Autofocus micro-adjust

[Tricky]

Got home too late to really have a play with my new 7D, so decided to spend an hour (it soon became 2 hours:rolleyes:) micro-adjusting the AF on my lenses. My old 40D didn't have this facility and I had long suspected that at least one was a little bit out.

I used the information and test charts provided here (http://www.openphotographyforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4708) and here (http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/article_pages/cameras/1ds3_af_micoadjustment.html). My calibration findings were as follows:

24-105| -5
Siggy 30mm | -8
60mm macro | -3
10-22 | -4
10-17 Fishy | -4
70-200 | -2
700-200 + 1.4x |-4
[not quite sure how you use the table facility on AP!:o]
Mod edit: fixed table ... use | as the column separator http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/showthread.php?t=39799

I think this probably tells me that my 7D has a small tendency towards 'minus'! Perhaps -4 is the camera, whilst the difference is each lens. These aren't big differences, well within manufacturing tolerances, and indeed illustrate the 'raison d'etre' for the micro-adjust facility.

I also noticed that on zoom lenses, the ideal calibration adjustment varied depending on the focal length. On the 70-200, the adjustment was -2 at both ends (70mm and 200mm), but 0 at around 135mm.

With the 24-105, the adjustment was around -5 from 35mm to 90mm, but then -6 at 105mm and 0 at 24mm! I suspect the depth of field at 24mm is fairly deep, so less critical... I left it at -5 as a compromise.

Anyway, I'll double-check the findings on 'real' subjects when I actually get a chance to go out and take some pictures!

[Paul G]

Do all lenses need to be adjusted like this or is it a Canon thing?

[Tricky]

I believe there's quite a few recent cameras that now have microadjust, across all of Canon, Nikon and Pentax (possibly others?). For Canon, I think the models who have it are 50D, 7D, 5D2, 1D3 and 1DS3.

If your camera's got microadjust, then I can't see why you wouldn't try using it. I've heard it said that upgrading from 40D to 50D is worth it for the microadjust alone. That said, we're talking pretty minor differences here: not sure I'd even notice a +/- 5 adjustment, maybe just marginally? I guess its just nice to know the lens focus is absolutely spot on...

[I @ M]

All camera / lens combinations without regard to manufacturer may need adjustment Paul. The micro adjust feature being adopted by manufacturers is a very worthwhile tool to be able to "fine tune" normal manufacturing tolerances as Tricky has discovered. :)

[balwoges]

What are the steps to micro-adjusting your camera, have just bought a 50D and would be interested to know.

[Steve Axford]

It's something that needs some care as the focus can vary depending in distance. So if you focus at the minimum distance that may be different from infinity! Just jumping in and doing something can make things worse, not better.

[Tricky]

It's something that needs some care as the focus can vary depending in distance. So if you focus at the minimum distance that may be different from infinity! Just jumping in and doing something can make things worse, not better.

That's very true. I tried the AF settings at various different distances and did note some small variations. Canon recommends a minimum focus distance of 50 times the focal length, ie 50mm x 50 = 2500mm = 2.5m metres. So that's 10 metres for a 200mm lens! I only got up to about 5 metres max distance last night, so I'm keen to double-check my calibration settings at nearer infinity when I get a chance to shoot outdoors.

[Tricky]

What are the steps to micro-adjusting your camera, have just bought a 50D and would be interested to know.

There's a couple of links in my original post which give information on how best to undertake the microadjust process.

Assuming you've got live view, then in summary the process is:

1. Find a high contrast image that your camera can easily lock onto. I used the image provided by northlight in the link above, as the moire patterns make it very obvious when you've got perfect focus (using live view to focus on a computer LCD introduces moire patterns when critical focus is achieved).

2. Set up your camera on a tripod, perfectly square to the image, at approx 50 times the focal length of the lens you're calibrating. Use a wide open aperture for your lens, as this gives the most narrow DOF. Have your camera set to spot focus.

3. Switch to live view and use the autofocus button to achieve focus using live view's contrast-based method. This is the most accurate method of achieving focus, but does take several seconds for the camera to work out. You'll know its working because the moire patterns are highly pronounced.

