The Best Way to Nail Your Focus Every Time

There is nothing more frustrating as a photographer than thinking you've got the best shot ever only to see that it's out-of-focus. What if I told you that, rather than suffer this frustration, there are ways we can improve our focus. In fact, this article is full of advice on the best ways to nail your focus every time.

Nail Your Focus Every Time

In order to get in-focus photos we need to ensure a few things. Below I'll lay out what those are so that no matter what type of photography you do. From portraits to nature photography sharp focus is important. Here are areas we should concentrate on to ensure we get the sharpest photos:

• Lens and camera calibration
• Getting to knowing your camera lens
• Choosing the correct aperture
• Camera shake vs out-of-focus
• Using the right size autofocus area
• Using the right autofocus drive
• Focus peaking
• Tripod Testing

Lens and camera calibration

Is your focus off in every photo despite using autofocus? If you know that you're focusing on what you've intended to then you might have a calibration issue. That said, be sure that you're using a fast enough shutter speed (see below) before assuming that calibration is off.

As a matter of fact, calibration is one of last things you want to do. The reason that I list it first is because a lot of photographers consider doing so before doing the next few steps.

If you're certain that you're nailing your focus, but the photos still are not sharp, consider getting your lens calibrated to your camera. To do so, you probably need to send them both in to the manufacturer. However, there are some camera shops who can do this for you. Too, you can do it yourself, just be very careful because you could make the issue worse.

Getting to know your camera lens

Before sending your lens and camera off to be calibrated, make sure you get to know your camera lens. Every lens is sharpest at a different aperture. Also, some lenses just are not very sharp. In fact, many old or vintage lenses are sought after because of their softness. Therefore if you want the sharpest focus, you need to make sure you know where that is on your lens.

Knowing which aperture is the sharpest is critical. Additionally, your lens might drift in sharpness depending on distance. In fact, every lens has an optimal sharp focal distance. That said, the difference between this point all other focal distances in modern lenses are often overblown. To see the difference you might need laboratory conditions.

So, if you notice that after a certain distance your focus gets soft it's worth considering. This can be caused by the different pieces of glass in the lens not being set properly or having come apart (very rare).

Choosing the correct aperture

Some focus drift can be adjusted for by adjusting your aperture. In fact, to really nail your focus it's vital that you choose the correct aperture. Again, this mostly falls under the "know your lens" category. However, this is one of the most critical pieces of lens knowledge you can gather.

Lenses are sharpest in the middle. Therefore using a slightly smaller aperture than our maximum often gives us a slightly sharper result. That said, test your lens to find which aperture is the sharpest because it will vary from lens to lens.

In addition, aperture effects depth of field. Make sure all parts of your photo that you want to appear sharp fall within your depth of field. Of course, it's important to remember that depth of field isn't tack-sharp, it's "acceptably" sharp. In other words, it's the area where focus falls off and things begin to lose sharpness but still remain reasonably sharp.

A Word About Diffraction

Diffraction occurs at small apertures (tiny holes) like f22. Rather than try to explain it myself, here is a great article from photographylife.com explaining what diffraction is in photography. Just know that when you use a small aperture things can begin to get less sharp.

Camera shake vs out-of-focus

Another thing affecting sharpness to be aware of is camera shake. Camera shake happens when our shutter speed is too low and the light bounces around our lens before being recorded. To avoid camera shake and nail your focus make sure your shutter speed is faster than the length of your lens. In other words, if your using a 100mm lens, make sure your shutter speed is at least 125th of a second. Of course, you may need to double that if your lens and/or camera doesn't have stabilization.

Selecting The Correct Autofocus Area

Your autofocus area is usually adjustable. For example, on mirrorless cameras, you can set it to be a small, medium, or large box. Alternatively you can use the entire image area and allow your camera to choose the best one. However, on DSLR cameras you generally have more rigid fixed areas within your camera. That said, you can also choose to allow your camera to use whichever one it thinks it correct. Conversely you can choose your own area. More advanced DSLRs let you choose an area and then expand it slightly to areas near it or slightly farther similar to mirrorless cameras. That said, your autofocus area is still mostly within the middle of the frame.

