How to Focus in Video - Manual vs Auto Focus techniques

[@ciarabeo]

Hands down the best video on focusing in video mode that I've seen so far! SO HELPFUL! Thanks!!

[@Movesmedia]

Glad it helped you and thanks for the compliments!

[@bloomfuseproductions]

GREAT VIDEO! after consuming content after getting my first camera 3 days ago (sony a6400) and this is the best practical ADVICE EVER! thanks man

[@Movesmedia]

Awesome, glad it helped and good luck on your journey.

[@matteogiampietro6434]

U totally deserve more media attention !! Thx a ton, just what i was looking for :)

[@Movesmedia]

Glad I could help. Something I would have liked to watch when I was starting out!

[@saleemheggins4989]

Wow, thanks so much for this video!!! It was very detailed and thorough in explaining the thought process behind manual vs auto in different scenarios. I needed this video!!

[@Movesmedia]

No problem, glad it helped!

[@Loveismekelly]

Awesome video thanks! I am doing a videography course on Skillshare and it didn’t quite explain the manual focus settings enough. This video was perfect 👌 and very helpful

[@Movesmedia]

Awesome! Glad I could help!

[@alexmetcalfe4668]

Thanks bro. I'm new to the world of film and this was a really useful video!

[@MikaChicagoalas]

Great video, straight to the point. Thank you!

[@calicreations2029]

tip tops video man you really cleared up my confusion between the 2 functions and the scenario example were spot bloody on thanks heaps keep up the good work

[@Movesmedia]

Thanks Chelsea, glad it helped you!

[@leking1979]

This guy deserves way more subscribers !

[@mhess427]

What autofocus setting does the camera need to be on to reliably keep refocusing on new subjects? For example, I focus on a candle on the coffee table in front of me but then I raise the camera up to look at something in the distance of the room and it doesn’t refocus until I use half-way down on the shutter button.

[@THELIFEOFCB]

Answer this

[@KashSheikh786]

Awesome video man, was looking for quite a while online to find a comparison between af and manual when shooting VIDEO

[@Movesmedia]

Thanks, glad it helped! 🙏

[@coloradofotomatt]

Great video. I've been a still photog for decades and now shooting more video...and...yeah...stumped on AF. Your video told me what I needed to learn...shoot in AF...unless you need to shoot with Manual focus!

[@Movesmedia]

Aweome Matthew, glad it helped. You got it!

[@imadhuri_p]

Thanks for this video, so informative, i was really struggling on knowing which focus is best to use when.

[@birajgautam7437]

great .. straight to the point

[@elementary8963]

Great video - thank you! Quick question - when shooting interviews (manual focus, full frame camera) what f stop would you use to ensure that if subject does move around a little bit they stay in focus? I'm thinking f4 - f5.6?

[@Movesmedia]

It depends on the situation. F4 would be a go to. It's preferable to have lots of space behind the subject so you still get nice boke (blur) behind subject when shooting at f4. If there isn't much room I like to push it to 2.8 and really monitor the subject as I really like that background blur. I'm using autofocus more these days with cameras I trust to keep shallow depth of field on lower fstops and maintain sharp focus when subjects move a bit. Hope that helps!

[@elementary8963]

@@Movesmedia It does help - thank you!

[@RockWILK]

Amen to all of this. Great insight. I am 90% manual, for all the reasons you mentioned. It's just more reliable. The only frustration I have sometimes is if I have a manual lens, like a wide angle SLR magic, or Rokinon, or something like that, or any cinema lens, which would all look awesome for vlogging, but....... it's hard to set manual focus on yourself, and so, I guess you have to suck it up in situations like that and get a decent wide angle lens with autofocus, and stay away from the things certain lenses just don't do well. Anyway, great video, thanks for sharing. Keep up the awesome work. I subscribed. Peace.

[@Movesmedia]

Thanks Rock! Glad it helped. Yes, it's the classic dilemma. Can't have it all and have to make sacrifices for the thing you're doing.

[@Fedgery007]

This was so helpful!

[@aportraitontech5218]

Great reminders!

[@engineerproperty3447]

What gimbal u use in the video?

[@MosiRobinson]

I have a canon 4000D and this has been an issue with me. I have been trying to get it to stay focus and it is driving me nuts because it does not have auto focus, and has to be done manually. Any recommendations as I do beauty videos?

[@iMikriVivliofagos]

Have the same problem on video

[@MosiRobinson]

@@iMikriVivliofagos Uggg the auto focus on this camera seems to be very bad, and it cannot be far away form you either when recording, because it comes out of focus just like that. So you have to keep ensuring it is in focus when recording.

[@iMikriVivliofagos]

@@MosiRobinson i don't know what to do. I must solve this problem

[@Arzenteart]

Thank you for this , Do you just use your feet to focus with a prime lens or can you adjust your f/s 8 or higher to have some leeway while keeping the moving subject in focus? ? Go Vancouver.....

[@Movesmedia]

No problem. That's right, If I'm solo shooting I'll give myself some leeway with the aperture (F8 should be plenty), set focus and try to keep the same distance between subject as camera throughout the movement.

[@mkiorboe]

Thanks for some great inputs 👍 I'm struggling a bit with a recording of a choir, and I'm curious to know how you would handle a multiple-people shoot?

[@Movesmedia]

If you want everything in focus set you're apature to a high F number and manual focus on the subject closest to the camera or in the middle distance between closest and furthest to the camera. Hope that helps!

[@JohnDG]

Thank you so much. keep it up, really helpful.

[@chrysb1572]

Thank you for the video! For interviews (static subject) is there difference between selecting MF and AF-S? Given the small live view screen of the enrty-level dslr I feel MF is risky.

