How To Fix A Common Camera Malfunction That Causes Blurry Images

You would think when you’re getting a brand new camera “straight from the oven” it works like a charm.

But that’s not always the case. Whether you have an old DSLR or a new one, and you know for a fact that your blurry images have nothing to do with your shutter speed, the problem could be missed focus. There is an easy fix and you don’t need to take your camera to the shop for it. You can, and you should always calibrate your lenses to each camera you own. Even a slightly off focus will have a huge impact on your images.

GET A CALIBRATOR

It’s a very simple process, and it is something that can be turned on or off. You don’t need to send your lens or camera into the local camera shop to be adjusted. All that’s needed is about 20 minutes and a $25 focus pyramid. Sure, there are other pricier options, or you could make one with a ruler, but the focus pyramid is what I use, and it gets the job done perfectly.

SET UP YOUR CAMERA AND CALIBRATOR ON STABLE SURFACES

Set your camera up on a tripod, or flat surface like a table, and set the focus pyramid on a level surface about 6 feet away. There is only one global setting, so once you make an adjustment and get it focusing on point, it “should” be good at any distance. The take home here is not to stress out about the distance from the pyramid. Make sure that Live View is not on, and only focus using your viewfinder.

While looking through the viewfinder, focus on the center line of the focus pyramid, shooting with the lens set at its widest aperture. Hit play and zoom in to see where the focus hits. It can be a little tough at first, but using the numbers above and below the center line, you should be able to see where it focused and where the sharpest lines are. Once you see whether it is front focusing or back focusing, you can go into your camera settings and make the necessary adjustments to make it accurate. Keep taking test shots until you have the center line perfectly in focus.

MENU SETTINGS

For Nikon, it’s labeled as AF fine-tune and has a diagram showing you where you are moving the focus point. You want to only change the saved value, and make sure that the fine-tune is turned on.

For Canon, you make the changes in the Function then Auto Focus settings, and the rest is the same as with a Nikon body. If you have multiple cameras, you are making the adjustment in the camera, so you need to calibrate each lens on each camera.

To see how easy it is to calibrate your lenses, check out this 3 minute video we found.

GO TO THE NEXT PAGE FOR THE VIDEO

Read the full article on lens calibration over at SLR Lounge.

Source: SLR Lounge