TBerwick Loc: Houston, Texas

I have just spent the last day & a half running my most utilized lenses through Reikan Focal Pro 2.9. I just downloaded the update and took the program out for a spin for the first time after owning it for almost 6 months.

I've known for a while that a couple of my lenses just did not quite meet my expectations of sharpness so now was a good time to take that out of the equation. The good news/bad news situation is this: 1) good, high dollar Nikon glass (I'm sure Canon & others) really nails the automated sharpness adjustments. 2) Cheaper versions and some kit lenses, not so much.

Most of the higher dollar 3rd party glass, such Tamron, seem to do a mostly good job as well. The lower dollar 3rd party lenses, at least the ones that I own, are all over the spectrum. You know you've got a problem lens when Focal basically says "Fa-gid-about-it."

So it looks like I'll be in the market for some of the higher dollar Nikon glass and put a couple of the clunkers up for sale, mostly on eBay. Don't get me wrong, the so-called clunker lenses work just fine, they just miss out on the critical sharp focus I'm looking for

My Tamron G2 group seem to have developed the sharpness I've been craving, now that I've put them through the testing. The non-G2 group didn't achieve the improvements I was hoping for. So, I'll be pouring over the sales ads in the future. You just gotta love GAS. (Note: my wife does not)

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

👍👍 I also find that it is very useful to have objective measurements of your lenses capabilities.

User ID

I use mostly live view cameras so no adjustments
are needed. For SLRs, I do the basic in-camera AF
micro-adjustments, and I never use SLR lenses at
wide open. No hardship, since I only use SLRs in
quite adequate light. Since I do most of my stuff
in rather dismal light, I need reliable focus. So my
SLRs don't get much exercise.

Some say top shelf lenses and fussy adjustments
are only important if you actually shoot brick walls.
Well ... some of us do shoot exactly that :-)

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Gitchigumi Loc: Wake Forest, NC

Thanks for the info... I've considered purchasing this for my camera/lens arrangements. I use Nikon DX with DX-rated lenses, so I was leary of the effectiveness of the Reikon system with my equipment. I guess I still am and have struggled to get it right the old fashioned way. Maybe it's time for another look?

abc1234 Loc: Elk Grove Village, Illinois

I used the new FoCal download and did not notice the dramatic increase in speed they claim. The user-interface is a little different. Overall, the upgrade is not a game-changer. However, I still recommend FoCal over all methods and that you should, at least, check your lenses. We beat this to death a few days ago in another thread.

I put three quality Sigma lenses through this and got good test results. FoCal could not adjust my 18-300 at 300 so I adjusted it at 200.

A few people noted that these methods adjust the cameras at only two distances and suggested that the micro-adjustments do not apply at other distances. Sigma and Tamron allow you to adjust your lenses at intermediate focal lengths and distances. Has anyone actually done this? I wonder what they found.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Have you used the aperture vs acuity test in the Pro version? Very informative...

abc1234 Loc: Elk Grove Village, Illinois

I am pretty sure I did run. Most of my lenses were sharpest about two stops down from wide open. What surprised me is how much sharpness fell off at smaller apertures. What you get with increased depth of field is lost with the decreased sharpness.

I have one lens that is sharpest at two stops down as usual but then increases a bit wide open.

I cannot make heads or tails out of the rest of the reports. How about you?

Doc Barry Loc: Huntsville, Alabama USA

I found the new version of FoCal PRO a nice improvement. FWIW, Nikon lenses are calibrated to (hopefully) maintain a constant back focal length of the lenses as the focal length and range are adjusted. Nikon has a proprietary equation in the lenses that has a variety of coefficients that are determined during manufacture of the lenses. The AF fine tune in the camera is used to correct the residual errors in the camera body and back focal length of the lenses. In theory, you can do the calibration with whatever test set you have at a mid focal length and convenient target distance that isn't too close to the close-focus distance. The singe AF tune adjustment should then allow the lenses to function nicely. If you have a lenses that doesn't, it should be sent back to Nikon Service for adjustment.

All of my lenses are Nikon Pro Glass (expect for the 28-300mm zoom, but a good lens) except for the Tamron 150-600mm G2. It is a nice lens too. To calibrate it requires finding the AF tune adjustment at 6 focal lengths and 3 ranges. These 18 values are then used in the Tamron calibration program to compute the coefficients it needs to mimic the behavior of the Nikon lenses (but the AF Tune in the camera body needs to be set to zero when finished). Buying a Tamron G2 lens and not having the TAP-IN Console to go with it is imprudent IMHO. The Tamron G2 I have worked okay out of the box, but noticeably better after I calibrated it.

abc1234 Loc: Elk Grove Village, Illinois

Doc Barry, thanks for the input. I do not know what extra TLC Canon and Sigma require but I think all bodies and lenses should be checked right out of the box. Simply being in spec does not mean the gear is as sharp as it can be. Though a lens might be tack sharp, some of us would like to know if it could be tack sharper.

Doc Barry Loc: Huntsville, Alabama USA

ABC1234,
I think you hit upon a truth that should be widely spread around.

"Some tacks are sharper than other tacks just like lenses!"

abc1234 Loc: Elk Grove Village, Illinois

Sorry Doc but as far as I am concerned, one tack is as sharp as another and hurts just as much. Not so with lenses.

Doc Barry Loc: Huntsville, Alabama USA

Good "point." Ouch!

mikedent Loc: Florida

Hi all- not quite sure how the final calibrated settings are stored and then recalled in the camera. Say, Nikon- I assume the camera will retain calibrated settings for Nikon lenses, so that when you change lenses, the correct calibrations will automatically be applied for that lens. What about 3rd party lens, ie Tamron, Sigma, etc. Will the camera correctly store those calibrated results? and shift over to them when changing lenses? Or would you have to go back into menu settings and choose which lens you have changed to? Also, will the camera recall the proper settings once you zoom to another focal length? Or does FoCal finalize calibrations with only one overall setting that would optimize focus at all focal lengths of a zoom lens? I'm thinking of buying the software but want to understand it better. Thanks!

Gitchigumi Loc: Wake Forest, NC

My Nikon D7100 can store micro-focus adjustments for up to 12 different lenses. I know it works with both Nikon and Sigma lenses, as I have those brands. I would certainly expect it to do the same with Tamron or any other. It is just an internal adjustment done by the camera within the sensing system. It does not affect the lens operation in any way.

When I switch from one lens to another, the camera recognizes the lens and applies the appropriate adjustment from its library. This library contains all the micro-adjustments for all the lens you work with.

Doc Barry Loc: Huntsville, Alabama USA

Hi Mikedent,

When you AF tune, the Nikon cameras I have or had (D3, D7000, D810) automatically sense what lens is mounted, both my Nikon lenses and my Tamron 150-600mm G2 lens. The D810 can store adjustments for up to 20 lenses. For lenses like the Tamron I have, you use FoCal to find the AF tune adjustment at each of 6 focal lengths and 3 distances. The Tamron program then calibrates the lens to be corrected when the camera body is set to AF Tune = 0. For a Nikon zoom, pick a moderate focal length and range, e.g., for a 28-70 F/2.8, I picked f = 50mm and range at 5'. You can then test at other focal lengths and ranges to see if the AF tune value stays within +/-1 or 2 of the value set in the camera. If it doesn't, then the lens likely needs to be serviced.

Doc Barry