AF Problems and the D200

[DarkDTSHD]

Have any of you D200 owners had an problems with the AF? Using any of the modes? Do you notice any drifting? (I read that the new Canon 40D might have it...then another forum member corrects that poster...saying it was the lens used...etc.).

In single-shot mode, if you select a particular AF point, will it stay put? For example, let's say you are taking a picture of your wife standing against a tree. And you want to select an AF point that is on your wife. Will it stay there till you've taken your shot?

Thanks.

[chris89]

depends on your settings. But in general: yes.

[DarkDTSHD]

What are you experiences in the othe AF modes such as Dynamic AF with Focus Tracking and Lock-on, Group Dynamic AF, and Closest Subject Priority Dynamic AF? Was the D200 spot on all the time?

Thanks.

[Webapprentice]

Maybe you should run an autofocus test?

http://regex.info/blog/photo-tech/focus-chart/

[DarkDTSHD]

Webapprentice wrote:

Maybe you should run an autofocus test?

http://regex.info/blog/photo-tech/focus-chart/

Thanks for the URL. I've bookmarked it. But, the reason I wask was not because I'm having troubles. Was just curious to hear about AF experiences of D200 owners using the different AF mdoes. That's it.

Have a good weekend!

[Webapprentice]

I have the D200, and I will say that on the 11-point setting on Aperture Priority, I do ocassionally get shots that didn't focus on the subject I thought I focused on. Something like 1 out of 20 shots seems to have AF problems, so I think it's either me or the subject and background did not have enough contrast, so the AF sensors targeted the wrong thing. The AF sensor "range" is actually quite wide, so if the subject spans more than one of them and is near another object, it's possible for the camera to focus on the wrong thing.

[DarkDTSHD]

Webapprentice wrote:

I have the D200, and I will say that on the 11-point setting on Aperture Priority, I do ocassionally get shots that didn't focus on the subject I thought I focused on. Something like 1 out of 20 shots seems to have AF problems, so I think it's either me or the subject and background did not have enough contrast, so the AF sensors targeted the wrong thing. The AF sensor "range" is actually quite wide, so if the subject spans more than one of them and is near another object, it's possible for the camera to focus on the wrong thing.

Thanks for your post. But since I posted the question. I've long since realized that AF, especially if you're using "dynamic AF", it's not perfect. Nor should any one expect it to be. On any DSLR. I guess the difference is with some brands/models you get better hits and a lot less misses.

1 out of 20 isn't bad. Even if you are on Av. What AF mode were you using? Dynamic AF?

Will be interesting to see how the D300/D3 does with their 51-point AF 3D Tracking technology. You'd assume it would help. More so than having only 11 AF points. Also because those 51 points are so close together...we'll see in December when the test reports come out.

Roughly two months and counting.

[Webapprentice]

I'm using single AF. Now that I think about it some more, the photos where the focus seemed off were the ones where my subject was moving a little and I was using single AF. I was trying to take a picture of this goose near some rocks. The goose wasn't travelling anywhere but it was moving its wings a little. I thought I focused on the bird's body, but the focus seemed to be on the rocks or the head. I was taking this at F11.

Again, it could be just me and not the camera itself.

[DarkDTSHD]

Webapprentice wrote:

I'm using single AF. Now that I think about it some more, the photos where the focus seemed off were the ones where my subject was moving a little and I was using single AF. I was trying to take a picture of this goose near some rocks. The goose wasn't travelling anywhere but it was moving its wings a little. I thought I focused on the bird's body, but the focus seemed to be on the rocks or the head. I was taking this at F11.

Again, it could be just me and not the camera itself.

Soundds like it wasn't the camera. It was probably the bird. You should have asked it to sit still.

Have you tried using Dynamic AF recently? How did that go?

[Webapprentice]

Surprisingly, I haven't. That's why I'm an amateur photographer. :roll: