Stopping re-focus while videoing

Does it have manual focus?

Is there a focus mode - af-s/af-c? If it does, select af-s, and the focus should stay at what you locked on to when you started recording.

rline101 said:

I had a panasonic lumix TZ40 for a few years. It did what I wanted, which was take 720p video. Specifically, it never had any issues with losing and re-gaining focus while recording. I used it on "M", manual mode. Then it died. I (fooloishly) bought a cheaper camera to replace it, the sony DSC W830. No matter what I try, if I'm recording and the subject (assume it's something like a rubik's cube) moves a little, the camera loses the clear focus, and spends a few seconds trying to sharpen the image again. Obviously this is annoying and the videos are unusable currently.

Now I realise I need to get a better camera but I don't know what "bit" of the camera is causing the subject not to stay in focus on this one. I don't want to buy another one and have the same problem. So...

What should I be looking for as a "must-have" in any new camera I buy, so that once I hit "record", the subject remains sharp and focussed all the way through, even if I move it?

Click to expand...

Maybe you should look at getting a dedicated 4K camcorder rather than a DSLR. You've heard that saying, "Jack of all trades, but master at none." It holds true for DSLR's as well!!

Thanks both for your replies.

Snow Crow said:

Maybe you should look at getting a dedicated 4K camcorder rather than a DSLR. You've heard that saying, "Jack of all trades, but master at none." It holds true for DSLR's as well!!

Click to expand...

My big problem is that I don't know what the difference is between all these types of cameras. How would I know that a 4K camcorder would do what I need?

Sheacash said:

Does it have manual focus?

Is there a focus mode - af-s/af-c? If it does, select af-s, and the focus should stay at what you locked on to when you started recording.

Click to expand...

I'm not sure whether it has manual focus. I don't think so. In terms of buttons, the only buttons on the top are the "on" button and the "take photo" button. There's no kind of circular selector (eg on the lumix). When I go into the menu, the only things I see which may be remotely about focussing are

exposure adjustment

exposure compensation

white balance

AF illuminator (which says "fills light for focussing in low light)

digital zoom

When I go to "photo" mode, the relevant menu options are

REC mode, which is auto or P (P is auto exposure with adjustable settings)

Auto Focus, options are multi AF, center AF and Spot AF

I can't find anything specifically that says "af-s or af-c"

So, can you tell me what exactly I should be looking for on a camera or video recorder, so that it will guarantee that the focus remains fixed?

rline101 said:

So, can you tell me what exactly I should be looking for on a camera or video recorder, so that it will guarantee that the focus remains fixed?

Click to expand...

If you manually focus the camera, and do not change either the focus or the focal length / zoom, the focus should stay fixed.

Fixed is not the same as correct. If a subject is moving, fixed focus may soon be incorrect.

Tom_N said:

rline101 said:

So, can you tell me what exactly I should be looking for on a camera or video recorder, so that it will guarantee that the focus remains fixed?

Click to expand...

If you manually focus the camera, and do not change either the focus or the focal length / zoom, the focus should stay fixed.

Fixed is not the same as correct. If a subject is moving, fixed focus may soon be incorrect.

Click to expand...

Are you saying that to achieve what i want (the subject to remain completely in focus while I'm filming), I must buy a camera which specifically has Manual Focus?

rline101 said:

Tom_N said:

rline101 said:

So, can you tell me what exactly I should be looking for on a camera or video recorder, so that it will guarantee that the focus remains fixed?

Click to expand...

If you manually focus the camera, and do not change either the focus or the focal length / zoom, the focus should stay fixed.

Fixed is not the same as correct. If a subject is moving, fixed focus may soon be incorrect.

Click to expand...

Are you saying that to achieve what i want (the subject to remain completely in focus while I'm filming), I must buy a camera which specifically has Manual Focus?

Click to expand...

No, I'm saying that you need to do a better job of specifying what you're after.

If you complain that a camera automatically adjusts focus, and then say that the focus should remain fixed, the implication is that you are asking for a way to fix the focus point so that the camera cannot change it. I.e., manual focusing mode. Just about all interchangeable-lens cameras (DSLRs and MILCs) have this, though ease of focusing varies.

If what you actually want is auto-focus that's completely seamless at tracking a moving subject during video recording, then you need to say that. Then you may be talking about a higher-end camera, or about a device that is specifically designed with the needs of video recording in mind (i.e., a camcorder).