4. Then switch off live view. Closely watch the focus distance scale readout on your lens then press the autofocus button again. If the focus ring moves a tiny jot, then your autofocus is slightly out (you'll see the moire patterns have reduced slightly, if you switch back to live view). If focus is acquired with no movement of the focus ring, then your autofocus is spot on.

5. If your focus is out, then dial in a little calibration using the microadjust feature. I went 2 steps at a time, as 1 step is barely noticeable.

6. Repeat steps 3 to 5 above until your lens is perfectly spot on. Try the process at different distances, ie nearer and closer to the test image. If you're calibrating a zoom lens, then repeat the process at different focal lengths too, as there may be differences within the zoom lens' range, requiring a 'compromise' adjustment setting to be used. Canon recommend tunning a zoom lens at the maxmimum focal length of the lens - presumably as focus is more critical at longer focal lengths?

7. Repeat steps 3 to 6 for all your individual lenses. Your camera should recognise each lens separately and store the details of any adjustment so that it is automatically applied when you connect the lens.

Lastly, I think its worth testing out your new settings in the 'real world', ie not using test images and at different distances. I want to check my settings asap, particularly the zoom lenses at near infinity distances and the macro lens at 1:1 minimum focusing distance. You should be able to switch between adjusted and not-adjusted quite easily from the camera's menu, allowing you to test out whether there has really been an improvement.

[Riverlander]

I did the micro-adjustment on my 50D with the 100-400 lens and could not believe the result - it was -18. The adjustment made a hell of a difference to my bird photos.
I sent the lens to Canon, Sydney, who cleaned it and focused it for less than $200 including return freight, and it came back absolutely spot on. I thought the exercise was very worthshile.

[jev]

Chuck Westfall, spokesman of Canon USA, explains the procedure here (http://www.digitaljournalist.org/issue0812/tech-tips.html). If you want to make things as easy as possible, use a Siemens star to focus on. Google "Siemens Star" and print one - just don't use a laser printer on normal office paper (works very bad).


it was -18.
:eek: That is very, very much. I've most of my lenses calibrated on the 5DII and none is off more than 4 points.

[dbax]

very interesting read people, thanks for posting this Tricky and thanks for all who responded and offered feed back.
Now that I've commented I'll be able to find this again and look at my camera in the daylight:th3::th3:

[Tricky]

Chuck Westfall, spokesman of Canon USA, explains the procedure here (http://www.digitaljournalist.org/issue0812/tech-tips.html). If you want to make things as easy as possible, use a Siemens star to focus on. Google "Siemens Star" and print one - just don't use a laser printer on normal office paper (works very bad).


That is certainly another way to do it... :) However, I would suggest that this is a MUCH more laborious way to do it than using the procedure I followed! The live view process can also be done anywhere - whilst using a pattern to induce moire is a very convenient way to check that adjustments have indeed resulted in perfect focus, the process can be followed "in the field" by locking onto any high contrast subject using live view and then checking whether the AF system also focuses at exactly the same point (ie focus ring doesn't move).



very interesting read people, thanks for posting this Tricky and thanks for all who responded and offered feed back.
Now that I've commented I'll be able to find this again and look at my camera in the daylight:th3::th3:

No worries :) I think micro adjust would actually be an interesting thing to cover with a demonstration at AP meet-ups. Equally, if anyone in Brissy is struggling with micro adjust and wants a demo, just drop me a PM


I want to check my settings asap, particularly the zoom lenses at near infinity distances and the macro lens at 1:1 minimum focusing distance.

Hardly got any chance to take pictures today... left work early and headed to Mt Cootha, but caught in various thunderstorms. Only managed one picture, which I'll post somewhere. Anyway, whilst I was waiting undercover for the rain to pass, I checked the micro adjust on a couple of lenses at infinity, but focusing on random high contrast subjects in the distance. Both lenses came in perfect, no further adjustment needed beyond that set last night using the moire pattern. :th3:

However, I struggled a bit with the 60mm macro. The DOF is so wafer thin at minimum focus distance that it's almost impossible to set an adjustment that consistently gives zero movement between live view and AF focus. At infinty, the 60mm has around -2 adjustment, but even at zero adjustment, there isn't much movement (if any). So I left it at zero adjustment for the moment. The 60mm has consistently been one of the sharpest lenses I've got, and I tend to focus it manually most of the time in any case, so not much point fiddling with it!!

