Lack of sharpness is one of the main reasons for photographic failure. You could even say that unsharp shots are the worst thing that can happen to a photo. Blurring is noticeable not only to professionals, but also to ordinary people, for whom such a photo becomes uninteresting.

This article is about how to stop taking blurry photos and take only clear shots! Let's look at the six main reasons why photos turn out out of focus.

Shevelenka.

Shake is the vibration of the camera during shooting (for example, due to pressing the shutter too hard). This is the most common reason for unsharp shots. As a rule, vibrations are minor and are not noticeable during shooting. Experience shows that at shutter speeds longer than 1/60, movement is almost always observed.

To get a sharp shot, just set the shutter speed faster. For different focal lengths - different shutter speeds for handheld shooting. Enough to use the simplest formula- the shortest shutter speed is 1/FR, where FR is the focal length. For example, when shooting with a telephoto lens with a focal length of 200 mm, you need to use a shutter speed of 1/200 or faster.

Certainly, optimal solution problems with movement - using a tripod. When shooting with a tripod at long shutter speeds, strong winds can cause fluctuations. To withstand the wind, many tripod models have a special hook on which you can hang a bag with photographic equipment. At long shutter speeds, vibrations can even be caused by raising the mirror and slight vibration when pressing the shutter. Although at very long exposures of more than a few seconds, these factors become of little significance. To take a sharp shot, use the self-timer (if possible, the remote control or cable release). Some camera models have a function to raise the mirror before shooting.

While using these tips, don't forget to pull the trigger more smoothly and, if possible, use a faster shutter speed.

It is believed that snipers can shoot at shutter speeds significantly higher than the standard available to ordinary people. You can take advantage of the experience of shooters (http://www.rustrana.ru/article.php?nid=30680) and use some shooting techniques in photography.

Small depth of field

DOF is a very powerful visual tool. And it is simply necessary as an element of photography.

If you shoot with a macro lens at an open aperture or with long-focus optics, the depth of field turns out to be small. A shallow depth of field in itself does not lead to blur.

Most often, photographers use single-point focusing, focus on the subject, hold the shutter halfway - frame the photo and press the shutter. There is one problem with this framing method that is not noticeable at first glance.

An error in the focusing system or a slight movement of the subject (or camera) leads to a shift in the depth of field, and accordingly the frame becomes unsharp.

To avoid such problems, choose the focus point closest to the subject. Trying to move parallel to the focus area is pointless (the depth of field is too shallow).

By the way, the focus sensor is physically larger than what is displayed in the viewfinder, the squares are Canon cameras less than the area over which the camera will focus. Nikon has an area approximately equal to the focusing area.

Imperfection of optics.

Any lens shows the maximum quality result within a certain range of aperture values. On average, f:8 to f:13 are approximate values, but you should remember that the closer to the maximum open/closed aperture you shoot, the further away you get from the maximum quality available on your lens.

Focus system error.

A focusing error can cause the camera to focus incorrectly. To prevent such problems, you need to understand how the camera focuses.

Situations in which autofocus may fail.

— There is no contrast (or minimal) between the subject and the background. For example, the object and background are the same color.

— The focus area contains objects located at different distances from the camera. For example, an object behind a fence or mesh.

— The frame is dominated by a repeating pattern. For example, the windows of a skyscraper, which lose contrast from a distance.

— The presence of objects in the focusing area with sharp changes in brightness. For example, an object that is half in the shadow.

— The subject is smaller than the focusing area. Trying to shoot a subject from a long distance, the subject blends into the background for the focusing system.

— The object consists of many small elements. For example, a flower field or other objects that are small or do not differ in brightness.

Back/front focus.

The concepts of back and front focus are associated with focusing error. What is front focus? It’s very simple, if you focused on the model’s eyes, and as a result the sharpness turned out to be on the chest, then this is front focus. If the focus is behind you, this is back focus. This problem can be solved by having the lens adjusted by a specialist.

Often, when purchasing, they try to check the optics for back/front focus using a ruler. It is not right! As I already wrote, the focusing system sensor is larger than it is depicted in the viewfinder; therefore, a small error when focusing on the ruler is quite natural and is not evidence of back/front focus.

