D3 Focus Hesitation

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Derek
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p.1 #1 · D3 Focus Hesitation

I have a D3 I have had for about 2 months. I also have several Canon 1D M3 and MK2's.

I shoot 95% sports for a living.

The D3 is giving me some focus hesistation which i'm wondering if I don't have a setting set optimally, or if it's just how the Camera is.

Occasionally it wll stall during a burst of shots whilst it re acquires focus, yet there is no way I have lost my focus tracking; happens moreso especially in low light indoor sports. I've had another shooter with one of my Canon 1D MK2's right next me me in the same venue and they've ripped off 10 shots before the Nikon even locks focus.......what gives? It like it stalls focus midstream at times.

I tried disabling the focus lockon setting, which did improve it, but it's still not as snappy as the Canon, what other settings do I need to look at?

Tried Single Focus Point, but Dynamic with 9 or 11 points seems to work just as well.

Also having an issue where a new fully charged battery sometimes shows dead flat afetr a few hundred shots, removing it and re inserting and it comes good.

I have the latest 2.0 firmware

Loving the IQ out of the thing, just need to getting it focusing a bit quicker.

Should also add, lenses are mainly 200-400VR and a 70-200VR, same result with both.

Any ideas?

Oct 08, 2008 at 05:45 AM

TimMunsey
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p.1 #2 · D3 Focus Hesitation

Hi,
What memory cards are you using? Have you had the buffer upgrade? I suspect
the stall is that you're camera is just downloading shots. Sandisks ducati cards are great. Also in low light it maybe doing some noise reduction further slowling down it's pic processing.

Anyway, that's my thought.

Tim

Oct 08, 2008 at 07:28 AM

Jim Hudspeth
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p.1 #3 · D3 Focus Hesitation

Hi, I agree with Tim. When shooting FX you will fill the buffer quicker than when shooting DX. At least that's what happens to me.

Oct 08, 2008 at 07:43 AM

Derek
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p.1 #4 · D3 Focus Hesitation

Hi Guys

I doubt it's a card or buffer issue.

I use Transcend 266X UDMA cards, they're lightning fast. It happens in DX mode and I'm only shooting JPEGS, it will sometimes happen after only 2 or 3 shots, so no way its a write speed or buffer issue, though the stalling it exhibits is very similar in nature to what you would get with it waiting to write data.

It also really struggles to acquire initial focus in low contrast indoor light, which is a shame, as its actual Hi ISO image quality is superb. I do have the noise reduction turned on to normal from memory, but like I mentioned, the Canon will rip off 10 shots before the D3 can lock onto the first shot under the same conditions indoors.

Oct 08, 2008 at 08:26 AM

louis fusco
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p.1 #5 · D3 Focus Hesitation

dirty contacts on the camera/ lenses maby?

Oct 08, 2008 at 11:19 AM

Stripper
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p.1 #6 · D3 Focus Hesitation

I own Nikon D3 and D2 bodies but use Canon 1Dx bodies too. I chalk my sometimes balky focus with the Canon bodies up to having less experience with them.

When shooting in continuous mode, are you shooting in release mode or release + focus mode or focus mode? This is controlled by going to the Custom Settings Menu and selecting A-1. You want to be in release mode only. If you are in this mode the shutter release should fire the camera even if you are not tracking properly. The only normal thing that should keep you from shooting in this mode should be a full buffer.

A couple of other issues that affect focus speed in a given situation. The more focus points you have turned on in Dynamic mode, the more processing power the camera uses. This may not be a problem if you are shooting motor sport or birds in flight, but it can be an issue at a football or basket ball when there are a lot of moving objects to distract focus. If your focus is narrow (on a single individual among a tight group) narrow the focus by selecting 9 points on. The Custom Settings Menu A4 is a matter of a lot of discussion. I prefer to have it OFF in most situations because it makes tracking faster. A lot of people with argue with me. I think if you have good technique and select the proper number of focus points to have ON in Dynamic/tracking mode there are very few situations where having this setting to any of the ON settings actually makes sense.

Keep trying. I have several long time Canon shooter friends in the motorsport business who have bought D3s and have really gotten to like them. I think you will too.

