh GR III which has a 28mm equivalent lens. Honestly, it doesn't matter what I use. What matters is what you want to show us! I cannot teach your who you are! :)
I've been using zone focusing on my A7 with an old lens and most of the time i'm close to in focus or completely in focus. i find using feet easier than using meters. i'll keep doing this before i start doing it with my film slr as i cant look back at the photographs i take then and there :-)
Yes this good for practice! I should have mentioned this more explicitly in the video, but the distance I set, about 4 meters, is not that important. What's important is that I always use the same zone. I never change it. By doing so I get very used to this zone and I don't have to think about it much. I just kind of 'feel' when I'm at the right distance for a shot.
@@EYExplore yeah. I usually use my m42 mount 24mm prime and have to set to about 8 feet on f/8.0. so then everything from 4 feet to 10 feet is in focus. or in your case 1 meter up to 3 meters focused at 1.5 meters. But thats on a wide 24mm lens.
@@eagerlee7931 I see. The focal length also affects DOF. You get more in focus on shorter focal lengths.
@@EYExplore Yeah i know DOF changes on different focal lengths. What's your favourite focal length to shoot? 24, 35, 40, 50 ?
@@eagerlee7931 these days 40mm, but I also love 28mm. Those are the only two primes I own and I use them 99% of the time.
Nice video, but isn’t it easier to use the hyper focus distance, that is, to put the infinity sign on the f stop that you want in order to get the maximum depth of field for that f stop?
It's the same thing, just a special case. If you try hyperfocal at say f/2, then you won't get subjects in focus close up. It depends on where you want your subject.
@@EYExplore Thanks
0:17 that's the cover of a vaporwave album I know. I heard you mention vaporwave twice before. Are you that artist?
Yep, High Fashion by Leisure Centre: leisurecentre.bandcamp.com/releases
He asked me to use it on the cover and I agreed. :)
How we can find a zone focusing on the kit lens or autofocus lenses without F-stop rings.
Yeah, that's pretty much impossible unfortunately. What you can do is use the AF to focus on an object a certain distance from you. And then keep that focus distance for the rest of your shoot. That distance is now your zone. But of course, as you are walking around you might bump the focus ring or you might want to use a different distance for a single shot, so it's not an ideal method of finding a zone.
@@EYExplore Thanks for answering
What zone focus range would you recommend while using a 85mm (full frame)?
Using a lenses longer than 50mm is tricky with zone focus. I would pick a distance which still allows you to get an entire person into the frame, which should be about 10-15 meters. Quite a long distance aware.
Is it harder if you have a larger aperture like f2.8 or even a f1.8? I see that you used f8 and f16 for the examples.
It's definitely harder, but totally viable. At night I use f/2.8 or f/2 with this lens with great results. But certainly, it's much less forgiving because the DOF gets much shallower.
I was wondering how the camera would indicate the measure of the exposure if there is no communication from the lens to the camera (aperture value). I believe this should be a matter of playing around ISO and shutter speed and test , am I right?
Well, it depends on the lens. The one I'm using in this video is a fully electronic lens. It just have no AF. But the camera DOES know the aperture value electronically. Old Nikon lenses that don't have a CPU us is physical lever that moves a small dial on the body of the camera. Actually, the lens in the video also has this and it can be used optionally. This is why it has to be set to f/22 if you want to use it in the electronic mode. It's hard to explain this without visuals. Maybe I'll mention it in a video some day. :)
i just got my nikon z6 with 24-70 f4.. how do i zone focus with it?
I think these latest AF lenses have no focus gauges. But the thing is I would just use the AF. Zone Focus is not a requirement for street photography. It's just a great way to make the most out of manual lenses. When I use AF lenses, I don't bother with Zone Focus. With your lens, AF is the way to go.
One thing I hate about fuji lenses, no scales on the lenses. I use old manual Nikon f lenses on my dslr, and Ofcourse Leica lenses on my Leica
Yeah, new Nikon lenses as well. It's a shame.
Obviously this kinda works on AF lenses too, in manual mode, but you don't always have the handy markings on the lens body. Is there some kind of rough guide on focal length + f/stop = range of focus?? I guess it's mostly a case of getting out there and experimenting with each of your lenses!
poopsonthemoon You can pre-focus (I use back button focus) in the middle of your focus zone.
Yeah it totally works with auto focus lenses as well. Some don't have gauges though, as you said. In that case, I would autofocus on something at a particular distance and then switch the manual focus (or just use back button focus). Then it's matter of practicing with that zone or range. Consistency is key whether you're doing it with AF lens of a dedicated MF lens like mine in the video. Either way, it's important to practice with the same zone/range over and over again so that it becomes second nature.
^ or you could use a dof calculator online too
Any advice on how to set the zone focus on bridge cameras that don’t have the dial? Thanks.