[enduro]

No it's not a Canon thing.


All camera / lens combinations without regard to manufacturer may need adjustment Paul. The micro adjust feature being adopted by manufacturers is a very worthwhile tool to be able to "fine tune" normal manufacturing tolerances as Tricky has discovered. :)

Agreed, this is called standard deviation and is a common statistic amongst all products from resistors right through to individual elements in your lens. Also from eggs through to whatever.

Do you recall the phrase "sharp copy" when used in terms where a lens is sold second hand? A not-so-sharp copy may prove much sharper when adj appropriately with a micro-adjust or calibration.

[Paul G]

I've done some digging around and found a lot of references to the newer Canon bodies that have this feature. One reference to Nikon's D3 & D300 and little else. One reference talked about DC Settings for the D200 (never heard of them) so there doesn't seem to be a lot of cameras around that have this useful function.I saw a couple of cropped examples of the difference microadjustment can make and it's noticeable straight out of the camera.

I take it that it is seperate to having lenses aligned or tuned by Canon or Nikon et al?

[jev]

There are many more that offer AF adjustment, see http://www.whibalhost.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8888 . Didn't check that list, but I trust it's quite accurate.

[TEITZY]

I think it's useful for confirming if you have a bad copy of a lens (front or back focusing) but it only creates more problems (at least in your head) when you start micro-adjusting every lens you own (as Steve pointed out above). Honestly I doubt in real-life stuations whether you would see any difference with a +5 or -5 setting if you have 'normal' within spec copy of a lens.

Personally I haven't needed to adjust any of my lenses (Nikon, Tamron, Sigma).

Cheers
Leigh

[Tricky]

I think it's useful for confirming if you have a bad copy of a lens (front or back focusing) but it only creates more problems (at least in your head) when you start micro-adjusting every lens you own (as Steve pointed out above). Honestly I doubt in real-life stuations whether you would see any difference with a +5 or -5 setting if you have 'normal' within spec copy of a lens.

Personally I haven't needed to adjust any of my lenses (Nikon, Tamron, Sigma).

Cheers
Leigh

Hi Leigh, we might have to agree to disagree on this :) For me, at least, there's a benefit in knowing for sure that my lenses are spot on. And it hardly creates more problems - you can disable the adjusted settings (ie back to zero adjustment on a single lens or all lenses) at the flick of a button...

Once you know how to do it, the micro-adjust process is pretty quick and easy. I reckon I could adjust a set of 5 lenses now in 30-40min. I suspect you're right that +/-5 is probably around the point where you'd notice a difference (depending on lens, focal distance etc); I thought my Siggy 30mm 1.4 wasn't quite right (but equally was prepared to put it down to photographer inadequacy / struggling with DOF at f/1.4!) but the adjustment of -8 was certainly visible and confirmed my suspicions.

[ricktas]

I have adjusted a couple of my lenses for the D3..isn't hard to do, and it cleverly stores the adjusted settings in a memory bank. As soon as the camera recognises the lens attached it adjusts focus based on the settings. I guess the 7D does the same.

Very handy feature. Worth noting to that lens focus can be affected by temperature (one reason Canon makes white lenses). A brisk cold day or very hot day can affect a lens (expansion and contraction). So if pinpoint focus sharpness is important it is worth also considering checking them under similar conditions to those that the lens is going to be used under

[enduro]

I have adjusted a couple of my lenses for the D3..isn't hard to do, and it cleverly stores the adjusted settings in a memory bank. As soon as the camera recognises the lens attached it adjusts focus based on the settings. I guess the 7D does the same.

Very handy feature. Worth noting to that lens focus can be affected by temperature (one reason Canon makes white lenses). A brisk cold day or very hot day can affect a lens (expansion and contraction). So if pinpoint focus sharpness is important it is worth also considering checking them under similar conditions to those that the lens is going to be used under


Agreed. The 7D manual asks [from memory] that is is better to do the adj in the field which we could conclude is their way of explaining for temp changes.

I had to add about 5points to my 400mm to get it pin sharp on an aperture of f/5.6 at a range of 10m. I'll be checking it again as the temp warms up. Ideally I'd suggest checking your lenses out in the field on an average temp day, say 25'C as a standard.

