newb question (i think)

[amikhchi]

My parents want me to take a few pictures of them from time to time, and I always wonder about what to do in this situation:

I have heard/read from several sources that the most important thing to be in focus are the eyes, so naturally i always focus in on the eyes before taking the shot, my question is, usually i point up to get the eyes in focus, then bring it back down to frame the shot, is that a bad way to go about taking pictures? or should the camera just be at eye-level to avoid this?

It's not too bad when i'm shooting handheld, but when on a tripod, am i supposed to actually point up, get focus, and move down tighten up and then shoot?

i suppose the real answer would be to practice manual focusing to avoid this altogether... either way i need some advice

-thanks

[martines34]

amikhchi:

Without knowing what equipment you are using, it is difficult to give you an answer because each camera has its own focus function routine.

Ideally, the eyes are in focus and perhaps the camera you are using allows for a better picture with manual focus.

Because of the way a human interprets images, whether it be humans or animals, having the eyes in focus is the key to judging the quality of the image. DOF and Av come into play as you already know.

The best advice is to practice and experiment to learn what works best for you and your equipment.

[jgrussell]

.usually i point up to get the eyes in focus, then bring it back down to frame the shot, is that a bad way to go about taking pictures? or should the camera just be at eye-level to avoid this?.What you're doing is recomposing, and that CAN be a problem. It can introduce real focus issues -- see this article (http://www.visual-vacations.com/Photography/focus-recompose_sucks.htm).

[amikhchi]

Using Rebel XS, and i tend to use the 50mm f/1.8 II for pictures of my family

[mpistone]

Be careful with the 50 wide open, because it doesn't much recomposing at all to lose the focus. If you'll be shooting all of the shots with the same arrangement, set the AF to use a point at the subject's eyes to avoid that. If you have problems try stopping down a bit, maybe to f/2.8.

[amikhchi]

i see, i guess i could use an AF point other than the center (which i usually leave it set to) that should help, if not i'll try going to 2.8

*why do they call it "stopping down"?*

[mpistone]

My guess is stopping down is used because we're bring the amount of light 'down' by some number of 'stops' but there may be another reason for the term.

[Hinson]

*why do they call it "stopping down"?*

LOL... you youngsters are too young to remember but cameras used to (and a few still do) have leaf shutters in the lens of camera, rather than the focal plane shutters used today which is in the body.

The leaf shutter actually closed down as the f-number got larger. That was why it was called 'stopping down.'