That's a tough one! I would say, us AF to focus on an object that is a known distance from you. Like a calibration. Try to do this each time you should. But honestly, without a gauge it's very difficult to do this consistently.
@@EYExplore Thanks for the advice, but isn't zone focusing supposed to be pointing and shooting hence not fussing over focusing each time? If I'm going to use the AF it still takes time to focus although not long. There should be a way to do zone focusing on fixed lens cameras too.
@@Ali-mz9kt Yeah, I'm saying you do it one time to set your zone, and then don't touch the focus again. Without a dial this is the only way I can think of to set the focus distance. Also, you would need to be sure to set back button focus on your camera, so that the shutter button no longer affects focusing.
@@EYExplore thanks, I'll try this.
Would f2 harder to zone focus? (roughly 4m zone)
It's definitely harder, but I've done to great success! :)
whaw ! how is it possible ? F8 anything sharp from 2m to 10m ? why do we spend so much time using eye detection or AF-C / AF-S single point ?
do you use mode Av, auto iso ? because you use af-on on your camera, you just press shutter button here with a manual lens ?
Well, it depends on the focal length and distance though. If you use a longer focal length the DOF will be shallower and zone focus will be much much harder. I pretty much always use Av + Auto ISO, but sometimes also M + Auto ISO, or full Manual. When I use AF lenses I use the back button to focus, but since this is a manual lens I just press the shutter to shoot. :)
Nice explanation, but how about rangefinder film camera with lens that actually doesn't have details zone? Like i have Ricoh GX-1 Film camera that i just see 1 line to set aperture and lenght (meter/ft)
I'm not familiar with the Ricoh GX-1 unfortunately, but other rangefinders, like Leicas or old Yachica Electros, do you have all of the markings on the lens. Ricoh have always been very small cameras, so there might not be enough room on the lens to put these markings.
@@EYExplore so when the focusing ring set on 10 feet, the sweet spot must be in 10 feet away from the camera is it?
@@noobiesplayer2412 that's correct! And you can assume the sweet spot gets thicker with smaller apertures, such as f/8, and narrower with big apertures, such as f/2.
@@EYExplore Ahhh got it mate, just tried my first roll with that technique, thanks for the explanation. Cheers!
Your shots are taken on a digital camera with variable auto iso, I’m shooting with a film camera with a fixed iso, how do you keep the exposure correct in this instance?
You would have to change either the aperture or the shutter speed. For zone focus it's preferable to not change the aperture constantly, so that leaves the shutter speed. I would adjust the shutter speed until it gets too slow for my liking (usually around 1/50 or 1/100) and at that point I would have no choice but to open up the aperture.
@@EYExplore ok great, thank you, that makes sense.
Would you say this is the preferred method of doing manual focus if you’re capturing people?
Definitely is for me! Unless of course you are taking a portrait for which your subject is posing, in which case I would just focus manually using the indicator in the viewfinder to know I have focus.
@@EYExplore Thanks for your awesome videos
What if i use auto exposure ?
It will kinda work, but if the aperture is automatic then you don't know which aperture is being used at the given moment, which means your zone will constantly get bigger or smaller. This is not ideal.
Wow but i use my kit lens its not manual lens can i apply it
Hey marvin put your lens on manual mode and use the focus ring, you can use back button focusing too.
@@R2DJ3B sometimes its turn blur when i adjust it
@@marvinthephotoman9138 Try using a smaller aperture like f/8 or f/11 and pre-focus on something at 2 meters. what's your lens focal?
@@R2DJ3B 55mm
Yes, you can! It will just take a bit more trial and error to figure out the zone since the kit lens doesn't have the focusing gauge.
One more thing though, it's not mandatory to use manual focus for street photography. If you have an autofocus lens, just use autofocus. I will make a video soon about my favorite autofocus modes for street photography. :)
So that's what those numbers mean.
Yes! :)
What lens is that?
voigtländer 40mm f2 0 ultron sl II , he use the older version the pancake version from 2008/2009 there is a new version from Voigtländer Ultron 40mm 2.0 SLII-S , but there is no info on the internet about the new one they changed something in the new version , I am sure they changed the glass and coating like in the 58mm 1.4 nokton , the new 58mm 1.4 is much better then the older version it resolve more finer details . regarding the 40mm it’s a great lens , I will buy the new version for my second body
As the other guy said :) It's a Voigtländer 40mm f/2.0 I love this lens! And yes there is a new version that I have not used but is likely improved. I'm sticking with my old one for now.
Hyperfocal?
It can be useful, but I don't necessarily want EVERYTHING in focus. I prefer having the right distance, which for me, my style, and 40mm is about 4 meters. :)
Nice tips...but be aware of the coronaVirus 😬
Thanks! Will do! :)
Stop sniffing
Had a runny nose. ;)
@@bourbon_sketcher Hehe, the streets are cold! Sniffs are unavoidable! :)