To check for back/front focus, you can use, for example, a piece of paper with several lines located at a distance of 2-3 cm.

Moving objects

Here, as you understand, everything is simple. The faster the object moves, the shorter the shutter speed should be. From experience we can say that when shooting stationary objects, shutter speeds start at 1/60, and for moving objects at 1/250. Sports and fast moving objects from 1/500.

A fast shutter speed freezes motion and makes objects appear sharp. Long exposures can be part of the idea, such as panning or night photography.

Camera settings

Oddly enough, photographers still often shoot in JPG rather than RAW. As you know (if not, read the article about RAW) JPG is already compressed and already processed by the camera processor. So, if you shoot in JPG, the camera has already sharpened it in software. Check your camera settings or shoot in RAW.

For the same reason, pictures taken in RAW seem less clear than camera JPEGs.

Conclusion

In this article, you learned about the six most common mistakes that lead to blurry frames. The main ones are, of course, movement and shallow depth of field. In principle, all of the above tips are not as complicated as they seem at first glance. A little practice and nothing will stop you from making clear masterpieces!

There is no established definition for the term wiggle. In this context, we will assume that this is image blur when shooting a static object, caused by camera movement (shake). Camera instability is usually caused by rough pressing of the shutter button or shaking hands. To to avoid stirring at handheld shooting there must be endurance Briefly speaking, how

where EGF is the equivalent focal length (equivalent to 35 mm film). For Canon EOS 400D crop factor is 1.62, then EGF = f*1.62, where f is the focal length of the lens (usually indicated on the front). For example, for f=55 mm EGF=(55*1.62)=89 mm (maximum focal length of a kit lens). In this case, when shooting handheld, the shutter speed should be faster than 1/89 second (for example, 1/125 s).

In order to reduce shutter speed you have to shoot at wider apertures or increase the ISO. By the way, increasing the sensitivity of the matrix (ISO) is not always bad - it’s better to get sharp image, albeit a little grainier than smeared (Fig. 1).

Canon 300D, f=50 mm, EGF= 80 mm, f/8, handheld shooting ISO 100.1/ 25 s, image blurry ISO 400, 1/ 100 s, image sharp Rice. 1. At ISO 100, the shutter speed was 1/25 s, condition Tv< 1/ЭФР не выполнено — кадр получился смазанным. Увеличение ISO до 400 единиц позволило сократить выдержку до 1/100 с (в 4 раза) и избежать "шевеленки" — кадр получился резким

Advice: to prevent wiggles and achievements best sharpness use a tripod! In this case, it is better not to press the shutter button manually, but to use the self-timer or remote control (suitable for static scenes). Additionally, to prevent camera shake caused by mirror movement, you must enable mirror pre-raise (not all cameras have a mirror locking function).

Note: When shooting handheld, you need to press the shutter smoothly! Much like how Olympic shooting champions pull the trigger. Only the trigger finger moves; the camera must remain motionless. In addition, I will give recommendations from J. Wade’s book “Landscape Photography Techniques”: “Stand relaxed: legs slightly apart, weight evenly distributed on both legs, camera at the eye and elbows tightly pressed to the body. Focus the lens, hold your breath and slowly press the shutter release, concentrating only on the movement of your finger. Do not take a deep breath or hold your breath while focusing and framing. Breathe normally and only hold your breath briefly when you press the shutter release."

Addition from Eugene Glushko (connected with a move from shooting practice). Sometimes a movement (miss) occurs due to hasty lowering of the camera (rifle). To avoid this, shooters are recommended to keep the target on the front sight for a few more seconds after firing, without changing their position. Photographers are also advised not to sharply lower the camera, but to hold their gaze slightly in the viewfinder. When it is not possible to use a tripod (or monopod), you can use various kinds of supports - a parapet, the back of a bench, lean against a tree, sit with your hand on your knee, lie on the ground. In general, what the conditions and the plot allow.

2

The subject is moving - shutter speed is shorter

If the subject is mobile, then to get a sharp photo you need short excerpt. Usually, when shooting a motionless person, the shutter speed is set to no longer than 1/60 s; for a fast-paced child, even 1/200 s may not be enough. And to “freeze” movement in sports you need 1/500 s or shorter.

