I could really use some advice....

[LylasMama]

I see sooo many great photos on here and I have spent countless hours playing around with my camera on manual mode and cannot seem to come up with the right formula for great DOF when shooting my daughter from about 1-3 feet away with my 50mm 1.8 lens. I can get the focus down ok when she is about 10-15 feet away, but shooting her closer up(portrait like) no matter what I seem to change she appears extremely blurry and the background is clear! What am I doing wrong??? Also does anyone have a formula for shooting 1-3 feet away from a subject in terms of what iso/fstop ect????

Any help is greatly appreciated!!

-Ashley

[kayl]

What focus points are you using? I usually use the center one, focus on my daughter's eye, and then recompose.I'll often bump the aperture up to 2.8 or so to get a bit more DOF.

When you say that she appears blurry and the background is clear, what do you mean? is she moving during the shot? Is she ever in focus in the viewfinder? What kind of lighting are you shooting in?

[ggalluppi]

that 50mm f1.8 doesn't like to focus close to the subject, back up a little. Also do what kayl said with the focus points. It sounds like you are just focusing on the wrong area.

[LylasMama]

Kayl- I am using the center focus point as well...and it is always right by her eyes, everything looks nice and crisp through the view finder but once I take the shot, she is completely blurry! also she is not moving!

ggalluppi- when I have the camera set on auto with that lens it will take a nice crisp clean clear pic of her from the close distance, but what I want is to be able to control the dof more, hence why playing around in manual mode, I just do not understand why she is always blurry from close up there, surely there must be some settings I that i have all wrong or something?

what about the first numbers, the 1/100 ect, what do you typically shoot with those at for shooting in daylight?

[kayl]

Have you tried shooting in Av mode? That will allow you to set the aperture that you want (control your DOF) while the camera chooses the shutter speed needed to expose the scene "properly" (at least how the camera "thinks" it should be exposed)

You should also give this post a read: http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showpost.php?p=4409166&postcount=1

[SCOTTinNJ]

Try to eliminate all variables and test your lens. If you don't have a tripod, rest the camera on a support and use the timer function. Focus on a static object 1-3 ft away using center point. If that comes out clear, it's likely that either you move when you shoot your daughter or she does. You may need shutter speeds faster than 1/100.

[Skrim17]

post up some shots so we can see.

Ideally you want to be above 1/100 for a little one.

[Grimlock]

What focus points are you using? I usually use the center one, focus on my daughter's eye, and then recompose.

This is solid advise. Once you get this technique down, it becomes second nature. And your shots are always better when they are properly focused.

-------------------

It sounds like your shutter speed may be set to low. Possible motion blur?
Maybe you would like to post an example?

Personally, I NEVER use anything slower than 1/200 with kids. They simply move around too much.

Here's my typical base setup (indoors/outdoors):

-----------------------------------------------------
Indoors: (must have lots of natural lighting or flash bounced)
Camera Make: Canon
Camera Model: Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi
Flash Used: No (OCF)
Focal Length: 35.0mm (35mm 1.4)
Exposure Time: 0.0050 s (1/200)
Aperture: f/2.0
ISO equiv: 100
White Balance: Auto
Exposure: Manual
Exposure Mode: Manual

Indoor Notes: I often open the lens to 1.4 to compensate for light. The trade-off is less DOF. Tougher to nail the focus. But the bokeh is always welcome in my house. Lower lighting situations may also require higher ISO's. ISO should always be set to the lowest possible settings that the situation permits. High ISO = noise/loss of quality. So, I always start with ISO100, and bump up as needed. Better choice is to be creative and find ways to use natural lighting to your advantage. I also use a 580exII [off camera] which leaves me the freedom to bounce in the direction I need, which helps. Never use on-board flash or direct bare flash. It never works out.
-----------------------------------------------------

