G10 macro focus

[oswaler]

I'm trying to do macro work with my G10. I have a subject with strong lines, depth and high contrast. I have the camera about 5 cm from the subject. It is well lit, but I do have the aperture closed down to f8. Sometimes the autofocus is good about picking it up but most of the time I get that stupid yellow box. I tried moving the focus box to different parts of the subject but that didn't help either. Unfortunately, even with the zoom feature for focusing the manual focus is not too easy to use.

Any suggestions or tricks for getting the G10 to focus in macro mode?

Thanks - Eric

[neil_r]

What is the MFD on the G10?

[oswaler]

MFD? If that means macro focal distance it is 1cm

[neil_r]

Minimum focal distance
1cm ... well that's my theory down the toilet..... sorry

[Piet]

Any suggestions or tricks for getting the G10 to focus in macro mode?

Thanks - Eric

Hmm, never had any problems like this with my Gs...
You you post an example picture?

[NJdez]

well generally youd want to be shooting macro with your aperture
fully open for the maximum shallow depth of field possible. any reason
why your shooting with it closed?

in certain circumstances iv had issues with the G10 locking focus in macro
mode for any number of reasons. make sure you have servo AF turned off
as that will sometimes interfere with macro focus. other than that, learn
how to use MF properly. its not difficult if you give it some time and practice
a bit, then youll have the sharpest focus possible.

a suggestion if you do start using MF for macro work. focus as best you can
with the scroll wheel, then lock your focus and slightly move the camera in
or out from your subject to perfect it. this is much easier than trying to get
your focus perfect solely through MF.

[denncald]

The problem you describe happens with the G9 too. Manual focus is about the only way to get sharp images when doing Macro work. However, here is a blog article on focus issues with the G9 that may apply to your situation too.

http://lightdescription.blogspot.com/2009/01/g9-focus-vertically-or-horizontally.html

Dennis

[dashtwo]

I'm trying to do macro work with my G10. I have a subject with strong lines, depth and high contrast. I have the camera about 5 cm from the subject. It is well lit, but I do have the aperture closed down to f8. Sometimes the autofocus is good about picking it up but most of the time I get that stupid yellow box. I tried moving the focus box to different parts of the subject but that didn't help either. Unfortunately, even with the zoom feature for focusing the manual focus is not too easy to use.

Any suggestions or tricks for getting the G10 to focus in macro mode?

Thanks - Eric



When using my G9 in MACRO Mode, I get the yellow box if I zoom too much, then I zoom back until I find the point where I get the green box. If I want the image to look closer to the camera than what the new zoom point shows, then I move the camera closer to the subject. It is a balancing act between getting the right camera-to-subject distance and correct zoom. On page-75 of my G9 manual, it states, “Shooting Close-ups (Macro)….The zoom bar will display while you adjust the zoom. In macro mode the zoom bar will appear yellow when the zoom range prohibits focusing. The (flower) icon will grey out and the focusing range becomes that of normal shooting mode.” Just back off the zoom to the point where you do get the green box.

IQ is very important to me and F-4.5 usually yields the sharpest photo on my G9. I sometimes shoot one composition at all apertures from 2.8 to 8.0 in order to be able to select which F-stop actually resulted in the best image. It would be good if you did some tests on tripod to find out which aperture is generally sharpest on your G10.

Pressing the shutter release button half way several times before shooting seems to help get better focus than just pressing once. I have gotten into the habit of pressing 4 times then press the MF button to lock the AF before every shot.

While Macro AF is very reliable on my G9, there are times when I use a different method such as for the three Spanish moss pics below, Manual Focus with a twist. Actually, this will work for any composition whether macro, or not, where you want to be absolutely certain you get the desired focus result you want. Set up the composition then press MF and turn the dial until you get what you think is the best focus position. Next, turn the dial counter clockwise 25 clicks (or whatever number you think is appropriate for the circumstances) to move the focus point closer to the camera, then start shooting. Take 50 shots while turning the dial clockwise one click per shot. This will move the focus point to 25 clicks beyond what you originally thought was the correct focus. Using this method, you won’t have to move the camera around to try and get proper focus therefore you end up with 50 shots of the exact same composition but at 50 different focus points. All you need to do then is select which focus you like best and delete the rest.


This method is time consuming, but definitely has its rewards. I recently spent 3 hours shooting one little 6 inch clump of Spanish moss totaling 600 photos. The lens to subject distance in these pics is 1". I ended up with 12 keepers. These pics show close, medium, and far focus.

I usually shoot in AV mode.

Hope this helps,

DashTwo

[dashtwo]

3rd pic.

DashTwo

[David_Senesac]

My first post on this board folks as I spent this morning reading the 300 page G10 manual, my first ever Canon. Since the macro function was the most important reason for buying the camera, I closely looked at how to set the camera up for that and practiced a bit. Solution is easy.

I always carry a strong 1 watt white LED headlamp in my bag (PT Yukon HL). Only while focusing will have the headlamp pointed at the target. Can use either Auto or Manual focus and auto or manual exposure. One reason I bought this machine is because of the very key and uncommon focus lock function that I will use with the RS-60E3 remote cable I also bought. Set it up for focus lock (MF button) as the easier to actuate Shortcut Button. Thus I expect to have the G10 at the end of my old Benbo Trekker, remote cable plugged in, and camera in Auto Focus with Auto Frame set for FlexiZone plus Spot AE Point, and headlamp pointed at the target. Then will half depress the shutter, click the shortcut button, release the shutter, turn off the headlamp, and at my leisure bend down to look closely at the LCD for focus, since it would then be in Manual Focus mode, tweak if necessary, and then depress the remote shutter whenever to take the shot.

[GordonSBuck]

It's really best to switch to manual focus. You can obtain focus automatically and then switch to manual to 'keep' that focus setting.

The smaller apertures (large F-stop numbers) are usually best to get good depth of field but of course this depends on your goal for that image.

Minimum focus distance varies with focal length (zoom setting).

Here's some other thoughts and examples using the G9
http://lightdescription.blogspot.com/2008/03/g9-macro.html