First photos with my new AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED

I got my new AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED lens yesterday in time to try to shoot the Perseid meteor shower with it. I went out last night to a spot east of Apache Junction, Arizona, with the Arizona Night Photography group from meetup.com. There were quite a few people there; on the website 77 people said they'd be there.

Arizona Night Photography group
Perseid Meteor Shower 2016

The spot had pretty good levels of light pollution even that close to Phoenix. Unfortunately the moon didn't set until about 1AM. Not that it mattered, we didn't really see much of a concentration of meteors. I was there from about 6:30 PM to about 2:30 AM and probably only saw about 20 meteors or shooting stars. A couple were pretty bright but for the most part it was the same as my previous meteor shower outings - pretty underwhelming. I was bummed because this was being touted as the best event of 2016.

This outing worked like my others (I've tried to shoot Perseid and Geminid showers in the past). I'd see a meteor to my left so I'd point the camera that direction and take a number of shots. While doing that I'd see a meteor to my right so I'd recompose. A gal I met last night likened shooting meteors to shooting whales. You never really know where they're going to show until they're already gone. 

If there was truly a concentrated emanation point it might be different. But I haven't experienced that myself.

I still tried to get some shots with my new lens, even if they weren't including any meteors. I really wanted to see how it worked.

The bottom line is that I think the lens works great, at least compared to my AF-S NIKKOR 16-35mm f/4G ED VR. But I still had the same problems using it.

Moon Glow
20mm - f/2.0 - 2.0 sec - ISO 400

I shot 70 images but only got a few that were in focus. I really have a hard time focusing in the dark. The best subject was the moon but that was only good for the distant subjects such as stars. I was able to do that okay and I think the focus is pretty good. I like that I could use a lot shorter exposure time due to the faster (larger diameter) aperture. 

The image at right was shot with my Nikon D610 and the Nikkor 20mm at f/2.0 and ISO 400. I did crop it because the rest of the foreground at the bottom was out of focus.

The larger aperture diameter also reduces depth of field and it really came in to play. I was hoping that the larger aperture would allow me to focus easier since I thought I'd be able to view the subject better, either through the view finder or in live view. It didn't seem to make much improvement over the 16-35mm for me, however. I still struggled to focus.

I tried auto focus too but it was worse than manual focus. 

Focal Plane Example
20mm - f/1.8 - 8.0 sec - ISO 500

I shot this capture of a cactus but you can clearly see that the focus plane runs somewhere through the middle of the cactus. Some of the needles in the upper "crotch"  of the cactus are in focus as are some of the "blooms" on the ground. This image doesn't have any post processing done to it so you can also see the other artifacts.

So even though I shot a few pics, I don't have much to show for it due to my focus problems. I just couldn't focus on close objects. (The problem was not due to auto focus changing the focus when I shot the photograph - I had the auto focus turned off OR I used back button focus - focus doesn't change unless I want it to.)

If I hadn't been with the group of people trying to shoot night photographs I would have lit up the subjects with a flashlight while focusing.

Beyond that problem, which is with my technique or abilities and not that of the lens (since a few images were in focus), I had heard that the coma was really good in this lens. I know I've had issues with coma in my 16-35mm but this lens is a lot better behaved, probably due to the aspherical elements is my guess. And because this is a prime instead of a zoom.

Here's a pic with a bit of exposure adjustment but you can see the coma in a number of places in the corners. It's not bad. I haven't done it myself but I recently watched a YouTube of a photog who edits the stars that have bad coma, I think it was in Photoshop, and he'd just apply a round mask to the offending stars and get rid of the coma shapes.

Coma Example
20mm - f/1.8 - 8.0 sec - ISO 1000

I'm pleased with the lens so far and can't wait to put it through some more paces.

As for the outing, when I left the appointed location I travelled over to the Superstition Mountains to see if it was any better. It was sort of on the way home and allowed me to wait until a bit later. I got there around 3 AM. I got out of my Explorer, waited maybe 15 minutes but didn't see another meteor so headed home. 

