Autofocus or Manual Focus?

[Michael Markey]

Sorry folks, I missed that it was the rangefinder subforum. 😱

Me too ...sorry.

 

[randolph45]

There is no such thing like autofocus on my M's 😀.

Thumb+forfinger+eye+viewfinder+brain (computer)=auto focus😀😀😀😀

 

[noisycheese]

Do you prefer autofocus or manual focus?

It depends on which camera I'm using at the moment.

Manual focus:
Leica M cameras
Hasselblad XPAN
Rollei 35
Nikon F3, Fm2n

Auto focus:
Nikon F100

 

[Darthfeeble]

I gave up two Leicas and two RD 1s because of geezer eyes. Focus peaking on my Fujis has brought back manual focus to my efforts. Also contact lenses seems to help with that third RD 1.

 

[peterm1]

Even with my AF cameras I sometimes mount MF lenses and use them just for fun and because they are excellent lenses. I seldom go so far as to use AF lenses in MF mode though. I also use an M8 which is of course MF and have a couple of EVIL cameras that I regularly use legacy lenses on, just so my old lenses get some use. To be honest though I probably do 75% of my "serious" shooting with a D700 in AF mode. The rest is just the icing on the cake. But as with the poster immediately below I am increasingly afflicted with geezer eyes.

 

[healyzh]

Well that's interesting, so far no one just uses autofocus. Yes, it is RFF but I would have expected Hexar AF users and similar to have selected this. Anyway, one reason I'm interested is that I just cannot get on with the autofocus on my Nikon SLRs like the F4, F100 & D700, and end up focussing manually even with lenses like the 60mm AF-S G. Seems I may not be the only one.

I spent a lot of my time this year doing my serious shooting with my Nikon D800, and D300 (though I probably used the D300 less than my M9). Normally when I use a DSLR I'm in AF mode, but if doing Macro I'll typically switch to MF. I find that the AF doesn't always give me the results I want, BUT, when you're shooting a fast moving Civil War reenactment, it's the only practical option for me. Oddly enough, the shots that it typically doesn't work on, are shots that I'm less likely to actually use.

Actually about half way through the summer I switched to using the D800 and M9, in part so my wife could use the D300, and in part because the M9 was a better fit for some of what I was doing. Still, as long as I'm not shooting something like my 135mm Hektor, I have much better results manually focusing my M9 than I do with AF on the D800.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

I use AF if I'm tracking moving objects. This is why I have (D)SLRs, I could also use long tele and zooms with these cameras.
I like MF on RF, because it is much more compact comparing to any FF (D)SLR.
Rangefinder (MF) is dust less comparing to SLR, no mirror black out.
I like to MF with scale for street photography also.
So none of the poll answers are for me. Here is no prefer, use and don't, I use all three focusing methods.

 

[biomed]

I have been using MF on my digital cameras for some time now. It is especially easy with focus peaking. Even though the AF is very fast, MF insures the lens is focused where I want it to be, especially when using larger apertures.

Mike

 

[Pioneer]

The focus motor died in my Pentax ist DL2 a while back and it turned out to be overly expensive to get repaired. But, since I already had a KatzEye Split Prism screen installed, it was very easy to move completely to manual focus. Now I have a manual focus only Pentax digital alongside the manual focus Leica digital.

 

[Lss]

Do you prefer autofocus or manual focus?

I prefer focus that does what I want. Autofocus could get reasonably close to that requirement with some rethinking, but it is mostly manual focus for me at this point.

 

[jsrockit]

I prefer autofocus... but when I do use manual focus, it is only on a rangefinder.

 

[thirtyfivefifty]

As a general rules,
I enjoy manual focus on manual focus orientated cameras.
I enjoy auto focusing on auto focus orientated cameras. (Personal preference)

A few exceptions are...
Manually focusing with lenses with crappy distance scales. (Dislike)
Overriding auto focus manually when focus doesn't catch. (Enjoy)
Focus by wire. (Dislike)
Noisy auto focus. (Dislike)
Critically manual focus with no aids on manual focus cameras. (Dislike)
Auto focus with contrast detection. (Dislike)
Auto focus with no real focus point. (Dislike)
Auto focus with no cross type sensor. (Dislike)

 

[KevinS]

I've used manual focus for so long that I continued using it after I got AF lenses for a 5D. The viewfinder on my Mamiya 645E is so good that I can focus with confidence despite less than great vision now. On my Canon S95 I only use AF.

While shooting a sailboat regatta recently I used both MF and AF. The autofocus wins hands-down. I was amazed how well my old 300 IS lens performed. The focus was quick and silent. Nearly every AF shot was sharp; not so with MF. I try to avoid moving subjects in favor of landscapes and architecture, but won't hesitate to trust AF on telephoto lenses when appropriate.

 

[Monochrom]

Mostly manual focus.

Faster and more reliable! I can prefocus and then correct if necessary.

I do use the dp2 merrill which has proved to be as capable as any other Af camera.

From time to time i use contax´s Afç, like tvs or g1 which are also quite capable Af cameras.

 

[Takkun]

To revise my answer: I don't like MF on SLRs, since I don't have the best eyesight in the world. But I don't like AF because it requires too much work on my part to get it to do what I want to do, unless we're talking moving subjects, which I don't photograph all that much.
Which is one of the big reasons I like RFs so much. Achieving focus isn't necessarily dependent on me determining if it's in focus in the finder.
Nikon's newer 80-something-or-whatever multipoint AF is fairly accurate, but its too much work to figure out for me.

If Canon's Eye Control from the Elan/3 series worked better, that would have been the ideal solution.

 

[helen.HH]

Well I only know Manual Focus...very rare do I scale focus

As for Auto Focus , one day I may need to
But till then I love the challenge of watching Life coming into 'Focus' 😉

 

[Tony Whitney]

One of the reasons I like the Ricoh GXR so much is that there's a choice with the same basic camera (and I know there are many other makes that will serve the same role). I have two GXR bodies and they are in separate bags - one is my AF bag and the other is my MF bag. The AF bag has Ricoh's 50 mm macro plus kit zoom and the MF bag has a CV 15 mm, a CV 40 mm 1.4 and an Olympus 200 mm with Leica adaptor. I take whichever fits the job I have in mind - or sometimes, I'll take both...TW

 

[DougFord]

Haven't used a rf camera in quite awhile but typically I'd zone focus as a starting point and if time permitted, I'd fine tune the focus.
When using an af camera, typically I'll just use zone focus as well switching to af as time and circumstance permit.
I haven't used a camera with face detection yet but would enlist this capability if it worked for my application.

 

[rluka]

Only manual focus left, excluding the point & shoot.

Used to play with manual focus and legacy lens using m4/3 camera.
Then I got film camera with manual focus.
And finally got to appreciate auto focus lenses more when I need the quick grab.
Still can't figure out using AF other than the one-point in the middle type though.

And the AF camera is gone now.

 

[dabick42]

Manual focus or scale focus for me, as time, subject and occasion permit.
I've never owned or used an autofocussing camera - too complicated, too battery-dependent and mostly too unnecessary... (!)