Outdoors: (Natural lighting / possible fill flash)
Camera Make: Canon
Camera Model: Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi
Flash Used: No
Focal Length: 50.0mm (50mm 1.4)
CCD Width: NaNmm
Exposure Time: 0.0031 s (1/320)
Aperture: f/4.0
ISO equiv: 100
White Balance: Manual
Exposure: Manual
Exposure Mode: Manual

Outdoor Notes: Since you will have light, take advantage of having the wide DOF. Easier focus. I usually start with fast shutter speeds and smaller apertures. Then dial it down until I get it nailed. Watch shadows and direct sunlight, if possible. Typically, I prefer to shoot about 1 1/2 hours before sundown. (The golden hour) This may require a little boost from your fill to lighten the eyes/face.
-----------------------------------------------------

Of coarse these are only examples. But, thought it may help.

For me... my top priorities are the following: Exposure, Focus, and Composition. If I can manage to balance the exposure, make sure my shot is focused on the eyes, and don't blow the framing/busy BG/etc ... then I'm usually okay. Everything else will fall into place.

But, like everything else in life. Practice makes perfect. Keep shooting, and let's see some of those shots!!

Hope that helps.

[troymm]

You should practice using the different focus points, in AI servo mode. Especially with kids. you may not see them move, but even if they move an inch your shot will be OOF at that range.

[LylasMama]

thank you everyone for the tips, and grimlock thank you for taking the time to give me all that info, i really appreciate it!

as far as practicing the focus points, am I missing something? I have it set to manual focus with the center point highlighted, and I make sure it is on her eye area, and it does not seem to make a difference? Is there some other way to adjust focus that I am overlooking??

[troymm]

instead of just using the center point and recomposing, compose first and change the focus point to focus on the eyes. It took me a while to get used to zipping through the wheel to change the focus point, but I found that I got more keepers that way. I alway shoot in AI servo mode when shooting kids, just to keep the AF working. When I was focusing and recomposing, it has to be in one shot focus mode and if the subject or I moved, it would be OOF.

[Skrim17]

Put it in auto focus with the center point enabled.

[Killeramit]

same thing happens to me when using 50mm1.8 inside my house when there is not a lot of light. I tried all settings like one shot, elservo, autofocus , maual focus , focus then compose middle and other focus points , I always shoot in av mode so everything else is auto. with flash or without flash i got all blurry pics. If i use my Kit lens that never happens. may be i am too dumb or i have a bad lens. But outdoors or in mall where is lots of light i get really crisp pics.

[LylasMama]

killeramit- you just described my exact scenario....haha....i feel like an idiot sometimes!

[kayl]

instead of just using the center point and recomposing, compose first and change the focus point to focus on the eyes. It took me a while to get used to zipping through the wheel to change the focus point, but I found that I got more keepers that way. I alway shoot in AI servo mode when shooting kids, just to keep the AF working. When I was focusing and recomposing, it has to be in one shot focus mode and if the subject or I moved, it would be OOF.

The problem is that the 50mm 1.8's af sucks- it'll hunt forever if you're in lower light using the outside focus points (at least on my ancient camera ;))

[JimmyNeutron]

Requirements for using the Nifty Fifty (your 50mm f/1.8) for indoor kid shots:

Put camera in manual "M" mode, autofocus turned on.
Set ISO to 100
Aperture at least f/2.0 or f/2.2 - don't go to f/1.8
Adjust shutter speed to get in-camera light meter in the middle
Shutter speed no slower than 1/160 - if you have to go slower to get the light meter in the middle, then start increasing your ISO until it's happy.
Kids reasonably still (not walking to/from you)
Kids ideally facing (at least partially) a nearby window
Compose, change your selected AF target as required (center is most reliable on the Nifty).
KEEP THE AF TARGET ON THE KID'S EYE as you press the trigger. DO NOT FOCUS LOCK & RECOMPOSE. Plan on cropping later if necessary.
Take the shot, check the image on the camera, make sure the histogram's not shifted too far one way or the other. Adjust exposure/ISO as necessary and keep on chuggin'.

HTH