I haven't been out much this year due to my health issues and this little shoot was very pleasant. The air temperature cooled after about 11 PM, maybe to 85 degrees F or so. Just sitting out under the sky, seeing part of the Milky Way with my own eyes, was simply wonderful. I got to meet a couple of gals who are knowledgeable about photography (both shooting full frame Sony A7 and A7R) and was able to talk to them for hours about camera gear and post processing. I don't care if I didn't get any good meteor images - I got a lot of pleasure!

Unboxing my new AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED!

My new AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED lens arrived this morning, thanks Adorama! I'm going out tonight to try shooting the Perseid meteor shower with it, near Globe, Arizona. I'm meeting up with a Night Photography group from Meetup.com. I'm anxious to meet the other night oriented photographers and hopefully get some tips.

In the meantime, I don't have anything to report yet about the lens so I thought I'd post the always loved "unboxing" photos that I shot with my iPhone. Here you go:

My new AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED is on it's way!

Today is August 11, 2016. Tonight is supposed to be the peak of the Perseid meteor shower and it is predicted to be the best event for quite a few years (the next event estimated to be as good will be in 2099 - I don't know if I'll make it or not). 

It seems like just yesterday that I got my AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR. In fact, it was May 3, 2016. Due to my never ending health issues this year, I think I've shot maybe a couple of dozen images with it. 

AF-S Nikkor 20mm f/1.8G

And yet here I am ordering another lens. This time I'm adding the AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED. I am planning to go out tomorrow evening to use it to shoot some night sky and hopefully capture some of the meteors!

This lens has a much faster aperture than my other wide angle lens, the AF-S NIKKOR 16-35mm f/4G ED VR. I'm using that excuse to add another lens with a focal length that I already have, which I've been avoiding until this point.

Plus, this is a prime, for what that's worth.

I have not been completely unhappy with my 16-35mm f/4 for night skies, but I really got good results last year at the Grand Canyon National Park - North Rim when I used my very cheap AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D. That lens is pretty cool since it DOES have a physical focus stop at infinity; you run the focus into the stop and it's focused at infinity. Not beyond.

My 16-35 will continue to be useful, I imagine, for shots with more light and where I want to have more ability to compose with the zoom. I am planning to visit Yosemite National Park this September and I believe I will have a use for both of these lenses. I'm anxious to give it a try and will post more findings when I do.

Another part of my pleasure with that lens was the aperture. What I don't like about the 50mm f/1.8D is that it is a bit narrow. I'm hoping to get the benefits of a wide, prime lens to make up for it.

This lens doesn't have a stop at infinity focus but neither does my 16-35mm so I'm kind of used to it. It just means you need to address focusing in the dark some how (or pre-focusing the lens before it gets dark).

Similar to my 50mm, this lens doesn't have any VR (Nikon for Vibration Reduction). That seems weird when paying this much for a lens (about $800 from Adorama.com). But, that means there's no VR functionality to go bad either. 

The lens is one of the Nikkor "Gold Stripe" lenses, which they appear to put on lenses with the "Nano Crystal Coat", indicated by the "N" with the gold background. 

I've read a good number of reviews for this and some other lenses and the worst review I saw was from Thom Hogan - and it was still good. He just had a bit more detail about it's weaknesses. I don't see how I can go wrong with it - unless illness continues to keep me home bound!

Initial Review of Wacom Intuos Photo - Small

My wife got me this new gadget for my birthday. I have been wanting to try one, especially since seeing videos with Elia Locardi and how he claims to get his post processing done faster than with a mouse.

It does make sense to me, using a tablet rather than a mouse for drawing (including using brushes in Photoshop or Lightroom). I must have "hinted" as much since one showed up for my birthday this year!

My wife wasn't sure if I'd like it, or which one to get, and ended up getting me the Intuos Photo - Small, with the idea that I could keep it or exchange it if desired. I had no idea either which one to get. I know Elia is probably using their most expensive version since he's a Wacom ambassador.