JohnCote

Oct 08, 2008 at 11:57 AM

sjms
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p.1 #7 · D3 Focus Hesitation

i just got done doing 5 years of hard time with canon so i have experience between these models. i can say that the nikon is slightly slower to aquire vs the 1D2 and 1D3. but once aquired the nikon produces more on focus tracked images in the same situation then either of the other 2 bodies. as was said above setting you focus system to your needs is the most important step especially in high movement low light events.

Oct 08, 2008 at 12:11 PM

trenchmonkey
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p.1 #8 · D3 Focus Hesitation

Stripper and sjms, excellent replys!
Derek, indeed...lots of tweaking to make the D3 do your bidding. I shoot the 200 f2 VR,
300 f2.8 VR, and the 70-200 f2.8 VR for things that move. I equate the slight initial hesitation
to the D3 taking a deep breath before blowing your mind with the images captured during it's burst.
I'm still dialing in mine...different settings for different subjects/conditions. Granted, a little
more work than shooting the 1D's but I love what I'm seeing when I get it right.

Oct 08, 2008 at 12:35 PM

Derek
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p.1 #9 · D3 Focus Hesitation

Totally agree with you there Trenchmonkey, no complaints with whats coming out of it, just can't quite seem to achieve the same razor fast focus acquisition response I'm used to on the 1D2 and 1D3, had all 3 generations of them.

I'm perservering with the D3 as it has a lot going for it, and I love most things about it. I've initially bought 1 body and the 2 lenses as a trial I guess.

I had already tried strippers response above, the camera comes set as factory default to release then focus, which gives the "appearance" it lightning fast, but no way the thing is in focus on the first few frames in this mode for what I shoot. I use focus then release, the focus accuracy is awesome, but the hesitation sucks. I use the equivalent mode on the Canons and there's no comparison.

I'll keep tweaking and let you know.

I mainly want to get it sorted as I have a couple more bodies I want to purchase, but I'm releuctant to invest more $$$ in Nikon until I get it sorted

Oct 08, 2008 at 07:48 PM

Derek
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p.1 #10 · D3 Focus Hesitation

Another Question for you all........whos using a 200 f2 VR on this body?

Does it Vignette on FX mode?

I was really surprised to find the 2 out of 2 of Nikkor newest top lenses I have bought both Vignette on full frame.

Looking at getting the 200f2 VR, but the vignetting thing is really putting me off.

Oct 08, 2008 at 07:51 PM

Brent Ferree
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p.1 #11 · D3 Focus Hesitation

I'm shooting the Nikon 200/2 VR on a D3 - I personally have not noticed light falloff in the corners - it was not obvious that it was occurring to me.

If it will help convince you one way or the other I can take a test shot of a white wall with the D3 and 200VR later this evening to see if there is any falloff and post the result.

Oct 08, 2008 at 08:13 PM

Derek
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p.1 #12 · D3 Focus Hesitation

Yeah thanks Brent that would be great, At f2 with in camera Vignette control off (I would mainly use it for indoor sports so it will be wide open all the time)

How is the focus speed on the 200?

Oct 08, 2008 at 08:53 PM

trenchmonkey
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p.1 #13 · D3 Focus Hesitation

How is the focus speed on the 200?

It's obscene, Derek! I'm out with a 2x today scouting sandhills and it's fast with that!

The 1.4/1.7 you won't even know its there.

Oct 08, 2008 at 09:05 PM

wjlapier
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p.1 #14 · D3 Focus Hesitation

Being a sports shooter I'm assuming you're separating focus and shutter fire. I don't have a D3. I use a D300 with grip and use A1 release only, and use the AF-ON button to acquire focus, then fire away with the shutter button. A3 Dynamic AF with 21 or 9 points. Sometimes single focus point. A4 off. Focus acquisition is very fast. Try that combo and see if it helps.

Bill

Oct 08, 2008 at 09:42 PM

90 5.0
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p.1 #15 · D3 Focus Hesitation

From what I have seen with sample photo's of the 200 f/2 it is an awesome lens. I was admiring some shots with it somewhere the other day and about fell out of my chair when i saw the exif and it said D50.

Unfortunately when you admire pics online you never know how much pp went into them but from what i have seen it's stellar.

Oct 08, 2008 at 09:43 PM

musclepics
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p.1 #16 · D3 Focus Hesitation

trenchmonkey wrote:
I'm still dialing in mine...different settings for different subjects/conditions. Granted, a little
more work than shooting the 1D's but I love what I'm seeing when I get it right.