Sometimes, to achieve the artistic effect of blur (motion effect), a long shutter speed is deliberately made (Fig. 3).

Note: blurring a fast moving object in the frame depends not only on the shutter speed, but also on the type of shutter. In most modern digital DSLR cameras a curtain shutter is used. Despite the fact that it allows you to achieve very fast shutter speeds (for example, for the 400D the minimum shutter speed is 1/4000 s), when shooting a fast-moving subject, it suffers from distortion. The fact is that the curtains always move at the same speed, regardless of the shutter speed. Shutter speed is determined by the delay between the movements of the first and second curtains. At short shutter speeds (shorter than 1/200 - 1/250 s), the second curtain begins to move before the first one reaches the end - exposure occurs through a moving slit between both curtains. As a result, a moving object has time to move in the frame from the start of exposure to its end, which can lead to its distortion. Such distortions are barely noticeable and do not play a role in normal photography.

To reduce this shutter limitation in some digital cameras It uses an electronic shutter, which is not a separate device, but the principle of dosing exposure using a digital matrix. The shutter speed is determined by the time between zeroing the matrix and the moment the information is read from it. Using an electronic shutter allows you to achieve faster shutter speeds (including flash sync speeds) without using more expensive high-speed mechanical shutters. An example would be Nikon cameras D70/D70s/D50, which have a combined electronic-mechanical shutter that allows you to shoot in flash synchronization mode (X-sync) at shutter speeds up to 1/500 s. For comparison: Canon 400D has an X-sync shutter speed of 1/200 s, Canon 30D has 1/250 s, Canon 1D Mark III has 1/300 s, Canon 1D has 1/500 s, Nikon D80 has 1 /200 s, for Nikon D3 - 1/250 s.

3

Incorrect camera settings - check the Sharpness setting

Check in settings camera value sharpness parameter(Sharpness). It should not be equal to the minimum value (Fig. 4)!

For numbers it is always necessary sharpen. An anti-alias filter is installed in front of the matrix, which specifically blurs the image a little (see Dmitry Rudakov’s article “Sharpness... without a tie”). At minimum parameter value Sharpness the picture will be very " soft" (Fig. 5). Typically, this setting (zero for the 400D) assumes that sharpening will be increased more accurately with further processing of the image.

Rice. 5. The influence of the Sharpness parameter when shooting in JPEG: Canon 400D, EF-S 18-55, f=18 mm, f/5.6, 1/400 s, ISO 100

Attention! The sharpness setting only affects the JPEG output by the camera (not RAW!). But at the same time "native" RAW converter reads the parameter value Sharpness from EXIF ​​and uses it as initial installation(at least for Canon cameras).

Above we discussed the so-called sharpening when in water(Capture Sharpening). For digital, this is conversion from RAW (when shooting in JPEG, this is done by the camera itself). In addition, sharpness has to be increased when conclusion(Output Sharpening). This includes preparing the image for printing (for example, for inkjet printer you have to “sharp” more than for a minilab), as well as reducing the image for publication on the network (displaying it on the screen). Bruce Fraser, a renowned digital processing specialist, highlights third stage - selective sharpening (Creative Sharpening). For example, in a facial portrait, to focus attention on the eyes, they are usually made a little sharper. We will leave these and other issues of sharpening during image processing for a separate article.

Note. A filter in front of the matrix that slightly blurs the image is often called anti-alias or optical low-pass filter. This term is used not for its intended purpose, but rather by analogy. The filter itself serves to reduce color artifacts and moire in mosaic matrices (using the Bayer pattern) and more plausibly convert a monochrome RAW image to color.

It should be noted that cameras from different manufacturers have different degrees of influence of the anti-alias filter. For example, it was noticed that Nikon’s filter blurs the image less than Canon’s. From here you can often hear “the ringing sharpness of Nikon” or “Nikon D80 is sharper than Canon 30D”, etc. This doesn't mean the Canon is any less sharp. It’s just that to achieve Nikon’s level of sharpness on Canon, you will have to set a higher value for the Sharpness parameter. By the way, Canon has three low-pass filters in front of the matrix.

