Nature Photography How To

Attaining fast and precise focus is a prime goal for all types of photography, and there’s more to it than you may think. If your images aren’t consistently sharp, you’ve come to the right place today.

If you’re struggling with this essential task, it’s important to determine the specific problem before you can fix it. Are your images soft overall? Do you have difficulty getting the camera to quickly lock on to a subject? Or perhaps the sharp portion of the frame isn’t where you want it.

The tutorial below from Canadian wildlife/nature photographer Simon d’Entremont will enable you to diagnose these problems and more in barely eight minutes. Of course that’s only half the problem, and Simon also explains several methods for getting things right.

After identifying and solving your specific focus issues Simon also explains how to fine-tune camera settings and shooting techniques to make sure you nail every shot in the future. You’ll also see several really crisp images that benefit from his foolproof approach.

Simon begins with a discussion of the camera technology responsible for autofocus, which makes it easier to understand what follows. He also explains the distinctions between DSLRs and mirrorless cameras as pertains to achieving critical focus exactly where you want it.

Issue number one is making sure your camera settings are correct for the specific task at hand, and Simon provides a quick rundown. You’ll learn when it’s best to use One-Shot or Continuous AF, depending upon the subject and whether it’s stationary or in motion.

Another important consideration has to do with the level of contrast in a scene, and the necessary steps for low-contrast situations. Simon also describes how to deal with several other difficult conditions, like shooting in low light and when a subject is backlit.

Pay close attention because you’ll learn how to mitigate a wide variety of focusing problems and make them a thing of the past. You can find more helpful tutorials like this by visiting d’Entremont’s instructional YouTube channel.

Now that your focusing issues are resolved, we suggest you check out another tutorial we posted—explaining the best exposure modes to use when shooting different types of outdoor photos.