I've had it about a week now, and have probably used it for 20 hours or so including a good 6 hour stretch working on a single image just to try different edits with it.. Here's what I think of it so far...

Small is the right size

I've been reading a lot of reviews and tips regarding the tablet, as well as watching YouTubes (phlearn has a couple of nice intro YouTubes). One thing I saw over and over was other people saying the small was the best size. I was surprised, as an American, because doesn't bigger mean better? Well, in this case, I don't think so. For me, and the other photography post processors that wrote opinions, small is better for a couple of big reasons.

First is the desk space. I don't have a huge desk top to put a big tablet on, especially if you orient it in front of the keyboard like a lot of the pictures you see. I have mine to the right of my keyboard (I'm right handed), and have enough space for it, my two monitors, keyboard, cup of coffee, and cup of pens and pencils. My desktop isn't crowded but with the larger size it would start feeling cluttered I think.

The second reason that people like the small size is because it works different than a mouse. With a mouse you typically have your wrist resting and scroll the cursor by dragging the mouse as far as you can without lifting your wrist, picking the mouse up and re-positioning it and then scrolling some more. Most mouse movements are accomplished without a lot of movement. The table works differently.

The tablet represents the surface area of your monitor. And if you have two monitors, the surface of both monitors is represented. To click something in the lower left corner means you position the pen at the lower left corner of the tablet. Then to click something in the upper right corner you must physically move the pen to the upper right corner of the tablet. Even with the small tablet you still must move your hand farther than with a mouse; you can't leave your wrist at the same place and do a series of scroll movements.

With the larger tablets you're moving your hand even farther. After a bit that gets tiring or annoying (I'm guessing somewhat - I have the small).

On the other hand, if you're doing actual drawing or graphic design work, which I don't, people say that the larger size is better for that. 

Set up and Installation

Wacom Tablet Properties

The tablet is pretty easy to install. It comes with a CD or DVD of their software applications. One application is their "Wacom Desktop Center" which allows you to get and install updates, visit their store, etc. The other application is the "Wacom Tablet Properties" dialog which is where you configure the tablet.

The configuration is fairly straight forward. This tablet has four configurable soft keys on the upper corners that you can assign. The pen has a couple of switches on it that you can also assign.

I went to their website, registered my unit, and downloaded the software directly instead of using the included media, as a lot of other folks mentioned. By installing that version you'll be up to date and will likely save the time of installing off of the CD just to find out you need to download the most recent version anyway.

The unit also came with some other Corel software that you can download but I doubt if I'll use it. It also has a coupon for some free prints which I might use, but the software wasn't why I wanted the tablet. If you're already using Photoshop or Lightroom the Corel software probably won't be very valuable.

The one issue I had was that once the table was hooked up (this unit is a wired USB version but you can add wireless  functionality for about $40), my Windows 7 operating system installed it's own tablet drivers and the operation was strange until I uninstalled the Windows drivers.

As I mentioned, this unit comes as a wired device. For my desktop configuration I don't think the upgrade to the wireless system provides any benefit so I doubt that I'll get the wireless kit. I like that it's available and that I didn't have to pay for that up front if I don't need it.

The Tablet and Pen

The tablet is well built, in my opinion. This version only costs about $100 or less so keep that in mind. It's not terribly heavy but it's feet are grippy enough so that it doesn't move around on my oak desktop. There is a cover on the bottom that hides extra pen nibs and has the cavities for installing the wireless unit and battery. They imprinted information too so you know what the various areas are for. The tablet comes with a locking cable attachment too!

There is a small LED on the top that lets you know it's connected. The LED shines brighter when it's working too, which is kind of nice. As mentioned before, there are two soft keys in each corner. I am still working on getting used to using them but they work. When you click on one of them a display pops up at the top of my main monitor letting me know what's assigned to the keys.

The pen is where I have an issue. There are two switches on it, one of which a lot of people recommend setting up as a "right click", which I did. When you use the tablet instead of a mouse you'll find you want that right click, for example to right click on an image file to select opening it with Photoshop. 