Some cameras don't have an anti-alias filter at all, like the Leica M8. But there is a price to pay for this. When examining the image with the Leica M8 in detail, roughness appears in some textures, as well as in the out-of-focus zone, as if the photo was taken through some kind of grid (and this is at low ISO, when noise is minimal!). For some low-pass cameras, the filter can be “turned off” optionally, for example, Mamya ZD

It is also worth mentioning the three-layer Foveon matrix. Unlike a mosaic pattern, here each pixel is “honest” and captures all three components of color (RGB). Theoretically, such a matrix gives the sharpest picture and provides the most accurate detail at 100% image scale. To date, this technology has hardly been developed and is represented by the only camera produced, the SIGMA SD14 (resolution 2640x1760 - 4 megapixels).

4

DOF is small

DOF - depth of sharply depicted space. Unsharp pictures may be subject to small depth of field. For example, for a kit lens at the long end of f=55 mm at f/5.6, the depth of field will be about 7 cm (at a distance to the subject of about 1 m). Accordingly, objects outside the depth of field will be blurry.

This blurriness is usually complained about by those who are used to photographing with a digital compact, which has a large depth of field and all objects are in the sharpness zone. Shallow depth of field is one of the advantages of cameras with a large sensor and is usually used for artistic purposes to give the image volume. A blurred background allows you to “separate” the subject from the background (Fig. 6).

Most will agree that it is convenient to use the central focusing point: point the center of the viewfinder at the subject, focus (press the shutter halfway), then compose the frame and take a photo (press the shutter fully). However, there is a pitfall here: camera rotation when cropping can lead to loss of sharpness on the shooting object (Fig. 7).

Rice. 7. Framing by rotating the camera can lead to loss of sharpness on the subject

There are a few ways to avoid this error:

• select focus point manually(but this is not very convenient: spin the wheel every time);
• don't turn the camera, but displace parallel to the plane of the subject;
• use manual focus(MF);
• increase DOF by closing the aperture (but this reduces background blur).

The reason for the shift in depth of field may also be an autofocus miss. For example, you focused on the eyes, but the ears (back focus) or nose (front focus) turned out to be sharp. In this case, the camera or lens will have to be sent for adjustment.

Note. In fact, the autofocus sensor units are somewhat larger than indicated by the mark in the viewfinder. This can be illustrated simple example: draw two lines on a white sheet - one thin, the other thick (see Fig. 8, a). Let's place the camera at an acute angle to the sheet, the lens axis is perpendicular to the lines. If, when pointing along a thin line, a more contrasting, thick line ends up outside the mark in the viewfinder (red frame), but within the sensor area (indicated in green), then the camera can focus along this contrasting line (Fig. 8, b). This normal autofocus performance is often regarded as back focus. If only one contrast detail remains in the area of ​​the autofocus sensor, then “false” back focus does not occur (Fig. 8, c). This is why you cannot test for back focus by photographing a ruler - the scale must be located at some distance from the target.

Rice. 8. A fragment of a photo explaining how autofocus works: red indicates the frame in the viewfinder, green indicates the actual size of the autofocus sensor

5

The lens is soapy - close the aperture or change the lens

This is the case when resolution lens lacks for a sharp image. The smaller the pixel of the matrix, the stronger the “soapiness” of the optics. For example, at 400D photosensor size 5,7 µm, and y 300D photosensor 7,4 microns (which is almost 1.7 times larger in area!). Accordingly, when shooting with a “soap” lens (under the same conditions), the 300D will have a better (clearer) picture than the 400D (Fig. 9).

Rice. 9. The EF-S 18-55 II kit lens is very soapy on the 400D and does not allow you to fully utilize the potential of the 10 megapixel matrix: detail is not much higher than that of the 6 megapixel 300D, and in some places even worse (the texture is lost due to blur). Shooting parameters: f=18 mm, f/3.5, 1/1000 s, ISO 100, conversion from RAW using Capture One

Note: during the experiment it was noticed that 400D at the same shutter speed gave more dark image than 300D. This may be due to the fact that the actual sensor sensitivity of the 300D is higher than that set on the display (this, for example, was noticed in the 20D and 5D cameras - the ISO 100 setting actually corresponds to the ISO 125 sensitivity.

