calibrating lens: i tried in search to find answer first ,but could not find one.if i calibrate nikon 200-500 mm lens to my camera (d7100) ,will i have to calibrate the next lens i...

lukevaliant Loc: gloucester city,n. j.

i tried in search to find answer first ,but could not find one.if i calibrate nikon 200-500 mm lens to my camera (d7100) ,will i have to calibrate the next lens i attach to camera?i don't understand if i am calibrating the camera or the lens.i'm sorry if it is a stupid question but i don't want to open a new can of worms!! thanks in advance,luke

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

You're calibrating the camera to the lens. The camera stores the lens serial number to know when to apply the adjustments when the specific lens is mounted.

Calibrating a zoom lens is more complicated, especially on older camera models. What makes you think this effort is needed?

Bill_de Loc: US

lukevaliant wrote:

i tried in search to find answer first ,but could not find one.if i calibrate nikon 200-500 mm lens to my camera (d7100) ,will i have to calibrate the next lens i attach to camera?i don't understand if i am calibrating the camera or the lens.i'm sorry if it is a stupid question but i don't want to open a new can of worms!! thanks in advance,luke

From Nikon:

AF tuning is not recommended in most situations and may interfere with normal focus; use only when required.

https://www.nikonimgsupport.com/eu/BV_article?articleNo=000006300&configured=1&lang=en_GB

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Sinewsworn Loc: Port Orchard, WA

Bill_de wrote:

From Nikon:

AF tuning is not recommended in most situations and may interfere with normal focus; use only when required.

https://www.nikonimgsupport.com/eu/BV_article?articleNo=000006300&configured=1&lang=en_GB

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not needed do some critical focus tests. Google it.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

lukevaliant wrote:

i tried in search to find answer first ,but could not find one.if i calibrate nikon 200-500 mm lens to my camera (d7100) ,will i have to calibrate the next lens i attach to camera?i don't understand if i am calibrating the camera or the lens.i'm sorry if it is a stupid question but i don't want to open a new can of worms!! thanks in advance,luke

You calibrate each lens to a specific body. If you had two camera's you would have to calibrate the lens to each camera.
BUT, I do not recommend doing any calibration to that zoom as you can only calibrate for ONE distance, regardless of what folks will tell you here, it can only be done for one distance.
Many who try to calibrate a lens are not happy with the result.
Instead learn how to eliminate movement when shooting, Shoot at a faster shutter speed, stop the lens down 2 stops, use a monopod or tripod, learn how to breath and shoot.
You will find these techniques actually work better than you trying to calibrate your lens.
The Nikon 200-500 served me well on my D500, D7200, D850, and D4s. I did not calibrate once for any of these camera's and got great results.
Good luck and keep on shooting until the end.

Jimmy T Loc: Virginia

lukevaliant wrote:

i tried in search to find answer first ,but could not find one.if i calibrate nikon 200-500 mm lens to my camera (d7100) ,will i have to calibrate the next lens i attach to camera?i don't understand if i am calibrating the camera or the lens.i'm sorry if it is a stupid question but i don't want to open a new can of worms!! thanks in advance,luke

This is being said in the kindest way, regarding your " i don't want to open a new can of worms!! " comment.
I can't imagine a Larger Can of Worms than what you are contemplating!
On a positive note, you may be able to sweet talk ($$$$-involved) to re-calibrate (restore to factory settings) your big $$-lens.
Best Wishes
JimmyT Sends
PS: Please don't be offended

rjriggins11 Loc: Colorado Springs, CO

lukevaliant wrote:

i tried in search to find answer first ,but could not find one.if i calibrate nikon 200-500 mm lens to my camera (d7100) ,will i have to calibrate the next lens i attach to camera?i don't understand if i am calibrating the camera or the lens.i'm sorry if it is a stupid question but i don't want to open a new can of worms!! thanks in advance,luke

I do AF Micro adjustments for customers all the time. This is especially important when you are shooting wide open and depth of field is an issue. If you focus on someone's eyelash, you want the eyelash in focus, not an ear. Or, if you are shooting a distant subject, like a bird, you'll get the beak in focus, not the branch behind it.