[B D H]

Got home too late to really have a play with my new 7D, so decided to spend an hour (it soon became 2 hours:rolleyes:) micro-adjusting the AF on my lenses. My old 40D didn't have this facility and I had long suspected that at least one was a little bit out.

I used the information and test charts provided here (http://www.openphotographyforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4708) and here (http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/article_pages/cameras/1ds3_af_micoadjustment.html). My calibration findings were as follows:

24-105| -5
Siggy 30mm | -8
60mm macro | -3
10-22 | -4
10-17 Fishy | -4
70-200 | -2
700-200 + 1.4x |-4
[not quite sure how you use the table facility on AP!:o]
Mod edit: fixed table ... use | as the column separator http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/showthread.php?t=39799

I think this probably tells me that my 7D has a small tendency towards 'minus'! Perhaps -4 is the camera, whilst the difference is each lens. These aren't big differences, well within manufacturing tolerances, and indeed illustrate the 'raison d'etre' for the micro-adjust facility.

I also noticed that on zoom lenses, the ideal calibration adjustment varied depending on the focal length. On the 70-200, the adjustment was -2 at both ends (70mm and 200mm), but 0 at around 135mm.

With the 24-105, the adjustment was around -5 from 35mm to 90mm, but then -6 at 105mm and 0 at 24mm! I suspect the depth of field at 24mm is fairly deep, so less critical... I left it at -5 as a compromise.

Anyway, I'll double-check the findings on 'real' subjects when I actually get a chance to go out and take some pictures!


Hi
Does this feature allow indivduals settings per lens ? i.e. is there a micro focus preset memory
the reason I ask is, with my 40 D & 100-400L IS, like Riverlander has said I've long suspected things are not quite right

I took it to Canon at Nth Ryde & they told me they could adjust it (40D) but it could mean that other lenses I use may be then less than perfect, that & the 2 week+ turnaround turned me off the idea but now I'm not so sure - could be time for a 7D

Cheers

[Tricky]

Agreed. The 7D manual asks [from memory] that is is better to do the adj in the field which we could conclude is their way of explaining for temp changes.

I had to add about 5points to my 400mm to get it pin sharp on an aperture of f/5.6 at a range of 10m. I'll be checking it again as the temp warms up. Ideally I'd suggest checking your lenses out in the field on an average temp day, say 25'C as a standard.

I have added "micro-adjust" to the "My menu" customised menu, so that I can quickly access the screen whilst out in the field ;) You can test focus accuracy at any time by just comparing the live view focus to normal AF (ie acquire focus in live view using contrast method, then switch of live view, then focus by pressing shutter half way and watch if the focus ring moves at all). I suspect I'll fidget with the settings for a while, arrive at a balance that seems to work most of the time in most conditions, and then leave it alone!


Hi
Does this feature allow indivduals settings per lens ? i.e. is there a micro focus preset memory
the reason I ask is, with my 40 D & 100-400L IS, like Riverlander has said I've long suspected things are not quite right

I took it to Canon at Nth Ryde & they told me they could adjust it (40D) but it could mean that other lenses I use may be then less than perfect, that & the 2 week+ turnaround turned me off the idea but now I'm not so sure - could be time for a 7D

Cheers

Yes, you can adjust individual lenses. The body recognises each lens when you put it on (even non Canon lenses) and remembers the adjustment setting. Even if you chose to disable the adjustments, the Camera remembers them, so you can quickly flip between adjusted and no adjustment.

I think when it comes to sending you camera in to Canon for calibration, they recommend sending all your lenses and body, so they can all be calibrated together.

Just buy a 7D, you won't regret it :D

[Satine]

I don't know how I missed this topic but as soon as I get my new 7D i'll check out my lens.

Thanks for the info.

[Satine]

Would it make a difference if you did the micro adjust with your lens and a 2 x teleconverter? Would the camera recognise the combination as something different from the lens alone?

[enduro]

Would it make a difference if you did the micro adjust with your lens and a 2 x teleconverter? Would the camera recognise the combination as something different from the lens alone?

My 7D does not recognise the Canon 1.4MkII converter. When I put that and the 400mm on it reads the set as a straight 400m and I need to increase the +5 microadj to +15.

[MrJorge]

Fascinating thread. Thanks for the discussion guys. Yet another reason to pine over a 7D.