One of the options to “overcome” the soapiness of the lens is to close the aperture by 2-3 stops. In this case, aberrations are reduced and the picture becomes sharper (Fig. 10).

Rice. 10. Stopping down the aperture reduces blur, especially in the corners, and makes the picture sharper: Canon 400D, f=18 mm, ISO 100, converted from RAW using Capture One

Another option is to use more sharp lens. For example, if you put an EF 100 2.8 MACRO USM (one of the sharpest Canon lenses) on the 400D, you will get a noticeable increase in detail compared to the 300D (Fig. 11).

6

Diffraction blur - aperture (hole) too small

At a fully open aperture, the lens is most susceptible to aberrations (it lathers more). Therefore, you have to cover the diaphragm. And it would seem that at f/22 we should get the sharpest picture. However, this does not happen! The 400D already has an aperture of f/11 sharpness starts fall because of diffraction effects— the ideal “point” is blurred into a diffraction spot. The size of this spot becomes let's measure with matrix pixel (5.7 µm). From here we draw another conclusion: what smaller pixel topic matrices already range workers aperture For example, for the 400D, the sharpest sharpness of a kit lens in a wide-angle position is obtained at an aperture of f/5.6 - f/8.

Theoretically, the “maximum permissible aperture”, from which diffraction blurring begins, can be estimated as follows: d x 2 , Where d— photosensor size, microns. So, for 400D we get 5.7 x 2 = 11.4; for 5D - 8.2 x 2 = 16.4. Generally speaking, the size of the photosensor is not so easy to find out. It can be calculated approximately by dividing the length of the matrix by the number of pixels. However, more reliable information can only be obtained from the manufacturer. So, for example, according to Canon 1D Mark III pixel size ( 7.2 µm at 10 MPx) less than 1D Mark II N (8.2 µm at 8 MPx), and the dimensions of the photosensors are the same. Structurally matrix 1D Mark III has a smaller distance between sensor cells (see Fig. 13).

In order to evaluate visually diffraction “blurring”, it is enough to take a series of photographs at different aperture values. Below are 100% crops of images obtained by cameras with different sizes pixel: EOS 5D and EOS 400D. The sharpest areas (sharpness zone) of a banknote with small text are shown. The same EF 100 f/2.8 MACRO USM lens was used, the same scale was maintained (approximately maintained, for the 400D it even turned out a little larger).

As can be seen from Fig. 14, the larger the pixel size, the further you can close down the aperture without significant loss of sharpness. So, the 5D (8.2 micron pixel) has an f/16 aperture that is quite functional. The image on the 400D (5.7 µm pixel) is approximately the same in sharpness and corresponds to the f/11 aperture.

Av 5D 400D 2.8 4 5.6 8 11 16 22 Rice. 14. Drop in sharpness due to diffraction effects on cameras with different pixel sizes: Canon EOS 5D and 400D, converting from RAW using DPP (default settings)

conclusions

• Receipt success sharp shot depends on the right excerpts, aperture and skillful use depth of field.
• Increase numbers megapixels modern digital cameras increases requirements to optics and narrows range of working apertures.

Probably many have encountered a situation where on the small screen of the camera during the shooting process you see excellent, clear images, but after downloading to the computer they turn out to be cloudy, blurry, and sometimes all of them, and sometimes only partially. Where did the sharpness go? Why do photos come out blurry?? This article will show you some possible reasons.

Reason #0. TO good lens you get used to it quickly

This is a somewhat unexpected approach to the problem of lack of sharpness, but it is worth taking into account. Maybe this is exactly your case. Let's say you recently bought a new, good, expensive lens for your DSLR. Before this, you shot with a whale, but you saved up some money and now you can’t get enough of the quality of your photos.

Over time, you may forget how regular digital point-and-shoot cameras take pictures or what kind of photos you took with a kit lens. Then suddenly it happens that for some reason you shoot with your old soap dish instead of a good camera with a quality lens. When you view the resulting photos, you may notice that the picture from the point-and-shoot camera is “not sharp at all.” After agonizing thoughts regarding possible reasons, you guessed to look at old photos that you took with the same camera before buying a DSLR.

