Lens Align.
- This topic has 3 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated Aug 3, 2013 at 3:53 am by
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This product should be of interest to any of you using cameras with a micro focus adjustment feature.
http://michaeltapesdesign.com/lensalign.htmlI just got the MkII and it’s made the process of lens calibration a breeze !
Macro lens calibration in particular is very quick and accurate.
IMHO $80 well spent if you need critical focus with fast lenses or macro stuff – also peace of mind for any AF general shooting.For those that don’t know what micro focus adjustment is about –
It’s a function in some newer cameras that allows you to compensate for any alignment issues in camera and lens manufacture.
Any problems show as consistent front or back focusing.
A lot of lens/camera combinations are fine, and a lot of the adjustments you make are also only very slight, but I’ve yet to test a lens that didn’t get better in terms of accuracy with a little tweak.
Before this feature was common a lot of people talked of certain ‘copies’ of lenses being better then others, but most of these issues are now fixed with calibration.
Some of the lenses I’ve had went from average to awesome when I updated to newer cameras with AF adjust.
One example was a 135 f2 L that I always found hit & miss with focus when wide open – it ended up taking the max adjustment and became dead accurate and super sharp.
On the Nikon stuff, I’ve found that all my lenses take around -5 to -8 adjustment witch would suggest the body is a little out.
I’m yet to calibrate everything with the new D7100, but after I will be able to confirm if that’s true or not.www.dsaphoto.com
A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.
Thanks David. Your post is very timely – I was just reading up on micro adjustment last night and decided that I need to have a play with it for each of my lenses.
In the Nikon system, this addresses issues where both body and lens are within manufacturing tolerances but the combined error doesn’t cancel out. While Nikon does not disclose the amount of adjustment, it is estimated at a couple/few microns per adjustment value. My telephotos all have a + or – 5 or so adjustment, however, the addition of a TC can take the adjustment value to the extremes. I think the process is worth the effort on telephotos and one should retest just before a big trip.
One issue with the process is that “internet intelligence” has evolved on this issue to the point where if a body needs more than a few points on all of a persons lenses, the body is deemed defective and Nikon warranty repair should be requested. Why perfect focus at a + or – 15 is somehow less in focus than perfect focus at + or- 2 is something of a mystery.
One issue with the process is that “internet intelligence” has evolved on this issue to the point where if a body needs more than a few points on all of a persons lenses, the body is deemed defective and Nikon warranty repair should be requested. Why perfect focus at a + or – 15 is somehow less in focus than perfect focus at + or- 2 is something of a mystery.
In my experience with Canon and now Nikon, I can say with 100% certainty that the amount of adjustment has nothing to do with lens quality.
“Internet intelligence” IMHO has a lot to answer for.. lol
www.dsaphoto.com
A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.
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