Why You Need To Pre-Focus Your Shots
If you're just starting out in digital photography, you'll realize that many of your shots can get out of focus or ruined if you're not careful with exposure and camera handling technique.
One of the more common problems I find is the presence of shutter lag in digital cameras.
You depress the shutter button on the camera, expecting the shot to be taken - but to your surprise the camera waits just a little bit before it "clicks".
That kind of shutter lag can lead to missed photo opportunities and disappointment.
So, what's the solution? Well, it's simple - you just need to "pre-focus" your shots.
In this article, I'll explain to you what "pre-focus" means and why it is absolutely essential to achieving good photo quality.
1.
Understanding Shutter Lag One of the basic things you need to know about digital cameras is the concept of shutter lag.
What is shutter lag? Well, it's the time lag between the moment you depress the shutter button to the time the camera actually options the shutter to capture the shot.
This lag is mostly inevitable, especially in older digital cameras - due to the limitations in mechanics between the shutter button and the camera optics.
Many budding photographers ignore this lag and expect that a photo will be captured the precise moment the shutter button is depressed.
The result? Out of focus pictures and poor quality.
It'll also lead to many missed photo opportunities and quite a bit of frustration.
2.
Learn To Pre-Focus The solution to the shutter lag problem is to learn to pre-focus.
What does this mean? Well to pre-focus means to press down half-way on the shutter button while you compose the shot.
Don't depress it fully yet.
Only when the shot is nicely composed and you've all your subjects smiling properly and so forth, do you fully depress the shutter button.
By doing this, the camera will take the picture the moment you fully depress the button - leading to much less or negligible lag.
So train yourself to walk around with the camera's shutter button half depressed! I know I do it very often when I'm out for vacations and seeing many photo opportunities around me! 3.
Shutter Lag In Modern Cameras Most new digital cameras these days have mechanics which significantly reduce shutter lag.
However, on older digital cameras have the lag issue and that's where you need to apply the pre-focus technique.
Whenever I'm holding an old digital camera (e.
g.
I still have an old Canon Digital IXUS from five years ago) - I'm conscious I should always depress the shutter button halfway down, readying myself for any photo opportunity that comes up.
In summary, shutter lag poses quite some problems for new photographers.
The essential thing is to practice the pre-focus technique so that you're already ready at the shutter button when a photo opportunity comes up.
Keep applying this technique and the quality of your pictures will improve by leaps and bounds.
Good luck!
One of the more common problems I find is the presence of shutter lag in digital cameras.
You depress the shutter button on the camera, expecting the shot to be taken - but to your surprise the camera waits just a little bit before it "clicks".
That kind of shutter lag can lead to missed photo opportunities and disappointment.
So, what's the solution? Well, it's simple - you just need to "pre-focus" your shots.
In this article, I'll explain to you what "pre-focus" means and why it is absolutely essential to achieving good photo quality.
1.
Understanding Shutter Lag One of the basic things you need to know about digital cameras is the concept of shutter lag.
What is shutter lag? Well, it's the time lag between the moment you depress the shutter button to the time the camera actually options the shutter to capture the shot.
This lag is mostly inevitable, especially in older digital cameras - due to the limitations in mechanics between the shutter button and the camera optics.
Many budding photographers ignore this lag and expect that a photo will be captured the precise moment the shutter button is depressed.
The result? Out of focus pictures and poor quality.
It'll also lead to many missed photo opportunities and quite a bit of frustration.
2.
Learn To Pre-Focus The solution to the shutter lag problem is to learn to pre-focus.
What does this mean? Well to pre-focus means to press down half-way on the shutter button while you compose the shot.
Don't depress it fully yet.
Only when the shot is nicely composed and you've all your subjects smiling properly and so forth, do you fully depress the shutter button.
By doing this, the camera will take the picture the moment you fully depress the button - leading to much less or negligible lag.
So train yourself to walk around with the camera's shutter button half depressed! I know I do it very often when I'm out for vacations and seeing many photo opportunities around me! 3.
Shutter Lag In Modern Cameras Most new digital cameras these days have mechanics which significantly reduce shutter lag.
However, on older digital cameras have the lag issue and that's where you need to apply the pre-focus technique.
Whenever I'm holding an old digital camera (e.
g.
I still have an old Canon Digital IXUS from five years ago) - I'm conscious I should always depress the shutter button halfway down, readying myself for any photo opportunity that comes up.
In summary, shutter lag poses quite some problems for new photographers.
The essential thing is to practice the pre-focus technique so that you're already ready at the shutter button when a photo opportunity comes up.
Keep applying this technique and the quality of your pictures will improve by leaps and bounds.
Good luck!
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