Are you getting your focus right? Here’s how to do it.

Not happy with the sharpness or clarity of your photos? This might be related to your focus. In this video I share with you some tips on where to focus, the role proximity and f-stop play in depth of field and some tips on where to focus to you can get your images sharp from front to back.
Want to learn more? Check out the SALE I have on my new post processing course www.williampat...
Thanks for the support on the channel! Please leave any questions below and I'll get back to you :)

[@dandelfuoco171]

Your cinematographer nailed it in this video. Great job!

[@ashleyb66]

Thank you.

[@Oakley5100]

Will your KZbin channels quality has skyrocketed the last few months. I’m sure it is taking a massive effort but we can very much see it. Keep up the great work man!

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thanks a lot I appreciate that. Not sure how sustainable it’s going to be, to be honest. We will see.

[@dcannon85]

This was the exact video I needed, and efficiently covered the different cases-- thank you sir!

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks :)

[@lphilpot01]

Nice clear explanation. I spent so long automatically using f/9 to f/11 that I was surprised to learn (after test shots) that my Canon 70-200 f/4L is typically sharpest at f/5.6 (or occasionally f/8). Of course, there's less DOF than at smaller apertures but at infinity I have to remind myself not to select f/9+ out of habit. It's definitely worth taking controlled test shots at multiple apertures (and focal lengths, if a zoom) to objectively examine the inherent sharpness of a lens. It opened my eyes a bit. 🙂

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Right on! That’s the hard part about teaching aperture, there’s so many variables when it comes down to it.

[@sunilkumargopinathanpillai4888]

Excellent , simple and straight to the point. Thanks

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thanks mate :)

[@Poita00]

Excellent explanation Will.

[@skwerl81]

Is noone else going to acknowledge that squat exit lol!? - Love it! :) This is super helpful as always, thanks Will! One thought/suggestion - I can't always tell the difference in sharpness for the shots when they are one after the other... I wonder if there's a way to post them side-by-side for easier comparison? Regardless, I'm a huge fan, thank you so much for the content and I hope to see you at a workshop in the coming couple of years!

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Glad someone acknowledged the outro! 😅❤️

[@yolandawiersma8180]

Looked like a reverse jack-in-the-box 😂 great video, thanks

[@harolddasynth795]

Hi William,i've learned a lot in 6mins video,thank you,subscribed!

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thanks a lot! ☺️🙏🏻

[@mariolombardi4766]

Nice job Mate!😂

[@maartenroes-francken7996]

Thanks. That was really helpful. I normally shoot 3 bracketed and 3 focus-stacked at the same time . Get's some great results.

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Sounds like a lot of admin work when you get home 😅

[@saxophonistscorner]

Nice explanation, thanks!

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Glad it was helpful!

[@hozo101]

Thank you, awesome helpful video

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thank you!

[@rosssayer6524]

Really helpful William, thanks for sharing 👏👏

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

My pleasure Ross, thanks mate 🙏🏻

[@jayjackman100]

Hi I have been learning from your videos. Been doing photography for a while and it's been a game changer. Very clear to follow and learn. Thank you

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Really pleased to hear that. Thanks for supporting the channel and commenting. It means a lot 🙏🏻☺️

[@andrewedwards3989]

Cheers Will , nice vid , appreciated

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thanks mate 👊🏻

[@woodwidewebeducation]

Excellent information! Thank you!

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thank you!

[@davidmaltby2065]

Great explanation, thank you

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thanks mate!

[@reneepatino7804]

Love this ❤

[@johnthomasdoyle1964]

Thanks William, I needed this.

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

You're very welcome

[@markmurray5276]

William… I was watching a y/tube video the other day .( not surprising) one thing that I’ve been thinking about came up and that is ..when I have settled on my setting, F/ stop, ISO, and Shutter speed. Checked my Histogram…..Why does the compensation dial reading NOT match. If I change the compensation dial to read Zero, then Histogram moves….. should I just pay attention only to the HISTOGRAM or the other.I’m shooting in Raw using a Nikon D 750. ( just one of my frustrations) thanks for your advice. Regards .👍

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Compensation only works in the auto modes, not manual. Manual mode is you taking full control. If you want to adjust exposure, do it via the iso/aperture/ shutter. Cheers :)

[@markmurray5276]

Thank you, very appreciative.

[@stevenkelly1689]

Great explanation of focus king with different types of lenses. Why do you use the larger focus box as opposed to the smaller options?

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thanks. Just easier to hit a specific area. The large box can latch on to something too close/far unintentionally.

[@georgekidd4138]

Just come across your videos excellent clear explanations to all aspects of photography immensely helpful.

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

That means a lot. Thank you.

[@davidligon6088]

Thanks for the video. I always get confused by this rule of thumb. Is “1/3 of the way” 1/3 of the distance from the near focal plane to the far focal plane, or 1/3 of the vertical distance in the viewfinder from the bottom of the frame to the location of the far object. Those are very different. In my experience, there is very little chance of getting the entire scene sharp at f11 without focus stacking on a 60 megapixel full frame sensor - hyperfocal near limit for a full sensor image at 300dpi viewed 12 inches away (with 20/20 vision), taken with a 20mm lens at f11 would be 16 feet from the camera. F16 would be 11 1/2 feet. It’s a rare occasion when I don’t have something closer than that with a 20mm lens.

[@Baker504]

Good info . Thanks

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

My pleasure 🙏🏻

[@noraallen2610]

As always extremely easy helpful! I’d certainly appreciate an intro btw if you would be so kind ! ❤

[@jonathancullen7288]

Nice, simple explanations Will. Which lake are you at here??

