Setting Up a Shot: Difference between revisions

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→‎Focus

Andrew.waddle

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 == Focus ==
-''(Most of the tips in this section assume you're using the Sony HDV cameras.)''
 Focus on the camera can work in one of two ways; Auto and Manual. Manual involves telling the camera how far away from the lens your subject is, and that's what it'll focus on. Auto involves the camera looking at your footage and working out by itself how far away your subject is.
-If you're filming in decent light and frequently changing zoom and/or composition, then Auto is advised.  If you're in dark situations, or the camera shot won't be changing at all then Manual will give much better results. Remember that auto-focus can cause the camera to suddenly think it needs to re-focus when it doesn't, and your shot briefly dips out of focus.
+If you're filming in decent light and frequently changing zoom and/or composition, then Auto is advised. Another good use case for auto is when the shot is not setup (a report for example). When it is required to get the shots and things are unpredictable then the auto focus is the best thing to use, it might not be 100% accurate, but its way more reliable than trying to constantly focus pull on manual.
-Additionally, while in autofocus, the camera can stubbornly lock on to a completely incorrect focus.  This can be solved by switching to manual focus and forcing the focus to change to something sensible, then switching back to auto and letting it carry on.  Alternatively, briefly covering the lens might persuade it to change the focus.  This effect is made worse by a dirty filter, as the camera attempts to focus on the dust on the filter.
-To set manual focus: In the menu press the 'focus' button.  Select manual.  Here you can also alter the distance at which the camera focuses. Using the LCD to set the focus on your fully framed shot is very difficult, because the screen is just too small, and in the dark it's almost impossible because you have to be even more accurate. A trick that usually works better is to zoom right into the subject, switch to auto-focus, wait a few seconds for auto-focus to work its magic, then switch back to manual and zoom out.
+There are, however, many cases where manual focus is the right (or the nicer) option to use. These can be in well setup and rehearsed shots (especially with a focus puller) where a smooth focus pull from one subject to another can be done very smoothly and make the shot better for it being on manual. Also useful, is manual focus when the subject is not centre frame. Often., auto focus systems require the subject to remain central in the frame in order for the system to work as intended. When the blocking causes this not to be the case, manual can make the shot a lot nicer.
-More Complicated:
+On the C100s the auto focus is on the lens and is a small switch or similar between AF and MF. Note, changing this mid shot does tend to introduce a slight wobble to the shot. The C100s also contain 1 shot AF and AF lock (only on the MK2 version) which allow for smoother transition between MF and AF. The focus ring is on the lenses and varies is smoothness and size depending on the lens.
-In the Menu there is a 'Ring Set' option.  This will normally be set to 'Focus', so that the Ring by the lens controls the focus While in Manual Focus.  With 'Ring Set' set to 'Focus', the 'Manual' Button on the left hand side of the camera (IE facing you) will switch between Manual Focus and Auto Focus.  This is a very useful set up for everything described above.
-If using manual focus be sure that the shot is focussed, otherwise '''all''' of the recorded footage will be blurry. If you're using auto-focus, then for god's sake be careful where you point the camera!
+The AGAC90s have a focus ring on the lens in the same way, and the selection switch is on the control side of the camera. Normally these are used in auto focus mode only.
 == Microphone & Sound Levels ==