Focusing a film slr

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russell123

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russell
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Hi I have just bought a olympus om10 and was wondering as you cannot press the sutter half way to focus on the part of the shot you want in focus then reframe and
Fully press keping the place you focused on in focus, can you focus on the part of the picture you want infocus reframe then the place you focised on will be the part of the shot that is in focus. Eith the om10 you focus in the middle but as you may want to offset the part you want in focus is this how you do it. Sorry if what im asking is not clear but I think you should know what om getting at.
 
The OM10 usually has a split prism focusing system, the round bit in the middle. Place that over what you want to focus on and twist the focus ring on the lens (no autofocus here :confused: ) any straight object will line up when focus is achieved. Also the outside circle has a hatched area and that becomes clearer when focus is achieved. Hope that helps.
 
Once you have got the part you want infocus (which will be in the centre) can you then re frame and that part although you have moved the camara slightly will still be in focus.
 
russell123 said:
Once you have got the part you want infocus (which will be in the centre) can you then re frame and that part although you have moved the camara slightly will still be in focus.
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Unfortunately, the answer to this question isn't a straight yes or no, as there are a number of factors involved. In the interests of keeping it as simple as possible, yes, you can focus and recompose provided you have sufficient depth of field. If you're shooting at large apertures or close distances—when you will have less depth of field—then you may not be able to do so, no.

You could print out a depth-of-field table for your lens's focal length (I'm guessing you're using a 50mm?), which tells you how much of the photo will be in focus at any given aperture and subject-to-camera distance. It might be helpful to glance over this to see what sorts of margins you have for focusing and recomposing.
 
skysh4rk said:
Unfortunately, the answer to this question isn't a straight yes or no, as there are a number of factors involved. In the interests of keeping it as simple as possible, yes, you can focus and recompose provided you have sufficient depth of field. If you're shooting at large apertures or close distances—when you will have less depth of field—then you may not be able to do so, no.
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Yes but that's no different to having an auto focus camera do it for you.


Steve.
 
It's interesting that we now have a name for something we just did in the old days. The focussing mechanism is in the centre of the viewfinder and we just used it.

There's a complicated and a simple answer to focus - recompose.

Simple - it works fine.

Complicated - at very wide apertures and or very close distances, it can trip you up, due to the movement your body makes in a very slight arc vs the plane of focus being a straight line.

The good news is that it's not just the split prism, without using focus recompose, you can see on the ground glass screen whether your subject is in focus. It's more difficult to judge, but it's what to do at the point focus/recompose will fail.
 
olympus om10 and was wondering as you cannot press the sutter half way to focus
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No because the OM10 is a manual focus camera. A half press on a manual activates the internal light metering system.
To focus a manual focus camera you need to turn the focus ring on the lens itself.
 
It amuses me (and also saddens me at the same time) that we have a generation of photographers that are baffled by simple mechanical cameras.

Understanding focal plane is the same now, as it was then.
 
Pookeyhead said:
Understanding focal plane is the same now, as it was then.
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True - but isn't the point of new technology to enable people to take snaps without understanding what they're doing or needing to know how it works?
 
StephenM said:
True - but isn't the point of new technology to enable people to take snaps without understanding what they're doing or needing to know how it works?
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Yep.. if you're just taking snaps.
 
Steve Smith said:
Yes but that's no different to having an auto focus camera do it for you.


Steve.
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Was that comment meant for me? I never differentiated between film or digital cameras; the concepts that underlie focusing and recomposing are the same for manual and autofocus cameras. Unlike split prism patches though, autofocus points can be spread around the frame in some cameras, reducing the need to rely on the focus and recompose technique.
 
skysh4rk said:
Was that comment meant for me?
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No, not specifically. I just quoted your comment to lead into mine.

skysh4rk said:
I never differentiated between film or digital cameras; the concepts that underlie focusing and recomposing are the same for manual and autofocus cameras. Unlike split prism patches though, autofocus points can be spread around the frame in some cameras, reducing the need to rely on the focus and recompose technique.
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I treat them the same too. On the few cameras I have which do have autofocus (film and digital) I only ever use the central focus and/or metering position.


Steve.
 
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I remember getting my first digital SLR with autofocus, it seemed like black magic to me. However an understanding of old school skills will always stand you in good stead.
 
An OM 10, from a time when slr cameras were beautifull things
 
Use yoom's eyes. Use yoom's focussing screen. Focussing aids are hardly necessary - use direct visual assessment. Is that so foreign?
 
russell123 said:
Hi I have just bought a olympus om10 and was wondering as you cannot press the sutter half way to focus on the part of the shot you want in focus then reframe and
Fully press keping the place you focused on in focus, can you focus on the part of the picture you want infocus reframe then the place you focised on will be the part of the shot that is in focus. Eith the om10 you focus in the middle but as you may want to offset the part you want in focus is this how you do it. Sorry if what im asking is not clear but I think you should know what om getting at.
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Russell , the camera is a manual focus camera ,it does not autofocus for you ,so there is no point in trying to focus by half pressing the shutter ,so just focus it on where you want and take the picture
 
artyman said:
I remember getting my first digital SLR with autofocus, it seemed like black magic to me.
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When autofocus was introduced I was in the market for a new camera. I couldn't see the point of it so bought a manual focus model. :rolleyes:

Oddly enough I like being able to override the autofocus and focus manually sometimes these days.
 
Ed Sutton said:
When autofocus was introduced I was in the market for a new camera. I couldn't see the point of it so bought a manual focus model. :rolleyes:

Oddly enough I like being able to override the autofocus and focus manually sometimes these days.
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I do it all the time: Product/still life architecture and landscape spring to mind. What do you need AF for?
 
Pookeyhead said:
I do it all the time: Product/still life architecture and landscape spring to mind. What do you need AF for?
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Loads of stuff, but then I rarely shoot Product/still life architecture and landscape ;)


Just to qualify, as far as AF goes I was a very late adopter, 2001 and I'd been shooting since the early 80's.
 
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