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thank you. Lake Te Anau, couple mins from my house :)

[@richardpoland4074]

Hi William, great tips on focusing. Something I really struggle with. Questioin, if I want to use selective focus , i.e. main subject in background tack sharp and foreground really soft do you use manual focus to focus on the background? What fstop would you use or does it even make a difference if the backgrund is over 100 yards away? Thanks William.

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thanks mate. In that case it's all about the f-stop. A shallow aperture will make sure that whatever you focus is on, and everything else will become blurred. The amount of blur will depend on how wide the aperture is (low f-stop), your focal length and your proximity to the subject matter. So, if all the subject matter is far away, there's no real depth and the fstop is almost irrelevant. If you have something near and far, then the fstop will make a big difference to how much is sharp.

[@joanhuggett5164]

Not sure if it was you asking me where my comment went to William. (I've had another comment disappear recently on a birding channel.) My question was to do with focus. Pretty much all my images are soft (even when using a tripod). My son tells me I am 'rock solid' the way I hold the camera (I don't have shaky hands). I have just one spot focus, usually on mid-ground. Generally use f11 and ISO 100-200 (light not being a problem). Shutter speed various depending on wind conditions. Both my husband and son get tack sharp photos using the same cameras (Canons 5DMIV and R5). I am so discouraged, I 'almost' feel like giving up. If it was you, thanks for asking.

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Strange. Could be the lens? Feel free to email some to me and I can take a look :)

[@joanhuggett5164]

Can't be the lens, it's sharp when others use it. Brian (husband) says my trouble is I'm a perfectionist and expect too much (but I'd just like a few sharp photos). Purchased your Masterclass a while back and I'm halfway through. Really enjoying it as I do your channel. Thanks for everything, William (lovely man).

[@joanhuggett5164]

The light goes on, William. Both cameras have touch screens and I think I must inadvertently touch it when taking shots since I steady the camera against my face all the time. This I presume is shifting the focus point.

[@bwashburn8499]

Very helpful video.Which metering mode do you like to use,Spot, Centre or Matrix.

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Thanks. Not sure, it’s pretty irrelevant if you use the histogram, which is more accurate. Cheers :)

[@bwashburn8499]

@@WilliamPatinoPhotography With my D7200 it has not got Live histogram,maybe time to upgrade.Thanks from a wet Ireland.

[@scottfrench3411]

I am having trouble with focus. I am taking a picture of a bridge for example and there are lights on top of the bridge and under the bridge that are not in focus. Do you have a course or videos that will explain this and other important things for taking landscaping photos. Thanks alot

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

That might be related to your f-stop giving you a shallow depth of field. Think of a portrait where the background is blurred. I’ve got a video that explains aperture and depth of field. Check that out :)

[@scottfrench3411]

Thanks alot @@WilliamPatinoPhotography

[@melissahall7009]

📸 thx

[@windleman1]

When you review your photos on the back of the A7riii what magnification do you use to check focus? When i check on mine it seems to zoom way in, and it nearly always seems to out of focus...?

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

That’s one thing I’ve always disliked about Sony. Thankfully on the latest models you can pinch zoom and ease in to a reasonable level. On the older models, after it zoomed right in I would zoom out partially so it wasn’t so pixelated. Use the wheel to zoom back a bit.

[@damianmidro4500]

I don't think you were clear about the focal length in the first example. You mentioned a "wide angle" when you took the green reeds in the foreground.

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Sorry. In general this is what I often mean with my terms: Wide (12-24mm). Mid range (24-70mm). Telephoto or ‘long lens’ (70mm and beyond). That’s for full frame sensors.

[@theStevenPowell]

hey there didn't help me so wanted to know. Photographing a circus tent..... so something like a building etc. Soft on the sides of the tent but centre in focus with 70-200mm. No one really covers side to side with depth of field on one item etc. Thanks

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

That's still related to DOF, it's just that DOF is far shallower at tighter focal lengths. DOF does not effect sides, purely distance closer/further away from the focal point.

[@ashleyb66]

Where would you say infinity in a scene such as this starts from? Is there like some set distance where the aperture value for DOF is irrelevant?

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

On an ultra wide angle, infinity generally starts about 10ft in front of you and Fstop is almost irrelevant. Once you add things closer in the comp, then you will need to start closing down the Fstop. Also, if you have tighter focal lengths then the DOF is shallower and you’ll also need to close Fstop down. Hope that all makes sense! 😅

[@ashleyb66]

@@WilliamPatinoPhotography Thank you for the reply. Yes makes sense. I'm using Fujifilm X-T3 crop sensor with Fuji 16mm f/1.4 prime, so about 24mm full frame. I'm assuming that's not considered ultra wide??

[@inpursuit500]

Focus stack right? Easy in Lightroom

[@rodrigovieira1398]

Great video, do you use back button focus or is it just a dsrl old thing?

[@WilliamPatinoPhotography]

Whatever you prefer. I find it’s almost 50/50 with clients on my workshops. No right or wrong. Personally it feels more natural having the shutter button as my AF.

[@GaryCunninghamyouareenough]

🙏🏻🤟📸

[@johnclarke1319]

Nice lesson. But .. all you guys shoot in woolly hats and thick coats, why are there no lessons in warm weather! rather than lessons on how to freeze your rocks off. ;)

[@nfh222]

Yo bro stop saying gay stuff in diferent way, this y theres homophobic its cause of you bro

[@johnclarke1319]

Photostacking is deceitful, dishonest! might as well use AI, lets keep photography human. if not we are lost as an art.