[@Movesmedia]

It really depends on the camera. The more expensive dslr and mirrorless cameras have incredible AF. I would trust those for interviews. But if you're not sure how well yours performs stick to manual and you know you're safe. Just make sure your subject isn't moving around in their chair to much or set your aperture high enough to allow for some back and forth (f4 or f5)

[@photographyvlogsbyrajrb9769]

Very informative 👍 Keep Doing it❤️

[@visivaeyewear]

Thank you, nice video!

[@tato.2938]

all my lenses are manual focus so this helps a ton :)

[@Nathansomething]

I don't know how to use a camera. 😂😥

[@roopaimitationjewellery3453]

Hi sir !.. i have question please ... i want to add all my product image stack in photoshop ..so i want to my Sony A7III camera can take around 15 image automaticaly with all different angel focus ?

[@NeerajSinha31]

How about vlogging with a camera which has flip out screen? We can see if we are in focus or not

[@sharisolomon2254]

I’m filming a yoga routine. At one point I had a couch behind me and everything stayed in focus. I removed the couch. The camera is on AFc. But I find I go in and out of focus. Can you help me?

[@akammer1000]

How do you rack focus on an a7iii without it zooming into the subject on the lcd screen? I find on my camera it makes it hard to compose the shot when it all of a sudden zooms in when I turn the manual focus ring. Thanks in advance for any tips!

[@Movesmedia]

I think you can turn the zoom function off?

[@VRTRIPS74]

i recently got a smooth 4 gimbal for my smartphone, and when using autofocus i get alot of that 'womp womp' in n out of focus..how can i get in focus footage with smartphone?

[@Movesmedia]

Smart phones are tough. Depending on your phone you may or may not be able to change auto focus settings. Lookup if you can lock focus in one place w you phone. Also tap to focus on the subject before the shot and keep that object center frame and the same distance from Camera during the shot. That may help...

[@VRTRIPS74]

@@Movesmedia many thanks!

[@davidsanchez1]

Everything is complicated when you use vlog and you are outdoors. I don't even see the focus on the screen even using peaking. Thanks!

[@joranrijkaart4344]

my 2000D is in Auto focus, and the video i just sharp at all. but when i put something in front of the lens (to show a product) the video is getting blurred and unsharp. how can i fix this?

[@Movesmedia]

Try manual focus. Test if the camera can get a sharp focus in manual. Maybe you're bringing the object too close? Lenses can pickup focus when objects are a certain distance away.

[@kieferkessler7302]

lots of help thanks !

[@LewyReel]

awesome video

[@dewies7581]

My camera doesn't have auto focus in video mode, do you have any tips on how to improve manual focusing?

[@Movesmedia]

I think there are some tips in the video... but a few key ones are to lock in focus and maintain that distance to your subject, use an external monitor to see your picture bigger and make sure you're in focus, use focus peaking if your camera has that. Hope that helps!

[@dewies7581]

@@Movesmedia thanks man, I'll definitely try the focus peaking... I'm just not used to the position of focusing while recording, so I gotta go work on that! But thanks for replying, even after 3 years!

[@footagedronebekasi]

Ngambil pasar indonesia juga ya view nya , dengan cara menggunakan bahasa indonesia di bagian judul

[@SK-so1ml]

Do you have any idea why af does not work and gets blurry as soon as the distance between an object ( or a person) changes? or the the distance between objects is in still and the camera (or person shooting) changes? Thank you.

[@Movesmedia]

This is just your camera having a harder time to identify what to focus on. Check what setting your AF is on. If its on a small spot in the center or wide zone, that is where it is trying to focus. No auto focus system is perfect and the further away objects are from the camera the more conflicting info the camera has to interpret for focusing. Depending on your camera it may not have a good auto focus system capital of more dynamic shots. For moving subjects make sure the AF setting is on continuous and not single shot AF. But if its no good you may have to use manual focus to get it right.

[@SK-so1ml]

@@Movesmedia hi thanks for your reply. I am using a sony-a7iii and using AF-c with a single-spot. When shooting photos I have no problem but when shooting a video it does not work. Do you think I need to have my camera fixed? So right now I need to have everything in manual and its very hard that I am about to quit shooting any videos.

[@Movesmedia]

@@SK-so1ml thats very strange. Is your lens on auto focus? What are you trying to track? A person? See if it works closer to the camera and determine where the problem starts. It should have face detection as well so if your tracking a person's face it should work...

[@SK-so1ml]

@@Movesmedia I was testing it with a coffee can and dog just a few minutes ago. Maybe I found why because I was also pressing the shutter button half way through even when I was shooting videos.

[@Movesmedia]

@@SK-so1ml yup no need to do that! Just let the AF do the work!

[@TheMattLeighton]

Great video

[@MgrNassif]

In this video are you using auto or manual focus?

[@KnightofChristJesus]

Kindly plaster the Wall and paint it White (before the next video?!). Thank You.

[@ARmy2510]

I'm making a movie 99% in low light with constant camera movement. I work with GH5 where autofocus simply sucks and works only with tracking till object won't go outside the franme. Manual focus is hardcore cause focus peaking need a solid light to see actual contrast. I'm simply fucked but do not hesitate:)

[@Movesmedia]

Just plan each shot out with lights on. It would be easiest to do with a follow focus device. Practice your manual focus with lights on then do the shot w lights off... Some trial and error but if you can keep your shots short it's def doable.

[@jonymatvei4468]

good video

[@abhidmusic7819]

good

[@Jesus_not_God_he_worship_him]

The autofocus and the insulation in the cameras was created by God in our eyes and we move it with our minds before He created it in the cameras. Glory be to God, the Great Creator.