Tom_N said:

No, I'm saying that you need to do a better job of specifying what you're after.

If you complain that a camera automatically adjusts focus, and then say that the focus should remain fixed, the implication is that you are asking for a way to fix the focus point so that the camera cannot change it. I.e., manual focusing mode. Just about all interchangeable-lens cameras (DSLRs and MILCs) have this, though ease of focusing varies.

If what you actually want is auto-focus that's completely seamless at tracking a moving subject during video recording, then you need to say that. Then you may be talking about a higher-end camera, or about a device that is specifically designed with the needs of video recording in mind (i.e., a camcorder).

Click to expand...

Right. Thankyou. Let me try and make it as clear as I can. I've uploaded a 10 second test video here:
[make sure your youtube settings are watching it at 720p]

The subject is initially focussed. You'll see exactly what it's doing all through it, but particularly around the 6 second mark. It goes right out of focus and then at the end of that video, it comes back into focus. This behaviour is what I need NOT to happen. I need the subject to remain completely in focus throughout. The movement of the subject won't ever be more than what you see in that video. As in, it's what I'd call "gentle" movement, nothing like super-fast motion.

Does this help? Does what I want require a camera with manual focusing mode?

Snow Crow said:

Maybe you should look at getting a dedicated 4K camcorder rather than a DSLR. You've heard that saying, "Jack of all trades, but master at none." It holds true for DSLR's as well!!

Click to expand...

I'm constantly surprised at how this simple logic escapes a majority of people on these forums. I've used my DSLR for video a few times, but always go back to my dedicated video camera because its just better equipped for video shooting.

dwalby said:

Snow Crow said:

Maybe you should look at getting a dedicated 4K camcorder rather than a DSLR. You've heard that saying, "Jack of all trades, but master at none." It holds true for DSLR's as well!!

Click to expand...

I'm constantly surprised at how this simple logic escapes a majority of people on these forums. I've used my DSLR for video a few times, but always go back to my dedicated video camera because its just better equipped for video shooting.

Click to expand...

In my case, I don't need a super-dooper video camera. I'm just trying to find out what feature on a camera will do what I need it to do (not continually re-focus - see my previous post with the youtube link).

rline101 said:

Does this help? Does what I want require a camera with manual focusing mode?

Click to expand...

I'll let others answer that. I know from my own experience that consumer camcorders that run with auto-focus on all of the time tend to experience this behavior. Also, from the comments that I have seen birders make in these forums, I gather that DSLRs vary considerably in their ability to do predictive autofocus when taking a series of still photos of birds in flight.

This makes me skeptical of whether you're going to find continuous autofocusing, with the quality you want, on a relatively inexpensive camera. But others may have different experience.

Tom_N said:

rline101 said:

Does this help? Does what I want require a camera with manual focusing mode?

Click to expand...

I'll let others answer that. I know from my own experience that consumer camcorders that run with auto-focus on all of the time tend to experience this behavior. Also, from the comments that I have seen birders make in these forums, I gather that DSLRs vary considerably in their ability to do predictive autofocus when taking a series of still photos of birds in flight.

This makes me skeptical of whether you're going to find continuous autofocusing, with the quality you want, on a relatively inexpensive camera. But others may have different experience.

Click to expand...

Earlier, you wrote:

"If you complain that a camera automatically adjusts focus, and then say that the focus should remain fixed, the implication is that you are asking for a way to fix the focus point so that the camera cannot change it. I.e., manual focusing mode. "

I was fairly sure then that you were confirming that if I want the focus to remain fixed, I need manual focusing mode. All I'm asking for is for you, or someone else, to confirm this.

EOM

rline101 said:

dwalby said:

Snow Crow said:

Maybe you should look at getting a dedicated 4K camcorder rather than a DSLR. You've heard that saying, "Jack of all trades, but master at none." It holds true for DSLR's as well!!

Click to expand...

I'm constantly surprised at how this simple logic escapes a majority of people on these forums. I've used my DSLR for video a few times, but always go back to my dedicated video camera because its just better equipped for video shooting.

Click to expand...

In my case, I don't need a super-dooper video camera. I'm just trying to find out what feature on a camera will do what I need it to do (not continually re-focus - see my previous post with the youtube link).