The pen that comes with this unit is hard plastic. It spins in your hand causing the switches to rotate. And, when the switches are where you want them (I've been pushing them with my thumb), it still feels akward. When I push on the switches it causes me to move the pen tip. Plus, it's very difficult to tell by touch which switch you're pusing on. I wish they had a bigger gap between the pen switches as well as a bump on one of the switches so you could identify them by touch easier.

I saw someone else post a tip where he added some gummy pencil grips to help. I have done that too. The gummy type work good because they stretch and are easy to trim. You'll want to trim them so they don't cover up the switches. I put a full size one on the upper end of the pen so that it rests where the pen lays in my hand. This tip helped a lot but I still find the pen akward. It doesn't feel natural or like a writing implement I would choose for anything else. But it's now more usable since it doesn't spin around. One more note - I wish I had grips that were not round so that when I lay the pen down it doesn't roll away.

So how does it work?

Again, I don't have a lot of time with it. I did work on an image for quite a while yesterday, watching YouTubes regarding configuring Photoshop brushes to be controlled by the pressure sensitivity. I'm still learning that aspect. 

What I can say, however, is that using the tablet is certainly different than using a mouse. I put my mouse up and am trying to get to where all I use is the tablet. It's hard to do certain things and I may not keep up this practice. I find it hard to copy and paste text. Even though I have a pen button set for a right click, I have a lot of problems with it. I configured one of the tablet soft keys to use as a right click and I have better luck with it. That alone is about enough to make me not want to use this as my sole pointing device but I'll keep working with it.

I also find it harder to pick up the pen and use it than reaching for a mouse. I don't know where to put the pen when I lay it down, for example to type. My desk is level but still the pen seems to roll away, like next to the keyboard, and then it takes more effort to dig it out than a mouse sitting patiently waiting for me grip it again.

The tablet supports various gestures similar to a laptop touch pad. I don't use a laptop so I'm not very familiar with that. I'm learning that and sometimes it's easier to use that way than using the pen. This is especially true if the pen has wandered away. Note that I generally have very little light on in my studio room and the unit is black - it can hide pretty easily!

One of the options the tablet has is to configure the mapping of the tablet to your monitors. I have mine set up to be "proportional" - the relative size of my two monitors is mapped to the tablet which means I'm not using the full surface of the tablet. I like that set up so far. You can even map into a smaller area to reduce your hand movements even more.

On the other hand, regarding actual post processing, Iike it better than a mouse. On the image below I used the brush to darken and add contrast to the clouds and the small hills in the background. You can see what is happening on screen as you draw with the pen, including how the pressure affects the size of the brush. It was much easier to draw along the hills than with a mouse. I used a brush to do some dodging and burning, and again, I really like how the pen works for that over a mouse. 

I can see that the drawing part of post processing is better. I just have problems with other controls, especially with cropping. But I'm willing to try to learn that. And, if you have the room on your desktop, there's no reason you can't have the mouse and tablet both hooked up. I have a feeling that I'll end up using that configuration. 

The bottom line for me after about a week is that I really like the unit for working with brushes in Photoshop (I haven't tried using Lightroom with it yet) but I find the other actions (copy and paste, right click, etc.) more difficult.

Photograph of Tucson, Arizona
Edited with the Wacom Intuos Photo - Small

My Photography Bug

This has not been a good year for me health-wise. 

I started in January by losing a bit of eye-sight in my left eye. It's not permanent but it's so minor that the doctor's won't operate on it. The bad thing is that the default is right in the center of my vision. It really bothers me to read because I can only see about 2-3 letters of a word with my left eye. The good thing is that I use my right eye to look through the view finder of my DSLRs.