[pollen]

My 7D does not recognise the Canon 1.4MkII converter. When I put that and the 400mm on it reads the set as a straight 400m and I need to increase the +5 microadj to +15.
Do you mean the 400 f/5.6? If so, unfortunately only a 1 series can autofocus with the 400 f/5.6 + 1.4X

[Tricky]

Would it make a difference if you did the micro adjust with your lens and a 2 x teleconverter? Would the camera recognise the combination as something different from the lens alone?

The 7D will recognise (say) a 70-200 and a 70-200/2.0x as two separate lenses, allowing you to record separate microadjust settings. Each time you change the combination (eg remove the 2.0x to leave just the 70-200), the 7D will automatically recognise the new combination and remember the appropriate microadjust setting. Very clever. :)

[clm738]

Thanks for this threat Tricky and everyone's posts.

[enduro]

Do you mean the 400 f/5.6? If so, unfortunately only a 1 series can autofocus with the 400 f/5.6 + 1.4X

That's good clarification for others, however I was aware of that prior to the 7D purchase.

It can be seen in my sig that I only own the 400mm f/5.6

[Satine]

The 7D will recognise (say) a 70-200 and a 70-200/2.0x as two separate lenses, allowing you to record separate microadjust settings. Each time you change the combination (eg remove the 2.0x to leave just the 70-200), the 7D will automatically recognise the new combination and remember the appropriate microadjust setting. Very clever. :)

Thanks for that, I can't wait to get my hands on my 7D now so I can play with the microadjust. I will post my results once i've done them as I think they are going to be quite a way off.

[arubaato]

Question for those who's done this with a 5d2: If you micro adjust different lens with the camera, and achieve different "scores" for each lens, does the camera remember to apply the same adjustment to that lens everytime you put it on?

Thanks.

[Tricky]

Question for those who's done this with a 5d2: If you micro adjust different lens with the camera, and achieve different "scores" for each lens, does the camera remember to apply the same adjustment to that lens everytime you put it on?

Thanks.

I think the micro-adjust feature is the same for the 5D2 and 7D. Assuming it is, then the answer to your question is yes. You start by choosing an option in the microadjust menu to either apply an adjustment factor globally to all lenses OR to apply a microadjust factor for each individual lens. Sounds like you've already found this option, as you've reached different scores with different lenses.

Once each of your lenses has been adjusted, then your 5D2 will recognise when you attach (say) a 24-70 and remember the last microadjust setting for that lens. If you change the lens and attach (say) a 70-200, it will again remember the last microadjust setting for that particularl lens. I think your 5D2 can remember something like 20 lenses. It can even tell the difference between say a 70-200 and a 70-200 with a 1.4x converter.

What I don't know is if your 5D2 will be able to tell the difference between two identical model (say) 24-70 lenses - ie will it give both the same microadjust setting, or can it recognise two separate lenses of the same model? I'm assuming this isn't what you were asking - ie it would be unusual to have two of the same lens :)

[arubaato]

Thanks Tricky.

re your last point, I've only got one of each lens I have (which is normal :)) but when I get a chance I'll borrow someone's same lens and give it a try.

[adilucca]

I tried using a printed chart that had to be held at an angle but it didn't seem to work very well. I'll try this method.

Cheers
Alan

[MrTypeR]

i tried doing this... but i couldnt see any changes really.. so i left both my lenses at 0

[etherial]

Thanks Richard for posting this. I have been meaning to sit down and do it for a while and haven't had a chance. While away on my trip feild experiments made me think my 70-200 was front focusing and made an adjustment of +15 in the field. I know that sounds pretty extreme but it seemed to work.

Tonight I tried many different methods I found from your links and other searches. I couldn't really get the fancy pattern ones to work for me. I then found one listed near the bottom of one of the links you had. I traced it back to this thread where it is decribed in detail:

http://www.birdphotographers.net/forums/showthread.php?t=58042

I found this really worked for me, I found it easy to follow and I am happy with the results. I ended up with an adjustment of +10 on the 70-200 lens which confirmed my suspicions.

Those having trouble mastering other techniques, try this one. One point though, the autofocus didn't work for me by setting quick mode. Easy way around it though, just close the live view and hover on the shutter button in the window and you will see you camera focus and lock in. Then just hit live view and follow from there.