Hmm, I thought concensus here was that the Canons needed tweaking, but the D3's worked "out of the box"?

Edited on Oct 08, 2008 at 11:55 PM · View previous versions

Oct 08, 2008 at 11:48 PM

trenchmonkey
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p.1 #17 · D3 Focus Hesitation

wjlapier wrote:
Being a sports shooter I'm assuming you're separating focus and shutter fire. I don't have a D3. I use a D300 with grip and use A1 release only, and use the AF-ON button to acquire focus, then fire away with the shutter button. A3 Dynamic AF with 21 or 9 points. Sometimes single focus point. A4 off. Focus acquisition is very fast. Try that combo and see if it helps.

Bill

This is KEY...Bill. Well said. I just assumed everyone shot that way!
Shutter for AF sucks, with this level gear. Proof is in the keepers.

Oct 08, 2008 at 11:49 PM

trenchmonkey
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p.1 #18 · D3 Focus Hesitation

musclepics wrote:
trenchmonkey wrote:
I'm still dialing in mine...different settings for different subjects/conditions. Granted, a little
more work than shooting the 1D's but I love what I'm seeing when I get it right.

Hmm, I thought concensus here was that the 1D MKIII's needed tweaking, but the D3's worked "out of the box"?

No.

Different shooting styles/subjects require different settings. It's a tad more work but the
keeper % is remarkable when dialed in. After awhile it becomes 2nd nature and as easy as
the 1 Series it replaced. The D3 works fine "out of the box" but as with any specialized tool
it's only as good as the effort you put in to learn it. This alone separates the whiners/talkers
from those who think it's the best thing since bottled beer.

Oct 08, 2008 at 11:56 PM

HerbChong
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p.1 #19 · D3 Focus Hesitation

in my case, that means far more keepers with AF triggered by the shutter. subject distance is always changing and having the camera not AF means no shot.

Herb...

trenchmonkey wrote:
This is KEY...Bill. Well said. I just assumed everyone shot that way!
Shutter for AF sucks, with this level gear. Proof is in the keepers.

Oct 09, 2008 at 01:44 AM

trenchmonkey
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p.1 #20 · D3 Focus Hesitation

mine AF's constantly, stuff moves....fast tele primes, what you shoot?

Edited on Oct 09, 2008 at 02:07 AM · View previous versions

Oct 09, 2008 at 02:01 AM

HerbChong
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p.1 #21 · D3 Focus Hesitation

why bother releasing the AF-ON button then? i am tracking birds in flight and so on. no point is ever turning off AF while tracking, so shutter button AF is all that is needed. at 90% hit rate with birds in flight, i don't see any advantage to using the AF-ON button.

Herb...

Oct 09, 2008 at 02:06 AM

HerbChong
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p.1 #22 · D3 Focus Hesitation

mostly 600/4 with 1.7X extender.

Herb...

trenchmonkey wrote:

mine AF's constantly, stuff moves....fast tele primes, what you shoot?

Oct 09, 2008 at 02:11 AM

Brent Ferree
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p.1 #23 · D3 Focus Hesitation

The focus speed is very quick to me - at least as good as 70-200 VR or 300/2.8.

As for the vignetting - I turned that setting off, shot a white ceiling with the SB-900 attached using the 200/2 at F2 without the hood and it sure does look like it has some especially in the lower corners. I am not sure if the flash caused any of this. I might try some more testing tomorrow to see if that makes a difference or not.

This image is copyrighted by the owner

The EXIF data is there as is the Full Size.

Oct 09, 2008 at 02:22 AM

BlueReptile
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p.1 #24 · D3 Focus Hesitation

D3 stutters in AF-C and focus-priority mode. Both of my D3s behave that way with all my lenses, including 70-200, 200/2 and 400/2.8. Change it shutter-priority makes the stutter go away and to be honest, I still get sharp frames in a sequence of short bursts in shutter-priority mode.

-John

Oct 09, 2008 at 02:39 AM

Radiohead
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p.1 #25 · D3 Focus Hesitation

It does sound like AF-C is set to focus priority. Easy enough to sort.

Oct 09, 2008 at 11:34 AM


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