Sony RX1 - Focus selection in portrait photography

Muizen

Regular
Location
Mechelen, Belgium
Name
Harry Briels
When shooting a portrait, one should focus on an eye.
It seems to me that using flexible spot is the best focus selection because it offers the smallest focusing square.
I expect that this will increase chances that focus is correctly on an eye.

Because I like this small focusing square I tend to use it constantly.

Is this your advise too?
Harry
 
I found focusing with the flexible spot to be very poor (lots of hunting and misfocus), so I never use it. Instead, I most often use the center point focus, then recompose. Face detection and tracking focus also work well.
 
you can leave the 'flexible point' in the center. then you get the benefit of the smaller focus point being more accurate, and you can 'center focus' and recompose. that is what i do all the time. i dont like relocating the FP, but i also want the benefit from the smaller focus box. both can be attained.
 
The problem I have with the small focus box is that it focuses poorly regardless of where I place it. My RX1 focuses well with the center point and poorly with the flexible point, so I don't use the flexible point.
 
Don't know if the RX1's AF system is similar to the A7r's, but for people shooting on that (and the Oly E-M1, for that matter) I turn on zone focus and let facial recognition do it's thing. More accurate than focus/recompose, nails it almost every time. Thankfully, because not having a touch screen still makes it a pain to set the AF point, compared to a DSLR or a mirrorless with touchscreen AF point selection.
 
Back
Top