Click to expand...

the feature you're asking about is on every dedicated video camera, regardless of price, its not an advanced feature. If you want to buy another still camera that was jury rigged to add video capabilities knock yourself out.

shk12 said:

EOM

Click to expand...

Wow, what an amazing forum this is. I was pretty excited at the prospect of a forum that seemed to have regular answers, and had a section specifically for beginners, answered by "experts". Here's what the experts have told me:

shk12 wrote: "videoing is not a word"

The last in a number of completely pointless and useless answers, designed only to show others how witty you are.

dwalby said:

Snow Crow said:

Maybe you should look at getting a dedicated 4K camcorder rather than a DSLR. You've heard that saying, "Jack of all trades, but master at none." It holds true for DSLR's as well!!

Click to expand...

I'm constantly surprised at how this simple logic escapes a majority of people on these forums. I've used my DSLR for video a few times, but always go back to my dedicated video camera because its just better equipped for video shooting.

Click to expand...

Great. Thanks for your profound wisdom. In no way did this help answer any aspect of my question, but, yeah, thanks...

dwalby said:

rline101 said:

In my case, I don't need a super-dooper video camera. I'm just trying to find out what feature on a camera will do what I need it to do (not continually re-focus - see my previous post with the youtube link).

Click to expand...

the feature you're asking about is on every dedicated video camera, regardless of price, its not an advanced feature. If you want to buy another still camera that was jury rigged to add video capabilities knock yourself out.

Click to expand...

Again, nothing whatsoever in the way of an answer. Could I be clearer? "what feature on a camera will do what I need?" I even provided a short video to show exactly what was happening, but no-one can confirm what this magical feature actually is. All they can do is insult me.

(Thanks only to sheacash, and to TomN (only the initial post) who gave me a vague idea of what I needed.)

What a waste of my time this has been. I guess now I know how beginners are treated on this forum.

rline101 said:

shk12 said:

EOM

Click to expand...

Wow, what an amazing forum this is. I was pretty excited at the prospect of a forum that seemed to have regular answers, and had a section specifically for beginners, answered by "experts". Here's what the experts have told me:

shk12 wrote: "videoing is not a word"

The last in a number of completely pointless and useless answers, designed only to show others how witty you are.

dwalby said:

Snow Crow said:

Maybe you should look at getting a dedicated 4K camcorder rather than a DSLR. You've heard that saying, "Jack of all trades, but master at none." It holds true for DSLR's as well!!

Click to expand...

I'm constantly surprised at how this simple logic escapes a majority of people on these forums. I've used my DSLR for video a few times, but always go back to my dedicated video camera because its just better equipped for video shooting.

Click to expand...

Great. Thanks for your profound wisdom. In no way did this help answer any aspect of my question, but, yeah, thanks...

dwalby said:

rline101 said:

In my case, I don't need a super-dooper video camera. I'm just trying to find out what feature on a camera will do what I need it to do (not continually re-focus - see my previous post with the youtube link).

Click to expand...

the feature you're asking about is on every dedicated video camera, regardless of price, its not an advanced feature. If you want to buy another still camera that was jury rigged to add video capabilities knock yourself out.

Click to expand...

Again, nothing whatsoever in the way of an answer. Could I be clearer? "what feature on a camera will do what I need?" I even provided a short video to show exactly what was happening, but no-one can confirm what this magical feature actually is. All they can do is insult me.

(Thanks only to sheacash, and to TomN (only the initial post) who gave me a vague idea of what I needed.)

What a waste of my time this has been. I guess now I know how beginners are treated on this forum.

Click to expand...

Your camera doesn't have manual focus, so the only hope you have to achieve what you want to do is if it has an autofocus mode that autofocuses on a point at the start of recording and then stays focused on that point throughout recording. This is usually called af-single as opposed to continuous or face-tracking, or some other. Accoding to the spec on dpReview sheet it has this mode, at least for stills. Go through the focus modes on the camera and see if there is one that works for video. I don't have that camera, or any Sony camera, so I can't help with the menu diving.

If you want the focus to remain fixed on a static location, then you want manual focus. If you want it fixed on a moving object, that's way more complicated.

I looked up the manual for your camera and as far as I can tell, it doesn't have manual focus, but it does have pretty robust auto-focus options. Using a different focus mode might help. I'd try the tracking focus. Your manual can be found here if you don't have it.