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Archive 2013 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping

  
 
Gunzorro
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


I blame Jim Colwell.

I blame Jim because he is so conscientious in his record keeping and accurate in his facts.

When I read his data it reminds me what a lazy slacker I am! Ha-ha! (Thanks for setting the bar high, Jim!)

On a recent thread Jim made are remark about how low the spread of corrections is for his collection of lenses and bodies. This got me to thinking, because I know mine is greater than what he said, but I didn't have records (other than those stored in each camera) to refer to.

It also reminded me that after all the work I've put in to establish the MA corrections on several bodies, I had no external record. If anything were to happen to the memory of any body, I'd lose that information (with no external records, I'd had to redo all those tests once when a body was worked on by CPS). I'd been lax in sitting down with each body and mounted every lens and then handwriting the results.

I'm glad to now have the data externally, thanks to the indirect nudge from Jim.

My MA results reflect a large outlay of effort, because I determine my adjustments by real-life observations of subjects and many distances for each lens, from close-up to infinity, with many steps in between. I check at different zoom lengths as well, to get an average setting on these older bodies shown here. It is a labor intensive process, but when I'm done, I know I can confidently shoot at all distances under various lighting conditions.

My compiled results verified the estimated average for each camera that I had arrived at through my trial and error real life subject distances. I had estimated general MA correction for the 1Ds3 at +2 and the average of 15 lenses proved to be +1.8. The 5D2 estimate was -2 and the 15 lens average proved to be -2.06. The 1D3 estimate was +3 and the 15 lens average came to +3.4.

I also found each body has a different range of MA correction. The Extreme Spread (ES) between the highest and lowest setting for each camera was: 1Ds3 ES = 11, 5D2 ES = 12, and 1D3 ES = 7. So, the 1D3 had the tightest tolerance of focus, needing the least adjustment (not to be confused with "closest to zero").

Additional testing/rechecking may tighten the following numbers slightly, but there is enough data here in the camera-to-camera findings to be very interesting.

Hope this thread helps bring about more discussion and understanding of the MA adjustment feature. Please be kind enough to show your results and explain your process of arriving at those results. I'm sure this can be a very valuable thread for new and old forum members.

1Ds3 (average of 15 lenses = +1.8; ES = 11)
15FE 3
16-35II 3
24TSE 3
24-70 -2
24-105 0
28-135 -1
28-300 -2
28/2.8 8
35/2 0
40STM -1
45TSE 2
50L 5
50/2.5 8
90TSE 2
100L -1

5D2 (average of 15 lenses = -2.06; ES = 12)
15FE 0
16-35II -3
24TSE -3
24-70 -7
24-105 4
28-135 -4
28-300 0
28/2.8 0
35/2 0
40STM -6
45TSE -4
50L -7
50/2.5 0
90TSE -1
100L 0

1D3 (average of 15 lenses = +3.4; ES =7)
15FE 0
16-35II 5
24TSE 4
24-70 1
24-105 4
28-135 3
28-300 3
28/2.8 6
35/2 4
40STM 1
45TSE 3
50L 4
50/2.5 6
90TSE 5
100L 2





Mar 14, 2013 at 02:06 PM
jcolwell
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


Sorry.

Here's my results.

As Jim mentioned above, I recently finished doing AF microadjustment on my 1DX (31 lens/extender combinations), 1DIV (20), and 5DII (20). I use the Lens Align Mark II target with LiveView remote shooting controlled by EOS Utility on a notebook computer, connected via USB. It's a completely manual process that probably takes a bit longer to perform than some of the automated processes that are currently available, but I don't mind because I get to see and understand exactly what's going on. Besides, the time for changing setup between different cameras, lenses, and sometimes extenders takes far longer than the time to actually do the AFMA tests.

Of the total 71 tests I performed with three cameras, fourteen lenses, and two extenders, 36 results were 0 (zero), i.e. no AFMA adjustment, and only five individual combinations were outside the range of +/- 2: three were with my 135/2L (-5, -6, and -3), and the other two were with my 100-400L IS with 1.4x III (-3 and -3). None of these "moderate" adjustments between |2| and |6| were on the 1DX, for which the highest adjustment values were +2 and -2, and over half the 1DX conditions were zero.


