Beginner Continuous Auto Focus

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DanRegan

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Dan
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Hello there,

Sorry if this question is completely stupid, however I was looking for some help if possible. I have wanted to get into photography / video for a very long time, so over the christmas period I bought myself a D5200, it looked like the perfect entry camera which suited my needs (based on what I've read).

I've made some good progress, but I am just struggling with one minor point now, I am unable to get continuous autofocus as an option (AF-C I believe), which is needed for my type of videoing. The only options are AF-A and Manual.

Now, this is where I truly show my novice ways, I don't know if this setting is driven by the camera or the lens, I am presuming the lens, as the camera doesn't have an AF Motor itself?

I am currently using the 18-55mm VR Lens kit that came with the camera, but hope to upgrade to a wider lens during January.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.
 
dont know a great deal about video but I would think AF by whatever means a poor choice with video letting the camera choose the focal point.

I dont think pros use AF they use a focus puller someone to control focus there is also a lever attachment for lenses to give more focus control
 
I copied this : http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/nikon-d5200/nikon-d5200VIDEO.HTM


Nikon D5200 Video: Focusing

Nikon D5200 Review: AF Settings Menu
AF Settings. The D5200 offers both full-time servo autofocus, but also subject tracking autofocus in video recording.

Unlike some earlier DSLRs with video recording features, the D5200 has the ability to autofocus during recording, which a lot of casual or beginner video shooters will like and expect. However, you can still manually focus, as well. Depending on the lens used, focus motor noise may get picked up by the internal stereo microphone. With the kit lens, it is very audible in the sound track, so it's probably best not to select continuous AF when using it. Other Nikon lenses with silent focus motors would likely be better.
•Single-shot or full-time servo AF (AF-F) for continuous AF during recording.
•By default, the D5200 doesn't AF during recording, but you can always trigger an AF cycle by half-pressing the shutter button.
•AF area mode options: ◦Face-priority AF
◦Wide-area AF
◦Normal-area AF
◦Subject-tracking AF (Half-press shutter button to AF before recording or use servo AF with AF-F mode, then hit OK button with subject centered in little green square. Square will follow subject around the frame, maintaining focus on it.)

•Manual focus is also available during movie recording.
 
If you're after having the camera continuously re-focus when the scene changes (subject moves, camera moves etc) then this is what you need to do to set it up as per the options in Metroman's post above:-

  • Put the camera in live view.
  • Press the "i" button to the right of the viewfinder: a menu you've never seen before will appear :) This is the setup menu for live view - you can maintain completely separate exposure and focus settings here that have no impact on the still photography settings (and vice versa). Its the equivalent to setting live view to "Video" with the lever on the back of bigger Nikon bodies.
  • Select the current AF mode by moving the yellow cursor to it with the thumbpad, and press the "OK" button (middle of the thumb pad)
  • Select "AF-F" as the focus mode (Full time automatic continuous focus).
  • Press "OK".
  • Next move the cursor to the right to select the AF area mode.
  • If you want it to just home in on faces, select the face priority mode and press "OK". Or, "Normal" will also provide continuous re-focusing - for whatever falls under the focus box, Subject tracking should then track this however it doesn't work too well tbh. Normal and Face Priority are ok though.
I tend to use mine in manual focus though and pre-focus for my talking head stuff - or run it through Control My Nikon which does live view with focus peaking on the laptop so I can see when I'm in focus. The AF-F with face priority mode can be useful if you're moving around in front of the camera though.

Owen
 
Thanks for the advice here guys. I have decided against AF-C after researching and following Pauls comments. I am now using a much larger aperture, to provide a nice DOF and keeping more in focus rather than refocusing. It provides what I need and is very quick and easy to adjust.

Thanks again,
Dan
 
DanRegan said:
Thanks for the advice here guys. I have decided against AF-C after researching and following Pauls comments. I am now using a much larger aperture, to provide a nice DOF and keeping more in focus rather than refocusing. It provides what I need and is very quick and easy to adjust.

Thanks again,
Dan
Click to expand...
Smaller aperture keeps more in focus.
 
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