Beginner Struggling To AutoFocus (LowLightConditions)

SamC123

SamC123

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Sam
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Hi

My D7000 With the Kit Nikon 18-50mm really struggles to auto focus when I do Night Club photography.

I am literally having to manually focus all of the time. Is there any other way to auto focus in these dark/busy conditions? Is it the lens I'm using (Thinking of getting a Tokina 11-16, would that help?)

Thanks,

Sam
 
A faster lens would definitely help, yes. Also, try to always use the centre AF pointS in those conditions, as they will be the most sensitive.
 
Auto focus works on contrast so you need some overlap, i.e if you're trying to focus on all black you're going to struggle.
 
Could you try using the AF assist light??
 
You could try something like the Yongnuo 622TX, this is a flash controller but has autofocus assist beams - there is no need to actually have a flash involved...

Edit - posted the same time as Graham above - I'm not a Nikon shooter so didn't know your camera has assist light!
 
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Autofocus systems are not foolproof. My advice is to accept autofocus limitations and override with Manual focus when they fail.

Most high quality DSLR lenses allow you to leave the lens set to AF but to simply be able to manually override autofocus (AF on Canon) when needed.

AF is often a great help but on a DSLR you are better off getting to know ALL the options offered and using whichever help you best. Every shot is different.

:)
 
Use centre-point AF and focus-recompose technique. Focus on an area of good contrast in the subject, sometimes eyes/face is okay, or look for white collar or cuffs, buttons, necklace etc, that kind of thing. Lock focus and recompose for the right framing. Try setting up the camera for back-button AF - most people prefer it (google).
 
Nikon_Nick said:
A faster lens would definitely help, yes. Also, try to always use the centre AF pointS in those conditions, as they will be the most sensitive.
Click to expand...

That but is a wide angle really the most suitable for club work ? - personally i'd say get a 17-50 f2.8 or maybe a couple of f1.8 primes ( I shoot canon so i don't know what models are available for the dark side)
 
Great suggestions guys - thanks. Will give the Auto-Focus Light a go, its not exactly bright mind so not sure if it will help me out.

As for the lens (Tokina) I was wanting to use it for more than club photography (Landscapes etc...)

Sam
 
A 35mm f1.8 would be a good bet. They focus quickly, reliably and have good IQ. My Tamron 17-50 f2.8 used to be a pain to focus in poor light, even with the af assist light and the help from the flash af assist never helped any either. The 35 is pretty good and never fails me. All on a D7000 too.
 
With Canon you normally (always?) get better low light AF performance in One Shot (Single) AF mode instead of Servo (Continuous) mode. It may be the difference between a successful lock and a complete no go. Maybe it is the same for Nikon.
 
I had a D7000 and found that low-light focusing was not brilliant and I used both a 50mm f1.4 and a 28mm f1.8 (both FX lenses). I used the focus assist light but unless the subject was pretty close it didn't really help much. I'm afraid I just lived with it and tried to ensure I gave the focusing system the best chance by picking contrasting areas in the frame to focus on (same distance though) then, while holding down the shutter button, moving across to the subject I wanted in the centre of the picture.
 
I usually have a small LED torch in my bag for looking for dark oloured bits of gear in dim light. It comes in handy now and then as a manually operated AF focus assist light.
 
My only thought about using the AF-beam of a flash/Youngnou is that it it does produce quite a bright grid on the target, which other people might not fully appreciate...
 
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