The Most Neglected Setting on a DSLR | Auto-focus Microadjustment | Thousand Word Visuals
What is the most neglected setting on a DSLR camera?
If you have any of the following Canon camera's Listen up!
Independant (W) wide angle and (T) telephoto end adjustment
- 1Dx Mk 1 & 2
- 5D Mk 3 & 4
- 5Ds/5DsR
- 6D Mk I & II
- 7D MkII
- 80D
Single adjustment
- 1D Mk 3 & 4
- 1Ds Mk 3
- 5D Mk 2
- 7D
- 50D
- 70D
I recently discovered an incredibly useful setting buried deep within the menus of my Canon 6D. Up until a few hours ago I had no intention of ever using said adjustment and considered any adjustments unnecessary. I'm here to tell you that was a huge mistake!
The setting I'd like to discuss is called "Auto-focus Micro Adjustment". This setting allows you to change the distance at which your camera sets focus when auto-focusing on different objects. Before adjusting this setting my camera was tending to focus behind the objects I set my focus on. After adjusting my images have become tack sharp and the difference is absolutely incredible.
Here is what my pictures looked like before adjusting this setting. (Using a 24-35mm f/2 Sigma Art Lens)
And after adjusting...
The difference is absolutely INCREDIBLE!
You may be asking yourself, HOW?! Don't worry young grasshopper! I'm here to simplify what I have learned!
Before we start, you will need the following items:
A Tripod
A Test Sheet Found Here Courtesy of Jeffrey Friedl
The lens you will be adjusting
Your DSLR camera
1. Begin by setting up your camera, tripod, and test sheet as shown here
Approximate distance from test sheet based on focal length.
You want to have the test sheet tilted in order to differentiate between a focus that is too close or too far away.
2. Next we need to adjust our camera to the following settings
(Photo courtesy of Canon USA)
3. Next, aim your camera directly in the center of the sheet and auto-focus. If using a prime lens take 3-5 photos, re-auto-focusing between each shot. If using a zoom lens, take 3-5 shots fully zoomed in and 3-5 shots fully zoomed out, re-auto-focusing between each shot.
4. At this point we can analyze the photos from a computer.
In my example the top of the photo is more in focus than the bottom. This means my focus point needs to come forward since the top of the test sheet is further away than the bottom.
5. With this information we can now adjust the focus point.
To find this setting we need to press Menu and find the setting labeled "C.Fn II:Autofocus". Select this and scroll until you find "Autofocus AF Microadjustment". On my camera it is page 9 of the Autofocus settings.
From here scroll down to "2. Adjust by lens"
Please note: See list of cameras allowing both (W) and (T) adjustment values
6. Based on your analysis from step 4 adjust the auto-focus accordingly, making adjustments of two steps at a time.
If the focus is too far away, move the marker closer the the camera icon. If the focus is too close, move the marker closer to the mountain icon.
Note: The "W" setting is for the photos you took fully zoomed out (Wide-angle). The "T" setting is for the photos you took fully zoomed in (Telephoto).
7. Repeat steps 3-6 until focus is tack sharp!
I hope this guide helps a ton of people achieve sharper higher quality photo results! I think this is by far the most overlooked setting and will help you get the best results from your high end gear. Of all my lenses, the most expensive one was the furthest out of spec.
The following Nikon models support a similar feature called "AF Fine Tune", not covered in this article
- D3
- D3x
- D3s
- D4
- D4s
- D5
- Df
- D300
- D300s
- D500
- D600
- D610
- D700
- D750
- D800 (/E)
- D810
- D850
- D7000
- D7100
- D7200
- D7500
The following Sony models support a similar feature called "AF Micro Adjustment", not covered in this article
- A900
- A850
- A6000
- SLT-A68
- SLT-A77
- SLT-A77 MkII
- SLT-99
- SLT-99 MkII
Oké
Thank you very much for this invaluable tip!
Indeed like you said in your article: I checked my Nikon D7100 and it has this Af fine tune mode in the menu setting!
I will try to follow your tips to "fine tune" my lenses!
Glad to help!
A lot of work, but very worthwhile.
I have a Nikon 7100.
I do not think Nikon had this feature 😟
It actually didn't take that long... About 15 minutes to get the shown results. Its less technical than you would imagine.
Edited my post to show Nikon and Sony cameras that also have a similar feature. Id imagine they are calibrated much the same way but I only have a Canon to mess with.
Thank you anyway for this insight.
I will check my Nikon to see if this feature exists at all with Nikon.
This would make a huge difference because often I am not satisfied with the sharpness indeed.
The examples you provided illustrate exactly that.
Di you like photography so much,???
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