Then I started having sinus issues (well, I started those the previous November or December, they just got significantly worse starting in January. I went through various treatments with my allergist, then through 2 surgeries from my E.N.T. I just met with him again this last Monday and he's saying I may need a third surgery. Hooray, a surgery every 2 months! This has been the most traumatic issue - it's kept me from getting outdoors with my DSLR other than maybe half a dozen days for the first 7 months of the year. And, I just bought a new lens shortly before this last go-around. I've maybe taken 25 images with that $1,400 lens!

I had to have a dental crown installed. During the course of that I got lockjaw that prevented me from opening my mouth far enough to eat a sandwich. I couldn't get my index finger into my mouth. And, it made it painful to sneeze which my allergies tried to ruthlessly impose. I underwent about 5 weeks of physical therapy to resolve that issue.

Overall I've had maybe 5 weeks in 7 months where I haven't felt pretty crappy and missing work.

What I have realized, however, is that the photography bug is even more powerful than my other bugs. All I've though about is how depressing it is to not be out in the wilderness, even to the extent that I do it, and to not being taking photographs. And, I've thought about how important it has become to me to get outdoors and to try to shoot photographs since starting this hobby 3 years ago. I am very pleased with what this hobby has done for me. I had not been getting outdoors much for quite a few years before picking this photography hobby up.

And now, as August is just around the corner, I have made reservations to visit Yosemite National Park for the first time at the beginning of September. Barring another surgery, I am looking forward to the trip very much - to the exclusion of most other things! I know it's not the best time of year to go - I'd actually hoped to get out there in the spring - but I don't care now. Even if it's not the best time of year for photography I can enjoy the park and scout out photography locations. 

Don't get me wrong - I'm sure I'll still take a photograph or two. But since it's only about a 10 hour drive, there's no reason I can't get over there more. I just hope I don't have any other bugs that prevent me from going!

AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR Review - Part 2

Well, I finally got out and shot a few frames with my new AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR lens today! As promised, I'll post a bit of a review with some of my thoughts and experiences using it...

Note that in all of the photographs below I had the VR (Vibration Reduction) off since I was shooting from a tripod.

Nikkor 200-500mm f/5.6E

The Physical World

If you've read anything about the lens you've probably heard it's heavy and big. I certainly don't have anything else like it.

It's weird mounting the camera to it. The lens is heavier than the Nikon D610 (I haven't tried it on my Nikon D3200 yet). I had the lens sitting face down in the bag I'm using to carry it (an Amazon Basics Camera Backpack, which it about fills up). I mate the D610 to the lens and rotate the camera.

I carry the system by either the lens or the tripod mount on the lens.

When I get the lens mounted in my Manfrotto 468MGRC5 Hydrostatic Ball Head sitting on top of my Manfrotto 055XPROB tripod, it is solid. This ball head is paying off now! It's weight capacity of 26 pounds (12 kg) is really not being stressed and the ball head holds the system. The lens (~ 5 pounds) plus D610 (~ 1.6 pounds) is less than 7 pounds total (even with 2 SD cards!).

I did increase the "Friction" setting of the ball head to reduce the amount of play in the head when I loosened it - with that amount of weight the lens does tend to want to sag more. But when the "Friction" is set right, I find that the camera and lens are pretty well balanced. I had no problems at all. I did need to crank on the main knob more than with my other lenses to prevent the lens from drooping after letting go but once you realize that it was no big deal. I don't see a lot of love for this ball head but I sure like it.

Dolly Steamboat on Canyon Lake
Nikon D610 + Nikkor 200-500mm - ISO 100 ■ 500mm ■ f/7.1 ■ 1/160s

Increase the Shutter Release Delay

I didn't get out my IR remote shutter release and instead just used the delay on the manual shutter release button. I noticed by looking through the view finder, however, that when I pressed the shutter release, the camera wobbled more than with my other lenses. I changed the delay from 2 seconds to 5 seconds to compensate - letting the camera settle down before releasing the shutter. I didn't notice the issue in my photographs so maybe it was actually still within the 2 seconds but since I was shooting a lake and desert hills, I felt the extra 3 seconds before the shutter release wouldn't hurt.