It's a little more difficult with longer lenses but can make a world of difference when a sharp image is important.

therwol Loc: USA

lukevaliant wrote:

i tried in search to find answer first ,but could not find one.if i calibrate nikon 200-500 mm lens to my camera (d7100) ,will i have to calibrate the next lens i attach to camera?i don't understand if i am calibrating the camera or the lens.i'm sorry if it is a stupid question but i don't want to open a new can of worms!! thanks in advance,luke

You're making an adjustment in the focus in a particular camera for a particular lens. It does not apply to other cameras or to different lenses on the same camera.

My advice is not to do it unless you can actually see a problem. It's a pain in the ass and time consuming. Even better advice is to make your next camera mirrorless, in which case this adjustment shouldn't be necessary at all.

gwilliams6

billnikon wrote:

You calibrate each lens to a specific body. If you... (show quote)

So right Bill. In decades of owning and using DSLRs there really was no advantage to try and calibrate any zoom lens. So glad all this calibration stuff is not necessary with mirrorless cameras.

Cheers

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

lukevaliant wrote:

i tried in search to find answer first ,but could not find one.if i calibrate nikon 200-500 mm lens to my camera (d7100) ,will i have to calibrate the next lens i attach to camera?i don't understand if i am calibrating the camera or the lens.i'm sorry if it is a stupid question but i don't want to open a new can of worms!! thanks in advance,luke

Lens specific CAL adjustments are stored in the camera and applied when the specific lens is sensed/attached to the camera. In calbrating a zoom lens, my first and highest priority is the longest focal length and at the distance I am most likely to be using that focal length.

User ID

billnikon wrote:

You calibrate each lens to a specific body. If you... (show quote)

No Nikon product has ever exhibited the slightest deficiency when in the hands of billnikon. If only the rest of us were similarly divinely blessed .....

User ID

Jimmy T wrote:

This is being said in the kindest way, regarding your " i don't want to open a new can of worms!! " comment.
I can't imagine a Larger Can of Worms than what you are contemplating!
On a positive note, you may be able to sweet talk ($$$$-involved) to re-calibrate (restore to factory settings) your big $$-lens.
Best Wishes
JimmyT Sends
PS: Please don't be offended

You suggest [re]calibration of the LENS ?

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billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

User ID wrote:

No Nikon product has ever exhibited the slighted deficiency when in the hands of billnikon. If only the rest of us were similarly divinely blessed .....

My point was that for most folks, calibrating a lens makes it worse off than it may have been before. All branded lenses are tested at the factory. Unless your have a 1.4 portrait lens and only shoot at a prescribed distance, it's just not worth calibrating your lens. A zoom lens can only be calibrated for one distance, so why even try.
And yes, I got very sharp images from my 200-500, I never had a need to calibrate it.
I have shot professional photography for over 50 years and never saw the need to calibrate a lens. I have shot over 500 weddings, 1000's of senior portraits and scores of family images, not once did a client tell me the images were not sharp.
Again, my point is, you may very well make the lens worse by trying to calibrate a lens yourself.
If I saved someone a lot of headaches and bad images, I am happy.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

User ID wrote:

No Nikon product has ever exhibited the slighted deficiency when in the hands of billnikon. If only the rest of us were similarly divinely blessed .....

Yep, and it’s been discussed on dozens of threads, and I’ve provided actual tests of calibration at various distances in at least three. Yes, you can spend time and still get it wrong using subjective judgement and one of the angled jigs, OR you can use Riekan FoCal, get it exactly right with an objective measurement and also profile each lens with acuity vs aperture as well in a few minutes .Regardless of what the naysayers say, a large percentage of the Pros I know DO calibrate and as for the “my photos are fine without it” crowd, my question is: how do you know they can’t be better if you haven’t tried it? Oh well, I guess they’re good enough…

User ID

billnikon wrote:

My point was that for most folks, calibrating a le... (show quote)

50yrs of AF ? Never needed calibration ?

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