Hyperfocal vs marks

[William Mckay]

Hello,

 

Noob here. I'm still learning thanks to this great forum, but don't have many professional productions locally to learn on first

hand - so it's slow going! I seem to learn something every time my film scans come back, but it gets expensive. $

 

For wide shots with motion using a wide lens - cars, people, or an area of interest is coming into the frame - at what point would one switch to a hyperfocal distance? vs using marks?

 

Is anyone using hyperfocal for making sure wide, deep masters are in focus?

 

What about day exteriors, eg. a car pulling into a parking space in a wide shot?

 

What about on night exteriors, with less light and a wider apertures?

 

 

The lens marks get so tiny and hard to deal with at a point.

 

Thanks to everyone here in advance

 

Will

[Steve Zimmerman]

I'm no master AC, but I would assume that hyperfocal would be helpful for wider lenses on a film camera. The image is so small, it would be difficult to check for exact focus. If you had a car approaching in the distance and stopping at 10ft from the camera, start at hyperfocal, then as the car becomes close enough breach the boundries of hyperfocal depth of field, start turning the folow focus knob and follow precise marks, until your lens marks and the car stop at 10ft together.

 

Is there maybe a better method without using a measuring laser?? Anyone? :unsure: Thanks!

 

Steve

Edited October 31, 2012 by Steve Zimmerman

[Richard Burton]

It's useful if it will work within the parameters of your shot, but most AC's would probably feel better pulling focus. I have used them extensively for aerial work and even gone so far as to calibrate many zooms so that I had marks beyond 50', usually 500' which is much more useful. The pocket wizard program is great for calculating hyper focal if you don't already have it.

[Steve Wallace]

I use hyperfocal with wide lenses when I am hand holding and want everything in focus. For example, when I'm shooting promo materials for bands or whatever, this is handy method. That isn't to say that marking can be off. AND FINALLY, sometimes the markings are right, but my DOF calculator appears off. (the Kodak one for Android / Iphone). Which I don't have a geat explanation for.

 

Albeit, not the typical AC situation.

[stephen taylorwehr]

As a focus puller I try to go by the marks as much as possible. more precise yields better results. wide shots are of course much easier but it all depends on how close youre your subject matter is. Depending on the lens if your subject is closer than 20 feet hyperfocal will do more harm than good. With wide lenses i tend not to worry too much about things past 50 feet. that will give you a better idea of where to place your focus. I use P-cam a lot. when in doubt always check but you eventually know what it's going to say

[Larry Nielsen]

Don't trust, and I repeat don't trust hyperfocal on wide lenses, you may look at your worry wheel and see a 10mm with a 4 stop yeilds 3ft to infinite. put that lens at 3 feet and look down the finder, you'll be amazed at whats not in focus.

[dan kessler]

Don't trust, and I repeat don't trust hyperfocal on wide lenses, you may look at your worry wheel and see a 10mm with a 4 stop yeilds 3ft to infinite. put that lens at 3 feet and look down the finder, you'll be amazed at whats not in focus.

 

In no way am I questioning your experience or your recommendation not to trust the charts,

but do you really mean what you just said?

 

I don't think you want to set focus at the low end of the hyperfocal range, but inside it.

[Stuart Brereton]

Don't trust, and I repeat don't trust hyperfocal on wide lenses, you may look at your worry wheel and see a 10mm with a 4 stop yeilds 3ft to infinite. put that lens at 3 feet and look down the finder, you'll be amazed at whats not in focus.

 

Surely, the lens should be focused at 6ft to yield 3ft to Inf?

[Stuart Brereton]

I don't think you want to set focus at the low end of the hyperfocal range, but inside it.

 

Focus should be set at the Hyperfocal distance for it to work.