The results can be amazing. You see that your point-and-shoot camera has ALWAYS taken pictures so “unsharp”, but before you simply had nothing to compare with. Of course, a DSLR, and even with a good professional lens, will give a much clearer picture. Especially if you used a fixed focal length lens when shooting. The principle worked here - you are accustomed to good things, and what was previously considered good already seems mediocre, gray, “C”.

Probably, a similar thing has happened to both a beginner and an experienced photographer - the image on the camera screen is simply excellent, but as soon as you download it to your computer and open it in full size, you will immediately see an incomprehensible smudge in some area or even on the entire photo. Let's try to figure out what is the reason why the photos come out blurry.

First reason lack of required sharpness - long shutter speed. She is the main one. Shutter speed is the amount of time for which the matrix opens to capture the picture. On modern cameras, a “long” shutter speed is a shutter speed of about 1-2 seconds, and a “short” shutter speed is hundreds and thousandths of a second. Of course, on older models it is much larger. Surprisingly, the very first camera models had a shutter speed of several hours. We cannot envy the models who were photographed with the first camera - they had to stand absolutely still in the chosen pose for 8 hours! Old photos of cities always came out deserted in the final photo. The fact is that the camera did not react to moving objects, so only motionless houses and streets appeared.

Nowadays, long shutter speeds are used most often when shooting indoors (when it is extremely undesirable to use a flash) or shooting a city at night. Using a flash, a not very experienced photographer can greatly spoil the photo - overexpose the foreground (and, of course, the faces of people in the frame), make the background completely dark, and the entire photo flat, with unnatural colors. Therefore, it is advisable to turn off the flash.

Use a slow shutter speed only when necessary, or better yet, keep the camera on a tripod, or at least on a fixed support. This will prevent blur and, as a result, low sharpness.

The second reason lack of the required sharpness - oddly enough, your own “blurred eye”. Of course, this is the reason in a few cases, such as when you upgraded from an older model to a newer camera. Or, if you bought a great lens and forgot about the good old titanium one. When you start shooting at more old camera(or lens), the difference in sharpness can be striking, although at one time you might not have noticed it at all. Most often, this difference is felt after shooting on digital camera or a point-and-shoot camera if you primarily use a SLR camera in your work.

Third reason lack of required sharpness - in the lens. It's funny, but it's quite possible that your lens needs cleaning. Very often photographers forget to wipe down their equipment. Make it a rule to regularly (preferably after each shoot) check the lens and, if necessary, clean it. Even if you haven't used the lens for a long time, check it, because dust on the lens will definitely appear in the photo. Agree, it will be unpleasant and embarrassing if the entire photo shoot is ruined because of a few specks of dust or a fingerprint on the lens. Take care of your equipment so that it lasts a long time, and most importantly, with high quality.

Fourth reason lack of the required sharpness - the lens itself is “unsharp”. Professionals know from their models which lenses always render perfectly, which ones depend on the settings, and which ones always “blur” the corners and the entire image. To check a lens, they usually take a photograph of a newspaper, and from it (more precisely, based on the result - the presence of “noise”, the clarity of letters, corners) its abilities are determined. To conduct the experiment, take a photograph of a section of newspaper under artificial light at a distance of approximately 1 m. Look at the result at 100% scale on your computer. Remember that at different focal lengths the lens can also decrease or increase sharpness. If you take a photo with the Zoom all the way out and then also close it all the way down, the grain, white balance, and sharpness will be completely different.

Fifth reason lack of the required sharpness - very high photosensitivity. The image comes out blurry and very grainy if you increase the sensitivity of the matrix (in low light conditions). The same graininess spoils the image and makes it impossible to see small details, so there’s nothing to even talk about sharpness here. If you need photos with sharper sharpness than you currently get, get used to shooting at the minimum sensor sensitivity setting. Then there will be much less “grain” in the photo, and, as a result, it will look much sharper.

Focusing can't be easy. Using any of the main shooting modes - auto, portrait or landscape - your camera does all the work for you. But it's too easy and not professional. It seemed simple, you just press the shutter button halfway, focus and take a picture. Then why do many pictures come out blurry and blurry? The answer is that the autofocus system does work, but not always the way we want it to.