Use the smallest area possible

When it comes to choosing your autofocus area, use the smallest area possible. This will help to ensure that your focus is exactly where you want it. That said, when I say smallest possible, I mean in the situation, not on the camera. After all, if you're photographing birds in flight, for example, you may need a slightly larger area. However if you choose too large an area the camera might focus on the tips of the wings rather than the head.

Choosing the right autofocus area with moving subjects really is a balancing act.

Use the right autofocus drive

Your autofocus drive turns stops turning the motor when you tell it to. To be clear, most manufacturers don't call it drive they call it mode or something similar. Personally, I find that confuses people who mix it up with their autofocus area mode.

The autofocus drive mode gives you the choice between what most manufacturers call "single focus" and continuous focus. Single focus mode stops autofocusing when you press the shutter release and take the photo. In other words, if your subject was running directly at you, and you used single focus the camera would stop focusing to take the photo. As a result your subject would be slightly out of focus. This is because the focus stopped but the subject didn't.

Alternatively, continuous focus keeps focusing the lens even while the photo is being taken. As a result, if the subject is moving towards (or away) from you, they should appear sharper. Of course, if they're not moving directly towards or away from the camera, or they're moving at a inconsistent (but fast) rate, they may be out-of-focus.

Why is this? The drive motor is simply continuing at the same pace and in the same direction as it was before you pressed the shutter release. The camera's autofocus sensor isn't still working while the photo is being taken, it's just continuing to do what it was doing before you pressed the button. Therefore, if your subject stops or changes direction (think of a fluttering butterfly) it may be more out-of-focus since the focus kept being adjusted.

Use Focus Peaking

One way to help with focus is to use focus peaking. Some people love it and some hate it. However, if you're having issues with your lens focusing close but not exact, focus peaking can be a great tool to nail your focus manually.

What is focus peaking? It's a tool that mirrorless cameras (and some DSLR's but only in liveview) offer. It allows you to outline what is in focus. Typically, it only works in manual focus. However, if you have autofocus with manual override you can take control of your focus manually after your camera has gotten you close.

Be cautious, focus peaking often works great. However, it's not perfect. It works by outlining big changes in contrast. Sometimes those changes are big enough, even when not sharp, to fool the camera. That said, if you're getting close but still missing focus slightly then give focus peaking a try.

Mirrorless Zoom

Mirrorless cameras usually have the option to zoom in digitally. In fact, by default, many Sony cameras when you half-press the button to focus. This can be disorienting. However, if you zoom in (digitally) while focusing you can check to make sure what you nail your focus.

Of course, this isn't the same as zooming in with a zoom lens. While some lenses allow you to do that, some focus differently at different levels of zoom. Therefore, it's best to set your focus at the focal distance (zoom amount) that you're going to take the photo at.

The digital zoom I'm referring to is not a feature of the lens but of the camera. Use the little + magnifying glass on your mirrorless camera (or in liveview on your DSLR). Then you can manually adjust your focus.

Test on a Tripod

The final test to do on your own before sending your camera and lens to be calibrated is to test everything on a sturdy tripod. Testing on a tripod will ensure that you're not shaking the camera. Too, it makes you take your time and check your settings (something we often don't do when hand-holding). Finally, it will allow you to choose a stationary subject and to ensure that you've focused exactly on them.

I recommend doing this outside on a flat surface during a bright sunny day. Take something equally as tall as the tripod as your subject. A coat-rack or floor lamp works great (without the shade). Focus on the bulb, or whatever else you're using with your autofocus. Take the photo and check it.

If it's still not sharp, try to manually focus (using focus peaking or zoom). If you (and other people) still think that the photos are not sharp then it might be time to send the camera in for calibration. However, before doing that, check with other photographers and get their opinions. If you'd like mine, I'm happy to take a look. Contact me to set up a time.

I'm full time professional  event and portrait photographer Don Orkoskey. Since 2007 I've owned  WDO Photography. Additionally, I teach photography in partnership with a number of amazing organizations in and around Pittsburgh as well as offering my own group photography classes and individual photography lessons. I teach classes for both adults and children and lead free  nature photography meetups each month. I also write a monthly newsletter full of great information and maintain a list of  free photography resources to help you  learn photography.