[etherial]

Wow what can I say. I just repeated at 100mm on my 70-200 and it was much worse. Found that it needs an adjustment of +20!!!

An easy way to sanity check is to set up the camera on a tripod and take an image at -20, -10, 0, +10 and +20 and them compare them side by side. WOW! No wonder my images were soft!

Tomorrow I will do another lens and see if it is a common issue to the body or the lens. The combo I have tested tonight is a 3 month old body and a 2 month old lens. Not real impressed, but at least I can adjust. Then I have to decide if it is worth the hassle of getting Canon to look at it all. *sigh*:(

[Riverlander]

I tried a few methods of working out what adjustment was needed for each of my lenses, but in the end I settled for the beer cans method!
I set up 5 cans so that they are at an angle AND so that they fill the frame with each individual lens at the setting, and distance, I use most of the time. This obviously involves moving the cans further apart (or closer) and changing the angle of the board.
I then check where the focus is (it should be on the letter U in the middle of the frame) and adjust accordingly.
Attached is a sample taken as a JPEG this morning with my Sigma 120-300 @ 300mm plus a Sigma 2x tleconverter to give 600mm. It was taken at f/11, 1/800 sec and about 6 metres away. It has only been re-sized.
I generally start with full cold cans, and if it is not too windy they seem to empty themselves as the process progresses! Coca-Cola does not owrk......

[kaiser]

Wow what can I say. I just repeated at 100mm on my 70-200 and it was much worse. Found that it needs an adjustment of +20!!!

An easy way to sanity check is to set up the camera on a tripod and take an image at -20, -10, 0, +10 and +20 and them compare them side by side. WOW! No wonder my images were soft!

Tomorrow I will do another lens and see if it is a common issue to the body or the lens. The combo I have tested tonight is a 3 month old body and a 2 month old lens. Not real impressed, but at least I can adjust. Then I have to decide if it is worth the hassle of getting Canon to look at it all. *sigh*:(

My concern is that if you have found it to be best at an adjustment of +20 - who's to say that there is room for even more imporvement and it may need an (albeit non-existing) adjsutment of +25....+30? Frankly I'm not too impressed that >$1500 pro lenses and bodies need so much "fine tuning".

[etherial]

My concern is that if you have found it to be best at an adjustment of +20 - who's to say that there is room for even more imporvement and it may need an (albeit non-existing) adjsutment of +25....+30? Frankly I'm not too impressed that >$1500 pro lenses and bodies need so much "fine tuning".

Couldn't agree more!

[Art Vandelay]

Bit of an old thread, but just wondering how you got on with this ?

[Lazyshooter]

I know this is quite an old thread but certainly an important one I think. I have a 50 mm f1.4 lens which I bought when I was using a D40. On that the D40 I really liked this lens but when I bought a D7000 I was not pleased with the results. Recently I adjusted the autofocus for this lens and now it is working very nicely. It needed an adjustment of -15 which explains why I was not happy with this lens on the D7000, every photo was out of focus when using wide apertures! From what I understand, there can be camera to camera variation which may partly explain why it worked nicely on the D40 but not the D7000. Also, the higher resolution of the D7000 is certainly going to show up poor focusing to a greater degree than the D40.

Anyway, don't be lazy and micro-adjust if you suspect a lens is not autofocusing correctly. If my experience is anything to go by, it is worth the little effort required.

[Duane Pipe]

Good subject Tricky. Thanks for reviving it Lazy. I have had a go at my 7d but that was a long time ago, I must come back to this thread:th3:

[fishographer]

Just found this thread after doing a search, was going to ask the question but did a search first just in case :th3:, checked my lenses, Tokina 11-16 as spot on at every focal length but the 50mm 1.4 needed +10 of adjustment, now to see how much difference it has made in real world shooting.

[CarlR]

My camera (Nikon D5000) doesn't have the user adjustment in the menu. Having pulled my hair out with my 70-200mm f2.8. I dropped it in to the local Nikon service agent for adjustment.

There is about a week turn around time, so I'll let you know the results.

[CarlR]

Managed to pick up my camera and lenses from the local Nikon service agent.

Service report stated that the body was back focussing and need adjustment. My 24-70 also required calibration.

A quick test shot looked like it is now spot on.