Usually, in SLR camera, entry-level or mid-range, there are nine focus points that are spread out at a certain distance from each other.

There is always one AF point in the center, then two points above and below and three points each on the right and left sides, two of which are at the same level, and one is pressed to the edge of the frame. More advanced cameras have an additional six points, although these, unlike the first nine, cannot be selected manually.

How Autofocus works

To achieve autofocus when shooting in various camera modes, information from all nine AF points is used. The camera determines the distance from each part of the scene from the camera, selects the closest object that coincides with the autofocus point, and locks autofocus at that position.

This is fine and very useful if you want to focus on the closest objects in the frame, but it doesn't always happen that way, does it? Suppose you are filming beautiful landscape, but you want to focus on the flower that is in the foreground. What to do in this case? - In such cases, it is better to select manual focus mode.

Various focusing options

Automatic point selection

By default, your DSLR will use all AF points in each shooting mode, but you can often choose the focus points manually. Press the AF point selection button, specifically the button in the upper right corner of the back of the camera (location may vary depending on the camera brand) and an on-screen confirmation will appear that you are now using the Auto Select multi-point AF mode.

Single point focus mode

To switch between auto focus mode and manual focus, press the focus point button as in the previous step, but then press Set. The camera will now switch to using only one focus point. To return to multipoint mode, do the same.

Changing Focus Points

You are not limited to using only the center focus point in manual control mode. After switching to auto mode one point at a time, you can use the arrow keys to select any other available focus point. To return to the center point, click the Set button again.

Focus Modes

The focus point guide works in any focus mode, so you can use one or more points depending on whether you're shooting a still or moving subject. Choose the most suitable focus mode.

When to use a particular focus point

Automatic selection

If you want to focus on the closest subject and need to react quickly to what's happening around you, Auto Select mode is a great option for you. This saves time, since in this case you will not be busy choosing one point or another, in addition, this mode is good for shooting moving objects.

Center focus point

The center focus point is the most sensitive to light and the most accurate of all, so it is great for use in very low light levels, or vice versa in very bright light. While the use of other points may lead to worse results. Center point is also ideal for situations where the main subject is in the center of the frame.

Top focus point

When you are photographing a landscape and it is important for you to emphasize distant objects and areas of the scene rather than the foreground, then it is best to use the top focus point. In this case, foreground objects will be more blurry, and objects located at a greater distance will be clear and sharp.

Focus point diagonal

Portraits turn out especially well when the subject is not in the center of the frame, but slightly to the side. When shooting a portrait, either horizontally or vertically, select the appropriate focus points located diagonally and focus on one of the subject's eyes. If your face is turned in at three quarters, then focus on the eye that is closest to the camera.

Boundary focus points

Focus points located on the far left and right sides of the frame are very useful in cases where you want to make the foreground more blurred and certain objects located further away at the edges of the image appear sharper.

How to Choose the Best AF Point

While for most of us, nine possible focus points will be more than enough, high-end cameras like the Canon EOS-1D X have an incredible 61 focus points. You can even select multiple focus points in small groups.

With so many focus points, choosing the best point can be difficult. It often seems easiest to use the center focus point, focus, then lightly press the shutter button to achieve focus.
You can lock the focus settings by holding the shutter button, compose your shot, and then press the shutter button all the way to take the photo. This often works, but it may not always be the best option.

The main problem with using only the center focus point is that the lighting information and the exposure value are set at the same time. That is, for example, you focus first on an object that is in the shadows, and then quickly switch to an object that is in the sun, then in this case the image will be overexposed.

Fix a point

You can press AE Lock, then compose your shot, allowing the camera to take into account constantly changing lighting conditions. While doing this, you should keep the shutter button pressed to keep the focus locked.

But it is usually easier to select an AF point that is closer to the area you need to focus on, so any subsequent camera movement will be minimal

Selecting the most appropriate AF point not only provides more accurate light metering, it also reduces camera shake once the focus point has been locked. In addition, the focus points are placed on the display, respecting the rule of thirds, which helps create the right composition.