Jules Karney Loc: Las Vegas, Nevada

I am going to start a thread here and I hope the hoggers chime in with their thoughts.
How many of you out there fine tune your lenses?
I have a Nikon D500 and D4. The D4 you have to fine tune manually. I watched the video by Steve to help with the procedure.

Thoughts??

Quixdraw Loc: x

Be interested in hearing about your outcomes - I have shied away from the process.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

It is easy to do but the results are noticeable only if you are taking other steps before, during and after a shoot.

Before: Clean lens, filter, sensor
During: Focusing method, Speed (s blur), ISO (noise). In addition you must know your lens 'sweet settings'. Add shooting conditions, heat, dust, rain, snow reflective surface and the like...
After: If everything is 'perfect' PP still has a role to play so...

Do I calibrate my lenses? Yes. Just because like anyone in any trade having the best tools in hand is the only way to not regret something because of the tools imperfection. The largest imperfection lies behind the camera usually.

I do not calibrate zooms, just fixed lenses that have a specific purpose (portrait, macro). I shy away (possibly in error) to calibrate wide angle lenses (below 35mm).

CamB Loc: Juneau, Alaska

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I calibrate all my lenses using FoCal which eliminates subjective judgements and gives you accurate charts of both acuity vs correction and acuity vs aperture.

Having said that, this topic has been vigorously debated on UHH many times - it’s in the league with Canon vs Nikon and Mac vs PC heated discussions. There are pros and excellent photographers on both sides of this debate - some that feel it’s either unnecessary or should be carried out by the factory service center, and the other side that feels it provides a noticeable improvement in sharpness and is an intrinsic part of their work. Rather than hash it all over again, why not search for “lens calibration” using the search function or “Ugly Hedgehog lens calibration” using Google.

ronpier Loc: Poland Ohio

Thankfully none of my Nikons make provisions for fine tuning and I’m glad. Ten Nikkor lenses that focus fine on three bodies. Life is good.

Leitz Loc: Solms

My camera was calibrated when it was made. When the image is in focus on the focusing screen, it's in focus at the focal plane.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Only if it’s a MILC (contrast detection AF) or a non interchangeable lens camera. If it’s an interchangeable lens camera with phase detection AF, there’s a tolerance on the camera and a tolerance on the lens, and if they both go the “wrong way”. Then there’s a tolerance stackup which can result in inaccurate AF. Now if you always shoot stopped down, the DOF may hide it, but if you shoot wide open, especially with long lenses, where the DOF is sometimes inches, you need the AF to be spot on.

Leitz Loc: Solms

It's a Nikon Df. If the image were sharp on the screen and unsharp on the sensor, there would have to be a defect in the viewfinder alignment. Thus far (about 6 1/2 years), I've had no focus problems, auto or manual.

Strodav Loc: Houston, Tx

Hot button topic. I am surprised how many people don't bother to test their lenses and cameras to see if they are playing well together. I am surprised at the less than civil rhetoric associated with the topic. If you don't check, how do you know soft images aren't caused by a front or back focusing problem? You can mask the problem with larger a larger DOF, i.e., smaller apertures, but then you loose the lower light capability of the lens.

Personally, I check all my glass with the bodies they will be used with and adjust as necessary. What I have found with my Nikon bodies and Nikon glass, they are pretty much on out of the box, with just some small occasional tweaks. Even if a Nikon zoom is off a bit, you only need to calibrate it at at one point and and all zoom factors walk in. With my Tamron glass, I need to calibrate at all the distances and zoom factors recommended. Same with Sigma Art glass. Once calibrated, I get good results.

The thing that surprised me the most learning how to fine tune is how much variation there is in phase detect AF (viewfinder). You really do need to take enough samples to understand both the mean and variance before making any changes.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Sorry, can’t agree. The AF system on your camera isn’t using contrast detection on the image on the screen, it’s looking at the phase difference between the two phase detection sensors behind the mirror. On MILC cameras, which use contrast detection, what you say may be true, but your camera is a DSLR.

Now whether you can SEE any problem or whether the AF could be better and provide sharper images is a different question, and if you’re happy, then God bless and carry on, but on a DSLR, sharp images in the viewfinder don’t necessarily equate to accurate AF with all lenses.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

Most lenses benefit from fine tuning to one degree or another. The fact that you can't adjust lens focus and have decided that your lenses focus fine on your three bodies doesn't mean that they are focusing optimally or even close too it.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

Rongnongno Loc: FL

What we need on this site is a poll system that avoids the comments... Yes, no, never, sometime would help instead of all the deviations we can observe.