P.S. Jim, how did you get AFMA values for TS-E lenses?







Mar 14, 2013 at 02:11 PM
Gunzorro
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


As I recall, I just entered the values (the lenses show up on the MA listings in each camera's custom function III-7), starting with the default setting for the camera body. It affects the focus confirm indicator/beep. I simply took some pictures (usually an object on a plane at an angle), then viewed on computer, made adjustment and repeated until focus indication was correct. But I know it sounds wrong for manual focus lenses. It may even show up for Zeiss ZE -- I don't have any more to test it out on. It is likely that any lens with focus confirm capability will show up in the MA list for making adjustments. Perhaps someone knows more about this. Sigma? Tamron? Voigtlander? Dunno.

Thanks taking the bait and showing your results! Much appreciated.

Edited on Mar 14, 2013 at 03:09 PM · View previous versions



Mar 14, 2013 at 03:07 PM
trueimage
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


wow, that table is great haha

pics of your test setup and all the lenses waiting in line fore testing? lol



Mar 14, 2013 at 03:09 PM
jcolwell
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping





Mar 14, 2013 at 03:11 PM
jcolwell
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


trueimage wrote:
wow, that table is great haha

pics of your test setup and all the lenses waiting in line fore testing? lol


I likes tables.








Edited on Mar 15, 2013 at 03:26 PM · View previous versions



Mar 14, 2013 at 03:13 PM
Gunzorro
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


So that's what a Canadian Thanksgiving looks like!


Mar 14, 2013 at 03:17 PM
trueimage
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


I like both of the tables in this thread I'm coming to visit when I'm back in NS

Can you explain the AF Steps / Average AF steps?




Mar 14, 2013 at 05:39 PM
jcolwell
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


An AF step is the minimum increment that the Canon AF system can make. That's what you change when you look at an AFMA test image. With the Lens Align II and similar targets that have an inclined measurement surface, you can easily see if it's in critical focus closer, further, or right on the 'zero' distance, where the camera AF sets the focus point. If the image appears to be in sharp focus a bit behind the 'zero' point, then you use the EOS Utility LiveView remote shooting interface to click one step backwards (< ) . In this case, since it's backwards, it's -1 step. For example, my 1DX with 70-200/2.8L IS II + 2x III had the initial focus point slightly beyond the 'zero' point. Two steps backwards (-2) brought the point of sharp focus to zero.

The average steps is simply the mathematical average of all AFMA values 'above' that position in the table.

P.S. Let me know when you're coming out here, to the Best Coast.



Mar 15, 2013 at 05:56 AM
Cphoto1954
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


Live view nails focus 100% without any MA.......


Dec 09, 2013 at 05:19 PM
mitesh
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


Cphoto1954 wrote:
Live view nails focus 100% without any MA.......


Love to see your action shots that were taken using that 100% accurate Live View focus



Dec 09, 2013 at 05:23 PM
Tom_W
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


Cphoto1954 wrote:
Live view nails focus 100% without any MA.......


Not with my eyes, it doesn't!



Dec 09, 2013 at 07:39 PM
ahender
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


I tried this route. Set up my target, started with a MF of zero. Took an image. Then I took five more images incrementing each one by +1. I then compared the images on my computer. My problem is I could never duplicate the results. Am I totally off base trying this method?


Dec 09, 2013 at 07:59 PM
snapsy
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


ahender wrote:
I tried this route. Set up my target, started with a MF of zero. Took an image. Then I took five more images incrementing each one by +1. I then compared the images on my computer. My problem is I could never duplicate the results. Am I totally off base trying this method?


Try this instead. The problem with taking photos to AF tune is that it introduces mechanical variation into the process.



Dec 09, 2013 at 08:01 PM
ahender
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


Is DotTune a process or is software involved?


Dec 09, 2013 at 08:54 PM
snapsy
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


ahender wrote:
Is DotTune a process or is software involved?


It's a process. The video on that thread I linked will walk you through it.



Dec 09, 2013 at 09:19 PM
ahender
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · MA Adjust Settings and Record Keeping


Thank you.


Dec 09, 2013 at 09:49 PM





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