Using the wireless remote would probably work fine, unless it's windy. There was some breeze at the lake (Canyon Lake near Apache Junction, AZ), but not enough to visibly affect the camera. I didn't try cranking down harder on the ball head either - that's a chore for next time I guess.

Nikon D610 + Nikkor 200-500mm f/5.6E
ISO 100 ■ 500mm ■ f/7.1 ■ 1/125s

Auto Focus

As I mentioned in a recent post, I use back button focus. I didn't have any issues using that with the shots I took. It didn't hunt around at all. It acquired focus with no questions asked and it appears to be pretty good. Granted it was a sunny, 97 degree Fahrenheit day in Arizona. I used an aperture of f/7.1 just to get off of the f/5.6 and to get a bit more depth of field.

How's the Focal Length?

I didn't get a chance to shoot any wildlife so I can't comment on that directly. What I can say is that from the Acacia picnic area I wanted to shoot the opening across the lake where the Salt River continues down stream. I couldn't get it all in the frame at 200mm. It made me wonder if the Sigma or Tamron with that extra 50mm at the short end would have allowed me to get the shot.

Nikon D610 + Nikkor 200-500mm f/5.6E
ISO 100 ■ 200mm ■ f/7.1 ■ 1/160s

Instead, I was able to compose the shot with the sheer wall on the right which is interesting.

In the photograph to the left I've purposefully left the full frame even though the water line isn't horizontal. I wanted to show the difference between the 200mm and 500mm focal length. This is the full image (okay, reduced to a max of 2040px wide for the web).

I did use some post processing in Lightroom, and did increase clarity as well as sharpening - just using Lightroom.

Here's a shot of those mountain peaks at 500mm, from the same location (I didn't move the tripod, just zoomed in to the 500mm focal length).

Nikon D610 + Nikkor 200-500mm f/5.6E
ISO 100 ■ 500mm ■ f/7.1 ■ 1/200s

I know these aren't great pictures; no one is likely to hang these on their living room wall. That's not the point. I wanted to see how the lens performed and how that 500mm could come in handy. I think I see opportunity here. I've shot landscapes in the past where I wish I could fill up more of the frame with a mountain, for example (like Humphreys Peak near Flagstaff, Arizona). This worked pretty good!

Basically, with a 200-500mm zoom, you should be able to increase the size of the subject by 2.5 times.

Lesson Learned - Update your Camera

One thing I figured out was that I needed to update my camera firmware. When I opened my files in Lightroom it didn't find the lens profile (well, I found out I also had to update Lightroom CC - it wasn't using the latest version of Adobe Camera Raw).

When I looked at the properties of the NEF files the lens information was missing.

I remembered that I'd seen updates to the camera firmware but hadn't bothered with them because I my lenses were already supported. This Nikkor 200-500mm only came out less than a year ago, though, and my cameras didn't know about it. I updated the Distortion Control software on my D610 but on the D3200 I had to do the Firmware and the Distortion Control software.

Now things are cookin'!

The Bottom Line

I'm happy so far with the lens - I think I'll keep it. I really wanted to try it to see if I liked it or whether I should send it back to Adorama but it looks like it's part of my bag now. I just wish it fit in the bag!

Another set of 200mm and 500mm shots for you to ponder. These don't have much processing at all and they both have the same processing. I just think it's interesting to see the difference in composition at both ends of the lens.

Nikon D610 + Nikkor 200-500mm f/5.6E
ISO 100 ■ 200mm ■ f/7.1 ■ 1/200s

Nikon D610 + Nikkor 200-500mm f/5.6E
ISO 100 ■ 500mm ■ f/7.1 ■ 1/250s

A short post about Back Button Focus

I am mainly a landscape photographer. My subjects don't often move around much. Consequently, for some time now, when I use auto focus, I've been using "Back Button Focus" on my Nikon D610. I think I've been using it since shortly after getting the D610. I like it.

Hey - why use Back Button Focus?

Most DSLRs (Digital Single Lens Reflex), as far as I know, allow you to press the shutter release half-way down so that the camera can focus on whatever is in it's cross hairs. Note that different cameras and different modes can cause the camera to focus at different areas of the image. I typically use a single focus and metering point so that's what I'll assume here.

When you press the shutter release half-way down and the camera locks in on the focus, you can then move the camera while still holding the shutter release half-way down in order to recompose your shot. For example you might focus on your significant other in the center of the shot and then pan a bit to get more of the Grand Canyon. Once you have the composition you like, you can press the shutter release the rest of the way to take the photograph.

That is pretty convenient, allowing the camera to focus on one thing and then to re-compose the shot after the camera has gained it's focus.

One problem with that technique, however, is that you have to keep the shutter release depressed half way in order to preserve that focus setting. If your finger slips off of the button you have to start all over. So what if you've panned a bit and then someone else steps into your shot? If you want to wait for them to leave, you've got to keep that button held down. 

In landscape photography I often want to focus on something, say a cactus in the foreground, and then re-compose. I may want to try 20 different compositions. And, I use a tripod for almost every shot I take (at least if I want them to turn out I do). Using the "normal" half-pressed shutter release can be a pain in the rear end (so can sitting on cactus).

Another issue with the "normal" focus is if you want to avoid camera shake due to the shutter release, for example if you use a remote release. If you have to hold the shutter release down part way and then trigger the shutter release it can cause unwanted vibration or motion into the camera.

This is where back button focus can help out...

What is Back Button Focus?

Back Button Focus allows you to configure a button on the back of the camera to use as a focus lock. It basically takes the place of the half-press action of the main shutter release button. You move your focus point(s) onto the subject as normal but instead of pressing the main shutter release button half-way to engage the auto-focus, you press the button on the back of the camera. Then, you can let go of that button - the focus will still be locked in. It won't change again until you press that back button again.

The cool thing about this is that you don't have to keep your finger on the button. The camera can even go to "sleep" - the focus of the lens won't be changed.

You can focus on your subject and take multiple images with different compositions and you won't need to focus on the subject again unless it moves. This is great for landscape photography where you can focus on a foreground object and as long as your camera doesn't move much (less than the depth of field) you can recompose without focusing for each shot. There is less time between each shot.

I use manual focus a lot too, but I still often will start with a press of the back button to get the lens either right where I want it or at least close and then I may focus slightly different for one reason or another.

Nikon D610 Back (Official Nikon Image)

How can I set up Back Button Focus?

Most DSLR cameras, at some level above the basic level, have a way to program one of the BUTTONs on the BACK of the camera to work as a FOCUS button. In the case of my D610, I use the "AE-L/AF-L" button, to the left of the rear thumb wheel.

You can usually find out how to set it up by doing a search on the web if your camera instruction manual doesn't outline it (or if you can't figure it out from your camera manual). Here's an example for the Nikon D610 Back Button Focus setup. 

Anything more you can tell me about this?

Luna the Barn Owl - most of him anyway

This subject is on my mind because of my outing at Arizona's Raptor Experience last weekend. I shot a number of images like this one - see anything wrong with it? When I got home I found a number of shots where the feet were cut off.

The problem was, I realized and figured out after shooting 400 pictures of raptors, was that I was setting my focus point on the bird's eye, using the back button focus, and not re-composing or even noticing that I was cutting off the toes of these fine feathered friends. 

I'll admit, it was a little nerve wracking at the shoot. I suppose the more you do it the better you get. But I was paying $190 for the trip to shoot the birds and that added some pressure. I rarely shoot animals successfully and that added more pressure. And the pressure prevented me from getting great shots. 

At one point, when we had some time with a flying hawk, I had to figure out how to get out of back button focus and to let the camera do it's job. Those photos turned out ever worse. I got zero usable shots of the hawk in flight.

My tip would be that, if you start using back button focus, it still is a good idea to practise the other auto focus modes of your camera if you have a chance. Especially if you know you're likely to be needing it at some point in the future.